Separated at Birth: Meathead & Meth-head

Dana White & Andre Agassi

Follow us on Twitter@HHReynolds or Click Here to get HHR in your inbox.

Be John McEnroe

Love this new commercial spot for EA's Grand Slam Tennis.

Follow us on Twitter@HHReynolds or Click Here to get HHR in your inbox.

Fact Check

Nice to know that SI takes the time to fact check their pre-written stories before sending them out on Twitter.

Follow us on Twitter@HHReynolds or Click Here to get HHR in your inbox.

Tired of Putting Down Cavemen, Billie Jean King Turns Attention to President

Politico:

Before presenting tennis legend Billie Jean King with the Medal of Freedom Wednesday, President Obama ticked off some ...

... of her accomplishments: 12 Grand Slam titles, 101 doubles titles, 67 singles titles.

“Pretty good, Billie Jean,” he quipped.

But he didn’t get any of it right, according to King herself.

“They didn’t get any of my facts right,” King lightheartedly noted afterward. “Did you see all the – how many titles I won? I was cracking up.”

“Not even in the ballpark,” she continued.

King found it amusing, and said her accomplishments on the court aren’t the most important.

“I thought it was adorable,” she said.

Asked what Obama got wrong, she said, “Well the Grand Slam’s at 39 not at 12.”

Interestingly, the award presentation's official ceremony and White House comments noted: "With Billie Jean King pushing us, the road ahead will be smoother for women, the future will be brighter for LGBT Americans, and our nation's commitment to equality will be stronger for all."

All, except cavemen.



FYI: Jack Kemp was among the others awarded.

Follow us on Twitter@HHReynolds or Click Here to get HHR in your inbox.

The King of Pop and the Sports Figures He Inspired

In a few hours, hundreds of thousands of dillusional idol worshipers will descend upon the Staples Center in LA to pay homage to recently deceased pop cultural wackadoo Michael Jackson.

Over the years, several athletes have paid their own respects to King of Pop in their own unique and special ways. Today, we look back at some of those tributes.

Frank Drebbin, Moonwalker

Byron "Beat It" Houston

Bruce "Man in the Mirror" Jenner

Ray "Smooth Criminal" Lewis

Billie Jean King is Not My Lover

Donovan "Thriller" McNabb

"Iron" Mike Jackson

Heee Heeee...Oowww

Play Him Off, Ron Artest...

Follow us on Twitter @HHReynolds or Click Here to get HHR in your inbox.

Separated at Birth: Sunshine on Martina's Shoulders

"Let me tell you another funny story, New Jack. Back in '74 the great Charlie Rich was named country musician of the year. Then, in '75 he had to hand the award off to the new winner. And you know who that was? Mr. Sunshine on my GD shoulders, John Denver. Can you believe it? Replaced by John F-N Denver. Well I'll be dammed if Mr. Rich didn't pull out his cigarette lighter right there and light that award on fire in front of everyone."

Follow us on Twitter@HHReynolds or Click Here to get HHR in your inbox.

Martina Navratilova's Ex-Lover/Wife Calls Tennis Great a Hypocrite on Gay Rights

As great as Martina Navratilova was on the court, she continues to strike out on the relationship front. For the second time, Navratilova is being dragged to court by a former lover after a failed long-term relationship.

This time, however, wife Toni Layton is calling a spade a spade, nothing that Navratilova, an outspoken champion for gay rights, is hiding behind "Florida's antiquated anti same-sex laws" to prevent Layton from receiving what she feels is her fair due in the breakup.

Marti makes out she's a champion of gay rights and sees herself as an icon for the gay and lesbian community. She has publicly urged people who are gay to 'come out' and stand up for their homosexuality.'

Yet here she is, hiding behind Florida's antiquated anti same-sex laws, trying not to give me a fair deal for those eight years I was there for her at every minute of the day and night.

If I was a man, married or not, I'd be entitled to half of everything that she earned during those years together. But because I'm a woman, it seems, rather conveniently, she believes I'm entitled to next to nothing.

Marti knew that when she decided it was time to get rid of me and move on with her life. And that is why I am having to sue for a breach of our partnership.

Follow us on Twitter@HHReynolds or Click Here to get HHR in your inbox.

John McEnroe Has a Going Problem

(Kenny Mayne just has problems.)



People just can't seem to let this guy piss in peace...

Follow us on Twitter @HHReynolds or Click Here to get HHR in your inbox.

Have You Gotten Your BlogsWithBalls Tickets Yet?

Hermaphrodite Rising in Women's Tennis Ranks

No, we are not referring to either of the Sisters Williams.


According to The Advocate, German Sarah Gronert, 22, "was born with both male and female genitalia but underwent surgery to become female both legally and physically."

Now, critics are debating whether or not she should be able to compete in the women's ranks.

Says the LGBT site: "some coaches, players, and officials charge that she seems unnaturally strong for a woman and speculate, based on her birth condition, that she may benefit from a higher-than-average distribution of male hormones -- and question whether she should therefore be allowed to compete against women at all."

Everyone speaks of equality, yet differentiating leagues between sexes clearly advocates (pun intended) a distinction between males and females, and implies the notion that that men are simply better athletes than women.

Maybe Barack was on to something.

H/T Andrew Sullivan

Follow us on Twitter @HHReynolds or Click Here to get HHR in your inbox.

Andre Agassi, Mall Rat

From PhillyEdge.com:

This summer tennis great Agassi, who retired in 2006, will make his return to professional tennis as a member of the Philadelphia Freedoms of the Advanta World TeamTennis Pro League. The team, which plays its home matches at Freedoms’ Stadium at the King of Prussia Mall, will open their 2009 season July 6.

Follow us on Twitter @HHReynolds or Click Here to get HHR in your inbox.

Johnny Mac Hugs It Out

Mister Irrelevant got some footage I was looking for and saved me the trouble.

Here's the tennis bad boy getting all sentimental.



Personally, I want to thank McEnroe FOR SAYING THE THINGS THAT NEEDED TO BE SAID.

Are You F*ckig Kidding Her?

Yesterday some readers tipped us off on some fantastic tennis sites that we wanted to share.

The first is dedicated to players going off on the man in the lifeguard chair, "TheUmpIsAlwaysRight.com."

We give you the great Maria Sharapova in all her grunting and cursing glory...



The second echoes what we talked about yesterday with tennis embracing online technology. Recently, HHR signed up for Twitter, after hearing raves about it from friends of ours that are users. While we ourselves are still getting used to its usage, tennis fans have taken it to a new and likely unprecedented level with Twennis.com which is "aggregating all the conversations by Twitter-ers talking about Tennis" according to reader Julia Roy.

For those of you unaware of what Twitter is, it is essentially a mini blog, in which users can send and receive mini updates via web-messaging or phone based-texting services.

This week's The Sporting News pointed out that Jazz PG Deron Williams has his own Twitter feed, in which he can give fans bite-sized updates rather than sit and compile full-length blog posts.

In addition to HHR, some other sports blogs such as Sportaphile, NESW , Signal to Noise, The Jets Blog and The 700 Level have their own feeds to keep on-the-go readers up to date.

Again, it's refreshing to see Tennis out in front on mobilizing and allowing interaction among fans. Hopefully more sports, and athletes for that matter, will follow.

Tennis Connects With Digital Age

Fellow BallHyper apalmer7 passed along a tip noting that TennisChannel.com is offering (free?) live streaming of the French Open from May 25-June 8.

Some of you may have caught Blogging Ambassador Will Leitch's article in the April 2008 issue of Fast Company Magazine, "MLB's Digital Dominance." The article highlighted the success of MLB Advanced Media and its overall impact on the sport's bottom line.

A side bar in the print issue looked at the steps taken by each of the "big four" (baseball, football, hoops & hockey) to integrate online technology into their overall business strategies.

With that in mind, the TennisChannel's online foray is a great step for any sport, namely the minor/individual ones who clamor for the exposure of an MLB or NFL. Continued exploration into online media can not only help boost the sport's revenue, but also help expand its fan base, with seemingly little risk.

My first impression on such advancement was when contributer Rusty had us over a few years ago for the Daytona 500 and had his lap top (via NASCAR.com, I believe) tuned in to Dale Jr.'s pitcrew/car communications. To me - a non-NASACR fan - this was amazing. It held me captivated for hours. The following week when I tried watching a race on my own. I made it about 5 minutes until I had to shut'er down.

Will the TennisChannel's streaming make me an overnight tennis fan? Unlikely. But it provides fans additional access to matches and might pull in an extra few casual fans to catch some action. For sports nuts stuck in cubicals all day, who wouldn't give it a shot?

Tennis Anyone? Another College Athlete Vying for a Shot at Love

Scott Dickert via itausa.com

We'll admit, A Shot At Love II is an absolute trainwreck. One that we just can't turn away from.

First we noted that contestant Bo Kunkle from Ohio was a high school football coach. He proceeded to get headbutted and snuck in the jaw.

We since decided to pull for fellow Garden Stater and former college softball standout/coach Lisa Rizzo. Rizzo then went on to call Tila "fake." While this is probably dead-on accurate, she may have punched her ticket out of the house.

So today we look at another former athlete/coach vying for a shot at Tila's love.

A few weeks back, the Green Bay Press Gazette alluded that contestant "Scotty" is likely Scott Dickert, a former University of Wisconsin-Green Bay tennis player.

Dickert is listed on the UWGB Tennis website as a Student Assistant to the team.

While "Dickert has no comment on whether or not that's him on the show," the resemblance is remarkable.


Regardless, we're still pulling for Rizzo.

Tony Danza is 57 and Sucks at Tennis

Ay Oh, Oh Ay.

Happy Birthday to HHR's favorite actor, singer, dancer, talk show host.



Via: PopWatch Blog

Anna Kournikova is still not hot

Never saw it. Never will. Anna Kournikova. Now she has gone and made herself even less attractive.

The 26-year-old blonde, who last played professional tennis in 2003, ran four miles of the Nautica South Beach Triathlon in Miami on Sunday to help raise money for St Jude's Children's Hospital.

That's more than she ever ran on the tennis court. Add the unattractive tramp stamp peeking through her shirt like a chick out a dorm room before the Sunday morning walk of shame and she is the total package of horrendous.

She should use the same lazer on that tat that Enrique used on his mole.

Common Likes Him a Strong Woman

Photo: PER / Fame

According to People, "Tennis star Serena Williams and hip-hop artist Common made no secret of their blossoming relationship this past weekend in Miami, where they went club-hopping hand-in-hand."

Common: "I'm attracted to women that are strong in the sense of who they are. I like women who have power to them, but can still be ladylike and that have their own dreams."

And by "strong" and "ladylike" he means "bootylicious."

Exhibit A:

Grunting with the Stars

As Monica Seles stumbles her way through Dancing with the Stars, unless she finds herself a compettive edge, she's likely not going to remain on the show much long.

Perhaps she should give a call to an old friend.

From this month's Men's Vogue:

In the early 1990s, Monica Seles grunted her way to nine Grand Slam titles and became the game's top-ranked female player for two years running. At its peak, her ox-like bellow measured 93.2 decibels — not Sharapovian, but loud enough for the London tabloids to compare it to a freight train. This made Seles something of a pariah on the women's tour — Martina Navratilova once complained that Seles was making such a ruckus that she couldn't hear the ball come off the racket. What few people know is that Seles's grunting was not an unseemly habit but a deliberate competitive strategy, drilled into her by a sports psychologist named Jim Loehr.

Loehr, who is chairman and CEO of the Human Performance Institute in Orlando, Florida, is the father of tennis grunting. There had long been grunters on tour, players like Vicki Palmer and Jimmy Connors, but never before had the grunt been harnessed as a performance tool. Grunting helps to relax the muscles, Loehr claims, and prevents the kind of stiffness that results in "iron elbow" — which can cause a forehand to find its way into the net. Loehr met Seles in 1986, when she was a timid and polite 12-year-old, a condition that carried over into her game. Loehr encouraged her to breathe out forcefully — to grunt — and soon the pint-size Seles became a ferocious, swaggering player. As the trophies piled up, Seles unleashed her full inner grunter. "She felt so good that it became more and more vocal," Loehr told me recently. When noises of discontent emerged from what one Wimbledon referee would later dub the "counter-grunt culture," Seles turned down the volume. "The world says stop, then she stops and she loses three consecutive finals," Loehr says. Seles reported receiving anguished fan letters that read, "Monica, you've got to grunt again."

The nature of grunt-hating can be directly tied to Seles's lips. It turns out grunting is not just a case of poor etiquette, like belching at the dinner table or forgetting to wipe the sweat off the StairMaster. What underlies the Seles case — and that of the spate of recent grunters like Stuart Sugarman and Alex Rodriguez — is gamesmanship. Grunting is about exerting power. "The alpha ape was a grunter," says Samuel Davis, and while this conclusion requires more study, it looks like he's on to something.

From Tennis with Love...

Roger Federer’s ousting from the Aussie Open came as an absolute shock to me. Not because Federer finally didn’t make a Grand Slam final but because he lost to someone named Novak Djokovic. What the hell is a Novak? I don’t follow tennis that closely, but I am not sure if that’s a name or a vodka. So, I went to the CBS Sports Tennis page to see how many other tennis names I didn’t recognize. How do you say ‘a lot’ in Russian? Djokovic is ranked third in the world. Who knew.)

So, I want to make myself feel better, while testing the cluelessness of the HHR readership. I’ve listed several names and hyper-linked to a picture of each. First look at the name and try and guess if it's the name of a tennis player, a brand of vodka, or a James Bond villain. Let me know how many you get right in the comment section.

And don’t run your mouse over the links before hand you cheating bastards.

Kristatos
Stolichnaya
Chekov
Orlov
Pavlioutchenkov
Luksusowa
Soloviev
Blofeld
Koskov
Tursunov
Mor

Person with the most correct gets a Goldfinger in their Octopussy.

Russian Tennis Player tied up, robbed

From Fox Sports:

MOSCOW (AP) - Russian tennis player Anna Chakvetadze was tied up by robbers who broke into her home outside Moscow on Tuesday and stole money and goods worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, her father said.

The thief also made away with most of the vowels in Anna's name.

Here are some photos of Anna:




Yeah...so..Not going to lie. The whole 'tied up' thing. Kind of hot. Very Skin-a-max. And they tied up the maid too? Wow. Getting warm in here.

Serious.