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Oct 4 '17
Some of us are morning people while others are night owls. Custom Chicago Bears Jerseys . In golf some are early season performers and others wait until the fall. So far in his career, David Hearn is most definitely not someone who enjoys the early part of the calendar. At least not when it comes to logging high finishes. "For whatever reason, Ive never had much success early in the year," said Hearn. "The West Coast just hasnt been good for me." In the four tournaments hes played since the calendar changed years, Hearn as two missed cuts, a T58 and a T38. Its a slow but not unexpected beginning. A year ago, in five West Coast starts, he missed three cuts. A year prior to that, he posted a tie for 10th at the SONY in Hawaii before missing the next two cuts. "Id like to be in a better spot, obviously," said Hearn from Florida where he was getting in some practice before heading to Los Angeles for his next start. "Hopefully that will happen at Riviera." Hearn isnt worried about his spot on the money list just yet. In fact, hes quite optimistic about where things are headed. He says his game is coming together faster than in any previous years, adding theres no glaring holes in his performance - its just a matter of tightening everything up. There hasnt been much down time for the Brantford, Ont., product of late. He played four times before Christmas on the new wrap-around schedule and then teamed with Brad Fritsch to represent Canada in the World Cup in Australia in late November. There was a little time spent at the TaylorMade test centre dialing in his new gear as well as some family time back in the snow in Ontario. And he made the trek to Ann Arbor, Mich., to watch his beloved Toronto Maple Leafs play the Detroit Red Wings outdoors at the Big House. But shortly after, it was back to work. Hearn enjoyed his best year as a professional in 2013, earning more than $1.1 million. The highlight of his season came at the John Deere Classic where he lost in a playoff. That performance didnt surprise him in any way; he always believed he had the talent to play at that level. And it provided a taste of what hed like to experience more often. "Thats what Im trying to accomplish each and every week," he said. "You just want to put yourself in that position as much as you can." Rather than being known as a long driver or a pure ball-striker or a great putter, Hearns strength has always been his consistency with every club in his bag, his all-around game. Its something hes been focused on in the early part of this season. "My stats are not that great but if I can just improve the numbers a little bit Ill be happy," said Hearn, who will continue to use his long putter this season. "It really just boils down to being competitive. Im always trying to improve." Hearn has always been an ardent flag-waver and senses an up-tick in the play of Canadian professionals on various tours. He thinks some of that is awareness caused by his best friend out on tour. "I think Canadians are getting highlighted and inspired thanks to how well Graham [DeLaet] is playing," he stated. "Its fun to watch him play these days. It doesnt seem to matter what he does on Thursday and Friday, he just finds a way to get into contention on the weekend." For Canadian golf, Hearn said, that builds momentum. Its something thats been missing for a while, since the days Mike Weir was seemingly in the hunt to win every week. "When Mike was in his prime, I dont think people realized how good he was," Hearn stated. "It wasnt just the Masters win, it was major after major, week after week, he was in contention. "That definitely inspired me and I think thats happening again. We have a lot of good players right now." For the next couple of weeks, Hearn will be in the cheering section, watching Canadas athletes at the Winter Olympics in Sochi. Obviously hockey will be at the forefront of his viewing schedule but he also said hell follow almost any sport and is amazed at such endeavours as biathlon. "It will be disappointing being in the U.S., though," he laughed. "Ill have to watch mostly U.S. athletes." If his play continues to improve, two years from Hearn might be representing Canada at the Olympics in Rio rather than watching from a distance. Richard Dent Jersey . - Justin Turner is at his best with runners in scoring position, and he delivered again in a big spot for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Walter Payton Jersey . Freddie Roach said if the Rios fight "does not go well, we will seriously talk about his retirement," but that Pacquiao was training as well as ever for the Nov. SAN FRANCISCO -- Tim Lincecums days of dominance may be in the past. That doesnt mean he cant dial up flashes of the Freak he once was -- especially against the San Diego Padres. Lincecum pitched his second no-hitter against the Padres in less than a year, allowing only one runner Wednesday and leading the San Francisco Giants to a 4-0 win. "Ive always been that guy who will kind of go for the strikeout," Lincecum said. "I think my first no-hitter I had 13, so I think I was going for those a little bit more often." "Today I tried to be a little bit more efficient and take what they were going to give me. They were giving me a lot of groundballs and a lot of pop flies, so I was just going to try to keep attacking the way that I was," he said. Lincecum totally shut down the weakest-hitting team in the majors, striking out six and walking one in a 113-pitch outing -- 35 fewer than he needed last July 13 against the Padres in his first no-hitter. Lincecum retired the final 23 batters after walking Chase Headley in the second inning, relying much more on his off-speed stuff than his fastball. Though the Padres hit a few balls hard, San Francisco fielders didnt need to make any exceptional plays to preserve Lincecums gem. The right-hander with two NL Cy Young Awards became just the second pitcher in major league history to twice no-hit the same team. Hall of Famer Addie Joss did it for Cleveland against the Chicago White Sox with a perfect game in 1908 and a no-hitter in 1910. "Its hard enough to do one," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. "To do two, that puts you in a little different class. I couldnt be happier." Lincecum (6-5) threw the 16th no-hitter in Giants team history. Just one other pitcher has thrown two -- Christy Mathewson for the New York Giants more than 100 years ago. In fact, Lincecum joined Sandy Koufax, Randy Johnson and Roy Halladay as the only pitchers with two Cy Young awards and two no-hitters. "Just to be in that company allows me a chance to pat myself on the back a little bit," he said. Making the performance even sweeter was the fact that Lincecum even got two hits of his own, becoming the first pitcher with two hits in a no-hitter since Rick Wise hit two homers for Philadelphia against Cincinnati on June 23, 1971. "Regardless of what they did, I think its cool I got two hits anyway because up to today I only had one and a pretty poor batting average," Lincecum said. "I got that thing above .100 and I feel much better about it." But Lincecum will always be known for his pitching. He arrived as a shaggy-haired phenom nicknamed the Freak in 2007 for his ability to generate tremendous velocity from his slight frame. He won NL Cy Young awards in 2008 and 09 and helped lead the Giants to their first World Series title in San Francisco the following season. As age and wear and tear ate away at his velocity, Lincecum was forced to change what kind of pitcher he is. Tom Compton Jersey. It hasnt been an easy transformation at times as he posted a losing record the past two seasons as his ERA hovered around 5.00. He was even relegated to the bullpen when the Giants won it all again in 2012 but was brought back with a $35 million, two-year deal last off-season for moments just like this. "I think its been a battle for him at times to make that transformation to what he is now," Bochy said. "Sometimes less is more, and thats what I think if anything, hopefully he learned today." Headley walked with one out in the second after falling behind 1-2 in the count. The Padres began the day worst in the majors in batting average, runs and hits. "He was good. It wasnt a fluke," Headley said. "His split and changeup or whatever you want to call it. If its not the best in baseball, then its one of the best pitches in baseball. Even with the diminished velocity, its still a tremendous pitch. He was able to throw it for strikes when he wanted too." This was the third no-hitter in the majors this year. Clayton Kershaw did it exactly a week ago and his Los Angeles Dodgers teammate Josh Beckett did it earlier in the season. The Padres, incidentally, are the only franchise in the big leagues that has never pitched a no-hitter. Lincecum made quick work of the San Diego hitters in the late innings. He drew a standing ovation when he batted in the eighth, then got another ovation when he took the mound to begin the ninth. "His rhythm was going," third baseman Pablo Sandoval said. "Thats the best hes pitched. Two no-hitters, thats pretty impressive." Lincecum struck out pinch-hitter Chris Denorfia to open the ninth. Pinch-hitter Yasmani Grandal followed with a tapper back to Lincecum, who tossed to first for the out. Will Venable was up next, and Lincecum retired him on an easy grounder to second base. Lincecum took a few steps toward first when the ball was hit, stopped to watch the play and clapped his hand into his glove when it was over. Catcher Hector Sanchez soon met Lincecum for an embrace, and the rest of the Giants joined in the celebration. "It was amazing," Sanchez said. "Anybody wants to be part of something special like this. Thats a great feeling." Buster Posey got four hits, including a double, and drove in two runs. Ian Kennedy (5-9) allowed four runs on nine hits over 6 1/3 innings. He walked one and struck out eight. The Giants took a 1-0 lead in the second when Brandon Crawford tripled and Sanchez hit a sacrifice fly. NOTES: Giants RHP Ryan Vogelsong (5-3, 4.13) is scheduled to start Thursdays series opener against Cincinnati. ... RHP Tyson Ross (6-7, 3.22) starts for the Padres against Arizona on Friday. ... The Padres are hosting a public memorial for Tony Gwynn on Thursday at 7:19 p.m. at Petco Park. Gwynn wore No. 19. 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