Open Letter to Watson: Tune It Out

In an April 11 letter to Masters chairman Jackson Stephens and CBS golf producer Frank Chirkinian printed in the November issue of Golf Digest, Tom Watson wrote that Gary McCord is “the Howard Stern of TV golf,” adding that he should be fired.

Watson was angry over McCord’s irreverent remarks at April’s tournament, including “They don’t cut the greens at Augusta, they use bikini wax.”

McCord was dropped from the network’s coverage of the 1995 Masters, but he is hardly in the same league as shock jock Howard Stern.

Trivia time: Who holds the USC record for the longest run from scrimmage?

Censorship? After top-ranked Florida beat Louisiana State, 42-18, last Saturday, Gator Coach Steve Spurrier still wasn’t satisfied with his team’s performance, saying:

“We’re not near as good as all you guys (media) think we are, so quit saying we are.”

OK, coach, you’re lousy.

No respect: The Las Vegas Posse of the Canadian Football League is struggling for fan support, and Tom FitzGerald of the San Francisco Chronicle suggests that part of the problem might be the league’s lack of stature.

“After the last game,” kicker Carlos Huerta said, “I was signing some autographs and I must have had seven people ask me if I was going to turn pro next year.”

Add Posse: Coach Ron Meyer, a former NFL head coach, is disgusted with CFL officiating, saying: “I’ve been fined by the league so much, I have no salary.”

Surprise: George Foreman told Sport magazine about a recent stay at a Los Angeles hotel. It seems that George couldn’t get his key to work until he realized he was at the wrong room.

“Imagine if somebody opened that door and saw me ,” Foreman said. “I’d have said, ‘Excuse me, but did you order a boxer?’ ”

Overlooked: Athlon magazine, in picking all-time basketball teams for schools, didn’t include USC’s Ralph Vaughn, an All-American in 1940 who led the Trojans to a 20-3 record and into the NCAA semifinals before losing to Kansas, 43-42.

Looking back: On this day in 1960, Bill Mazeroski hit a home run in the bottom of the ninth to give Pittsburgh a 10-9 victory over the New York Yankees in Game 7 of the World Series.

Trivia answer: Dwight Ford, 94 yards against Texas A&M; in the 1977 Bluebonnet Bowl, and equaled by Zeph Lee in 1984 against Utah State.

Quotebook: Charles Barkley on the state of professional sports: “I love football. It’s the only game I can bet on right now. . . . I’m just kidding.”