Playing Second Fiddle to Tiger

Bob Sansevere of the St. Paul Pioneer Press, addressing Tiger Woods’ competition in the British Open:

“You guys have your work cut out, trying to derail Tiger’s historic attempt to complete a Grand Slam.

“What must it be like for you fellows, knowing that Tiger is a better player? And knowing that Tiger practices harder and longer? And that Tiger is mentally tougher?

“Chances are, it means you’ve familiarized yourselves with the size of the check for finishing second.”

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Trivia time: Who are the two players who lacked only the British Open to win the career Grand Slam?

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Special treatment: Don’t expect Philadelphia authorities to come down hard on Allen Iverson, writes Bob Lipper of the Richmond (Va.) Times-Dispatch:

“This is what gives Iverson leverage: He is box office. Mega box office. Box office in neon. The [76ers] averaged fewer than 12,000 per game in 1995-96--the season before Iverson came bounding off Georgetown’s campus as a sophomore. The turnstile count was up to 20,560 per outing this year.

“Iverson’s No. 3 jersey is the biggest seller in basketball. He’s got the city at his feet.... Jaw-dropping talent has a way of whitewashing a soiled resume.”

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Home of the brave: The Denver Nuggets held an open tryout Sunday, and 262 players showed up for a four-hour basketball workout in 95-degree heat.

“This is America, the land of opportunity,” General Manager Kiki Vandeweghe said. “I wanted to provide everyone the equal opportunity to become a part of the Nuggets.”

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Rhythm and blues: The International Gymnastics Federation has expelled four judges from the rhythmic world championships for improprieties and serious judging mistakes.

“We said enough is enough,” spokesman Andre Gueisbuhler said.

And you thought baseball had problems.

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Bygone era: Joe Brovia, who died in 1994, was one of the most feared hitters in Pacific Coast League baseball history. He offered this observation to author Brent Kelley for a newly published book, “The San Francisco Seals, 1946-57”:

“One thing that irritates me is these guys charging all this money for autographs. I get 12, 15 letters a month. I send pictures to some people; I buy them myself. I don’t charge. I love hearing from the fans. Baseball was my life. I owe baseball a lot. I’m lucky to have played the game.”

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Trivia answer: Byron Nelson and Raymond Floyd.

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And finally: John McClain of the Houston Chronicle writes that it’s fitting former Houston Oiler offensive lineman Bruce Matthews announced his retirement only a few days before the expansion Houston Texans report for their first training camp:

“One chapter of Houston’s football history closes, but another begins. The Texans will draft thousands of players over the years, but they’ll have a hard time finding one who has more talent and class and is as durable and competitive as Matthews.”

The former USC standout played 19 NFL seasons and was a 14-time Pro Bowl selection, matching former Los Angeles Ram defensive lineman Merlin Olsen for the most in NFL history.