Thursday, April 3, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.
IT'S NOTES day and this first one sounds like fun if you're old enough, still like playing basketball and have a ton of money.
Bally's in Las Vegas will host a three-day basketball camp Aug. 28-31 for men age 35 and older, with Michael Jordan the featured instructor. The camp staff also includes UNLV head coach Bill Bayno and 11 other college coaches or ex-coaches. The camp is limited to the first 72 men who send in their registration fee, yet the average guy is pretty much precluded from giving it any serious thought. The reason: It's $15,000 to participate and that doesn't include transportation for those coming in from out of town. ... Amazingly true: Sam Snead, 85 next month, has had a hole in one with every club in his bag. ... Johnny Miller turns 50 this month but not in time to play in the Las Vegas Senior Classic April 25-27.
Greg Maddux deserves recognition for taking it upon himself to revitalize what had been a deteriorating baseball field at Valley High. "He came by and saw that the field was absolutely horrible, especially compared to when he played here," said Valley Athletic Director Gary Wheeler. "We don't know how much he's spending because he set up some of his contractor friends to do the work. It's already 100 percent better, although it won't be until the start of next season that it's completely done." Aside from work on the field itself, Maddux's contribution will include paving the parking lot, a new scoreboard, a new outfield fence and concrete bleachers. ... KTNV (Channel 13) embarrassed itself during its Sunday night sportscast when a printed line, "Thunder end four-game drout," appeared on the screen when the conversation turned to Las Vegas' 7-1 victory at San Antonio. Drout?
While no locally developed players graduated to the major leagues this spring, several have moved up the minor-league ladder. One, Taylor Myers, was assigned to Lansing of the Midwest League (AA) despite never having thrown a ball as a professional. He was to have pitched last summer in a lower league after leaving Green Valley High and signing with the Kansas City Royals organization, but tendinitis curtailed those plans. ... Two longtime minor leaguers from Las Vegas have run into difficulties. Ex-Rancho outfielder Anthony Lewis had some great double-A stats last year -- 24 homers and 95 RBIs -- but was all but ignored as a free agent this winter and is, instead, playing now in the Mexican League. "I'm starting to think it's being held against him that he was a replacement player," said his agent, Bruce Trampler, referring to Lewis having made himself available to the St. Louis Cardinals during the 1995 major-league players' strike. Another local player, ex-Chaparral pitcher Nate Cromwell, is out of work and hoping to impress scouts from the New York Yankees when they audition him later this month.
However radical the thought, consider how much more interesting pro bowling would be if the length of the lanes were varied. As it is, the sport is far too mundane and predictable at the professional level. ... For all the fighting that goes on in hockey, once the games really get significant the fisticuffs all but stop. Proof: There have been 65 playoff series in the National Hockey League since 1969 that went to a seventh and decisive game, yet in those 65 games there were only 15 fights. There hasn't been any fighting in a seventh game since 1991. ... The United States has 15,000 golf courses, covering an area equal to the size of Rhode Island and Delaware. ... The Showtime cable network reneged on its word and kept last Saturday's boxing card from the Las Vegas Hilton blacked out locally despite the fact it was a sellout. ... April Fools: There was no sign Tuesday of groundbreaking for the downtown domed stadium -- originally promised by March of '97 -- or the mock luxury suite that was to have been designed at the site to entice investors.
Until Roy Jones lost (by disqualification), the April 12 fight in town between Oscar De La Hoya and Pernell Whitaker was being misrepresented as the "Pound for Pound" championship. Now, however, the fight can be hyped to fit that label. ... Before the Las Vegas Bowl was recently restructured, an inquiry was made by local Wisconsin football supporters who wanted to see the Badgers in the game on a yearly basis. The proposal, however intriguing, was shelved. ... Grace Park, 17 years old and at Arizona State University, is said to be the next female golf sensation. ... It can be done: Kobe Bryant, who skipped college, actually looks strong in his rookie season with the Los Angeles Lakers. ... No, the Hartford Whalers will not be moving to Las Vegas next season.
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