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I’ve been fortunate to have attended many great sporting events over the years. With the Super Bowl fast approaching, let’s take a look at the Top 10 events which I believe every avid sports fan should see in-person.

10. British Open - For the serious golfer, a trip to St. Andrews is a pilgrimage to where golf began. Many of golf’s greatest moments have occurred at the British Open, including last year’s near-win by Tom Watson.

9. Red Sox vs. Yankees – You can argue about the greatest rivalry in sports, but I don’t think anyone can argue that the Yankees vs. Red Sox is at or near the top. The fans hate each other and the atmosphere is electric, especially late in the season if the games mean something.

8. Army vs. Navy – Maybe this isn’t the BCS title game, but the pageantry surrounded this classic rivalry and the emotions it stirs is something very unique.

7. World Cup – In almost every country except the U.S., soccer is the most popular sport and the World Cup is the culminating event. This summer’s World Cup in South Africa promises to be the most watched event in tv sports history.

6. World Series - The World Series is special given its history. Be lucky enough to catch a game at either Fenway Park or Yankees Stadium and you’ll be treated to a very special experience.

5. Kentucky Derby – Even if you’re not a horse racing fan, the Kentucky Derby is a fun event to attend. It’s a spectacle, from women wearing the big hats to the Mint Juleps (which, by the way, I think taste horrible).

4. Final Four – The NCAA basketball tournament is the best tournament in American sports. And the excitement level reaches a fever-pitch at the Final Four with teams vying for a spot in the Monday finals. And if you’re team happens to be one of the remaining four, it’s an experience you’ll never forget.

3. Stanley Cup Game 7 – Even though I’m not much of a hockey fan, I’m hard pressed to find a more exciting sporting event than a game 7 Stanley Cup final. The excitement and intensity level is unrivaled.

2. Super Bowl - Nothing compares to the Super Bowl in terms of the hype. It’s almost become a national holiday with tens of millions of viewers tuning in. Add in all the events and the chance to rub shoulders with greats such as John Elway and Joe Montana, and everyone should attend at least one.

1. Masters – This is my favorite event. You have to pinch yourself the first time you enter the hallowed grounds of Augusta National. It’s more beautiful in person than you can ever see on tv. And there’s nothing like following the leaders through Amen Corner on Sunday.

NBA legend, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, 62, has been diagnosed with a rare form of leukemia called chronic myeloid leukemia, a cancer of the blood and bone marrow that produces cancerous blood cells. The disease was diagnosed in December. He is taking oral medication to treat the disease.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar revealed in an interview Monday that he has Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia, a cancer of the blood and bone marrow that produces cancerous blood cells.

“The word ‘leukemia’ is a very frightening word,” he said in a phone interview from New York. “In many instances, it’s a killer and it’s something that you have to deal with in a very serious and determined way if you’re going to beat it.”

“If it wasn’t for my health-consciousness, I would have just passed on the effects as something I could ignore,” Abdul-Jabbar said. “But I felt it didn’t make sense to ignore it.”

“The fact that you can manage the disease means that you can live your life,” Abdul-Jabbar said. “The fact that you have to go and get your blood analyzed and consult with your doctor might be a minor inconvenience, or you have to take your medication every day. But if you do these things, you can lead a normal life.”

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Lisa Leslie retires from WNBA

Oct. 9, 2009 – Women’s basketball legend, Lisa Leslie, announced her retirement today from the WNBA, stating she is leaving the sport with no regrets.

It will not be the last time fans will hear about Leslie. The game is too much a part of her.

“Today is my last day of playing professional basketball, but I will stay close to the game because I feel I need to be a part of it.”

“I feel great, because I have no regrets,” Leslie said.

“Every time I stepped out on the court, I played as hard as I could. I fought hard, I crashed the boards, I didn’t back down from anybody, I shared the ball and I was a great team player. You do your best and try to be the best role model you can be.

“Today is my last day of playing basketball professionally, but I have a wonderful husband and family. This is my retirement, but it’s just my transition, really, into life. I’m going to stay close to the game.”

“She was all over the place, and she was so good she’d make you not like her,” Bolton said, laughing. “I work a lot with kids, and I always tell them, ‘You want to be like Lisa Leslie.’ She can bring the ball up the court, she can rebound, she can shoot outside and inside.

“People would say to me, ‘Is Lisa Leslie mean?’ And I’d say, ‘She plays tough, but she’s a sweetheart of a person. She’s just as competitive as it comes.’”

“I was upset tonight, because I felt like I let Lisa down,” said Parker, who was held to six points Saturday. “It’s hard, because she’s been a mentor to me. We talked about how we’re always going to stay in touch, and how our kids are going to play doubles in Wimbledon together.

“Our paths aren’t done crossing; we’re going to be friends for life. She’s taken me under her wing, and I am going to miss her like crazy. I fortunately had the pleasure of playing with a legend. And at the end, I felt like she was consoling me more than I was her, because she’s at a place now where she’s happy with her decision.”

Leslie wants to run a basketball academy for girls and work in broadcasting. She won’t entirely rule out coaching someday and will remain a strong advocate for women’s sports. And she’s resolute in her belief that a pro athlete has many responsibilities other than just winning games.

“I hope to come in and talk to [WNBA] rookies in the future,” Leslie said. “There’s no kid that I’ve passed up and not signed an autograph for. It’s our duty. Also another important message is how we represent ourselves and how we carry ourselves.”

Saturday, after Leslie handed little Hope back to her mom, Bolton watched her walk away.

“The game is going to miss her,” Bolton said. “But she’s such a light, she’s going to make a difference whatever she does and wherever she goes.”

Tiger Woods earns $1B becoming highest paid athlete

Forbes reported last week that Tiger Woods became the first athlete to earn $1 billion in career earnings from endorsements, prize winnings, golf course design and appearance fees. Woods reportedly earns $30 million a year from Nike and receives $10 million per project for his golf design work. He also just won $10 million last week for winning the FedEx Cup title.

The crazy part is that Woods in only 33 years old and has many years of competitive golf, endorsements and golf course design ahead of him. It’s not a stretch to say that he’ll likely make well in excess of $2 billion by the time his career ends. It’s estimated that he has now earned more than NBA great Michael Jordan ($800 million) and retired Formula One driver Michal Shumacher ($700 million).

Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan compete at San Francisco Golf Tournament

I thought it would be interesting to look at the list of highest paid endorsers…

1. Tiger Woods ($110 million)…Even though he missed the second half of 2008 and the first part of this year with a knee injury, Woods is still the king of earnings.

2T. Kobe Bryant ($45 million)…The NBA’s most popular player on a global basis, Bryant is more popular in China than he is in the United States.

2T. Michael Jordan ($45 million)…Jordan is still Nike’s highest paid endorser, reportedly earning more than $40 million per year from his Jordan brand.

2T. Kimi Raikkonen ($45 million)…Formula One’s highest paid driver.

5. David Beckam ($42 million)…Although Beckham’s on the downside of his career, he’s still the most visible soccer player in the world and has endorsements with Adidas and Motorola among others.

6T. Manny Pacquiao ($40 million)…His last two fights against Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton generated more than $100 million in revenue from pay-per-view.

6T. LeBron James ($40 million)…The Michael Jordan of this era, James is the face of the NBA along with Bryant.

6T. Phil Mickelson ($40 million)…Mickelson has earned more than $54 million in prize money during his career, trailing only Woods and Vijay Singh in money earned over a career.

9. Valentino Rossi ($35 million)…The most popular motorcycle racer in the world. Rossi earns $16 million per year just from Yamaha.

10. Dale Earnhardt Jr. ($34 million)…Earnhardt Jr. was voted NASCAR’s most popular driver for the sixth straight year in 2008.

Next Ten…11T. Roger Federer ($34 million); 11T. Shaquille O’Neal ($33 million); 13T. Oscar De La Hoya ($32 million); 13T. Lewis Hamilton ($32 million); 13T. Alex Rodriguez ($32 million); 16. Vijay Singh ($31 million); 17T. Kevin Garnett ($30 million); 17T. Jeff Gordon ($30 million) and 17T. Ronaldinho ($30 million)

The most glaring absence from this list is the lack of representation from the NFL. One would think the most popular sport in the U.S. would be well represented, but NFL salaries aren’t as high as other sports and only a handful of players earn large endorsement income. Even though they’re not on the list, among the top earning NFL players are Payton Manning and Ben Roethlisberger.

Another interesting fact is that the only retired player on the list is Jordan. Among the top earning retired athletes who didn’t make the list are Cal Ripken Jr, John Elway, Muhammad Ali, Magic Johnson and John McEnroe.

PFP Sports and Celebrity Talent Agency is a top booking agent for sports stars, athlete appearances, endorsements and celebrities. If you would like to hire a sports star for an  endorsement,  appearance or speaking engagement, contact us or call 800 966-1380.

Acrodunk perform on Amerixa's Got Talent Semi Finals

Acrodunk performed last night on the semi finals of America’s Got Talent. They have been compared to the legendary Harlem Globetrotters only with a new twist.  Their tumbling ability, amazing acrobatics, jumping through fire and dunking basketballs could win them a coveted spot in the finals.

Piers commented, “Absolutely unbeievable. I can’t believe I just watched that. That has to be one of the most thrilling, exciting, dynamic, dangerous things I’ve ever seen on this show.”

Watch Acrodunk Semi AGT Finals Video

PFP is a top celebrity booking agent for American Idols, entertainers, sports stars and celebrities.

Bobby Knight inducted into Hall of Fame

Despite his firing in 2000, Bob Knight, former Indiana University basketball coach, will be inducted into Indiana’s Hall of Fame.

Knight will be inducted into the university’s athletics Hall of Fame nearly a decade after he was fired for violating a zero-tolerance policy imposed by then-IU President Myles Brand.

New athletic director Fred Glass said in a statement:

“I am honored to have been a part of selecting this outstanding class of tremendous coaches and student-athletes”. “For my first Hall of Fame class to include heroes from my childhood as well as my student days is a dream come true.”

Knight could not be reached Saturday, but should be available for comment on Monday.

If you would like to find out how to hire Bobby Knight for a speaking engagement, appearance, endorsement, autograph signing or special event, request Bobby Knight booking agent information from PFP Sports and Celebrity Talent Agency. PFP is a top celebrity booking agent for athlete appearances, entertainers, sports stars and celebrities.

June 7, 2009 Staples Center – Kris Allen sings the National Anthem at the second playoff game of the NBA Finals between The Los Angeles Lakers and The Orlando Magic.

Kris Allen admits that he never sang the National Anthem in public before today.  “I just want to get through it and not make any mistakes,” he said Saturday.

Kris does a beautiful job. I really loved it! He sings a heartfelt and moving version.

Watch Kris Allen National Anthem video

The Los Angeles Lakers won the first playoff game against The Orlando Magic last Thursday.
The Lakers beat The Magic in OT Sunday night and now lead the series 2-0

Allen also said he would love to meet Kobe Bryant. It may just happen.

Phil Jackson

Who would you vote for as the biggest clutch performer of the NBA Finals this year? Kobe Bryant? Dwight Howard? How about trying Phil Jackson?

When you think of Phil Jackson, you think of winning. Jackson is the only coach in NBA history to win more than 1,000 games. He won two NBA Championships in 1970 and 1973 as a player for the New York Knicks. He was also the head coach of the Chicago Bulls when they won six NBA Championships in a span of eight years in the 1990’s. After a short-lived retirement, Jackson returned to coach the Los Angeles Lakers and led them to three consecutive NBA titles between 2000 and 2002.

He’s tied with Boston Celtics legend Red Auerbach with 9 NBA coaching titles and will hold the all-time record with 10 if the Lakers defeat the Orlando Magic in this year’s finals. If you think about it, that’s really an incredible feat given that only three other coaches in NBA history have won more than two titles.

Sure, you might say it’s easy to win when you’ve coached the likes of Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Shaquille O’Neal, Dennis Rodman and Kobe Bryant, but it takes a special talent to get a group of superstars to play as one. Jackson commands respect from his players and gets them to play at their full potential. My favorite quote by Jackson….“Good teams become great ones when the members trust each other enough to surrender the Me for the We.”

Jackson is a complex individual and very much a thinker. He’s known for his use of Tex Winter’s triangle offense as well as a holistic approach to coaching that is influenced by Eastern philosophy, earning him the nickname “Zen Master”. (Jackson cites Robert Pirsig’s book Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance as one of the major guiding forces in his life.) He also applies Native American spiritual practices as documented in his book “Sacred Hoops”. So while Jackson may be a bit different than most other coaches, whatever he’s doing works.

Jackson was inducted into the NBA Hall of Fame in 2007 and, as part of the NBA’s 50th Anniversary in 1999, was named one of the 10 greatest coaches in league history. The others on the list were Red Aurbach, Chuck Daly, Bill Fitch, Red Holzman, Pat Riley, Don Nelson, John Kundla, Jack Ramsay and Lenny Wilkins.

For most coaches, one NBA title would mark a successful career. Said Magic head coach Stan Van Gundy, “”We’re not going to win the coaching matchup. Phil has won more playoff series than I’ve won playoff games. You’ve got to be yourself. I couldn’t be Phil even if I wanted to.” No one can be Phil Jackson. That’s why I believe he’ll go down as the greatest coach in NBA history.

If you would like to hire Phil Jackson for a speaking engagement, appearance, endorsement, autograph signing or special event, request Phil Jackson booking agent information from PFP Sports and Celebrity Talent Agency. PFP is a top sports booking agent for athletes, sports stars and celebrities.