May Miscellany
Posted May 1, 2005, 10:53 AM ET

The month of May has become a terrific month of sports in the Charlotte area. And it starts this week, when the PGA Tour stops at the Quail Hollow Club.

The Wachovia Championship gets started today, and another impressive field will gather in Charlotte. Nine of the top 11 players in the world will enter the tournament, and organizers are expecting the best tournament ever. The only two Top 10 no-shows are South Africans Ernie Els and Retief Goosen.

Kym Hougham, the Tournament Director, was on my radio show on Friday, and he was thrilled with the announcement that #1 Tiger Woods, #2 Vijay Singh and #4 Phil Mickelson confirmed that they were coming back to Charlotte.

The tournament has already developed a reputation for treating the players and caddies in royal fashion. However, one of the perks that was available for the players has been eliminated this year...a few laps around Lowe's Motor Speedway. Hougham mentioned the logistics nightmare in getting players via helicopter from the course to the track.

The Carolina Panthers concluded their three-day mini camp this past weekend. The biggest question is where #1 draft pick Thomas Davis will play? He is currently pegged at the safety position...and current occupant Mike Minter says he'll do whatever it takes to make the Panthers better. The Panthers will need both Minter and Davis to make plays to get the Panthers back in the Playoffs.

The steroid issue surrounding the Panthers continues to lurk in the media. Punter Todd Sauerbrun is as good as gone (latest rumor has him heading to Denver) and current center Jeff Mitchell issued an apology to fans, players and administrators. Mitchell even said he plans to apologize to Jerry Richardson personally...by the way, where is Jerry?

Charlotte has hockey fever. I spoke with Checkers co-owner Carl Scheer last week and he is thrilled with the the team and the turnout during the ECHL Playoffs. The Checkers also made the news last week by announcing their move into the new Uptown arena...I just wonder about the cost of the tickets in the new building. I've always loved the outdated, but cozy Independence Arena...the "Chrome Dome" is a classic.

Good to see that Bud Selig is starting to awake from his coma. He mentioned that there should be a 50-game suspension for any steroid violators in Major League Baseball. If you're caught for a second time it is 100 games...and you are terminated from the game on your third offense. Now you're talking, Bud. Let's see if the Players Association buys it!

Some things never change...a fan in Detroit was arrested for throwing a coin at Allen Iverson last week during the NBA Playoffs. Classy fans in Detroit. It was also sad to see that the fan was only sentenced to 90 days in jail and a $500 fine...Let's get tough with these types of morons. The guy should not be allowed in the arena or at an NBA game for life.

Finally, Mick Mixon was named the Panthers play-by-play man beginning in 2005. He stopped by the studio last week and spent some time with us. Mick is a solid broadcaster and a good guy. Hopefully the Panther fans will give him a chance to win them over. Nobody was happy with the way former play-by-play man Bill Rosinski was kicked to the curb. Regardless of what was going on behind closed doors at the stadium, the Richardsons did a lousy job handling his dismissal. Of course, they were nowhere to be found when people were asking questions afterwards...it is the Richardsons' style of doing business.

Rumor has it that WRFX will continue to be the radio home for the Panthers, and that Mixon will team up with Eugene Robinson and Jim Szoke. The only way to judge the new booth is to hear it...and that will be sometime in August.