A stunning kickoff at Congressional
By: Rick Snider
Examiner Sports Columnist
July 2, 2009
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| Jessica Simpson sang the national anthem before Tiger Woods teed off with Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo. (Getty Images) |
The Dallas Cowboys quarterback was booed while his singer-actress girlfriend was cheered. The Wounded Warriors were the heroes while Tiger Woods snuck in some time inbetween.
The ceremonial first tee shot has grown from the warmup act to the main show on the eve of the AT&T National at Congressional Country Club on Wednesday. From a Navy drill team catching flying bayonet-tipped rifles to four pencil-dot jumpers screaming 120 mph downward to the first green, several thousand fans cheered nearly nonstop over 30 minutes.
The crowd lined up sometimes 10 deep for nearly 100 yards down the first fairway to see Woods get outdistanced by two wounded veterans from nearby Walter Reed Army Medical Center. From the 101st Airborne Division's "Screaming Eagles" delivering ceremonial balls from a Huey so high in the crystal-blue sky it was nearly lost to the Virginia Military Institute's band, it was the precision pro-military atmosphere the son of a former Green Bay paratrooper envisioned.
"We're here to say thank you," Woods said.
But first, it starts with Simpson.
Jessica, Jessica -- the first thing they teach plus-size models is never wear horizontal stripes. The red and dark blue striped dress hugged the actress smartly atop six-inch heels, though not as breath-takingly as those Daisy Duke shorts painted on her in the "Dukes of Hazzard" movie.
The tabloids say Simpson's fat -- maybe a size 6 compared to size 14 of the average American woman. She looked pretty good and sounded even better while singing the national anthem, delivering a southern kick at the end. Certainly, the celeb crooner was a big hit.
Woods called Tony Romo "brave" to venture into the Washington area. The crowd was more boos than cheers, but he waved back in good form. Romo played in the Pro-Am with Woods earlier before a gallery of several hundred that included plenty of Romo jerseys.
Romo and Simpson disappeared quickly from the ceremony. No TMZ questions of whether Nick Lachey was a better kisser than Romo or if she'll seduce the Cowboy before Redskins games this fall.
Washington quarterback Jason Campbell was introduced next. It was the loudest ovation of the ceremony. Maybe fans aren't so down on the Redskins' passer. Woods should have called the few dozen followers who watched Campbell's earlier play as the "brave" ones. Campbell's shots sprayed the trees more than mosquito-control trucks.
Maybe Simpson distracted him.
Rick Snider has covered local sports since 1978. Read more at TheRickSniderReport.com or e-mail rsnider@washingtonexaminer.com.
