March 30, 2009 Table Of Contents
SI.com
SI Bonus Section: Golf Plus
Great course, fabulous weather, golf-crazy market—the Transitions Championship had it all, yet none of the top pros deigned to enter. Is now the time to make attendance mandatory?
By Damon Hack
ABC/ESPN might exfoliate
By Jim Gorant
By Jim Murphy
Sheila Johnson offers the Tour a transfusion
SI Players: LIFE ON AND OFF THE FIELD
The Rites (and Wrongs) of Spring
Does baseball's preseason matter? The Astros are praying it doesn't
A late-blooming, loquacious control freak calls it quits
By Tom Verducci
By Joe Lemire
Ball State pulls a shocker for the ages
By Mark Bechtel
What smart fans should do this week
The SNL cast member stars in Adventureland, opening this Friday
As told to Sarah Kwak
By Dan Patrick
NCAA TOURNAMENT
That twisty thoroughfare winds into a second week for the 16 teams and myriad players who are trying to restore a reputation, fix a tarnished image or simply seize one last chance at tournament glory after past disappointments
By Tim Layden
A decade after it crashed the Big Dance as a charming Cinderella, Gonzaga is the envy of every mid-major program in the country
By investing in its resources, Xavier has proved that size does not have to limit a school's success
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Stephen Strasburg Is Ready To Bring It
Out-of-shape and overlooked coming out of high school, the San Diego State righthander now throws triple-digit heat to go with pinpoint control, making him the likely first pick in June
By Lee Jenkins
MIXED MARTIAL ARTS
Heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar is the antithesis of the UFC's Vegas-style extravagance, but the no-frills fighter, who lives and trains in northern Minnesota, is ready for an alltime payday
PRO FOOTBALL
Convinced the Broncos nearly traded him last month, a furious Jay Cutler has turned the tables and wants out of Denver. Making peace with the quarterback won't be easy
By Peter King
Harlem Globetrotters
Still Crazy After All These Years
Now in their ninth decade, the Harlem Globetrotters have thrown cold water on their critics and faked out the doomsayers with an act that's as entertaining as ever
Inside
Tyson Chandler insists the big toe that caused his trade to be scotched is fine—but his feelings are another matter
By Chris Mannix
Long plagued by anonymity, the made-over and gritty Blue Jackets may at long last be postseason-bound
Pierre McGuire's In The Crease