Baseball HOFer OZZIE SMITH helped kick off the PGA Championship in St. Louis by "riding an eight-horse hitch of Clydesdales pulling a Budweiser beer wagon" while delivering the Wanamaker Trophy to Bellerive Country Club. The arrival of the trophy yesterday in "some ways marked the beginning of the festivities at Bellerive," and in the "eyes of tournament organizers, this was Opening Day." Missouri-based HBM Holdings CEO and '18 PGA Championship Chair MIKE DECOLA said, “We were trying really hard to make this as much of a local flavor as we could. We’re calling today Opening Day because of how many baseball fans we have." Smith has been "part of the event from just about the beginning and has made multiple appearances on its behalf" ( STLTODAY.com, 8/7 ).
NAMES : California Lt. Gov. GAVIN NEWSOM 's campaign for governor has received donations from Fire Chair ANDREW HAUPTMAN ($58,400), Monumental Sports & Entertainment investor LAURENE POWELL JOBS ($28,200) and Raiders RB MARSHAWN LYNCH ($1,000) ( LATIMES.com, 8/6 )....Bucks C BROOK LOPEZ yesterday held a special lunch for players and coaches of the inaugural Jr. NBA World Championship at his Orlando home ( ORLANDO SENTINEL, 8/7 )....French national team MF BLAISE MATUIDI was spotted at Encore Beach Club in Las Vegas on Friday, where he "took in a set from resident DJ MARSHMELLO and DJ SNAKE at a VIP table near the stage" ( PAGESIX.com, 8/6 ).
