Matt Every has not played in an official match play event since 2005, but enjoys competing in money games with PGA Tour pros like Charley Hoffman and Jason Dufner every Tuesday. Every is looking forward to competing in this week's WGC Match Play Championship, where he will face some of the top players in the world. Crews at Daytona International Speedway have started installing 10,000 new seats as part of the Daytona Rising construction project, which is on track to be completed by July.

1. By KEN WILLIS
ken.willis@news-jrnl.com
In terms of sanctioned competition,
Matt Every hasn’t competed in match
play since 2005, when he was part of
the United States’ winning Walker Cup
team.
But in reality, “I play it every Tues-
day on Tour,” he said.
Most weeks when Every is competing
on the PGA Tour, he said his Tues-
day “money games” include Charley
Hoffman and Jason Dufner, with plenty
of action spread around to keep things
interesting and, of course, competitive.
“We have great matches on Tuesdays.
I enjoy it,” said Every, who’s among the
elite field for this week’s Cadillac Match
Play Championship, one of the four
annual events that make up the World
Golf Championships. The field is limit-
ed to the top 64 in the world rankings.
While Dufner and Hoffman are known
commodities in golf circles, they don’t
match the star power Every will face
this week. Under a new format that
CADILLAC MATCH PLAY CHAMPIONSHIP
Every’s competitive juices flowing
Daytona Beach native among elite in 64-man field for WGC event
News-Journal/JIM TILLER
Workers began installing seats along
the frontstretch grandstands Monday.
By GODWIN KELLY
godwin.kelly@news-jrnl.com
There is no idle time on the Daytona
Rising construction site at Daytona
International Speedway as crews began in-
stalling 10,000 seats on the east end of the
almost mile-long frontstretch grandstands
Monday.
The $400 million project, led by contrac-
tor Barton Malow, is on target to meet the
deadline for the July 4 weekend events at
the track.
The seat installation follows the com-
plete removal of the Sprint Tower, all the
seats on the backstretch and most recent-
ly, the seats in the Campbell section of the
old grandstand.
“There’s no rest around here,” DIS pres-
ident Joie Chitwood III said. “We move
from one construction event to the next
event.
“The fact we’re getting those new seats
DAYTONA RISING
Crews start to install 10,000 seats
SPORTS SECTION
B
NEWS-JOURNAL
TUESDAY, APRIL 28, 2015
DOWN THE STRETCH
Stetson, B-CU baseball teams
prepare for late league games
by playing each other. PAGE 5B
HEY,
WILLIE!
KEN
WILLIS
HEY, WILLIE!
Swinging Skirts? I didn’t see
any while I was watching the
LPGA tournament. Did I miss
something or is the name a mis-
nomer?
JOHN
HEY, JOHN!
The name originated with a
group of Taiwanese golf enthu-
siasts who eventually gathered
enough spare cash to sponsor
an LPGA tournament. No one
has objected (not loudly, any-
way) to a tournament called the
Swinging Skirts LPGA Classic
in Daly City, California.
Go deep enough in the LPGA’s
history book and you’ll see
plenty of unique tournament
names — Hardscrabble Open,
Opie Turner Open, Squirt La-
dies’ Invitational, Albuquerque
Swing Parade, etc.
Since we’re also talking golf,
let’s remind everyone this
week’s PGA Tour event — the
annual Match Play Champion-
ship — is taking advantage of
its San Francisco base and go-
ing prime time on Golf Channel
and NBC. Golf fans are excited.
However, the rest of you are
getting drowsy just thinking
about it.
HEY, WILLIE!
The Tim Tebow talk is off
and running. Can you think of
any other professional football
player who has ever generated
such a huge amount of unintend-
ed media publicity? The only
name that comes to my mind is
“Broadway” Joe Namath.
DON
HEY, DON!
Other than that train wreck of
a sideline interview he did with
Suzy Kolber a few years back,
the term “unintended publicity”
never has been associated with
Joe Namath.
HEY, WILLIE!
Enjoyed your article (April 24)
on how top Florida college QBs
fared in the NFL. But you short-
changed the University of Mi-
ami. You included Steve Walsh,
but where are Craig Erickson,
Heisman winner Gino Torretta
and two-time Heisman finalist
Ken Dorsey?
Granted, not as much was ex-
pected from them in the pros. But
they were great in college, were
drafted and played in the NFL. I
detect definite anti-South Florida
tendencies.
MARY LOUISE
HEY, M.L.!
You sorta answered your
own question. The idea was to
warn some folks and promise
others (depending on your FSU
loyalties) Jameis Winston isn’t
a shoo-in for NFL stardom. A
bunch of QBs have left Florida
colleges with high expectations,
but only one (Jim Kelly) deliv-
ered in a Hall of Fame stat-
ue-worthy way.
Gino and Dorsey were sev-
enth-round picks, so they
don’t qualify. Erickson was a
fifth-rounder and had a couple
of not-so-horrible seasons in
Tampa. But generally, not much
was expected, and not much
was delivered. All had worse ca-
reer ratings than Tim Tebow’s
75.3, by the way.
Frankly, if I overlooked any-
one, it was Freddie Solomon,
the University of Tampa QB in
the early-’70s who had a long
and distinguished NFL career
— as a receiver for the Dolphins
and Niners.
HEY, WILLIE!
Was just wondering how many
other readers caught the “Steve
Walsh from Kansas” reference?
Carry on, my wayward son.
ANDY FROM FLAGLER
HEY, ANDY!
Unfortunately, occasional
brilliance is occasionally over-
looked. Some columns clearly
are keepers. Then there are
others that are just dust in the
wind.
Reach Ken Willis at ken.
willis@news-jrnl.com. Twitter:
@HeyWillieNJ.
No skirts,
swinging or
otherwise
By BRIAN LINDER
brian.linder@news-jrnl.com
C
yrus Fagan can’t wait for
the Mainland Buccaneers
to hit the field for spring
practice.
While most area teams got
their start Monday, Fagan’s Bucs
are waiting until Friday. But
when the sophomore takes the
field, he knows there will be eyes
watching.
Fagan’s a rising star in re-
cruiting circles, receiving more
than 20 college offers since last
season.
“I think FSU is coming (to see
me),” Fagan said. “And I think
Clemson is coming.
“But, like last year, I know
there will be a ton of schools
coming through Mainland.”
Fagan is one of three young
area prospects — along with
University freshman tailback
Lorenzo Lingard and Warner
Christian eighth-grade
PREP FOOTBALL
EYES ON THEMCollege recruiters are knocking on door of several area players
News-Journal/NIGEL COOK
Mainland sophomore defensive back Cyrus Fagan has more than 20 offers from colleges, including Florida State,
Florida, Miami and UCF.
Associated Press file/PHIL LONG
Matt Every enjoys the head-to-head
competition a match-play event brings.
Spring Games
May 16
Atlantic at Naples First Baptist Academy, noon
May 20
Pine Ridge at Cocoa Beach, 7 p.m.
May 21
Seabreeze at Flagler Palm Coast, 7 p.m.
Viera at Spruce Creek, 7 p.m.
Trinity Christian at Orlando Faith Christian, 7
p.m.
Taylor at Orlando Lake Highland Prep, 7 p.m.
May 22
University at Mainland, 5 p.m.
NSB at DeLand, 7 p.m.
May 26
Jamboree: Matanzas, Father Lopez,
University Christian at Matanzas, 6 p.m.
May 29
Crescent City at Deltona, 7 p.m.
Jacksonville Potter’s House Christian at Halifax
(at Ormond Beach Sports Complex), 7 p.m.
On the Web
For video of crews installing
the new seats, go to news-
journalonline.com/sports
NJ
More Preps Inside
Check out our spring Fab 5 football rankings, this week’s Fab 5 baseball
rankings and a preview of today’s regional softball semifinal matchups
involving Deltona and Taylor, PAGE 5B
On the Web
For video of Cyrus
Fagan, news-journal
online.com/sports
NJ
Inside
Wednesday’s Match Play pairings, info
on the event, PAGE 2B
SEE EYES, PAGE 5B
SEE SEATS, PAGE 5B
SEE EVERY, PAGE 2B