Speaking of big events
A buddy of mine, attending his workplace Christmas party a couple weeks ago, happened to win the grand prize: two tickets to any sporting event in North America.
He’ll still have to handle the air fare and hotel, but it’s still a lucrative jackpot if he plays his cards right.
Apparently nothing is off-limits.
Which got me thinking what I would pick if I were in his position. Naturally, the big ones come to mind — Super Bowl, a Stanley Cup Final game, a World Series game, that kind of thing.
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But it didn’t take me long to arrive at what would be my obvious No. 1 choice.
I’d be heading to Augusta to take in the Masters. No doubt about it.

Earlier this year, honorary starter the late Lee Elder, who broke the colour barrier, gets five from six-time Masters champion Jack Nicklaus during the ceremonial tee shots to begin the Masters at Augusta National Golf Club. (Curtis Compton / Atlanta Journal-Constitution / TNS files)
The chance to see the world’s best golfers teeing it up on hallowed grounds is definitely a bucket-list event, one that I would leap at the chance to attend.
I’m not sure what my friend is going to choose. He’s still mulling it over. But I’d love to hear what your selection would be. Fire me an email and let me know. I’ll share the results next week in this space.
I’ve got the ho-ho-holiday spirit now
Faithful readers will know I’m a sucker for everything Christmas. And I’m officially in the holiday spirit after attending a terrific performance last night by the Tenors at the Centennial Concert Hall.
The talented Canadian trio belted out a couple hours' worth of classics, including several of their own original songs, and it truly was a toe-tapping good time.
A perfect way to kick off December.
I’m not going to lie: last year was tough. Real tough. COVID-19 restrictions really sullied the season, scrapping the usual festive gatherings with family and friends.
And while we’re far from out of the pandemic woods, I’m thankful that being fully vaccinated has opened things up considerably this year.
Enjoy every moment, folks. And stay safe.
And now, the moment you’ve been waiting for
I’m so confident in these that I won’t even call them predictions. They’re more like spoilers!
Unless I’m wrong, of course. In that case, you didn’t hear nuthin'.
Let’s start with the East Final, where I believe the visitors will be highly motivated to advance to the Grey Cup being played in their own backyard. And the home team likely won’t have much of an advantage, given the sparse crowd they’re likely going to attract.
Give me: Hamilton 24, Toronto 19.
Over here in the West, the Bombers are certainly the heavy favourites. They dominated the Roughriders during the regular season, and there’s no reason to suspect that won’t continue, right?
Well, if there’s one concern I have about Winnipeg, it’s the fact that a couple of bye weeks combined with a couple of weeks they rested a good chunk of starters, with first place locked up, runs the risk of bringing all the momentum they had to a screeching halt. And they’re going to have to ramp it back up against an opponent coming to town on an emotional high after a dramatic victory last weekend.
The other wild card is the weather, with the forecast calling for a cold front to move in at some point, switching the winds around from the south to the north and dropping the temperature considerably.
It should be a good one.
Give me: Winnipeg 27, Saskatchewan 23.
Feel free to send me your predictions. I promise not to mock and ridicule them. At least not too much.
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