FanHouse Ian Poulter

I heard Michael Jackson died at approximately 5:30 PM ET. Hours later, I still don't think it's fully hit me. This was the man I idolized growing up as a kid ... I watched Moonwalker about 80 times on VHS (Joe Pesci was the villain). I once furiously outbid someone $159 for a replica Beat It jacket with 13 zippers. I actually have an 8x10 glossy of Billie Jean Michael taped next to my bedroom door.

Everyone -- from celebrities to sports stars to ordinary people -- had their way of trying to feel connected to the King of Pop. In his mere presence, fans have fainted and needed medical attention. So when news broke that Jackson had passed away, the reverberations on social media sites like Twitter were immense. Outspoken wide receiver Chad Ochocinco even went on to tweet "this is just as sad as 9/11" and then tried to play damage control after his offensive comment.

After the jump, read the emotional reactions from current and former athletes.

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Ian Poulter has probably worked himself into the "best player to never win a major" conversation -- particularly after carrying the European Ryder Cup team last fall -- but that doesn't, in general, make him any more tolerable.

Despite his considerable talents, Poulter's whinging can be grating at times. Like, say, this week. Apparently, he is the only person adversely affected by the rainforest-like conditions at Bethpage Black.

Poulter's been using Twitter to bellyache about the course, and he's even got visual proof!

It's one thing to heckle the best player in the world -- Tiger Woods is used to it and it comes with the high profile. It's something entirely different to heckle the world No. 2 a month after learning his wife was diagnosed with breast cancer.

But that's exactly what happened to Phil Mickelson at Bethpage Black Sunday. According to Newsday, one fan called Phil "fat," while another noted, "Time to raise some money, Phil," apparently in reference to the recent news about Amy Mickelson. Classy, I know.

At 10:14 AM ET at Bethpage Black, Tiger Woods was making his way to his third shot in the greenside bunker on the par-4 7th hole. Rain had been pouring down on players all morning, and just before Tiger hit his shot, the USGA sounded the horn to suspend play at the U.S. Open.

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John Daly is all about reinventing himself. Usually, it's preceded by an intervention or a stint in rehab, and often brought on by a beer and hot wings bender at the nearest Hooters. Well, Hooters, known for their high standards and exclusivity, no longer sponsors Daly.

As is the case in virtually every tournament he plays, the story line heading into Sunday's round of the Players Championship was Tiger Woods. He had worked his way into the final group, but started the day five shots back of playing partner Alex Cejka, the unlikeliest 54-hole leader. Cejka entered the week ranked 267th in the world, and, at 38, was still in search of his first PGA victory.

But as Woods and Cejka were hacking their way around the front nine -- Tiger needed 38 strokes going out; Alex needed 42 -- Henrik Stenson was putting on a golfing clinic.

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It is really hard for Tiger Woods to do anything without garnishing the utmost attention. Anything he does off the course is newsworthy and we treat it like a presidential move. What is so interesting about this week at the Players Championship is Tiger is doing what made him famous, only we're too busy complaining about all that he is doing wrong and not focusing on what he's doing right.

On Saturday at TPC Sawgrass, Woods had a camera on his every swing, and while critics were complaining about his driver (Guilty party number one -- I actually tweeted during his round, "When was the last time Tiger didn't block a tee shot right, the Mike Douglas Show?"), we were forgetting to pay attention to the more important thing ... his golf.

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Tiger Woods has never been 4-under after 36 holes of the Players Championship, a spot he finds himself in after Friday. It is his lowest opening two days at TPC Sawgrass ever. That is the good news for Tiger fans. The bad news is Woods is looking way up the leaderboard at a guy named Alex Cejka, who followed his Thursday 66 with a Friday 67.

Cejka has never won a PGA Tour event, but the 38-year-old from Germany has only two bogeys on his scorecard and the lead at TPC, two shots over Ian Poulter and four shots over a host of players at 7-under that includes Masters champion Angel Cabrera, who smoldered Sawgrass with a scintillating 65 on Friday.

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Ladies and gentlemen, I give you John Daly 3.0! Yep, the above picture is Mr. Daly at the Open de Espana, his first golf tournament since ... OK, sorry, I can't keep a straight face. What in the hell is Daly wearing? Honestly? Is today some tribute to technicolor that I didn't know about?