CHILMARK, Mass. -- When President Barack Obama goes on vacation, he plays a lot of golf. And when he plays, he likes to hang out with big-name basketball players.Five days into his family vacation on Marthas Vineyard, the president has spent four of them hitting the links. While the president rarely plays basketball anymore, he could put together a pretty strong pickup team with his golfing partners if he were so inclined.In his first outing, Obama joined up with Chris Paul of the Los Angeles Clippers. In the second round, it was Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors, and in his third and fourth rounds, Obamas foursome included former all-stars Alonzo Mourning and Ray Allen. The latter two were playing partners during last years vacation as well.The round with Curry makes good on Obamas promise of a rematch when the Warriors visited the White House in February to be honored for winning the 2015 NBA championship.I heard during this summer, after our golf game, that Steph was using the excuse of Secret Service being intimidating for why he lost the match, Obama said at the time. That is not the case. But he will have another opportunity.When Obama golfs, a handful of reporters, a camera team and photographers -- known as the pool -- are nearby, usually kept far enough away so the president doesnt see them, and vice versa. But the press was allowed to watch Obama on the first hole on the first day.A skunk livened things up when it waddled by the press van on the second day of golf. No damage was done before it wandered over to an area where the Secret Service was checking cars for bombs before their drivers were allowed to enter the courses parking lot.Many weekends in Washington, Obama also goes golfing, but generally on just one of the days.On Marthas Vineyard, Obama also has gone out twice for dinner. In the town of Oak Bluffs, he dined Sunday evening at Down Island, a new, trendy restaurant that has a $59 prix fixe menu.Executive Chef Scott Cummings told the Cape Cod Times the president shook hands with staff and posed for photos. The menu included island-caught striped bass, roasted carrots, octopus and chocolate pate. Obama tried all the dishes that were brought to him, Cummings said.Hundreds lined the street hoping for a glimpse of the president and first lady, cheering enthusiastically as their motorcade sped away to drop them off on the other side of the island. Its friendly country for Democrats, though a couple of Trump supporters watched the motorcade Thursday behind a Trump sign.The Clintons also frequented the vineyard during Bill Clintons two terms, and the motorcade passed a permanent sign reading Hoo-rah for Bill. The sign was erected by the late Craig Kingsbury, an eccentric local who was the inspiration for Quint in the movie Jaws. Much of the movie was filmed on the island.For their second dinner out, the Obamas headed back Tuesday to State Road restaurant in West Tisbury, which has become a yearly stop for them. Lobster salad, local greens, striped bass, monkfish, duck breast and cheeseburgers were on the menu.The Obamas have vacationed every year but one on Marthas Vineyard. They generally keep a low profile, and indeed there were few people on the street in West Tisbury when they left the restaurant around 10:30 p.m.On the day Obama didnt golf, he and the first family went to a private beach. The White House said Thursday he and daughter Malia also went for a walk in the morning on a trail near the house the Obamas are renting. The White House doesnt disclose exactly where he is staying, but hes in the same neighborhood of a home the Obamas stayed at in 2014 and 2015. One of the local papers, the Marthas Vineyard Times, describes the home as containing seven bedrooms, nine bathrooms, expansive views of Vineyard Sound, a swimming pool, a hot tub and a dual tennis-basketball court.Obama has added a new event to this years itinerary, a fundraiser Monday for the Democratic National Committee. Meanwhile, Hillary Clinton will be on the island as well on August 20. Her campaign website stated that shell be in Edgartown at the home of Carol and Frank Biondi, a former CEO for Viacom and Universal Studios. Its unclear for now whether the two politicians will spend any time together.---Sara Brown and Peter Brannen contributed to this report.Colorado Avalanche Pro Shop . -- Former San Diego Chargers safety Paul Oliver was found dead at his Atlanta-area home Tuesday night, and a medical examiner said Wednesday that the ex-player committed suicide. Colorado Avalanche Store . -- Josh Sterk scored once and set up two more as the Oshawa Generals edged the visiting Belleville Bulls 3-2 on Friday in Ontario Hockey League action. https://www.cheapavalanche.com/ . Murray beat Sam Querrey 7-6 (5), 6-7 (3), 6-1, 6-3 to clinch Britains opening-round victory against the United States on Sunday at Petco Park. "Im proud of the way Im playing just now, because I had to do a lot of work to get back to where I want to be," Murray said after celebrating with his teammates on the red clay court in a temporary stadium in left field of the downtown home of baseballs San Diego Padres. Fake Avalanche Jerseys .com) - Following a late-game loss to the reigning NBA champs, the Toronto Raptors will look to sustain their recent high-level play as they travel to Indiana to take on the Pacers. Avalanche Jerseys 2020 .Y. -- Knicks coach Mike Woodson said Wednesday that J.CHASKA, Minn. -- There will be all sorts of scorching-hot takes and convoluted narratives after the first day of the Ryder Cup. Things such as: The Americans are soft for losing momentum in the afternoon matches! Or: The Europeans are being too sensitive about the hostile crowd! Second-guessing. Friday-evening quarterbacking. Tons of hindsight. You get the idea.Among all of this rhetoric, something might get lost -- something that was the overarching theme of the entire day.That was an absolute freakin blast.This was a brilliant day of golf -- from the first shot of the day, a drive from Justin Rose that silenced the raucous crowd, to the last shot of the day, an eagle putt from Rory McIlroy punctuated by screams and fist pumps and a few bows toward the gallery.If the Ryder Cup is guilty of being overhyped for the two years leading into each edition of the event, then Friday somehow lived up to that hype, and surpassed it.So what if the U.S. team looked too dominant in sweeping the morning foursomes session? So what if Europe pulverized the Americans in three of the four afternoon four-ball matches? So what if only one match actually reached the 17th hole, let alone the 18th?It was everything you could want in a Ryder Cup day. It was competitive and contentious. There were wild momentum swings. There was emotion over the recent passing of Arnold Palmer and tension over the partisan pandering of the home crowd.Maybe it wasnt collectively the best display of golf weve seen all year -- Open Championship, anyone? -- but there might not have been another day that was as much fun.Obviously, theres a lot of energy going around, said Sergio Garcia, playing in his eighth Ryder Cup for Team Europe this week.dddddddddddd Sometimes its a little bit on the edge, but it was great fun.The energy, and that edge, was largely provided by the heavily biased galleries. Running the gamut from passionate to over-the-top, fans yelled and screamed throughout the day, and not just inappropriate things at inappropriate times, either.Its the reason why Jordan Spieth continually shushed his own supporters when they cheered his opponents foibles. And why McIlroy, when he made that match-clinching eagle putt to conclude the day, insisted on a celebration that wouldve gotten him 15 yards and a fine in an NFL end zone.Look, its a hostile environment out there, and I just want everyone thats watching out there to know how much this means to us, how much it means to me personally and obviously us as a team, McIlroy said. I bowed to them, said, Youre welcome for the show.Even U.S. captain Davis Love III, he of the 4-0 early advantage and 5-3 end-of-day lead, could set aside his thoughts on the overall result of the two sessions and realize the drama it provided.[Europe] had some fun this afternoon; we had some fun this morning, and we have two more fun days coming up, he said. Im sure well see some more of that.Ah, yes. The best part of this is that there is more to come.If you thought Friday was a rollicking good time, just wait until the weekend, when things really get heated up here at Hazeltine.This absolute freakin blast is only going to get better. ' ' '