Sister Jean mania has reached another height, as the beloved 98-year-old chaplain of the Cinderella Loyola-Chicago basketball team again has her own bobblehead, with the latest version available via presale beginning Friday.
Can Kansas State’s defense stop Loyola-Chicago’s unlikely tournament run? Will Michigan or Florida State build on impressive Sweet 16 wins? Two spots in the Final Four will be decided.
The satisfaction of breaking Spring Training camp yielded to a sickening feeling among the Giants on Friday when ace left-hander Madison Bumgarner sustained a fracture on the fifth metacarpal of his pitching hand, which he said could sideline him for at least four to six weeks.
The satisfaction of breaking Spring Training camp yielded to a sickening feeling among the Giants on Friday when ace left-hander Madison Bumgarner sustained a fracture on the fifth metacarpal of his pitching hand, which he said could sideline him for at least four to six weeks.
AUSTIN, Texas — It’s time to shuffle up and deal. With the Round of 16 set at the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play, PGATOUR.COM’s Jonathan Wall ranked the 16 players left in the field based on current form and how they’ve fared after three days of play at Austin Country Club. 1. Alex Noren, Sweden: Last year’s quarterfinalist has trailed for just two of the 48 holes he’s played this week. Took out an in-form Tony Finau by making big putts down the stretch, including a 14-footer on the last to close it out. Leads the field in strokes gained: putting and has recorded just one bogey this week. Don’t forget he already has a runner-up (Farmers Insurance Open) and third-place (The Honda Classic) finish this year. Next opponent: Patrick Reed. 2. Justin Thomas, USA: Looks like a completely different player after only winning one match the last two years. Hasn’t trailed this week in 48 holes and has form on his side with a win and runner-up finish in his last two starts. Match play is a different beast, but Thomas hasn’t skipped a beat this season. Next opponent: Si Woo Kim 3. Patrick Reed, USA: Reed’s match play pedigree alone is enough to rank him inside the top-3. Went undefeated in group play and downed Jordan Spieth to make the knockout stage. Hasn’t advanced beyond the Round of 16 since the event went to a round-robin format in 2015, but he’s peaking at the right time. Next opponent: Alex Noren. 4. Kiradech Aphibarnrat, Thailand: Looks right at home in his second appearance and has only trailed for one hole (out of 49) this week. Was victorious earlier this year at the World Super 6 Perth that features a match play final round. Defeated last year’s Match Play runner-up Jon Rahm to advance. Next opponent: Charles Howell III 5. Ian Poulter, England: Thrives on the pressure of match play. Poulter’s return to the Odyssey mallet he used to win the 2016 Ryder Cup has fueled an impressive run that’s seen him win all three of his matches before the 18th hole. Next opponent: Louis Oosthuizen 6. Louis Oosthuizen, South Africa: The 2016 runner-up advances to the knockout stage for the third time in four years. Ranks sixth this week in strokes gained: putting while recording 15 birdies. Made it through a tough group that included Jason Day, Jason Dufner and James Hahn. Next opponent: Ian Poulter 7. Sergio Garcia, Spain: Has embraced the windy conditions at Austin Country Club. Leads the field in birdies (18) and ranks second in strokes gained: off the tee. Posted a spotless 3-0-0 record despite trailing after nine holes in all three matches. Next opponent: Kyle Stanley 8. Bubba Watson, USA: Moves on to the knockout stage for the second straight year. Battled from 2-down with three holes to play to earn a halve against Julian Suri to advance. Game seems to be clicking on all cylinders since his Genesis Open win. Has the creativity to deal with the blustery conditions. Next opponent: Brian Harman 9. Matt Kuchar, USA: Kuchar needed just 14 holes to defeat Ross Fisher on Friday in a must-win situation. Qualified for the knockout stage for the second time in the last three years. Only player in the field who recorded a hole-in-one this week. Next opponent: Kevin Kisner 10. Charles Howell III: Ended all three matches before the 18th hole while going 3-0-0 in a group that included Phil Mickelson and Rafa Cabrera Bello. Second consecutive year he’s made the Round of 16 despite recording just eight birdies. Next opponent: Kiradech Aphibarnrat 11. Si Woo Kim, Korea: THE PLAYERS Championship winner gets a red-hot Justin Thomas after getting through Group 15. Tends to play well on Pete Dye golf courses. Has yet to trail in the 51 holes he’s played. Recorded 15 birdies so far this week. Next opponent: Justin Thomas 12. Cameron Smith, Australia: Smith has gone the distance in all three of his matches this week. Made it out of the group stage in his first Match Play appearance. Next opponent: Tyrrell Hatton 13. Kevin Kisner, USA: Trailed for just two holes in the three matches he’s played. Ranks fourth in driving accuracy. Defeated Dustin Johnson to move to the next round. Next opponent: Matt Kuchar 14. Brian Harman, USA: Defeated Rory McIlroy to make the Round of 16 in his first Match Play start. Faces another fellow left-hander in Bubba Watson. Next opponent: Bubba Watson 15. Kyle Stanley, USA: Two of his three matches went the distance. One of the best ball-strikers on the PGA TOUR, Stanley has the game to give Sergio Garcia a tough match. Next opponent: Sergio Garcia 16. Tyrrell Hatton, USA: Recorded the fewest birdies (6) of any player who advanced. Managed to move on despite leading for only four holes (out of 32) in his last two matches. Next opponent: Cameron Smith THREE MATCHES TO WATCH Alex Noren, Sweden vs. Patrick Reed, USA Based on the way Noren and Reed have played, this feels like a championship match. Both moved their way through group play without losing a match and have been making big putts when it counts. Expect a tightly contested battle that likely goes down to the last hole. Bubba Watson, USA vs. Brian Harman, USA The former Georgia Bulldogs square off in a match between the only left-handed players remaining in the field. Harman comes in with six top 10s in his last 10 starts while Watson recorded a win last month at the Genesis Open. Given their current form, it’s difficult to pick a favorite between these two. Watson obviously has the length advantage, but Harman was able to take out Rory McIlroy on Friday with relative ease. Justin Thomas, USA vs. Si Woo Kim, Korea Neither player has trailed at any point this week, so something has to give. Thomas is playing like the second-ranked player in the world this week and disposed of Francesco Molinari without breaking a sweat during their winner-take-all match. Kim has the game to hang with Thomas, but he’ll need to make sure it stays tight on the front nine. If Kim has something going for him, it’s that he seems to play his best golf on Pete Dye courses.Â
The former enforcer announced that he is joining a group players in its groundbreaking lawsuit against the league.
You might’ve heard … Dustin Johnson can drive the golf ball a long way. Yeah, well there’s long … and then there’s THIS. Johnson had a tough week in his title defense at the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play, as the World No. 1 lost all three of his matches and was eliminated in pool play. His Friday match was a lackluster 4-and-3 defeat to Kevin Kisner. But it included an epic moment: The one where Johnson blasted a drive 489 yards. Yes, 489 YARDS. He seriously hit a ball almost freakin’ 500 yards. That 489-yard mark is 13 yards farther than the longest drive recorded on the PGA Tour in the ShotLink era (2003-Present). But a buzz kill moment … stats from this event don’t officially count. So
Winner – PGA/U.S. Open Championship Jason Dufner Martin Kaymer Justin Rose Jordan Spieth Winner – The Players Championship Rickie Fowler Winner – British Open Phil Mickelson Henrik Stenson Winner – World Golf Championship Event Russell Knox Shane Lowry Winners of the Arnold Palmer Inv. & the Memorial (Last 3 Years) Matt Every William McGirt Tournament Winner in Past Two Seasons Ryan Armour Aaron Baddeley Daniel Berger Jonas Blixt Greg Chalmers Tony Finau Fabián Gómez Cody Gribble Emiliano Grillo James Hahn Russell Henley Mackenzie Hughes Smylie Kaufman Chris Kirk Matt Kuchar Peter Malnati Grayson Murray Rod Pampling D.A. Points Brandt Snedeker Chris Stroud Brian Stuard Vaughn Taylor Jhonattan Vegas Career Money Exemption K.J. Choi Ernie Els Retief Goosen Sponsors Exemptions – Members not otherwise exempt Padraig Harrington Johnson Wagner Sponsors Exemptions – Unrestricted Ben Crane Bobby Gates Hunter Mahan Lee Westwood Designated Sponsor Exemption Yuta Ikeda Shubhankar Sharma PGA Section Champion\Player of the Year JJ Wood Past Champion of Respective Event J.B. Holmes Matt Jones Top 125 on Prior Season’s FedEx Cup Points List Bill Haas Chez Reavie Charles Howell III Lucas Glover Keegan Bradley Luke List Ian Poulter Scott Brown Jamie Lovemark Sung Kang Rafa Cabrera Bello Sean O’Hair Robert Streb Bud Cauley Kevin Tway Danny Lee Kelly Kraft Jason Kokrak Patrick Rodgers Morgan Hoffmann Chad Campbell Kevin Streelman Cheng Tsung Pan Whee Kim Harold Varner III Nick Taylor Camilo Villegas Scott Piercy Michael Kim Scott Stallings Byeong Hun An Martin Flores Richy Werenski Ryan Blaum Geoff Ogilvy Robert Garrigus Steve Stricker Derek Fathauer Tyrone Van Aswegen Harris English Dominic Bozzelli Nick Watney John Huh Blayne Barber Rory Sabbatini J.J. Henry Top 125 (Prior Season Nonmember) Thomas Pieters Major Medical Extension Ryan Palmer Jon Curran Bob Estes Andrew Loupe Leading Money Winner from Web.com Tour & Web.com Tour Finals Chesson Hadley Top Finishers from Web.com Tour Prior Season (reordered) Tom Hoge Brandon Harkins Alex Cejka Martin Piller Peter Uihlein Beau Hossler Aaron Wise Talor Gooch Sam Saunders Ben Silverman Tyler Duncan Nicholas Lindheim Brice Garnett Abraham Ancer Jonathan Randolph Xinjun Zhang Seamus Power Stephan Jaeger Troy Merritt Corey Conners Andrew Putnam Shawn Stefani Adam Schenk Tom Lovelady Rob Oppenheim Lanto Griffin Bronson Burgoon Joel Dahmen Cameron Tringale Keith Mitchell Michael Thompson Roberto DÃaz Nate Lashley Ethan Tracy Jonathan Byrd Brett Stegmaier Â
Patrick Reed never trailed in a 2-and-1 victory over Jordan Spieth at the Match Play. The match ended when Reed hit a 40-foot putt from behind the 17th green that looked as though it would go 8 feet by until it ran into the cup for a birdie.
AUSTIN, Texas — In a showdown that turned sloppy, Patrick Reed nearly holed a wedge to seize control and finished off Jordan Spieth with a 40-foot birdie putt from behind the 17th green to advance to the weekend of the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play. The 2-and-1 victory sent Spieth home in search of his game with the Masters just two weeks away. Spieth hit his opening tee shot onto the range and out-of-bounds. He hit into a hazard on each of the next two holes. And when he finally caught Reed with consecutive shots to tap-in range, he missed two key putts inside 6 feet. “I don’t think it would have been that tough to beat me today,” Spieth said. Reed was tough enough, twirling a wedge in his hands as it cut into the wind and grazed the front edge of the cup on the 13th hole for a 2-up lead to take command of the match. Spieth, who three-putted for the third time on No. 15 to fall 3 down, stayed alive with an 8-foot birdie putt on the 16th and looked as though he might have a chance to go the distance when Reed’s putt was racing toward the cup at the 17th. The cup got in the way, and all Spieth could do was smile. “Just happened to be the perfect line,” Reed said. “Thank God, because that thing was moving.” And now Reed is moving along into the single-elimination phase of the weekend, four matches away from another World Golf Championship. Spieth is headed to the Houston Open without a top 10 in his last seven tournaments. “I’m human and I’m realistic that based on the way the year’s gone … it’s been kind of a trying time for me, especially on and round the greens,” Spieth said. “Stuff I took for granted in setup and pace control and all that kind of stuff … has been a little bit more difficult. And I’ve been trying to figure out how to get back to that level, and I’ve been trying different things.” Spieth, the No. 4 seed, wasn’t the only player leaving early. Justin Thomas (No. 2) and Sergio Garcia (No. 7) were the only top-10 seeds to advance to the fourth round. Thomas had the easiest time, a 7-and-5 victory over Francesco Molinari. And with defending champion Dustin Johnson already eliminated, Thomas can go to No. 1 in the world if he wins this week. But there’s a long way to go. Asked how he felt going into the weekend, Thomas replied, “The same as the other 16 guys. We all start at the same place.” Paul Casey might have had the toughest day: He lost twice. Casey only had to halve his match to advance for the third time in four years. He lost to Matt Fitzpatrick, and even then had a chance to win his group if the other match was halved. Instead, Kyle Stanley made an 8-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole to win, and then he beat Casey on the second hole of a playoff. Tyrrell Hatton also was forced into a playoff, and he beat Brendan Steele on the first extra hole. Rory McIlroy still had a chance until he lost to Brian Harman. Phil Mickelson was eliminated when Charles Howell III, who beat Lefty on Wednesday, completed a 3-0 mark in group play by beating Satoshi Kodaira. Howell and Ian Poulter, who swept his matches when Kevin Chappell conceded at the turn with a back injury, still have a chance to earn a spot in the Masters by getting into the top 50 at the end of the week. They both need to win at least one more match. The tightest match was Alex Noren and Tony Finau, one of four matches between players who had not lost all week. Finau won three straight holes on the back nine to take a 1-up lead, only to lose the 14th with a bogey. With the match all square, Noren made a 10-foot birdie at the 17th to go 1 up, and then holed a 15-foot par putt on the final hole to avoid going to a playoff with Finau. Noren now has won seven of his last eight matches in his event, his only loss coming to Johnson in the quarterfinals last year. In other groups: — Garcia won on the 17th hole against Xander Schauffele and won his group for the first time since it switched to pool play in 2014. He also becomes the home favorite from living part-time in Austin, where his wife gave birth to their first child last week. — Si Woo Kim outlasted Webb Simpson on the 18th hole to advance. — Matt Kuchar made a hole-in-one in a 6-and-4 victory over Ross Fisher to advance to the weekend for the second time in three years. — Bubba Watson birdied his last two holes to earn a halve against Julian Suri and avoid a playoff. Watson next faces Harman, a match of Georgia lefties. — Louis Oosthuizen beat Jason Day with two clutch putts, and then won the group with a 12-foot par putt in a playoff to beat Jason Dufner. This is the third time in four years that Oosthuizen has reached the weekend.
