Chiefs may just have Tyreek Hill’s replacementChiefs may just have Tyreek Hill’s replacement
With Hill’s future in doubt, Kansas City took speedy receiver Mecole Hardman Jr. with its second-round pick.
Day: April 27, 2019
Mad Max: Scherzer third-fastest to 2,500 K’sMad Max: Scherzer third-fastest to 2,500 K’s
Nationals ace Max Scherzer became the third-fastest pitcher to reach 2,500 strikeouts on Friday.
Billy Hurley III, Peter Malnati find solution to TPC LouisianaBilly Hurley III, Peter Malnati find solution to TPC Louisiana
AVONDALE, La. – Based on their previous history at TPC Louisiana, neither Peter Malnati nor Billy Hurley III should be among the contenders at this week’s Zurich Classic of New Orleans. Malnati had made three starts in this event. He’s missed the cut each time. Hurley has made four starts here. He’s also missed the cut three times. The one time he did make the cut, he finished T-80 and failed to get past the second cut into Sunday. No surprise that a year ago, in their first time as partners in the team format, they did not reach the weekend. “In general, I don’t think either of us would say this was the greatest course for us,â€� Hurley said. And yet here they are, at the end of play on Friday, atop the leaderboard at 14 under, having followed their morning 9-under 63 in Foursomes with a 5-under 67 in afternoon Fourballs. Yes, the second round has yet to be completed. There’s still plenty of golf left. But it’s evident through their 36 bogey-free holes that neither Malnati nor Hurley are letting the frustration of past outcomes determine how they will fare this week. “You’re right, my record here is terrible,â€� Malnati said. “I’ve never seen Saturday here, and I don’t think he’s ever seen Sunday. I didn’t come into this week thinking, ‘Oh, man, oh, man, it’s such a hard course.’ I just came in thinking, ‘Oh, man, I’ve played lousy here every year but I’m not going to this year. “I’m ready. I think I was due – and we were collectively due.â€� Credit goes to a different team mindset this year. Last year, they took the attitude of simply doing their own thing, just like they do for every other event on the PGA TOUR schedule. “We do this 51 weeks a year,â€� Malnati explained. “Let’s not change too much. I’ll work with my caddie, you work with your caddie.â€� It obviously didn’t work. So they’ve now embraced the team concept. They talk about shots together. They game-plan their strategy together. They’re trying to operate as a single entity. Related: Tee times | The secret ingredient to success in New Orleans | How International partners fared in Round 1 | Sabbatini, Gay find right formula “Anytime two players can talk about a shot, you’re going to come up with a better solution than just one player,â€� said Hurley, who is making just his fifth start of the season while playing out of the Past Champion category. There was a moment early in Friday’s Four-balls that stood out for them. Malnati’s sand wedge into the first green hit the pin and shot back 36 feet from the pin. Hurley’s approach, however, landed 7 feet away. But after reading the putt together, the ball did not break as expected, and they settled for par. On the par-5 second, each had birdie putts inside 15 feet. Malnati missed his, but Hurley followed by draining his 13-footer. It was the first of nine team birdies in a 12-hole stretch. “If we come out of the first two holes as good as shots as we had hit and didn’t have a birdie, I think we would’ve been like, oh, geez,â€� Malnati said. “For him to make that putt – I was so glad I had a partner. I was so glad he made that putt, and I think that got our day going.â€� The question now is: Can they keep it going? After all, they’re entering the weekend in unchartered territory at TPC Louisiana. A late tee time in the Four-balls third round. Certainly they’ll tee off in contention, if not leading, once the second round is completed Saturday morning. The pressure will increase. They’ll need to keep leaning on each other. “It’s so much fun,â€� Malnati said. “One week a year we’re actually rooting for someone else out here other than just ourselves.â€�
Peter Malnati and Billy Hurley III top delayed Zurich Classic leaderboardPeter Malnati and Billy Hurley III top delayed Zurich Classic leaderboard
AVONDALE, La. — Peter Malnati and Billy Hurley III topped the Zurich Classic of New Orleans leaderboard at 14-under 130 on Friday when darkness suspended second-round play in the team event at TPC Louisiana. Malnati and Hurley played 36 holes Friday, shooting a best-ball 9-under 63 in the morning in the rain-delayed first round and a 67 in alternate-shot play in the afternoon in the second round. Play was delayed for more than seven hours Thursday, with only half of the 80 two-man teams teeing off. “You play well in a day that doesn’t feel as long,” Malnati said. “But I’ll tell you what, I’m going to call it maybe our 28th or 29th hole, as we were making the turn, my legs were tired. I know Billy and I both, most of the guys out here, are into our conditioning and it’s important, but you’re not prepared to be on your feet walking for what we were today, 10 hours or more, with warmup more than that. It’s a long day.” They played bogey-free in alternate shot, also the final-round format after the best-ball third round. Because of the wet conditions, players were allowed to lift, clean and place their golf balls in the fairways. “We’d love to have a couple of putts back late on our second nine today,” Hurley said. “But playing 36 holes and stuff, the greens definitely got kind of scruffy a little bit and harder to make putts, so we’re super thrilled with pretty much every shot I think we hit today.” First-round leaders Brian Gay and Rory Sabbatini were a stroke back with Russell Knox-Brian Stuard, Scott Stallings-Trey Mullinax and Kevin Kisner-Scott Brown, with only Knox and Stuard finishing two rounds. Gay-Sabbatini and Kisner-Brown had 14 holes left in the second round, and Stallings-Mullinax had nine to go. Knox and Stuard shot 62-69 in their 36-hole day. “I think we kind of got a bit of a break not having to come out yesterday and then getting it all in today,” Stuard said. “It’ll be nice to relax for a little bit.” Gay and Sabbatini opened with a 60. Major champions Henrik Stenson and Graeme McDowell topped the group at 12 under after rounds of 65 and 67. “We had a long day today. We have a bit of a lay-in tomorrow,” Stenson said. “It’s been a disrupted week for everyone one way or the other, and possibly the conditions for the guys who played yesterday and finished up this morning were a little easier. But we didn’t have to sit in the clubhouse all day yesterday. So there’s been pluses and minuses for everyone.” Â
Peter Malnati and Billy Hurley III top delayed Zurich Classic leaderboardPeter Malnati and Billy Hurley III top delayed Zurich Classic leaderboard
AVONDALE, La. — Peter Malnati and Billy Hurley III topped the Zurich Classic leaderboard at 14-under 130 on Friday when darkness suspended second-round play in the team event at TPC Louisiana. Malnati and Hurley played 36 holes Friday, shooting a best-ball 9-under 63 in the morning in the rain-delayed first round and a 67 in alternate-shot play in the afternoon in the second round. Play was delayed for more than seven hours Thursday, with only half of the 80 two-man teams teeing off. “You play well in a day that doesn’t feel as long,” Malnati said. “But I’ll tell you what, I’m going to call it maybe our 28th or 29th hole, as we were making the turn, my legs were tired. I know Billy and I both, most of the guys out here, are into our conditioning and it’s important, but you’re not prepared to be on your feet walking for what we were today, 10 hours or more, with warmup more than that. It’s a long day.” They played bogey-free in alternate shot, also the final-round format after the best-ball third round. Because of the wet conditions, players were allowed to lift, clean and place their golf balls in the fairways. “We’d love to have a couple of putts back late on our second nine today,” Hurley said. “But playing 36 holes and stuff, the greens definitely got kind of scruffy a little bit and harder to make putts, so we’re super thrilled with pretty much every shot I think we hit today.” First-round leaders Brian Gay and Rory Sabbatini were a stroke back with Russell Knox-Brian Stuard, Scott Stallings-Trey Mullinax and Kevin Kisner-Scott Brown, with only Knox and Stuard finishing two rounds. Gay-Sabbatini and Kisner-Brown had 14 holes left in the second round, and Stallings-Mullinax had nine to go. Knox and Stuard shot 62-69 in their 36-hole day. “I think we kind of got a bit of a break not having to come out yesterday and then getting it all in today,” Stuard said. “It’ll be nice to relax for a little bit.” Gay and Sabbatini opened with a 60. Major champions Henrik Stenson and Graeme McDowell topped the group at 12 under after rounds of 65 and 67. “We had a long day today. We have a bit of a lay-in tomorrow,” Stenson said. “It’s been a disrupted week for everyone one way or the other, and possibly the conditions for the guys who played yesterday and finished up this morning were a little easier. But we didn’t have to sit in the clubhouse all day yesterday. So there’s been pluses and minuses for everyone.” Â
College hoops champions Virginia won’t be visiting White HouseCollege hoops champions Virginia won’t be visiting White House
WASHINGTON, D.C., USA — The Virginia Cavaliers, winners of this year’s NCAA men’s basketball tournament, won’t be going to the White House to celebrate with President Donald Trump. Head coach Tony Bennett tweeted Friday that the team has “received inquiries about a visit to the White
Henrik Stenson teaming with Graeme McDowell at the right time in New OrleansHenrik Stenson teaming with Graeme McDowell at the right time in New Orleans
AVONDALE, La. – In his first two starts at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, Sweden’s Henrik Stenson partnered with his good friend and Ryder Cup teammate Justin Rose of England. It was not particularly fruitful — they missed the cut in 2017 and finished T-19 a year ago. Last year, Graeme McDowell of Northern Ireland teamed with another Englishman, Ian Poulter. They finished a ho-hum T-22. Rose is not playing this week. Poulter, meanwhile switched to one of his countryman, Sam Horsfield. Now Stenson and McDowell are together – and will go into the weekend at TPC Louisiana in prime contention at 12 under through two rounds, just two strokes off the lead. All that leads to one conclusion. “Nothing good comes out of England,â€� smiled G-Mac. He was joking, of course, especially with Rose and Poulter being so instrumental in past Ryder Cup success for the European Team. But McDowell, searching for a partner, was hardly disappointed when he got the text from Stenson asking if he wanted to team up. Although they’ve been teammates on just two Ryder Cup teams (and never partnered together) and have just three career rounds as playing partners at PGA TOUR events, McDowell and Stenson have shared plenty of practice time. They’ve owned the back of the range at Lake Nona for years, and they also share a coach in Pete Cowan. Related: Tee times | The secret ingredient to success in New Orleans | How International partners fared in Round 1 | Sabbatini, Gay find right formula “Henrik and Justin were a fantastic team,â€� McDowell said. “With Justin not playing this week, I was very, very pleased when I got the text from Henrik to play with him this week.â€� Interjected Stenson: “That was before he won, though.â€� It was less than a month ago when McDowell won the Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship, his first TOUR win in four years. He immediately followed that with a T-7 at the Valero Texas Open, making his trip this summer to Pebble Beach an intriguing one, given that he won the U.S. Open there in 2010. “I saw it coming,â€� Stenson said of G-Mac’s resurgence. “That’s why I was out early.â€� Explained McDowell: “I sent Henrik a text after he invited me to play, and I said to him, I look forward to you resurrecting my career for me at New Orleans. “Thankfully, I didn’t need to wait that long.â€� Playing 36 holes in a single day can test any golfer, especially one in his 40s (Stenson) and another one who’ll soon turn 40 (McDowell in July). But after an acceptable 7-under 65 in Four-balls on Friday morning, they turned around and shot a more impressive 67 with just a single bogey in the afternoon Foursomes when Stenson found the water at 18 with a 6-iron. “It was really pleasing to play as well as we did in what I consider the toughest format in golf, Foursomes,â€� McDowell said. Added Stenson: “I wouldn’t say we played our absolute, absolute best, but the few times that we did miss, we were lucky enough that it didn’t cost us too much.â€� Although McDowell has won recently, Stenson’s last top 10 in a stroke-play event on the PGA TOUR was a T-6 at last summer’s U.S. Open. “I feel like I’m a little away from firing on all cylinders,â€� Stenson said. But McDowell isn’t worried that he’ll need to carry the team this weekend. “He says he’s not firing on all cylinders,â€� G-Mac said, “but I’ll take a Stenson not firing on all cylinders as my partner any day of the week.â€�
College hoops champions Virginia won’t be visiting White HouseCollege hoops champions Virginia won’t be visiting White House
WASHINGTON, D.C., USA — The Virginia Cavaliers, winners of this year’s NCAA men’s basketball tournament, won’t be going to the White House to celebrate with President Donald Trump. Head coach Tony Bennett tweeted Friday that the team has “received inquiries about a visit to the White
Bosa contrite over 2016 Kaepernick ‘clown’ tweetBosa contrite over 2016 Kaepernick ‘clown’ tweet
New 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa apologized for his recently deleted tweet from several years ago in which he called Colin Kaepernick a clown and said it wasn’t in reference to Kaepernick’s social justice efforts.
Cardinals banking on Kyler Murray to start a new eraCardinals banking on Kyler Murray to start a new era
TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — Kyler Murray met Kliff Kingsbury as a 15-year-old high school quarterback in Allen, Texas.