Odell Beckham Jr.’s disappointing first season with the Browns isn’t even over, and the star wide receiver is already making predictions about the next one. Beckham was vague about his future on Thursday during a post-practice interview session in which he discussed his maturity as a person
With more than a month of the season in the books, we revisit our top-25 players list. Who made the cut, and who was bumped out?
Finalists for the Art Rooney Sportsmanship Award are Adrian Peterson, Calais Campbell, Thomas Davis Sr., T.Y. Hilton, Matthew Slater, Matthew Stafford, Joe Staley and Eric Weddle.
Ten names from the modern era are under consideration for the Hall this weekend. Here’s what our ballot would look like.
Team would prefer to put Daniel Suarez in an Xfinity ride for 2020 instead of a Cup car.
NASSAU, Bahamas – Tiger Woods had just signed for a second-round 66 and done all his interviews when he decamped for the short-game practice area at Albany Golf Club. He’d gone seven for seven in scrambling to get within six of leader Patrick Reed (66) at the Hero World Challenge, an unofficial event he has won five times. But that wasn’t enough. With caddie Joe LaCava and a couple of security guards standing by, he hit pitch after pitch with the sun low in the sky. A handful of fans stood outside the ropes, watching him work. The moment was a reminder that whatever else Woods is – tournament host this week, captain of the U.S. Presidents Cup Team next week, 44 years old later this month, catalyst for the ONE Bahamas Fund to support relief and rebuilding efforts for those affected by Hurricane Dorian – he is still, unmistakably, a player. He’s at 82 official PGA TOUR victories, and 15 major championships, and he is very, very serious about nudging those totals upward still in 2020. “I just think it was less windy,â€� he said of his score being six shots better than the day before. “It was a little bit easier today. Scoring conditions were a little bit better. “I didn’t hit the ball as well as I would like starting out, missed a few greens,â€� he added. “Other than No. 2, I missed all the – every green in the correct spot, so I had easy chips and I had to make a couple. But I got it going on that back nine, which is nice.â€� Woods made eagle at the par-5 11th hole, birdied three of the next five holes, and managed to par the difficult 18th, which he’d double-bogeyed the day before. His sharpness comes as no surprise, given that he won the ZOZO Championship in his last start (No. 82), but it is a comfort, knowing that at the Presidents Cup at Royal Melbourne he will be the U.S. Team’s first playing captain since 1994. He was on the short game area at Albany for over an hour, and one sensed it was serving dual purposes. Related: Leaderboard | Reed leads after second-round 66 | Els to go with gut on Woods’ singles matchup Yes, Woods was working on his game, but he was also in a sort of contemplative bubble amid the swirl of activity that is his life. When will he play? When will he captain? Which of his assistants (Steve Stricker, Fred Couples, Zach Johnson) will he deputize to fulfill the captain’s role while he’s out there between the ropes with a club in his hand? As he hit pitch after pitch, such questions could wait. “Yeah, I’m playing a minimum of two,â€� he’d told reporters, when asked how many matches he would play. “Does that help you?â€� He smiled, and everyone laughed along. (All team members must play twice, at minimum.) The laughter died down. “We have gameplans for next week,â€� he continued. “We’ve got guys that haven’t played. DJ’s coming off an injury, a surgery. We’re going to take it day by day, see how guys feel. We’re going to communicate with one another and work through it.â€� Was it good to see captain’s pick Reed playing so well? Yes, Woods said, adding that he was doing so with a new set of irons and new putter this week. Are players already experimenting with each other’s golf balls for the foursomes at Royal Melbourne? Yes, again. How has his game improved since getting surgery on his left knee in August? “I can drive the ball a little bit better because I can rotate,â€� he said, “and I can putt the ball better because I can get down and read putts again.â€� His game, he added, felt sharp coming into the Hero, and it still does. “His swing right now is so smooth,â€� said Bubba Watson (73, 1 over total), who played with Woods in the second round. “It’s pretty nice to watch.â€� With so many variables in play this week and next, and so many question marks going into the Presidents Cup, Woods can count on the one thing that’s almost always carried him through: His game is there.
NASCAR unveiled Busch, Coca-Cola, Geico and Xfinity as “premier partners” of the Cup Series starting in 2020 after Monster’s title sponsorship ends.
NASCAR unveiled Busch, Coca-Cola, Geico and Xfinity as the primary sponsors for the Cup Series starting in 2020 after Monster’s title sponsorship ends.
ALBANY, Bahamas (AP) – A tropical breeze replaced the raging wind and made golf a lot easier for Patrick Reed, Tiger Woods and just about everyone else Thursday in the Hero World Challenge. Reed took advantage of the back nine at Albany Golf Club for the second straight day. He was tied for the lead until making six birdies over his last 10 holes for a 6-under 66 that gave him a three-shot lead over Gary Woodland. “It’s one of those golf courses that when the wind lays down, it gives you opportunities to make birdies,” Reed said. “But when the wind starts blowing, the golf course can get really challenging. You need to give yourself as many opportunities as you can.” Reed was at 12-under 132. Related: Leaderboard | Hero World Challenge pairings give Presidents Cup hints Woods, playing for the first time since he won the ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP for his record-tying 82nd career victory on the PGA TOUR, kept a clean card to match Reed’s 66 and remain six shots behind. Unlike the opening round, when Woods started poorly and ended even worse to wipe out a good back nine, he played bogey-free and made up ground on the back nine. It started with a 6-iron that hopped onto the green at the par-5 11th and rolled 7 feet away for an eagle. He followed with a 7-iron to 8 feet for another birdie. He didn’t make up any ground on Reed, but he at least cut down on the number of players ahead of him as he tries to win his holiday event for the first time since 2011. “I just think it was less windy,” Woods said. “It was a little bit easier today.” Once he got through the front nine, where he spent much of the time scrambling for pars outside of a lone birdie, Woods didn’t miss too many shots coming in. A week before he heads over to Australia as the playing captain for the U.S. Team in the Presidents Cup, the game looked to be in order. Woods attributed that to the minor knee surgery in late August to repair cartilage damage. “I can drive the ball a little better because I can rotate, and I can putt the ball better because I can get down and read putts again,” Woods said. “Toward the end of the year, I couldn’t do that.” Woodland, who makes his Presidents Cup debut next week, lost ground with consecutive bogeys that left him six shots behind at one point. He fixed that by finishing with three straight birdies for a 69 and will be paired with Reed again on Friday for the third round. The tournament ends Saturday so the American team can board a charter to Melbourne, arriving on Monday. Dustin Johnson, who withdrew from the Bahamas to have one more week for his knee to recover, plans to fly in on Saturday to join the rest of the Americans on the charter. Defending champion Jon Rahm also had a 66 to match the low round of the day, leaving him four shots behind with Henrik Stenson, who had a 67. Woods was in the group at 6-under 138 along with Rickie Fowler and Justin Thomas, who each shot 69. Fowler, who got married during his offseason and then missed a tournament recovering from food poisoning, is playing for the first time since the TOUR Championship on Aug. 25. All but three players broke par, and the high score belonged to Bubba Watson and Chez Reavie at 73. Reed is playing this week with a set of prototype irons he has been working on, and he’s keeping it private until the new year. They appear to be working, especially at the end. Coming off a bogey, Reed drilled his approach from 201 yards into 3 feet on the final hole for a birdie to stretch his lead. Woodland was happy to be within three, getting a bad break on the 14th and letting it bother him during another bogey. The closing three birdies changed his outlook. “It was huge. I needed that,” he said. “Got me back in the golf tournament and gave me a chance for this week.”
Championship weekend is loaded with NFL talent with a lot to prove, including Oregon QB Justin Herbert and Wisconsin tailback Jonathan Taylor.
