NFL, players on verge of agreement for seasonNFL, players on verge of agreement for season
The deal would essentially be a one-year collective bargaining agreement, augmenting language and financial splits to weather COVID-19’s impact.
Day: July 24, 2020
Former linebacker Dhani Jones on how to keep players safe and bring back the NFLFormer linebacker Dhani Jones on how to keep players safe and bring back the NFL
Former NFL linebacker Dhani Jones weighs in on the return of sports amid the coronavirus pandemic on ‘The Daily Briefing.’
Report: Fund will pay back lost guaranteed moneyReport: Fund will pay back lost guaranteed money
Brawl averted. The NFL and the NFL Players Association are closing in on a pay-as-you-play approach to 2020. A major sticking point in this regard apparently will be addressed. Via Chris Mortensen of ESPN, the revised labor deal will create a fund that will compensate players for any benefits lost due to the pandemic or [more]
Tiger Woods confirms next start will be PGA ChampionshipTiger Woods confirms next start will be PGA Championship
Tiger Woods confirmed on Friday that the PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park would be his next start on the PGA TOUR. Woods tweeted that he was “disappointed to miss the @WGCFedEx but doing what I think it best to prepare me for the @PGAChampionship and upcoming FedExCup Playoffs.” Woods is a four-time PGA champ and two-time winner of the FedExCup. He currently ranks 42nd in the FedExCup standings which would assure him of an appearance in THE NORTHERN TRUST and a good bet for the BMW Championship the next week. Only the top 30 players advance to the TOUR Championship at East Lake, which Woods has won twice, including most memorably in 2018 with cheering fans following him up the 18th fairway at East Lake – punctuating an amazing comeback and ending victory drought of nearly five years. When Woods tees it up at TPC Harding Park in two weeks it will be just his second start since the TOUR schedule resumed after the COVID-19 hiatus. He tied for 40th on Sunday at the Memorial Tournament, finishing 6 over after rounds of 71-76-71-76. After the final round at Muirfield Village, Woods said he would be focused on his putting, which didn’t seem as decisive or as automatic as it once did. He said he didn’t feel comfortable playing the breaks on those firm, fast, sloping greens on Jack Nicklaus’ signature layout. “Well, I think I need to work on my putting a bit and clean that up,” Woods said. “But as far as my swing, it felt good. I was able to hit good shots. Friday was a bit off physically, but overall for my first week back, it was a lot, a lot of positives.” Woods has played four times in this stop-and-start 2019-20 season. He picked up his 82nd PGA TOUR victory at the ZOZO Championship to open the season in October. He tied for ninth at the Farmers Insurance Open and was 68th at the Genesis Invitation before the break.
After long layoff, Van Pelt finally likes where his game is goingAfter long layoff, Van Pelt finally likes where his game is going
BLAINE, Minn. – When Bo Van Pelt teed it up at the Safeway Open earlier this year, it had been 1,321 days since his last PGA TOUR start. Let that number sink in for a minute. That’s more than three-and-a-half years sucked out of Van Pelt’s career, which was interrupted first by surgery to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder, secondly by a procedure to clean out bone spurs and lastly by an operation to remove one of his ribs. Small wonder, then, that the 45-year-old veteran was so encouraged by his performance through two rounds at the 3M Open. Van Pelt fired a 68 on Friday to go with an opening 66 – the first time he’d broken 70 in consecutive rounds this year – and is just four strokes off the lead. RELATED: Full leaderboard | Dustin Johnson withdraws from 3M Open citing back injury Some players in his position would have given up, content with a life of playing client golf. Van Pelt, after all, had earned more than $20 million during a PGA TOUR career that included one victory at the now-defunct U.S. Bank Championship in Milwaukee so making money wasn’t top of mind. But he wanted to see if he could still compete at the highest level – and at least through 36 holes at TPC Twin Cities, Van Pelt has been equal to the task. “It’s like I told my wife and my kids, this is going to be the hardest thing I ever had to do is to try to compete out here at 45 after taking almost four years off,” Van Pelt said. “I don’t think there’s anybody probably ever done it. “But I like where my game’s going. It’s hard to just keep rah-rahing yourself when you’re shooting over par, so it’s nice to kind of put some red on the board and hopefully this will be some momentum going the right way.” The 2019-20 season has certainly been a challenge for Van Pelt. He wasn’t able to start playing 18 holes until several weeks before returning to the TOUR at the Safeway Open, where he tied for 62nd. Until this week, that was one of just three checks he’d cashed in 15 starts. Van Pelt said the four-month COVID layoff worked in his favor, though, because it gave the former Oklahoma State standout time to knuckle down and really concentrate on his game. “Even though my results haven’t been great this first month, the way I’ve been playing’s been a lot better,” Van Pelt said. “Just kind of sticking with it. It was just hard. I didn’t play 18 holes for over three years. “Basically, I was trying to relearn every kind of feel that I had less than a year ago. Yeah, it’s just been kind of a process. Finally feeling like I’m getting back to where I can compete again.” Van Pelt’s physical problems began in 2016, likely after he reached behind the driver’s seat of his car to pick up a backpack that was heavier than he expected. A few weeks later, the pain in his right shoulder ratcheted up on the weekend of the Waste Management Phoenix Open as a pair of 74s turned a solid 6 under start into a tie for 51st. So, after he missed the cut at Pebble Beach the following week, Van Pelt headed home to Tulsa, Oklahoma, to find out what the problem was. “I tore like 85 percent of my labrum and I just couldn’t play,” Van Pelt said, remembering the diagnosis. “So, they went back in and found a bunch of bone spurs, cleaned it out, thought that was going to do it.” When his hand started going numb, Van Pelt was really worried. In truth, he feared he might never play again. So, his doctor referred him to Dr. Greg Pearl in Dallas. This time, the diagnosis was thoracic outlet syndrome which occurs when blood vessels or nerves in the space between your collarbone and first rib are compressed. “So, they said on top of the torn labrum, (that’s) what I had going on,” Van Pelt said. “That’s why I kept getting a pinch and pain. He removed my first rib I guess a year and a half ago in February and it just gave me the opportunity to play.” Van Pelt made this week’s highlight reel when his 6-iron at the eighth hole on Thursday found the bottom of the cup for an ace. It was a nice way to bounce back from a bogey that had ended a run of four birdies in his previous five holes. “It was great,” Van Pelt said. “I was playing well and bummed about bogeying 7, so it was a great bounce-back. It was funny, I mean, half the holes-in-one I ever had have been with a 6-iron, so that has been my lucky club.” And time will tell if this is his lucky week.
Kings’ Harrison Barnes clears coronavirus hurdle, travels to OrlandoKings’ Harrison Barnes clears coronavirus hurdle, travels to Orlando
Kings get a boost with Barnes clearing protocol.
Source: Blue Jays to play home games in BuffaloSource: Blue Jays to play home games in Buffalo
The displaced Toronto Blue Jays will play in Buffalo this year amid the pandemic, a source confirmed to ESPN.
2020 NBA Restart: Celtics hopeful Kemba Walker can overcome challenges in playoffs2020 NBA Restart: Celtics hopeful Kemba Walker can overcome challenges in playoffs
The Celtics hoped unexpected time off would heal Kemba Walker. Instead, his knee remains a concern. As A. Sherrod Blakely writes, the point guard’s health isn’t the only thing that needs to improve.
NBA restart team previews: Milwaukee BucksNBA restart team previews: Milwaukee Bucks
The coronavirus pandemic halted the NBA season four months ago, the equivalent of an entire offseason. It is easy to forget where everyone left off, let alone what has changed since we last saw NBA basketball. In order to get you up to speed before the July 30 season re-opening slate at Walt Disney World in Orlando, we will be reviewing and previewing each of the 22 teams scheduled to participate.
Rodney Harrison explains why Cam Newton was ‘missing piece’ Patriots neededRodney Harrison explains why Cam Newton was ‘missing piece’ Patriots needed
Rodney Harrison knows what it’s like to go to the New England Patriots late in your NFL career and play under head coach Bill Belichick, and he’s optimistic that Cam Newton will be a great fit in Foxboro.
