GOLF
McCarron by 2
Scott McCarron eagled the par-5 12th and shot a 5-under 66 on Saturday to take a two-stroke lead in the Pacific Links Bear Mountain Championship at Victoria, British Columbia. McCarron, 51, made an 8-foot putt for the eagle and added a birdie on the par-3 16th in chilly, overcast conditions at scenic Bear Mountain Resort, the first-year venue in the PGA Tour Champions event that was played in Hawaii from 2012-14. McCarron had a 14-under 128 total after shooting a course-record 62 on Friday. Doug Garwood was second at 12 under after a 66. Colin Montgomerie was 11 under after a bogey-free 67. Scott Dunlop had a 65 to reach 10 under, and Jeff Maggert, Mark O’Meara and Brian Henninger each shot 64 to join Olin Browne
(67) and Jeff Sluman (68) at 9 under. Glen Day (Little Rock) shot a 2-under 69 and is 2 under after two rounds. Mike Grob (Arkansas Razorbacks) had a 68 and is 1 over going into the final round.
Flores out front
Martin Flores birdied five of the last seven holes for a 5-under 66 and a three-stroke lead in the Web.com Tour Finals’ Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship at Columbus, Ohio. Already guaranteed a PGA Tour card with a fifthplace finish on the Web.com Tour’s regular-season money list, Flores, 34, rebounded from a bogey on No. 11 with birdies on the next four holes and closed with a birdie on 18. He had a 13-under 20 total on Ohio State’s Scarlet Course. Flores won the Lincoln Land Charity Championship in July for his first Web.com Tour title. Former Arkansas Razorback Tag Ridings, tied with Flores for the second-round lead, was second after a 69. Ridings, 42, was 52nd on the Web.com money list and entered the third of four series events 36th in the race for 25 PGA Tour cards with $9,493. The series features the top 75 players from the Web.com regular-season money list, Nos. 126-200 in the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup standings and non-members with enough PGA Tour money to have placed in the top 200 in the FedEx Cup had they been eligible.
Levy leads in rain
France’s Alexander Levy completed an 8-under 63 and the delayed second round to take a fourstroke lead in the rain-shortened European Open at Bad Griesbach, Germany. Morning fog delayed the start of play for the third consecutive day, forcing organizers to cut the event to 54 holes. Levy played only one hole Saturday, making a par on the ninth. He opened with a course-record 62 and had a 17-under 125 total. Sweden’s Michael Jonzon was second after a 63.
TENNIS
Wozniacki advances
Former champion Caroline Wozniacki continued her late season resurgence by beating second-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland on Saturday to advance to the final of the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo. Radwanska was close to victory, leading 5-3 in the second set, but Wozniacki seized momentum when she broke her opponent twice to win the last four games on her way to a 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 victory. The U.S. Open semifinalist also came from 3-1 down in the third set, once again winning four consecutive games before closing out the match when Radwanska’s return went into the net. The Dane will face Naomi Osaka of Japan in today’s final. Osaka also rallied to beat Elina Svitolina of Ukraine 1-6, 6-3, 6-2.
HORSE RACING
Connect scores upset
Late-developing 3-year-old Connect ($23.20) held off Gun Runner to win the $1.25 million Pennsylvania Derby on Saturday at Parx Racing, leaving Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist and Preakness winner Exaggerator in the dust. Even-money favorite Nyquist challenged off the far turn before fading to sixth while Exaggerator never threatened and finished seventh. Connect, a son of Curlin who won the Curlin Stakes on July 29 at Saratoga Race Course, but finished well back in the Travers, bounced back Saturday under jockey Javier Castellano. Connect sat inside off the fast pace set by Awesome Slew and Rebel Stakes winner Cupid, with Nyquist in close pursuit. The leaders faded when the field of 12 3-year-olds pulled into the stretch, with Gun Runner, third-place finisher in the Kentucky Derby, going five wide under Florent Geroux while Connect, trained by Chad Brown, took the inside path. Wild About Deb, at 62-1, got up for third, 4 lengths behind the top two. Time for the 1 1/8 miles was 1:50.20.
Mrs McDougal wins
Mrs McDougal led all the way Saturday in the $200,000 Noble Damsel Stakes for fillies and mares on the turf at Belmont Park. The 4-year-old beat Zindaya by two lengths, giving trainer Chad Brown a 1-2 finish. Irad Ortiz Jr. was aboard as Mrs McDougal improved to 5 for 11 with her biggest victory since the 2015 Lake George Stakes at Saratoga. The time was 1:34.99 for the mile. Mrs McDougal paid $4.20, $2.70 and $2.10 as the even-money favorite. Zindaya returned $4.10 and $2.60, and Stormy Victoria paid $2.30. The 7-year-old Kharafa won the $125,000 Ashley T. Cole Stakes for the third time in last four years. He beat Offering Plan by three-quarters of a length, paying $7.50 to win.
BASEBALL
Girardi explains
New York Manager Joe Girardi said he walked out of Friday’s post-game media session because he was upset by questions about his bullpen usage, not because the slumping Yankees lost ground in the AL wild card race and were eliminated from the AL East. The Yankees lost 9-0 in Toronto on Friday, their ninth defeat in 12 games after a seven-game winning streak. Girardi got up and angrily walked out after being pressed on his decision to use right-hander Blake Parker in the seventh inning with his team trailing 3-0. Toronto scored four runs in one-third of an inning against Parker to blow the game open. Girardi denied his move was a sign he didn’t believe the Yankees still had a chance to make the playoffs.
GOLF
Johnson, Chappell tied for Championship lead
ATLANTA — Dustin Johnson made one mistake that suddenly put some intrigue into the final day of the PGA Tour season — the Tour Championship and the FedEx Cup.
Johnson clipped a tree trying to get out of the rough on the 17th hole and made double bogey, and only a birdie on the final hole at East Lake on Saturday allowed him to shoot a 1-under 69 and regain a share of the lead with Kevin Chappell.
Chappell went from a four-shot def icit on the front nine to a one-shot lead when he made a 10-foot birdie putt on the 17th and Johnson made his double bogey. Chappell, still looking for his first PGA Tour victory, shot a 68.
They were at 8-under 202.
Rory McIlroy and Ryan Moore each had a 66 and have different prizes at stake today. They were two shots behind, still very much in the game after wondering most of the steamy afternoon if Johnson was going to give anyone a chance.
Johnson still has control of the $10 million bonus for winning the FedEx Cup. He only has to win or finish second alone in the Tour Championship to win the cup. McIlroy, five shots behind at the start of the third round, would have to win the Tour Championship and have Johnson finish in a two-way tie for second.
Hideki Matsuyama of Japan had a 68 and was three shots behind, while Jason Dufner had a 66 was four back.
Chappell made a David versus Goliath comparison Friday, and it felt like that at times with how far Johnson hits it and the support he had from a Southern crowd. But the California kid never flinched even when he fell behind early, and he has gone 54 holes at East Lake with only one bogey.
Plus, he gets one more crack at the hottest player in golf.
“I got nothing to lose,” Chappell said. “I’m going to go out there and give it all I’ve got, and Dustin is going to play great golf. He’s been in this situation a lot this year, and it will come down to one or two shots.”
Sports on 09/25/2016