Off the wire

GOLF

Henley leads by 1

Dustin Johnson overcame a shaky start with a switch to his old putter to post a 5-under 65, leaving him one shot behind Russell Henley after the opening round of The Northern Trust at Old Westbury, N.Y. The 65 was Johnson’s lowest round since he won at Riviera in February, which began his rise to No. 1 in the world. Henley played in the morning and holed seven birdie putts from 12 feet or closer, along with an 80-foot chip-in for birdie for his 64. Scott Brown, Camilo Villegas and Chris Kirk were at 66. Phil Mickelson, meanwhile, needs to see a score much better than his 72, which featured two consecutive birdies at the end but also a pair of double bogeys. Mickelson has played in every Presidents Cup or Ryder Cup since 1994, and he is in danger of being left out of the Presidents Cup next month at Liberty National. PGA champion Justin Thomas, still sluggish from a busy week of trying to deal with his new status as major champion, wasn’t expecting much out of his game and dropped two shots early before he rallied for a 68. British Open champion Jordan Spieth had a 69, while Hideki Matsuyama, the No. 1 seed going into the PGA Tour’s version of the postseason, didn’t make a birdie and opened with a 74. Rory McIlroy made three bogeys on the back nine and shot 73. David Lingmerth (Arkansas Razorbacks) shot a 1-over 71.

Alex out front

Marina Alex shot a 5-under 66 on Thursday to take the lead in the Canadian Pacific Women’s Open, while Canadian star Brooke Henderson was in danger of missing the cut after a 74. Alex had four birdies on her opening nine — the back nine at Ottawa Hunt — and added two birdies and a bogey on her second nine. The American is winless on the PGA Tour. South Korea’s In Gee Chun and England’s Holly Clyburn were a stroke back at 67. Angel Yin and Brittany Lincicome, coming off the United States’ Solheim Cup victory Sunday in Iowa, were at 68 along with Shanshan Feng, Sei Young Kim, Pavarisa Yoktuan and Sherman Santiwiwatthanaphong. Stacy Lewis (Arkansas Razorbacks) shot a 2-under 69. Gaby Lopez (Razorbacks) had a 73. Emily Tubert (Razorbacks) had a 75.

Pair share lead

Conrad Shindler and Drew Weaver shared the lead Thursday after the first round of the Web.com Portland Open at North Plains, Ore. Each had an 8-under 63 at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club. Sebastian Cappelen (Arkansas Razorbacks) and Aaron Wise were one stroke behind. John Merrick and Martin Piller each had 65s. Taylor Moore (Razorbacks) had a 3-under 68. Austin Cook (Jonesboro, Razorbacks) and Andrew Landry (Razorbacks) each shot 2-under 69. Zack Fischer (Little Rock) and Ethan Tracy (Razorbacks) shot even-par 71. Matt Atkins (Henderson State) had a 7-over 78.

Three on top

Australian golfer Wade Ormsby and Englishmen Matt Wallace and Steve Webster shared the lead on 7-under 64 after the first round Thursday of the Made In Denmark tournament in Farso, Denmark, on the European Tour. The No. 163-ranked Wallace made nine birdies, but a bogey 5 at the last cost him the outright lead at the Himmerland Golf & Spa Resort. Swedish players Oscar Lengden and Robert Karlsson, and Benjamin Hebert of France were one stroke behind the joint leaders after 65s. Thomas Pieters, the world No. 29, is the highest-ranked player competing in Denmark but a quadruple-bogey 8 at the par-4 No. 6 — his 15th hole — led to him shooting 74. Europe Ryder Cup captain Thomas Bjorn, playing in his home country and in his 500th event on the European Tour, shot 73. John Daly (Dardanelle, Arkansas Razorbacks) shot a 4-under 67. Pep Angles (Central Arkansas) had a 73.

BASEBALL

Conforto injured

New York Mets outfielder Michael Conforto dislocated his left shoulder Thursday, collapsing in pain after swinging at a pitch. The All-Star slugger was hurt in the fifth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks, yet another blow to a team beset by injuries all season and now out of contention. With two outs and runners on first and second, Conforto swung through a 95-mph fastball by Robbie Ray. He collapsed and grabbed his shoulder. Conforto stayed down for about 40 seconds before being helped to his feet by trainer Ray Ramirez and a member of the coaching staff. The 24-year-old had an MRI after the game. Drafted 10th overall by the Mets in 2014, Conforto is batting.279 with 27 home runs and 68 RBI this season.

Kang set for winter ball

The Pirates have not lost hope with Jung Ho Kang. The third baseman remains unable to enter the United States, but the Pirates are making plans for him to play in the Dominican Winter League, General Manager Neal Huntington said. The Department of State has thus far rejected Kang’s application for a visa in the aftermath of his DUI arrest in Seoul, in his native South Korea, in December. That DUI was the third such incident in South Korea. Kang is currently on the restricted list, meaning he does not count against the Pirates’ 40-man roster and is not being paid. They signed him to a four-year, $11 million contract, plus a posting fee of $5 million to his former Korea Baseball Organization for the rights to negotiate with him, before the 2015 season. The Dominican Winter League begins Oct. 20 and the regular season runs through Christmas Eve.

Britton’s knee a puzzle

An MRI performed on Baltimore Orioles closer Zach Britton’s left knee Thursday revealed no structural damage, according to an industry source. Though the results were positive, it appears that the club is still undetermined whether the problem will land Britton on the disabled list — there is effusion in the knee that is causing swelling — especially as the Orioles attempt to maneuver the rest of the month with a six-man bullpen before rosters expand Sept. 1. Britton said he didn’t believe the problem was serious. Manager Buck Showalter, conscious of the issue, has been using Britton sparingly. Going into Wednesday’s outing — in which Britton allowed four of the five batters he faced to reach base and allowed two runs in the ninth inning — Britton had pitched just 3 2/3 innings over the past two weeks.

BASKETBALL

Spurs re-sign Ginobili

Manu Ginobili is returning for his 16th season with the San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs resigned the 40-year-old Argentine guard Thursday. Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed. Ginobili will become the eighth player in NBA history to spend his entire career with one team and play at least 16 seasons, joining Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Kobe Bryant, Dirk Nowitzki, John Stockton, Reggie Miller and John Havlicek. Ginobili averaged 7.5 points, 2.7 assists and 2.3 rebounds in 69 games last season, In 992 career regular-season games, he has averaged 13.6 points, 3.9 assists and 3.6 rebounds. In 213 playoff games, the four-time NBA champion has averaged 14.1 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.8 assists.

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