GOLF
Clarke fires a 66 at Traditions
Darren Clarke took the lead Thursday in the Regions Tradition in Birmingham, Ala., opening with a 6-under 66 in the first of five PGA Tour Champions majors. The 2011 British Open champion from Northern Ireland had a one-stroke lead over Stephen Ames and Jerry Kelly at Greystone Golf & Country Club. Clarke won his lone senior titles in consecutive starts in early November in Florida and late January in Hawaii. Clarke started on the 10th hole with back to back birdies and added three consecutive birdies before making the turn. He added birdies on Nos. 2 and 7 and dropped a stroke on the par-4 eighth. Glen Day (Little Rock) is tied for 20th after firing a 1-under 71. John Daly (Dardanelle, Arkansas Razorbacks) is at 1-over 73 and Ken Duke (Arkadelphia, Henderson State) is at 7-over 79.
Two share Honda lead
Local stars Patty Tavatanakit and Atthaya Thitikul carded 8-under 64s to share a stroke lead after the first round of the LPGA Thailand on Thursday. Tavatanakit, who became Thailand's new leading female golfer following her breakthrough win at the ANA Inspiration last month, shot nine birdies against a lone bogey on the sixth hole in drizzle conditions. Despite no spectators because of the pandemic, Tavatanakit was playing under high home expectations. A Thai has never won this U.S. LPGA Tour event. She kept her cool and led alongside teenage prodigy Thitikul at Siam Country Club. Gaby Lopez (Razorbacks) shot a 3-under 69.
Laporta leads in Spain
Francesco Laporta shot a 9-under 62 for the lowest round of his European Tour career and a one-shot lead after the opening round of the Canary Islands Championship in Tenerife, Spain. The Italian had eight birdies, an eagle and only one bogey in his round at Golf Costa Adeje course. Spaniard Scott Fernandez was in second place and a group of three golfers was another shot back -- Frenchman Joel Stalter and Spaniards Alfredo Garcia-Heredia and Adri Arnaus. Former University of Central Arkansas golfer Pep Angles is tied for sixth at 6-under 65.
Two in front at Korn Ferry
Stephan Jaeger and Austin Smotherman each turned in scores of 7-under 65 to share the lead st the Korn Ferry Tour's Simmons Bank Open-Snedeker Foundation tournament in College Grove, Tenn. Lightning forced the suspension of play Thursday and 63 golfers did not finish the opening round. Taylor Moore (Razorbacks) fired a 2-under 70 and Matt Atkins (Henderson State) shot a 3-over 75. Nicolas Echavarria (Razorbacks) did not finish his round.
FOOTBALL
Longhorns' LB found dead
Texas linebacker Jake Ehlinger, the younger brother of former Longhorns quarterback Sam Ehlinger, was found dead near campus Thursday, Austin police said. Officers found the 20-year-old Ehlinger after responding to a call at 12:18 p.m. Police did not detail how they found him but said the death is not considered suspicious. No cause of death was immediately released. Jake Ehlinger had not played the last two seasons after arriving as a walk-on from Austin's Westlake High School. Sam Ehlinger was a sixth-round pick in the NFL draft last week by the Indianapolis Colts after a college career that saw him rank among Texas' career passing leaders.
Saints add Huggins to DL
The New Orleans Saints have signed defensive tackle Albert Huggins in a move that addresses a position where the club lost two prominent regulars this offseason. The 6-2, 305-pound Huggins is a third-year pro out of Clemson who has played in five NFL games -- four with Philadelphia as a rookie in 2019 and one with Detroit last season. New Orleans is trying to rebuild depth on its interior defensive line, which lost veterans Sheldon Rankins and Malcom Brown as part of cost-cutting moves across the roster to get under the salary cap.
Dolphins release safety
Safety Bobby McCain was released Thursday by the Miami Dolphins, who took Jevon Holland of Oregon as a potential replacement in the second round of the draft. Tight end Jibri Blount, who played basketball at North Carolina Central and was the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference player of the year in 2019-20, was signed and took McCain's roster spot. Holland is now the front-runner to be paired at safety with veteran Eric Rowe this season. McCain, who has spent his entire six-year NFL career with Miami, started 15 games last season and has 55 starts. His release clears $5.6 million in salary cap space for the Dolphins.
BASEBALL
Former Braves' catcher dies
Del Crandall, a star catcher who played on two Milwaukee Braves teams that reached the World Series in the 1950s before managing the Milwaukee Brewers and Seattle Mariners, has died. He was 91. He had Parkinson's disease and died Wednesday in Mission Viejo, Calif., surrounded by family, son Bill Crandall said. Crandall was one of the best defensive catchers in the 1950s and '60s. He was a member of the Braves' 1957 World Series championship team as well as the 1958 squad that lost the World Series. According to the Society for American Baseball Research, Crandall was the last surviving member of the Boston Braves. He was a four-time Gold Glove winner who appeared in 11 All-Star Games over eight seasons. He had a career batting average of .254 with 179 home runs and 657 RBI.
BASKETBALL
Pacers suspend assistant
The Indiana Pacers announced Thursday they are suspending assistant coach Greg Foster for one game and fining center Goga Bitadze an undisclosed for an argument they had during a loss to Sacramento. A statement from the team called it an "internal matter" and no additional details will be released. The third-quarter incident Wednesday began after Bitadze allowed Maurice Harkless to grab a rebound and score on a dunk, which prompted Foster to scold Bitadze for his effort. When Bitadze answered by making a three-pointer, he appeared to curse at Foster. Finally, when play stopped with 2:26 to go, a heated exchange between the two occurred and another player intervened to prevent it from escalating.
TENNIS
Nadal advances in Madrid
Rafael Nadal got through another young opponent and showed signs he was getting closer to his best form on clay as he defeated Alexei Popyrin 6-3, 6-3 to make it to the Madrid Open quarterfinals on Thursday. Nadal overcame eight aces and saved five break points against the Australian. Nadal will next face fifth-seeded Alexander Zverev, who defeated Daniel Evans 6-3, 7-6 (3). The sixth-ranked German has won his last two matches against Nadal, though none were on clay. Third-ranked Daniil Medvedev lost to Cristian Garin 6-4, 6-7 (2), 6-1. The Chilean broke serve twice in the third set to reach his second Masters 1000 quarterfinal. He will face eighth-seeded Matteo Berrettini, who defeated Federico Delbonis 7-6 (4), 6-4. Earlier, U.S. Open champion Dominic Thiem reached the last eight by defeating Alex de Minaur 7-6 (7), 6-4. In the women's final, top-ranked Ashleigh Barty will face fifth-seeded Aryna Sabalenka, who defeated Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-2, 6-3. Barty cruised into the final with a 6-4, 6-3 win over wild-card entry Paula Badosa, the first Spanish woman to reach the semifinals in Madrid.
