Off the wire

Claressa Shields, right, leans back from Maricela Cornejo during a middleweight boxing bout Saturday, June 3, 2023, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)
Claressa Shields, right, leans back from Maricela Cornejo during a middleweight boxing bout Saturday, June 3, 2023, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)

GOLF

Zhang wins in pro debut

Two-time NCAA champion Rose Zhang became the first LPGA Tour winner in her pro debut in 72 years, capturing the Mizuho Americas Open in Jersey City, N.J., with a par on the second hole in a playoff against Jennifer Kupcho on Sunday. The last female player to win as a pro in her debut was Beverly Hanson, who edged Babe Zaharias to take the Eastern Open in 1951. Zhang shot a 2-over 74 in the final round and squandered a chance to win the event on the 72nd when she missed an 8-foot par saver after making at least a half dozen clutch saves in a gritty final round performance. The much-heralded 20-year-old from Stanford made a nearly identical 8-footer on No. 18 at Liberty National on the first playoff hole. Kupcho, who won an NCAA title at Wake Forest in 2018 and had a final round 69, also made a par. Both players hit the fairway on No. 18 on the second playoff hole, but Zhang hit her approach from the fairway within 10 feet. Kupcho was short on her approach, her first putt went just over the back edge of the green and her second putt just missed. That left Zhang with a two-putt par to win.

Hovland a playoff winner

Viktor Hovland handled the toughest stretch at Muirfield Village and delivered three clutch putts at the end to win the Memorial in a playoff over hard-luck Denny McCarthy on Sunday. Hovland closed with a 2-under 70 on another brutal test on a course baked all week by sun, forcing the playoff with a 30-foot birdie on the 17th -- the only one on that hole in the final round -- and saving par from behind the 18th green. Back to the 18th in the playoff, Hovland barely got onto the front of the green, some 60 feet away from the back pin, and two-putted by holing a 7-foot par putt. It was his fourth PGA Tour victory and first on American soil, this one with a $3.6 million winner's check and a handshake from host Jack Nicklaus. The Norwegian's previous wins were in Mexico twice and Puerto Rico.

Ames claims 3rd title

Stephen Ames birdied the 17th hole and closed with a 5-under 67 on Sunday for a one-shot victory over Steve Stricker and Jerry Kelly in the Principal Charity Classic, giving Ames his third PGA Tour Champions title this year. Ames, Stricker and Tim Herron shared the 36-hole lead. Herron fell back with a 72. Stricker, coming off his second straight major title this year at the Senior PGA Championship, played bogey-free for a 68. He just couldn't keep up with Ames. Kelly had four consecutive birdies on the front nine and closed with two birdies over the last three holes, but he had to settle for par on the 18th that kept him out of a playoff. Glen Day (Little Rock) shot a 68 for the second day in a row and finished at 10-under 206. Ken Duke (Arkadelphia, Henderson State) posted a 64 on Sunday to finish at 8-under 208.

MOTOR SPORTS

Palou cruises at Detroit GP

Alex Palou started and finished first in the Detroit Grand Prix on Sunday, winning his second IndyCar race in less than a month and the sixth time of his career. The Spaniard, who won the Indianapolis Grand Prix, led 74 of 100 laps on Detroit's new street course and went ahead for the last time on lap 77. He stayed in front after Will Power made a move that didn't pan out as he made contact with Scott Dixon on lap 91. After a seventh yellow flag, Palou pulled away in his Honda with five laps left and beat Power's Chevrolet by 1.1843 seconds. Flex Rosenqvist finished third, followed by Dixon and Alexander Rossi. The race got off to a rough start, a day after Palou said there would be excessive traffic on a track too tight and short for IndyCar. The start was waved off because there wasn't enough space between cars. When the race resumed on the second lap going into Turn 3, Callum Ilott damaged Kyle Kirkwood's wing by running into him in the middle of the 27-car pack.

Verstappen first in Spain

Max Verstappen had warned that his Red Bull team was good enough to win every single race of the Formula One season. On Sunday he took one more step toward that ambitious sweep by easing to victory at the Spanish Grand Prix. The two-time defending champion started from pole position and never was challenged as he breezed to his fifth win of the year. Verstappen beat Carlos Sainz's Ferrari to the first corner and then eased his superior car around the 2.8-mile Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya to finish well ahead of Mercedes pair Lewis Hamilton and George Russell.

BASEBALL

Roger Craig dead at 93

Roger Craig, who pitched for three championship teams during his major league career and then managed the San Francisco Giants to the 1989 World Series that was interrupted by a massive earthquake, has died. He was 93. A spokesman for the Giants said the team was informed by a family member that Craig died Sunday in San Diego following a short illness. Craig was a rookie on the 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers club that won the franchise's first title. He had a terrific season for the 1959 Los Angeles Dodgers, who beat the Chicago White Sox in the World Series. And he made 39 appearances for the 1964 St. Louis Cardinals squad that topped the New York Yankees for the championship. The 6-4 right-hander also pitched for the New York Mets, Cincinnati Reds and Philadelphia Phillies during his 12-year career, finishing 74-98 with a 3.83 ERA and 19 saves. Craig's first job as a big league manager came with the Padres in 1978. He guided them to a 15-win improvement from the previous year and the first winning record in team history at 84-78. But he was fired after going 68-93 in 1979. He was hired by the Giants in September 1985 and managed them through 1992, winning NL West titles in 1987 and 1989.

BASKETBALL

U.S. earns 3-on-3 gold

The U.S. beat France 16-12 to win the gold medal at the 3-on-3 women's World Cup in Vienna, Austria, on Sunday, while Serbia prevented an American sweep by rallying to beat the U.S. 21-19 in the men's title game. It was the third World Cup title for the American women -- and their first since 2014. Cierra Burdick, who was on the World Cup team that won gold for the U.S. in 2014, scored seven points for the Americans in the final. LSU guard Hailey Van Lith also scored seven in the title game for the U.S., which placed only seventh at the World Cup last year.

BOXING

Shields easily retains

Claressa Shields successfully defended her undisputed middleweight title with a lopsided unanimous decision over Maricela Cornejo on Saturday night in the first boxing card at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit. Shields (14-0, 2 KOs) won with a score of 100-89 on one card and 100-90 on the other two. Shields has won two Olympic gold medals and professional titles at super welterweight (154 pounds), middleweight (160 pounds) and super middleweight (168 pounds). Cornejo (16-6) hasn't beaten an opponent with a winning record in more than four years. Cornejo gave Shields some trouble in the early rounds with a solid jab and movement away from Shields' right hand. However, she couldn't generate enough power to keep the champion from coming forward.

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