GOLF
Trio leads in Fort Worth
Kelly Kraft, Derek Fathauer and PGA Tour rookie J.T. Poston all shot 5-under 65 on Thursday to share the lead after the first round of the Dean & DeLuca Invitational at Fort Worth. Jon Rahm, Scott Brown and Graeme McDowell followed at 66. Two-time champions Phil Mickelson and Zach Johnson both birdied their last three holes and were among six players at 67. Defending champion Jordan Spieth, coming off consecutive missed cuts, was tied for 34th after an even-par 70 with six birdies, four bogeys and a double bogey. Only 33 of the 121 players finished under par. Kraft and McDowell had the only bogey-free rounds. Brown had the lead outright at 6 under before a double bogey on his last hole. David Lingmerth (Arkansas Razorbacks) had a 1-over 71. Bryce Molder (Conway) shot a 7-over 77.
Lewis shares lead
Former Arkansas Razorback Stacy Lewis shot a 7-under 65 on Thursday to share the first-round lead in the LPGA Volvik Championship at Ann Arbor, Mich. Lewis was tied with an unexpected challenger in Wei-Ling Hsu, the Taiwanese player who has only one top-10 finish on the LPGA Tour. Hsu eagled two of her first five holes and was 6 under through six. She and Lewis ended up a stroke ahead of Nelly Korda. Lewis, a former world No. 1, is winless in 72 events since June 2014. She has 11 LPGA Tour victories and 25 second-place finishes -- 12 since her last victory. Hsu began her round on No. 10 at Travis Pointe Country Club. She holed out a 7-iron from 155 yards for an eagle on the 394-yard par 4. Gaby Lopez (Razorbacks) had a 3-under 69.
Langer leads seniors
Bernhard Langer will sleep on a two-shot lead as he aims for his record ninth senior major at the Senior PGA Championship at Sterling, Va. Langer shot a 7-under 65 on Thursday morning, and the lead held up as thunderstorms halted play in the afternoon with half the 156-man field still on the course. The 59-year-old German could break Jack Nicklaus' record of eight senior majors with a victory at Trump National. He would also become the first player to win all five of the current senior majors. Langer finished off his round with a tap-in eagle at the par-5 18th. Tom Lehman, Lee Janzen, Scott McCarron and James Kingston shot 67, and Larry Mize also was 5 under with eight holes left. Glen Day (Little Rock) had a 2-under 70. John Daly (Dardanelle, Arkansas Razorbacks) was 1 under after nine holes.
Carlsson atop BMW
British Open champion Henrik Stenson shot a bogey-free, 4-under 68 to lie two strokes off the lead held by Swedish compatriot Johan Carlsson after the first round of the BMW PGA Championship on Thursday at Virginia Water, England. All four of Stenson's birdies came on the back nine as Wentworth rolled out its new greens for the signature event on the European Tour. They appeared to meet with widespread approval, especially from Carlsson, whose hot run came on the front nine where he reached the turn in 30 shots, thanks to five birdies. Ernie Els appeared to have chipped in for an eagle on the par-5 12th hole, but he instantly realized he had not replaced his ball in the right place after checking to see whether it was plugged. The four-time major winner was assessed a two-shot penalty and shot a 1-under 71 to lie five shots off the lead. Carlsson holds a one-shot lead over Francesco Molinari, Scott Jamieson and Kiradech Aphibarnrat. Pep Angles (Central Arkansas) had a 3-over 75.
BASEBALL
Price debuts Monday
Boston Red Sox pitcher David Price is set to make his season debut Monday at the Chicago White Sox. The 31-year-old left-hander, starting the second season of a $217 million, seven-year contract, has been recovering from a strained pitching elbow. Price allowed 9 runs -- 6 earned -- and 12 hits in 51/3 innings during a pair of injury rehabilitation starts at Class AAA Pawtucket. He struck out eight and walked two.
Robinson to get award
Rachel Robinson will receive the Buck O'Neil Lifetime Achievement Award from baseball's Hall of Fame on July 29, the day before this year's induction ceremony. She's the wife of the late Hall of Famer Jackie Robinson, who broke the major league color barrier in 1947. Rachel Robinson created the Jackie Robinson Foundation in 1973, a year after her husband's death. Rachel Robinson, who turns 95 on July 19, headed the foundation's board until 1996. The O'Neil award was established in 2007 to honor individuals who broaden the game's appeal and whose character is comparable to that of O'Neil. He played in the Negro Leagues, was a scout for major league baseball teams and helped establish the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, Mo.
FOOTBALL
Cruz to sign with Bears
Victor Cruz, the former New York Giants wide receiver, has a deal in place to sign with John Fox and the Chicago Bears, a source confirmed to The Record of Hackensack, N.J., and NorthJersey.com on Thursday. Only Calvin Johnson and Brandon Marshall had more 100-yard receiving games than Cruz from 2011 to Week 6 of the 2014 season, when Cruz tore the patellar tendon in his right knee during a game against the Eagles in Philadelphia. Cruz returned this past season to play in 15 games after missing nearly two years due to knee and calf injuries, the former threatening to end his career. But with only 39 catches for 586 yards and 1 touchdown, Cruz's role had been diminished as a third option behind Odell Beckham Jr. and Sterling Shepard. His one touchdown was the game-winning score as the Giants beat the Dallas Cowboys in Week 1. In his career, Cruz has 303 catches for 4,549 yards and 25 touchdowns.
TENNIS
Nishikori advances
Kei Nishikori saved three consecutive match points in the deciding set before outlasting Kevin Anderson 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (6) in the Geneva Open quarterfinals Thursday. Top-seeded Stan Wawrinka also dropped the first set in his quarterfinal against Sam Querrey of the United States, though ultimately had an easier passage in a 4-6, 7-5, 6-2 victory. Nishikori, the No. 9-ranked Japanese player, will face 33rd-ranked Mischa Zverev of Germany in the semifinals today. The Russian-born Zverev, who came through qualifying, beat fifth-seeded American Steve Johnson 6-4, 7-5. Wawrinka's next opponent is the winner of Thursday's late match between unseeded Russian Andrey Kuznetsov and Germany's Cedrik-Marcel Stebe, a lucky loser in qualifying.
Shvedova out at Nuremberg
Yaroslava Shvedova became the latest player to retire from the Nuremberg Cup on Thursday, when she withdrew because of an injury after losing the first set of her quarterfinal to Misaki Doi of Japan 6-4. Doi will meet defending champion Kiki Bertens in the semifinals. Bertens defeated fifth-seeded Alison Riske of the United States 6-4, 6-3. Czech qualifier Barbora Krejcikova rallied to defeat Carina Witthoeft, the last German in the clay-court tournament, 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (2), and will next face second-seeded Yulia Putintseva or Sorana Cirstea of Romania in the semifinals.
Cirstea won the first set on Thursday evening, Putintseva took the second and the score was 6-3, 3-6, 4-4 before their quarterfinal was suspended due to darkness at the outdoor, clay court tournament. The match is scheduled to resume today.
Sports on 05/26/2017