GOLF
Ex-Hog Landry in lead
Former Arkansas Razorback Andrew Landry topped the crowded leaderboard at the CareerBuilder Challenge at La Quinta, Calif., after another low-scoring day in the sunny Coachella Valley. Landry shot a 7-under 65 on Friday on PGA West's Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course to reach 16 under. He opened with a 63 on Thursday at La Quinta Country Club. Jon Rahm, the first-round leader after a 62 at La Quinta, was a stroke back. He had two early bogeys in a 67 on the Nicklaus layout. Jason Kokrak was 14 under after a 67 at Nicklaus. Two-time major champion Zach Johnson was 13 under along with Michael Kim and Martin Piller. Johnson had a 64 at Nicklaus. Landry, Rahm, Kokrak and Johnson will finish the rotation Saturday at PGA West's Stadium Course, also the site of the final round. Austin Cook (Razorbacks) is 11 under after a 70 and is tied for 10th. David Lingmerth (Razorbacks) is 8 under after a 65. John Daly (Dardanelle, Razorbacks) is 4 under after a 71. Matt Atkins (Henderson State) shot a 76 and is 1 under. Ethan Tracy (Razorbacks) is 1 over after a 71.
Pieters ahead at Abu Dhabi
Thomas Pieters shot a second-round 65 to take a one-stroke lead at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship on Friday as top-ranked Dustin Johnson and Rory McIlroy moved into contention. Johnson followed up his ragged opening-round 72 with a bogey-free 8-under 64, tied for the low round of the tournament, and was four shots back. McIlroy, playing his first event since October, finished with an eagle on the par-5 18th and was three shots behind Pieters after a 66. Jorge Campillo of Spain trailed Pieters by one shot after a 64. Last year's Race to Dubai winner, Tommy Fleetwood -- who played with Johnson and McIlroy -- was another shot back, along with Alexander Levy and Ross Fisher.
Koepka out 8-12 weeks
U.S. Open champion Brooks Koepka has a wrist injury that will keep him out until the Masters. Koepka said he is not sure how he injured his left wrist. He was coming off a nine-shot victory at the Dunlop Phoenix in Japan when he noticed discomfort at the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas the first week of December. A month of rest didn't help. Koepka said at Kapalua it was still bothering him, and he says he probably shouldn't have played. Doctors discovered a partial tear in the tendon. The recovery is expected to be eight to 12 weeks of rest and therapy. The injury means Koepka will miss Phoenix and Pebble Beach, along with the Honda Classic and two World Golf Championships ahead of the Masters.
FOOTBALL
Dolphins hire ex-Hog
The Miami Dolphins have announced several changes in Adam Gase's coaching staff, including the hiring of Arkansas native Dowell Loggains, 37, as offensive coordinator. Gase and Loggains were on the Chicago Bears' staff together in 2015, and Loggains was the Bears' offensive coordinator the past two years. Gase will continue to call plays. Loggains was born in Newport, attended high school at Abilene (Texas) Cooper and college at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, where he made the team as a backup quarterback even though he is only 5-foot-6. He said he overcame any size disadvantage with his work ethic. "It's the same way in coaching," he said. "You might not be the smartest guy. You've got to know your limitations and try to work harder than the next guy. That's how you stay in this league -- try to outwork as many people as you can." In other changes to the Dolphins staff, Jeremiah Washburn was hired as offensive line coach. Defensive backs coach Lou Anarumo, running backs coach Danny Barrett and defensive line coach Terrell Williams were not retained, the Dolphins said Friday. Three assistants changed titles. Shawn Jefferson will become assistant head coach/offense, Ben Johnson will become wide receivers coach, and Clyde Christensen will become director of football and player development.
BASEBALL
Cards trade Grichuck
The St. Louis Cardinals have traded outfielder Randal Grichuk to the Toronto Blue Jays for reliever Dominic Leone and minor league pitcher Conner Greene. The deal was announced Friday. Grichuk, 26, hit .238 last season with 22 home runs and 59 RBI in 122 games. He became expendable after St. Louis got big-hitting left fielder Marcell Ozuna in a trade with Miami last month, and because of the emergence of Tommy Pham in center. In return, the Cardinals receive a much-needed boost to their bullpen in Leone. The 26-year-old right-hander was 3-0 with a 2.56 ERA in 65 games last year for Toronto, striking out 81 in 70 1/3 innings. Greene was a seventh-round draft pick of the Blue Jays in 2013 and went 5-10 with a 5.29 ERA at Class AA New Hampshire last season.
BOXING
Fury's suspension to be lifted
Former world heavyweight champion Tyson Fury is set to regain his boxing license. The British Boxing Board of Control interviewed Fury on Friday and said the suspension of the fighter's license "will be lifted subject to receipt and clearance of all medical requirements." The BBB of C suspended Fury in 2016 for drug and medical issues, amid a separate U.K. Anti-Doping investigation. That UKAD case ended last month when Fury accepted a backdated two-year doping ban for elevated levels of nandrolone in urine samples. Fury has not fought since beating Wladimir Klitschko in November 2015 to win the WBA, IBF and WBO belts. He will need to lose some weight, having bloated up to 350 pounds, and has recently posted videos of himself working in the gym. He has talked about making a return to the ring in April.
MOTOR SPORTS
Al-Attiyah wins Dakar stage
Toyota driver Nasser Al-Attiyah won the penultimate stage of the Dakar Rally on Friday, while Carlos Sainz took advantage of a crash by defending champion Stephane Peterhansel to increase his overall lead and boost his chances of winning the world's toughest rally. Al-Attiyah finished the 229-mile stage between San Juan and Cordoba, Argentina, in 2 hours, 53 minutes. Argentina's Lucio Alvarez was 11:16 behind in second place in his privately run Hilux, with Toyota's Giniel De Villiers of South Africa taking third spot, 13:06 behind the leader. Sainz, who won the rally in 2010, failed to finish the last five Dakars because of mechanical problems or crashes. This time around, he has avoided unnecessary risks in the final stages in what now seems like a certain path to victory. His overall lead is 46:18, with Al-Attiyah in second place. De Villiers is third, 1:20:00 off the pace. In the motorbike race, Australian rider Toby Price of the KTM team won the stage. He was followed by Argentine Kevin Benavides of Honda and Frenchman Antoine Nemeo. Overall, Austria's Matthias Walkner leads Benavides by 22:31 and Price by 27:45.
OLYMPICS
400 Russians may participate
The Russian Olympic team has been barred from competing in the coming Winter Games because of a doping scheme that corrupted several Olympics and many other major international events. But when the games begin next month in Pyeongchang, South Korea, Russia's representation could be as strong as ever. When they barred Russia last month, Olympic officials left a side door open for athletes who could prove they were clean. On Friday, in a statement about the results of that opaque, monthlong review process that scrutinized aspiring Russian Olympians, the International Olympic Committee said it had provisionally cleared nearly 400 Russian athletes to compete at the 2018 Winter Games. Olympic officials on Friday said the approved athletes would be required to fulfill certain additional broad conditions, "such as further pre-Games tests and re-analysis from stored samples." Frustrating some global anti-doping officials, the IOC did not publish the names of the approved athletes, their drug-testing histories, or the specific criteria used to assess the group.
Sports on 01/20/2018