Off the wire

American long jumper and sprinter Jarrion Lawson, a former Arkansas Razorback, faces a lengthy ban from the Athletics Integrity Unit after eating what he maintains was contaminated meat.
American long jumper and sprinter Jarrion Lawson, a former Arkansas Razorback, faces a lengthy ban from the Athletics Integrity Unit after eating what he maintains was contaminated meat.

GOLF

Three tied for lead

Martin Kaymer had a 4-under 68 with a bogey on his last hole to join a three-way tie for the lead going into the weekend at the PGA Tour's Memorial Tournament in Dublin, Ohio. Kaymer, a two-time major champion and former No. 1 player in the world, is coming up on the five-year anniversary of his last win, an eight-shot victory in the U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2. Troy Merritt (66) and Kyoung-Hoon Lee (67) joined Kaymer at 9-under 135. They were a shot ahead of Jordan Spieth, who had a 70. Tiger Woods was on the verge of getting thick into the mix until he took five shots from the side of a rough-covered hill left of the par-5 15th and made double bogey. He had a 72 and was seven behind. Austin Cook (Jonesboro, Razorbacks) is tied for 10th place at 6 under after shooting a 67. David Lingmerth (Razorbacks) had a 2-over 74 and is 1 over going into the weekend. Andrew Landry (Razorbacks) missed the cut.

Parel out front

Scott Parel matched the course record with a 9-under 63 on Friday to take a two-shot lead in the PGA Tour Champions' Principal Charity Classic at Des Moines, Iowa. Parel tied the Wakonda Club mark set by Billy Andrade in 2016. Chris DiMarco shot 65, Andrade was at 66, and Darren Clarke and David Toms topped the group at 67. Money leader Scott McCarron, the winner in Des Moines three years ago, had a 70. Ken Tanigawa, the Senior PGA Championship winner last week by a shot over McCarron, opened with a 72. Tom Lehman had a 71. He won in Iowa last year after thunderstorms washed out the final round. John Daly (Dardanelle, Arkansas Razorbacks) shot a 69 and is tied for 18th at 3 under. Ken Duke (Arkadelphia, Henderson State) had a 70 and Glen Day (Little Rock) had a 71.

Baker prevailing

Chris Baker shot an 11-under 60 on Friday to take the lead at the Web.com Tour's Rex Hospital Open at Raleigh, N.C., which was suspended because of lightning. Baker had 11 birdies on his first 15 holes. He was at 15-under 127 going into the weekend. Sebastian Cappelen (Arkansas Razorbacks) was second at 12 under after 17 holes when play was suspended. Luke Guthrie shot a 9-under 62 and was in third place at 11 under. Taylor Moore (Razorbacks) and Tag Ridings (Razorbacks) were tied at 3 under. Ethan Tracy (Razorbacks) and Matt Atkins (Henderson State) were tied at 1 under. Nicolas Echavarria (Razorbacks) shot a 1-under 70 and was even.

BASEBALL

Molina on 10-day IL

St. Louis Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina was put on the 10-day injured list with a strained right thumb tendon. The 36-year-old, a nine-time All-Star, got hurt during Saturday's game against Atlanta and tried to play through the injury. St. Louis announced the roster move Friday and said it was retroactive to Wednesday. Molina is batting .265 with 4 home runs and 33 RBI and started 49 of the Cardinals' first 53 games. He is on the injured list for the sixth time. Matt Wieters will get most of the playing time while Molina is sidelined. St. Louis selected the contract of catcher Andrew Knizner from Class AAA Memphis. Knizner, 24, was batting .286 with 5 home runs and 17 RBI at Memphis.

FOOTBALL

Colts' Kelly suspended

The NFL has suspended Indianapolis Colts quarterback Chad Kelly for two games for violating the league's personal conduct policy. Kelly signed with the Colts on May 20 -- after pleading guilty in March to a second-degree trespassing charge. He was arrested in October after entering the home of a man and woman he did not know following a Halloween party. It was the latest legal issue for the nephew of Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly. Chad Kelly can participate in all offseason and preseason practices and games and can return to the active roster on Sept. 16. He is listed No. 4 on the Colts' depth chart behind Pro Bowler Andrew Luck, Jacoby Brissett and Phillip Walker.

CFL takes over Alouettes

The Canadian Football League took over ownership of the Montreal Alouettes on Friday, The Canadian Press reported. The news agency cited an unidentified source in its report. The league has been looking for potential buyers for the franchise that American businessman Robert Wetenhall has owned since 1997. Wetenhall resurrected the Alouettes in 1997 after they were revoked from Michael Gelfand and declared bankruptcy. Wetenhall also assumed the organization's debts despite not legally being obligated to do so. Early in Wetenhall's tenure, the Alouettes were a CFL powerhouse. From 1999-2012, they finished atop the East Division nine times and advanced to the Grey Cup on eight occasions, winning three. But Montreal hasn't been to the Grey Cup since winning it in 2010. The club has missed the CFL playoffs the past four seasons, amassing a 21-51 record over that span.

BASKETBALL

Clips fined for comment

The Los Angeles Clippers are paying a price because Doc Rivers paid Toronto star Kawhi Leonard a compliment. The NBA fined the Clippers $50,000 on Friday for violating the league's anti-tampering rule. The league did not specifically say what comments were determined to be fine-worthy, other than saying it was in response to what Rivers -- the Clippers' coach -- said about Leonard "in a recent television appearance." Rivers appeared on an NBA Finals preview show on ESPN earlier in the week and compared Leonard to Michael Jordan. The NBA has regularly warned teams about the perils of saying anything that could be construed as lobbying for a player who is under contract to one team to join another. Leonard will be a free agent this summer, and the Clippers are expected to be one of the teams that will try to pursue him.

TRACK AND FIELD

Ex-Hog Lawson expects 4-year ban soon

American long jumper, sprinter and former Arkansas Razorback Jarrion Lawson faces a lengthy ban after eating what he maintains was contaminated meat.

His agent, Paul Doyle, told The Associated Press on Friday that Lawson is expected to receive a four-year ban from the Athletics Integrity Unit, which handles doping issues in track and field. Doyle said they will appeal the soon-to-be-announced decision.

Lawson has been suspended since August. He’s considered a strong medal contender for next year’s Tokyo Games.

“I’m not going to willingly take punishment for something I didn’t do,” Lawson said in a phone interview.

Doyle said Lawson ate what they believe to be tainted beef at a Japanese restaurant in Arkansas before a drug test on June 2, 2018. Lawson was notified on Aug. 3 that he tested positive for a metabolite of the banned anabolic steroid trenbolone. The substance is frequently used in the U.S. to promote the growth of beef cattle.

Lawson’s been a rising standout since he burst on the scene. During his last season at Arkansas in 2016, Lawson became the first man since Jesse Owens in 1936 to win the 100, 200 and long jump at the same NCAA championships.

That summer, Lawson nearly captured Olympic gold in the long jump, but missed out on the top spot when he grazed the sand with his fingers just before landing. He finished fourth.

In 2017, he took second at the world championships.

Lawson hasn’t competed since the Diamond League meet in London on July 22, 2018, when he finished third in the long jump.

Since August, Lawson, 25, has been splitting his time between working on the 100, 200 and his form for the long jump — all the while knowing his future remains uncertain. He’s not sure about the U.S. championships later this summer or the U.S. Olympic trials.

“There’s a bias when there’s a negative drug test to automatically think whoever involved was doping. That’s not the case. There’s proof that’s not the case,” Lawson said. “I believe I’ll be back on the track here soon.”

Sports on 06/01/2019

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