GOLF
Burns builds 5-shot lead
Sam Burns shot a 5-under 66 on Friday to tie the 36-hole record at the Genesis Invitational in Los Angeles and build a five-shot lead going into the weekend. Among those chasing is Dustin Johnson, the No. 1 player in the world and a past winner at Riviera. Another shot back was Jordan Spieth, who is starting to make himself at home near the top of the leaderboard. Burns kept his bogey-free day intact toward the end of the round when he came up short of the eighth green, his 17th of the morning. He chipped it about 10 feet short and made the par putt. He also handled two of the par 5s, and picked up so much roll on the firm turf at the 476-yard 12th hole that he had only a pitching wedge into the green and made a 5-foot putt. Burns was at 12-under 130, matching the record last set in 2004 by Mike Weir and Shigeki Maruyama. Andrew Landry (Arkansas Razorbacks) is at 4 under for the tournament and is tied for 14th place. Austin Cook (Jonesboro, Razorbacks) finished with a 1-over 143 and missed the cut by one stroke.
Grant leads Korn Ferry event
Brent Grant fired a 6-under 66 on Friday and leads the Korn Ferry Tour's Suncoast Classic by one stroke over Brett Coletta at the Lakewood National Course in Lakewood Ranch, Fla. Grant is at 11-under 131 while Coletta, who had a 69 on Friday, has a 10-under 132. Former University of Arkansas player David Lingmerth turned in a 2-under 70 on Friday and is at 7-under 137 after two rounds. Nicolas Echavarria (Razorbacks) is at 6-under 138. Taylor Moore (Razorbacks) finished with a 141 and missed the cut.
FOOTBALL
Eagles cut WR Jackson
DeSean Jackson's second stint with the Eagles has come to an end. The team announced its decision to release the 34-year-old wide receiver Friday, a move that was widely expected because of the Eagles' salary cap troubles combined with Jackson's decline. Jackson has spent eight years with the team, and he's currently third all-time in Eagles history in career receiving yards with 6,512, behind only Harold Carmichael and Pete Retzlaff.
Panthers release three
The Carolina Panthers are releasing veteran safety Tre Boston, defensive end Stephen Weatherly and punter Michael Palardy in salary-cap, cost-cutting moves, a person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press. The moves will free up about $11.5 million in cap space for the Panthers, who are in the market for a quarterback and want to either re-sign or use the franchise tag on offensive tackle Taylor Moton. The decision to release Boston comes after he signed a three-year, $18 million contract last offseason that included $8 million in guaranteed money. Boston started all 16 games last season for the Panthers and had 95 tackles, 2 fumble recoveries, 1 interception and 1 sack.
BASKETBALL
Limited fans for Big Dance
The NCAA will allow a limited number of fans to attend all rounds of its men's basketball tournament in Indiana and later rounds of its women's tournament in Texas. The governing body said Friday it is permitting 25% capacity at the men's tournament venues to allow for social distancing. That figure will include all participants and essential staff along with the family members of team players and coaches. On the women's side, the NCAA will allow a capacity of up to 17% at each venue from the Sweet 16 to the Final Four. Games taking place for the first two rounds will limit attendance to team guests. In each case, attendees must wear face coverings while cleaning and disinfecting efforts will be emphasized at venues in keeping with covid-19 safety protocols.
Thomas scores 19 in U.S. win
Isaiah Thomas knocked down three quick three-pointers, showing that his shot is still there. Knocking off 12 months of rust wasn't quite as easy. Thomas scored 19 points in his first competitive game in more than a year, helping the U.S. to a 93-77 victory over the Bahamas on Friday in a FIBA AmeriCup qualifying game in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The 32-year-old Thomas is a two-time NBA All-Star who scored 28.9 points per game for the Boston Celtics in the 2016-17 season. But he suffered a hip injury late in that season and has never regained that form in limited opportunities. The 5-9 guard shot the Americans out to an 11-2 lead with his three consecutive three-pointers. But he also committed six turnovers that helped keep the Bahamas in the game far longer than expected. James Nunnally also scored 19 points for the Americans, They improved to 5-0 in qualifying play and can remain perfect through three windows by beating Mexico today.
BASEBALL
Mets add starting pitcher
The Mets made a late addition to their starting rotation, agreeing to a $20 million, two-year contract with right-hander Taijuan Walker. The 28-year-old joins a rotation headed by two-time Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom. New York's need for a pitcher increased with the loss of Seth Lugo, who will miss the start of the season after elbow surgery Tuesday to remove a bone spur. Walker was 4-3 with a 2.70 ERA over 11 starts during the pandemic-shortened season for Seattle and Toronto, which acquired him Aug. 27 for a player to be named, who became outfielder prospect Alberto Rodriguez.
SKIING
Faivre wins gold for France
Mathieu Faivre won gold in the men's giant slalom at the skiing world championships in Cortina D'Ampezzo, Italy. The Frenchman beat Luca de Aliprandini of Italy by 0.63 seconds. Marco Schwarz of Austria finished 0.87 off the lead to take bronze. First-run leader Alex Pinturault skied out after seven gates in the final run. Defending champion Henrik Kristoffersen of Norway finished ninth. It is Faivre's second medal of the worlds after winning Tuesday's parallel event.