Associated Press stories, Page 1677

AUSTIN, Texas — As much golf as Jordan Spieth likes to play, it took as much discipline as he could muster to not play at all. When he left the Masters on Nov. 15, the only two rounds of golf he played were of the recreational variety. One was a...

The Preakness will be run in front of a limited capacity of 10,000 fans May 15 at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore. Organizers of the second jewel of horse racing’s Triple Crown announced the decision Tuesday. Churchill Downs has said it expects the Kentucky Derby to be run in front...

NEW YORK — The Walt Disney Co. on Tuesday overhauled its upcoming film release plans, postponing some of its biggest films and shifting Marvel’s “Black Widow,” among other titles, to Disney+ the same time they arrive in theaters. “Black Widow,” once planned to debut in May 2020, had been set...

NEW YORK — The FBI arrested a former spokesperson for the New York City Police Department on Tuesday on charges she entered the U.S. Capitol — and shook a tambourine — during the Jan. 6 insurrection. Sara Carpenter, a retired police officer who lives in Queens, drove to Washington the...

MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Twins optioned prized prospect Alex Kirilloff (Plum) to their alternate training site Tuesday, leaving a wide-open competition for playing time in left field while giving the 2016 first-round draft pick more time to develop. Jake Cave, Kyle Garlick and Brent Rooker are the primary candidates at...

CHICAGO — Chicago experienced a significant spike in covid-19 cases in the last week, triggering fresh concerns Tuesday from the city’s top health officials. The average number of confirmed daily cases in the nation’s third-largest city was 350 Tuesday, up 23% from 285 the week before, according to city data....

Mass shootings in Georgia and Colorado that left at least 18 people dead since last week are reigniting calls from gun control advocates for tighter restrictions on buying firearms and ammunition. But with Democrats in control of the federal government, gun rights advocates have been persuading Republican-run state legislatures to...

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court seemed likely Tuesday to allow tribal police officers to stop and search non-Indians on tribal lands over concerns that drunk drivers or even violent criminals might otherwise elude authorities. The justices heard arguments in the Justice Department’s appeal of a lower court ruling that threw...

LUBBOCK, Texas — An Arizona man is accused of forcing off the road a National Guard convoy that was transporting covid-19 vaccines in West Texas and then holding 11 guard members at gunpoint. Larry Harris, 66, of Wilcox, Ariz., told police that he stopped three vans because he believed people...

NEW YORK — Regal Cinemas, the second largest movie theater chain in the U.S., will reopen beginning April 2, its parent company, Cineworld Group, announced Tuesday. Regal had been one of most notable holdouts in the gradual reopening of cinemas nationwide. For nearly half a year, its 7,211 screens and...

The National College Players Association said Tuesday that NCAA President Mark Emmert has informed a group of basketball players who started a social media campaign to protest inequities in college sports that he will meet with them after March Madness. NCPA executive director Ramogi Huma said in a statement he...

Postmaster General Louis DeJoy on Tuesday announced plans to slow mail delivery standards and cut hours at some post offices as part of a 10-year strategy to stabilize the struggling agency. Details of the long-awaited plan come at a time of intense scrutiny on the U.S. Postal Service over persistent...

PHILADELPHIA — The city of Philadelphia is canceling tens of thousands of vaccination appointments for the Federal Emergency Management Agency-run vaccination clinic after links for people to get second doses were shared with others seeking first appointments. The FEMA site at the Pennsylvania Convention Center has shifted for the next...

WASHINGTON — Speaking on the floor of the Georgia state Senate last week, Michelle Au implored her colleagues to “stand up” to the hatred aimed at Asian Americans that’s increased during the pandemic. A day later, a gunman shook the Atlanta area by killing eight people, including six women of...

BAGHDAD — Iraq has sent a formal request to President Joe Biden’s administration for a date to resume strategic talks on bilateral relations and the withdrawal of remaining U.S. combat forces, Iraqi officials said Tuesday. The talks, which began in June under the Trump administration, would be the first under...

ALBANY, N.Y. — It could take “months” to determine whether Gov. Andrew Cuomo should be impeached after multiple women accused him of sexual misconduct and questions remain about his administration’s undercounting covid-19 deaths in nursing homes, the chair of the state Assembly’s judiciary committee said Tuesday. Chair Charles Lavine said...

WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats say they are pushing toward a vote on expanded gun control measures as the nation reels from its second mass shooting in a week. But prospects for any major reform are dim, for now, in the closely divided Congress. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer vowed Tuesday...

BILLINGS, Mont. — President Joe Biden shut down oil and gas lease sales from the nation’s vast public lands and waters in his first days in office, citing worries about climate change. Now his administration has to figure out what do with the multibillion-dollar program without crushing a significant sector...

MINNEAPOLIS — A jury has been seated for the trial of a former Minneapolis police officer in George Floyd’s death, with opening statements set for March 29. The 15th and final member of the pool was chosen Tuesday, wrapping up a process that took more than two weeks. There will...

Stocks closed broadly lower on Tuesday and gave back nearly all of their gains from a day earlier as technology, industrial and bank stocks fell. The S&P 500 fell 30.07 points, or 0.8%, to 3,910.52. Technology stocks were the biggest drag on the market and pushed the Nasdaq 149.85 points...

Considering how everything else has gone this past year, March was bound to be mad. So far, it hasn’t disappointed. The last perfect NCAA Tournament bracket was busted before the first round was over. The second round just wrapped with an even dozen upsets already in the books — a...

By at least one measure, this is the most chaotic Sweet 16 field to date. The seed numbers of the 16 remaining teams add up to 94, the highest total since the NCAA Tournament expanded in 1985. The previous record of 89 was set in 1986. This year’s regional semifinals...