U.S./World Sports category, Page 161
British Open allows golfers from Saudi-backed series to play
ST. ANDREWS, Scotland — Players who have joined the new Saudi Arabia-funded league will still be allowed to compete at the British Open next month, organizers said Wednesday. The U.S. Open had allowed players who were banned by the PGA Tour for signing up to the LIV Golf series to...
Column: Youth movement can make LIV Golf look appealingVideo
CROMWELL, Conn. — Players willing to leave the PGA Tour for riches only Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund can provide is a movement Rory McIlroy refers to as the “easy way out.” Maybe that’s too easy of an explanation. Even so, it’s hard to dispute the choice might be easier...
Title IX: Some violations tough to prove in college sportsVideo
Arkansas did something rare during the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons: It watched its baseball and softball teams reach the NCAA tournament. The similarities end there. For all the talk of gender parity at NCAA championship events, a closer look at one school’s participation shows how much less was spent on...
Nick Faldo to retire as lead CBS analyst, replaced by Trevor Immelman
CROMWELL, Conn. — Nick Faldo is leaving after 16 years as the lead golf analyst for CBS Sports. In his place will be another former Masters champion. No, not Phil Mickelson. CBS announced Tuesday that Trevor Immelman of South Africa, who won the 2008 Masters and will be the International...
AP source: Brooks Koepka the latest to join Saudi-backed LIV series
CROMWELL, Conn. — Brooks Koepka, one of the first players to denounce a rival league for only 48 players, is the latest PGA Tour player to sign on with Saudi-funded LIV Golf series, The Associated Press has learned. A person briefed on Koepka’s decision told the AP he still would...
Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal top 2 seeds at Wimbledon; Serena Williams unseeded
WIMBLEDON, England — This time, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal will be on opposite sides of the draw. The seedings for Wimbledon were announced on Tuesday, with Djokovic and Nadal being Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, in the men’s draw because of the absence of Daniil Medvedev and Alexander Zverev....
Wife of imprisoned WNBA star Brittney Griner says scheduled call never happenedVideo
WASHINGTON — WNBA star Brittney Griner tried to call her wife nearly a dozen times through the American embassy in Russia on the couple’s fourth anniversary Saturday, but they never connected since the phone line at the embassy was not staffed, Cherelle Griner said Monday. The couple has not spoken...
Column: FINA ban casts storm clouds on transgender athletes
Swimming has fired the first major salvo against transgender women athletes, which surely will clear the way for other sports to impose similar bans ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics. Hopefully, that won’t bring an end to thoughtful, intelligent debate — backed by science, nuance and empathy — about ways...
Explainer: What is Title IX and what impact has it had?
Title IX, the law best known for its role in gender equity in athletics and preventing sexual harassment on campuses, is turning 50. It was signed into law by President Richard Nixon on June 23, 1972, after being shepherded through Congress in part by Rep. Patsy Mink, a Democrat from...
Doug Ferguson: U.S. Open a reminder of what really matters in golf
BROOKLINE, Mass. — A week that began with Phil Mickelson speaking without saying hardly anything ended with Matt Fitzpatrick at a momentary loss for words in his proudest moment. The U.S. Open was more that just a diversion from the disruption in golf. It brought meaning to the game. “No...
Caitlyn Jenner shares support for transgender swimming ban: ‘What’s fair is fair!’
Former Olympian Caitlyn Jenner voiced her support for the international swimming federation’s decision that transgender athletes cannot compete in women’s events if they didn’t transition before 12 years old. Jenner, who is transgender, has been outspoken in her belief that it’s not fair for transgender women to take part in...
Oh, so, close, Zalatoris finishes 2nd in yet another majorVideo
BROOKLINE, Mass. — The putt slid an inch — make that a millimeter — outside the left edge of the cup. Will Zalatoris squatted into a low crouch and let go of the putter, feeling it slide off the back of his shoulder and onto the turf. He bounced his...
World swimming governing body bans transgender athletes from women’s eventsVideo
BUDAPEST, Hungary — World swimming’s governing body has effectively banned transgender women from competing in women’s events, starting Monday. FINA members widely adopted a new “gender inclusion policy” Sunday that only permits swimmers who transitioned before age 12 to compete in women’s events. The organization also proposed an “open competition...
Englishman Fitzpatrick wins U.S. Open title on same course where he won U.S. AmateurVideo
BROOKLINE, Mass. — A playoff was looming Sunday in the U.S. Open, just like it always does at The Country Club, when Matt Fitzpatrick sized up his shot from a bunker left of the 18th fairway. He had a one-shot lead over Will Zalatoris and Masters champion Scottie Scheffler. He...
‘Kee-gan!’ Bradley feels the love, makes a run at the U.S. OpenVideo
BROOKLINE, Mass. — As a kid in Vermont, Keegan Bradley always wondered what it would feel like to be Larry Bird or Carlton Fisk or Tom Brady, or any of those Boston sports greats whose posters plaster bedroom walls across New England. On Saturday at the U.S. Open, Bradley got...
Will Zalatoris, Matt Fitzpatrick survive beast of U.S. Open, share lead
BROOKLINE, Mass. — Will Zalatoris and Matt Fitzpatrick avoided the carnage and calamity that took down golf’s best Saturday at a U.S. Open that set the tone for a final day of survival. Zalatoris, who lost in a three-hole playoff at the PGA Championship last month, made only one bogey...
U.S. star Katie Ledecky reclaims 400 title at swimming worlds, eyeing moreVideo
BUDAPEST, Hungary — Katie Ledecky started the United States’ medal collection at the world swimming championships with a gold by reclaiming her title in the women’s 400 meters on Saturday. The Americans finished the first day of racing with two gold, a silver and three bronze. Ledecky clocked 3 minutes,...
U.S. Open notes: For Justin Thomas, honesty is a costly policy
BROOKLINE, Mass. — Justin Thomas wanted to honor the spirit of the game. His reward: a chunky wedge from a bad lie and a big fat bogey on the scorecard. The PGA champion’s drive on the fourth hole at The Country Club on Saturday came to rest awkwardly beside a...
Title IX: Law ensured balanced cutbacks during pandemic
Title IX is always on Candice Storey Lee’s mind, and the Vanderbilt athletic director believes that’s how it should be for any administrator running college programs. “I would hope that’s part of our DNA, and that it is seen in how we make decisions on a day-to-day basis,” Lee said....
Longtime WWE, professional wrestling referee diesVideo
Longtime WWE referee Dave Hebner died on Friday. He was 73. A cause of death was not given, but Hebner had been battling a myriad of health issues across the past several years, according to multiple reports. Hebner and his twin brother, Earl, were both well-known professional wrestling referees. Dave...
Morikawa, Dahmen share halfway lead at U.S. Open with McIlroy, Rahm lurkingVideo
BROOKLINE, Mass. — The storms dodged Brookline, and the stars began to emerge Friday in the U.S. Open. Collin Morikawa showed signs of emerging from pedestrian play at just the right time, matching the low score of the championship with a 4-under-par 66 for a share of the 36-hole lead...
Analysis: On Stephen Curry, far more than a great shooter
Greatest shooter ever. That’s what everyone has been calling Golden State’s Stephen Curry for years now, for obvious reasons. Nobody in the history of basketball has made more 3-pointers or made the art of throwing a ball through a hoop look easier than Curry does. He has earned that distinction....
Qualifier Hayden Buckley tied for 3rd after 2nd round of U.S. OpenVideo
BROOKLINE, Mass. — Calculus and chemistry were too hard. Nobody took him seriously as a baseball player, either. “I had dreams,” Hayden Buckley said, “but those were crushed pretty early.” These days, the dream is golf. And it’s not so far-fetched to think this 26-year-old, whose Plan A was baseball...
Phil Mickelson apologizes to U.S. Open fan (no, not for that)Video
BROOKLINE, Mass. — Phil Mickelson’s tee shot on No. 3 landed in the rough to the right, and when he arrived at his ball he saw a man sitting on the ground, holding an icepack to his right temple, with medical staff gathered around. Mickelson went over and gave the...
SRX hopes 2nd season is another surprise summer smashVideo
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Ryan Newman does want not to be the hero or the villain or anything else in the six-race Superstar Racing Experience. He plans to just be himself in the Saturday night summer series that mixes grassroots racing with big personalities clinging to their time in the spotlight....
