Brooks Koepka was pleased with his form after carding a round of 67 to end Friday as the clubhouse leader at The Masters, and suggested his confidence is back after his knee surgery.
Koepka is on 12 under par after two rounds, though with play suspended early due to bad weather, second-placed Jon Rahm still has half of his second round to play, and will resume on Saturday three shots back on nine under.
The American suffered from a knee injury that required surgery, and he explained after his round how that had previously impacted his game.
"In 2021 I was just trying to figure out the best areas to walk because this place is quite hilly," Koepka said. "Downhill was a killer because my knee would get in front of my heel and that's where the MPFL [medial patellofemoral ligament rupture] that's stitched is still in there... [it] would just tighten, and everything was quite painful.
"But I don't have to worry about that any more, which has been great. I feel really good. I like the way I'm swinging the golf club, putting it, chipping it, driving it, iron play is solid. It feels really similar.
"I've got a completely different knee, but swing-wise it still feels the same. I'm able to do everything I need to. And the confidence is there. The confidence was lost just because of my knee and that was it."
Koepka has four majors to his name, but still needs to add The Masters and The Open Championship to complete a grand slam, and is aiming to do just that, starting in Augusta this week.
"Yeah, the whole goal is to win the grand slam. I feel like all the greats have won here and they have all won Open Championships as well," he said.
"I guess it's one more box for me to tick to truly feel like I've done what I should have accomplished in this game."
The 32-year-old was left frustrated at last year's Masters, missing the cut after two rounds of 75, and he revealed how badly he took it at the time.
"Last year, I don't even know if I should be saying this, but I'm pretty sure I tried to break the back window of the car with my fist," he said. "I tried to put it through the back window, not once but twice.
"First time it didn't go, so I figured I'd try it again. The window did not break. Apparently [I'm] not strong enough.
"The ride home was pretty silent. But yeah, I guess Mercedes makes a pretty good back window."
Casper Ruud is through to the final four of the Estoril Open after a routine 6-3 6-0 victory against defending champion Sebastian Baez on Friday.
The number one seed dominated his Argentine opponent from the moment the first set went to 3-3, winning nine-straight games from there to ease to victory.
Ruud did need to save four break points in the second game of the second set, but his ability to hold serve seemed to end any resistance that Baez could muster.
The Norwegian will face Frenchman Quentin Halys in the semi-finals after his own straight-sets triumph over Dominic Thiem
Halys reached his first ever ATP Tour semi after recording a 6-1 6-4 win over the former world number three in just one hour and 19 minutes.
The other semi-final will see Miomir Kecmanovic take on Marco Cecchinato after the latter stunned third seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in straight sets.
The world number 96 claimed a 7-5 7-6 (7-5) victory in the first meeting between the pair to set up a last-four clash with Kecmanovic, who saw off sixth seed Bernabe Zapata Miralles with a comfortable 7-5 6-2 win.
Elsewhere, Dan Evans is the only seed remaining in the Grand Prix Hassan II as he reached the semi-finals by cruising to a 6-3 7-5 triumph over world number 201 Andrea Vavassori in Marrakech.
Evans will face Roberto Carballes Baena next after the Spaniard toppled fourth seed Tallon Griekspoor 6-3 2-6 6-2.
Second seed Lorenzo Musetti was beaten by Alexandre Muller 6-3 1-6 6-4 in a topsy-turvy encounter, and the Frenchman will now face Pavel Kotov in the final four after the Russian defeated Christopher O'Connell in a thriller, 6-3 6-7 (6-8) 7-6 (7-3).
The Tennessee Titans and standout defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons have agreed to a four-year contract extension, multiple media outlets reported on Friday.
The deal is worth a total of $94million, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.
Simmons was entering the fifth and final year of his rookie contract.
The No. 19 overall draft pick in 2019, Simmons has become a key member of the Titans' defense, being named to the Pro Bowl and All-Pro Second Team in each of the last two seasons.
Simmons gave Tennessee fans a bit of a scare on social media earlier on Friday, posting an apparent goodbye to the organisation.
"Titans Nation, thank you for the last 4 years! I am so grateful for you guys…..," Simmons posted on Twitter.
Aware of the ongoing contract negotiations between the Titans and 'Big Jeff', Tennessee fans flocked to the comments looking for answers.
Simmons responded soon after with the other half of his message, seemingly announcing that he will be in Tennessee for the near future.
"But we are not done yet, dammit! LFG!!!! We have so much work to do!" he added in his subsequent post, allowing Titans fans a sigh of relief.
At 6-foot-4 and 305 pounds, Simmons has emerged as one of the best interior pass-rushers in pro football, totalling 21 sacks over four seasons, including 8.5 in 2021.
Simmons, who will turn 26 before the start of the season, also has 188 total tackles and 46 quarterback hits in his four years with the Titans.
Brooks Koepka held a three-shot lead halfway through his second round of The Masters and Rory McIlroy is facing a battle to make the cut.
Koepka was joint-top of the leaderboard along with Jon Rahm and Viktor Hovland after starting with a seven-under 65 at Augusta National on Thursday.
The four-time major champion had the chance to go out on his own on Friday, with Rahm and Hovland starting later in the day, and he was sitting pretty at 10 under through nine holes.
Koepka arrived in Georgia full of confidence following a victory at LIV Golf Orlando and the American has given himself a great opportunity to win a first Masters title.
He birdied the second hole after an excellent third shot from a green-side bunker and eagled the par-five eighth following a majestic approach shot to move into double figures.
Jason Day surged into a share of second place courtesy of gains at the second and third holes, while a couple of early birdies took Collin Morikawa to five under on a day on which tee times were brought forward by half an hour due to the forecast of inclement weather.
Amateur Sam Bennett was six shots back from Koepka along with Sam Burns, Jordan Spieth, Tony Finau and Gary Woodland.
McIlroy's hopes of completing a career Grand Slam this weekend look to be over as he was back on two over through three holes following bogeys at the second and third holes.
Defending champion and world number one Scottie Scheffler dropped back to three under.
More than 60 golfers will tee off on Saturday in the Jamaica Golf Association's two-day Easter Jamboree at the Upton Estates Golf and Country Club in Ocho Rios, Jamaica.
National amateur golf champion Oshae Haye leads a strong field of local golfers who will journey to his home course in St. Ann for the event. Three former national champions - William Knibbs, Zandre Roye and Dr. Mark Newnham – are expected to challenge Haye for top honours.
"It is one of our qualifying events where participants get points towards the order of merit which allows them to try out for a national team. We are looking forward to an exciting weekend of golf" said Jamaica Golf Association President Jodi Munn-Barrow, who will be the sole representative in the Ladies 0-6 category.
Seven other women will play in the 13 and over handicap category.
The biggest category of golfers will compete in the Men Super Seniors 0-12 section which has 19 competitors including Peter Chin and Wayne Chai Chong as well as national representatives Teddy Alexander, Metry Seaga and Mike Gleichman.
Four men will play in the Masters.
There will also be several junior players in the 18 and Under, 14-15 and 11-13 age groups, who will be looking to sharpen their skills for the Caribbean Junior Amateur Golf Championship scheduled for July in the Cayman Islands.
Ferrari have lodged an appeal against Carlos Sainz's five-second penalty for his collision with Fernando Alonso during the Australian Grand Prix last Sunday.
Sainz was demoted from fourth to 12th place after the Spaniard was sanctioned for making contact with his compatriot's Aston Martin following a chaotic penultimate-lap standing restart.
There were another two crashes prior to a red flag being waved for a third time at Albert Park.
Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon were involved in a collision, while Logan Sargeant ran into the AlphaTauri of Nyck de Vries but none of those four drivers were penalised.
Sainz was not impressed with the punishment imposed on him and Scuderia team principal Fred Vasseur has confirmed the team have challenged the decision to hit the 28-year-old with a penalty that left him out of the points.
Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon were involved in a heavy collision, while William's Logan Sargeant ran into the AlphaTauri of Nyck de Vries.
Vasseur said: "We did the petition for review of the case, we sent it to the FIA.
"As we are discussing with the FIA, I don't want to disclose any details of this discussion."
He added: "The only thing is that about Gasly-Ocon, also Sargeant-De Vries turn one, and the reaction of the stewards was not the same.
"What we can expect is to at least have an open discussion with them.
"Also for the good of the sport, to avoid to have this kind of decision when you have three cases at the same corner and not the same decision."
The New Orleans Pelicans are still unable to give a timeline for Zion Williamson's return from injury with the playoffs fast approaching.
Williamson has not played for the Pelicans since injuring his right hamstring against the Philadelphia 76ers on January 2.
The 22-year-old withdrew from February's All-Star game after failing to recover from the injury, before then aggravating the damage to prolong his time on the sidelines.
Providing another update-of-sorts on Williamson on Thursday, Pelicans vice-president of basketball operations David Griffin confirmed there is still no return date set, even with the team having now clinched a play-in berth.
"After further evaluation, it has been determined that Zion Williamson will continue his rehabilitation and conditioning regimen," Griffin said.
"We will continue to monitor his progression and updates will be provided as warranted."
Injury-plagued Williamson has struggled to remain fit since being taken with the first overall pick by New Orleans in 2019, missing the entire 2021-22 season with a broken foot.
He has played just 29 times this season, averaging 26.0 points and 7.0 rebounds.
Barring a late rally, the Pelicans will have to go through next week's play-in tournament to make the postseason, which begins on April 15.
The Seattle Kraken revelled in their "leap" into the Stanley Cup playoffs after clinching a wild card berth on Thursday.
Seattle are in just their second season in the NHL, having fallen 37 points short of the postseason with the second-worst record in the Western Conference in their expansion year.
However, the Kraken's 4-2 win over the Arizona Coyotes – the only team to finish below them in 2021-22 – made sure they will not miss out this time.
In the existing format, only the Vegas Golden Knights have made the playoffs quicker, doing so in their first year in the league and reaching the Stanley Cup Finals.
That was one of two Finals runs in the Golden Knights' first three seasons, but they had only 43 wins in their second season – a mark the Kraken passed on Thursday.
Indeed, Seattle's 44 wins are the most by any second-year team in NHL history, further evidence of their rapid progress.
"You look at the leap that we've made and it's special," said winger Jordan Eberle. "We've got a special group in here."
Kraken coach Dave Hakstol added: "The group in here earned it. They earned it from day one and all the way through tonight, finishing off the two points tonight that solidifies it for us.
"That speaks to everybody about the character and the work ethic in the dressing room."
Rory McIlroy was frustrated by an "untidy" opening round to the Masters but is hopeful his chances of landing the title for the first time are not over just yet.
The world number two, whose best finish at the tournament was as runner-up last year, is left playing catch up after an even-par 72 on day one at Augusta National.
McIlroy carded five birdies, but he double-bogeyed the seventh and dropped shots at three further holes to leave himself in a tie for 37th.
Despite being seven shots behind overnight leaders Jon Rahm, Brooks Koepka and Viktor Hovland, McIlroy is focused on dragging himself into contention on Friday.
"It felt like a bit of a scramble all day, to be honest," he told Sky Sports when reflecting on his first round.
"I missed a couple of tee shots left and paid the price for that on seven and 17. I was just a little bit untidy in some other areas as well.
"I made enough birdies – it's just about keeping mistakes off the card. I salvaged an even-par round and there's still 54 holes of golf left – a lot of things can happen.
"I didn't feel like I was too far away today. I'm probably two or three shots behind how I'd like to be, but nothing that's insurmountable.
"I've got a quick turnaround overnight, and I'm looking forward to getting back on the course pretty quickly and obviously trying to get myself back in the thick of things.
"Hopefully we get some decent conditions in the morning and I can shoot something in the mid-60s and get myself back in the tournament."
Reigning champion and world number one Scottie Scheffler carded a four-under 68 on Thursday and is three shots off the lead.
Scheffler, who made an eagle on the second hole and dropped just one shot, did not feel any additional pressure entering the opening major of the year as defending champion.
"I didn't think about it really at all today," he said. "The only reason I would think of being the defending champion is because I was playing with [amateur] Sam Bennett.
"Just because I'm defending doesn't mean I start under par. Starting at even, it was just about going out there and getting settled into the round, which I did a good job of.
"I got a lot of looks early, made some nice par putts there on six and seven, but didn't see much go in the rest of the day. But four under is a solid start to the week."
Kevin Durant is unmoved by his winning start to life with the Phoenix Suns, knowing there is "a whole new season about to start" in the playoffs.
The Suns won 119-115 on Thursday against a Denver Nuggets team missing Nikola Jokic and several other starters.
Phoenix, by contrast, were at full strength, with Durant starting his eighth game for the team, joining Chris Paul and Devin Booker in the lineup.
Durant is 8-0 since joining the Brooklyn Nets; the last player to move teams and win their next nine starts was Kawhi Leonard on the Toronto Raptors in 2018.
That Raptors team ended up winning the title, beating Durant's Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals, and the Suns superstar's focus now is on postseason success.
"We've played a couple of teams that weren't full strength," Durant said. "I don't make too much of it.
"It's a whole new season about to start, so what we're doing right now is cool, record-wise, but we want to keep building good habits and stay healthy. That's the only thing that's important to me."
Even in victory, coach Monty Williams was frustrated by an "inconsistent" performance, while Paul called it a "weird" game.
The veteran point guard had a key role to play in the win, however, making a career-high seven threes.
"I should have made more," Paul said. "I was just trying to take those shots.
"That's why these games are important: it's a new way – I've never really played with guys who are getting doubled like this.
"It's not just [a case of] wait until the playoffs and find our rhythm; you need to use these games to do that."
At the same time, Paul, averaging 8.9 assists per game this year, finished with only two assists.
Only once this season had Paul previously played more than 15 minutes and finished with as few as two assists, losing by 19 points to the New York Knicks in February.
It was the seventh time in his career he has played at least 15 minutes in a win and not contributed three or more assists.
"I'm not used to it, but it's one of those things where guys are telling me to shoot, telling me to shoot, and I just said 'alright'," Paul said.
"It is weird, but it's whatever it takes. If that means scoring, if that means assisting, I've got to shoot to keep them honest."
Durant added: "We're used to him getting nearly double-digit assists every game, but it's good when you're unpredictable and can switch attacks. We're going to need that going forward."
World number three Jessica Pegula was pushed all the way before emerging victorious 7-5 4-6 6-4 against Irina-Camelia Begu in Thursday's Charleston Open third round.
Pegula, the top-ranked American and the tournament's overall top seed, may have thought it was going to be smooth sailing after collecting a break-to-love in the match's opening game, but it was just the beginning of a two-hour-and-32-minute battle.
Begu played terrific tennis against a world-class opponent, winning 47 per cent of the match's total points, but she shot herself in the foot with eight double faults while Pegula had just one.
With the victory, Pegula booked her place in the quarter-final against Spain's Paula Badosa after her stylish 6-1 6-3 result over Russian 19-year-old Diana Shnaider.
Badosa now has a 4-2 record since the beginning of March, but both of those losses came to the in-form Elena Rybakina in eliminations from both the Indian Wells Open and the Miami Open.
Meanwhile, reigning Wimbledon and US Open finalist Ons Jabeur needed just 82 minutes to dispatch Caroline Dolehide 6-3 7-5, and combined with her opening victory against Lesia Tsurenko it is Jabeur's first consecutive wins since the Adelaide International in early January.
Jabeur will play Anna Kalinskaya in her quarter-final after the Russian upset two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka 6-4 7-6 (7-5).
It was a strong day for the Russians, as Ekaterina Alexandrova got the better of Julia Grabher 6-4 6-2, and world number eight Daria Kasatkina knocked out Bernarda Pera 6-3 7-6 (7-3).
Olympic gold medalist Belinda Bencic won the longest match of the day in a two-hour-and-45-minute war of attrition against Shelby Rogers 4-6 7-5 6-2, but the Americans had something to cheer for in the late window as Madison Keys advanced past Magda Linette 6-2 3-6 6-1.
The Phoenix Suns have clinched the fourth seed in the Western Conference after defeating the undermanned Denver Nuggets 119-115 on Thursday.
The victory was Phoenix's seventh in a row, having been ignited by the return of Kevin Durant for their past five fixtures after he missed over three weeks of action in March.
Durant has personally not played in a loss since January 5, winning his last two games for the Brooklyn Nets before being traded while injured, and he has won all eight Suns games he has suited up for.
He was again the key against the Nuggets, scoring a team-high 29 points on nine-of-18 shooting, including six-of-10 from three-point range, while adding seven rebounds and four assists in an eyebrow-raising 41 minutes as head coach Monty Williams gave his star extended run.
Chris Paul was terrific in support, tying his regular season career-high with seven made three-pointers on the way to 25 points (nine-of-15 shooting) and only one turnover.
Devin Booker was the primary playmaker for the Suns, racking up eight assists, but it was also due to a poor shooting night where he finished three-of-12 from the field for his 15 points.
Despite the loss – where starters Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, Michael Porter Jr and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope sat out – Bruce Brown showed why he will have a key role in the playoffs as he put up 31 points (11-of-18 shooting), six rebounds and four assists as the stand-in top option.
Thunder hang on to final play-in spot
The Oklahoma City Thunder kept their playoff hopes alive with a 114-98 road win against the Utah Jazz, denying the Dallas Mavericks for the time being.
If the Thunder had lost, they would have slipped to 38-43 and been overtaken by the 38-42 Mavs, but they instead rode a terrific team effort to victory as seven Oklahoma City players scored in double-figures.
The result leaves the Thunder a half-game clear of the Mavericks in the race for the Western Conference's 10th seed, with OKC's last game of the season to come at home against the Memphis Grizzlies, while Dallas will host the Chicago Bulls and the San Antonio Spurs to close out their regular season.
Miami bring the heat to Philadelphia
The Philadelphia 76ers had almost nothing to play for against the Miami Heat, and it showed, with the visitors collecting a 129-101 road triumph.
Miami (43-37) still have a small chance at avoiding the play-in tournament if they can overtake the Brooklyn Nets (44-36) in the final stages, and they got the job done in Philadelphia thanks to Jimmy Butler and Tyler Herro.
Butler was rock-solid with an equal team-high 24 points on nine-of-12 shooting, adding six assists, while Herro shot seven-of-17 for his 24 points and five assists.
The Boston Red Sox came from behind on the back of power hitting from Adam Duvall and Rafael Devers to defeat the Detroit Tigers 6-3 away from home on Thursday.
It was the Tigers taking the early lead through a big two-run homer from Jake Rogers in the second inning, and after Enrique Hernandez pulled one run back for the Sox in the third frame with a fielder's choice groundout, legendary Detroit designated hitter Miguel Cabrera came through with an RBI single later in the third to restore a 3-1 advantage.
But the Boston bullpen would shut things down the rest of the way, holding Detroit scoreless for the final six innings.
Red Sox franchise centrepiece Rafael Devers trimmed the margin to one run when he blasted a solo home run in the fourth inning, and he delivered again in the sixth inning with an RBI double to tie the contest at 3-3.
While Devers is the future of the team, there is no Red Sox player hotter than Adam Duvall to start this season.
Through his first five games, the 34-year-old Duvall combined for 10 hits, including three doubles, two home runs and a triple.
He added another home run on Thursday – a three-run bomb later in the sixth inning – to give the Red Sox a winning break, and with it he climbed up to second on the early OPS leaderboard with an on-base plus slugging figure of 1.577. For reference, that is nearly double the best season-long OPS of his career, which was .882 through 41 games in 2019.
It was also the third multi-hit game of the season for 29-year-old AL Rookie of the Year hopeful Masataka Yoshida, with an infield single and a double for the man who signed a five-year, $90million free agent deal out of the Japanese league in the offseason.
Arcia walks it off for Atlanta
Atlanta Braves shortstop Orlando Arcia came up big with a walk-off base hit to defeat the San Diego Padres 7-6 at home.
Arcia, batting last in the Braves' line-up, made some noise early when he got hold of a 400-foot solo home run in the third inning, and he ignited his side's comeback with a double in the eighth inning, later coming around to score as Atlanta turned a 6-4 deficit into a 6-6 tie heading into the last.
The contest looked destined for extra innings until Amed Rosario's two-out double in the bottom of the ninth, with Arcia stepping up next for the game-winning base hit.
It was a great showing for last season's NL Rookie of the Year runner-up Spencer Strider, who followed his nine-strikeout opening performance with another nine strikeouts against the Padres in five innings.
His 18 strikeouts through two starts is tied for the second-most, trailing only New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole (19).
Giants pile on 16 runs in Chicago
The San Francisco Giants put up the equal-biggest score of the season so far in a 16-6 drubbing of the Chicago White Sox away from home.
Blake Sabol, Wilmer Flores, Michael Conforto, J.D. Davis and Mike Yastrzemski all hit home runs for the Giants, and while Davis and Conforto both finished with three hits each, Davis led the way with a game-high five RBIs.
All nine Giants starters ended up with at least one hit as they racked up 20 knocks as a team, and the victory clinched their high-scoring three-game series against the White Sox after also taking the opener 12-3.
Tyreek Hill’s contract ends after the 2025 season, and when it expires, the Miami Dolphins star wide receiver says he will retire.
The 29-year-old Hill revealed his plan to play three more seasons and then step away on Sports Radio 810 in Kansas City on Wednesday.
"I'm going for 10 [seasons], man," Hill said. "I'm going to finish out this contract with the Dolphins and then I'm going to call it quits. I want to go into the business side. I want to do so many things in my life, bro."
Hill signed a four-year, $120million contract extension with the Dolphins in 2022 after being traded from the Kansas City Chiefs – a deal that made him the league’s highest-paid receiver.
In his first season with the Dolphins after six with Kansas City, Hill finished second in the NFL with a career-high 119 receptions and second in receiving yards with a career-best 1,710 to go with seven touchdown receptions.
Despite still being at the top of his game, Hill has plans to venture into gaming.
"So I really want to get into, like, the gaming space," Hill said. "I really want to get huge in that, and that's kind of what I'm doing right now. I'm using my platform, creating a gaming team, which isn't launched yet. It should launch by the end of this month. I'm going to just sign, like, different content creators, different athletes. I just been working that, talking to different sponsors."
One of the league’s most dangerous playmakers, Hill has been named to the Pro Bowl in each of his seven seasons in the league and a first-team All-Pro four times.
Since his 2016 rookie season, Hill ranks fifth in receptions (598) and third in both receiving yards (8,340) and receiving TDs (63).
Thursday's action at the Houston Open has again been called off without any matches completed due to persistent rain in the area.
It is the second day in a row without a match being completed after Wednesday's play only made it through one set.
Max Purcell took the first set of his match against Daniel Altmaier on Wednesday, before Altmaier came back to win the second set on Thursday, and they will hope to complete the match on Friday when they resume with Purcell leading 6-4 3-6 4-3.
John Isner will likely have a do-or-die tie-breaker as soon as his match with Gijs Brouwer resumes, as he trails 6-4 5-6 with the Dutch competitor on serve.
The only other match underway is locked at 4-4 between Denis Kudla and J.J. Wolf.
Brooks Koepka feels he is finally back to full health following a serious knee injury that had crippled him over the past two years, claiming a share of the lead after Thursday's opening round at the Masters.
Koepka, a four-time major champion, shot four birdies on his front-nine and four more on his back-nine to go with a solitary bogey in an impressive seven-under 65.
There were warning signs that the 32-year-old may be in for a good week, coming off a victory at LIV Golf Orlando where Koepka became the new tour's first ever two-time winner.
His performance this time was in stark contrast to his efforts at the last two editions of the Masters, where Koepka missed the cut both times, but he told the media after his round that his health made those years complete write-offs.
He shared details of the darkest moments from his recovery, where he could barely get out of bed, and would be in tears while biting down on a towel as his physical therapist tried to bend his knee.
"I just wrote the last two years [at the Masters] off," he said. "I came here three weeks after surgery [in 2021], and last year I wasn't anywhere near it, but I'm healthy now, I've put that behind me, and I'm not too worried about the last two years.
"It's all injury-based. Any athlete, anybody that's going through something where you can't even bend your knee.
"I'll spare everybody the details of what actually happened – it was pretty gruesome, right – and they told me I could have a surgery that would be pretty much a year and a half [recovery time].
"Then you create bad habits, and there's frustration, and you just feel like you're never going to be healthy.
"I wish I had celebrated the kind of little milestones along the way, instead of thinking I could just power through it… so yeah, it was definitely frustrating, but once you feel good, everything changes."
He said he realised early that he was in for a great day after making a sharp start on a course that was "quite gettable".
"Honestly I think it was just the start," he said. "I got off to a good start – any time you're two under through three it's a good start – so I felt good, and I just kind of piggybacked off that momentum.
"I'm very happy with the way I played. I drove the ball nicely, left it in some good spots, and even missed quite a few putts… it could've been really low, but I'll take it. Seven's pretty good."
Jon Rahm, Brooks Koepka and Viktor Hovland are tied for lead at seven under after Thursday's opening round at the Masters.
It was a shaky start for world number three Rahm as he stumbled to a double-bogey on the first hole, but he birdied the next two to quickly even out his card, before rattling off another five birdies and an eagle the rest of the way.
Koepka, a four-time major champion, is riding high after emerging victorious in last week's LIV Golf Orlando to become the breakaway tour's first ever two-time winner, and he looked terrific with eight birdies and one bogey.
Hovland was the only of the trio to go bogey-free, with the 25-year-old Norwegian now in a great position to make a run at his first major title.
They have a two-stroke lead on the chasing pack, with Australia's former world number one Jason Day shooting a bogey-free, five-under 67, and he is joined in a tie for fourth by Cameron Young.
Tiger Woods carded back-to-back birdies on the 15th and 16th holes to salvage a disappointing two-over 74, leaving him with work to do on Friday if he is to make the cut.
World number one Scottie Scheffler is part of a loaded logjam tied for sixth at four under, which also includes world number seven Xander Schauffele, former Masters champion Adam Scott, WGC Match Play winner Sam Burns, and surprising rookie Sam Bennett.
Three-time major champion Jordan Spieth is at three under with two-time major champion Collin Morikawa, reigning British Open champion Cameron Smith is at two under with reigning PGA Championship victor Justin Thomas, and Phil Mickelson is joined at one under by fellow Masters champions Hideki Matsuyama, Patrick Reed and Dustin Johnson.
Shot of the day
While Bennett's eagle chip-in, or Rahm's long iron setting up a five-foot eagle putt were worthy contenders, neither had the degree of difficulty of Hovland's par save on the 10th hole.
Landing in a horrible spot in the rough behind a bunker, with almost no green to work with, Hovland played a feathery flop into the fringe and allowed it to trickle next to the hole for an unlikely par.
A little birdie told me…
It was a memorable day for Bennett, as the 23-year-old amateur began his first round at the Masters with a birdie on the first, an eagle on the second and another birdie on the sixth to tie the best front-nine score by an amateur at Augusta (32).
Meanwhile, after his best major finish last season with a T4 at The Open, Hovland tied his best round at a major, and set a new personal best around Augusta with his seven-under 65.
Joining him at the top of the leaderboard, Rahm will be trying to make history as the first player to ever win the Masters after double-bogeying their opening hole.
Tiger Woods was in "constant" pain during a first round of the Masters that left him facing a battle to make the cut.
Woods has won a third of his 15 major titles at Augusta National, but the legendary American may not be in Georgia for the weekend after a disappointing start.
The 47-year-old signed for a two-over 74 after a fifth bogey of the day at the 18th in Georgia, where Viktor Hovland, Jon Rahm and Brooks Koepka capitalised on great conditions to lead at seven under.
Woods defied the odds to resume his career after suffering serious leg injuries in a car accident two years ago.
One of the all-time great revealed he felt "sore" and was troubled throughout his opening round of the first major of 2023 on Thursday.
Reflecting on his round, he said: "Most of the guys are going low today. This was the day to do it.
"Hopefully tomorrow I'll be a little bit better, a little bit sharper, and kind of inch my way through it.
"This is going to be an interesting finish to the tournament with the weather coming in. If I can just kind of hang in there, maybe kind of inch my way back, hopefully it will be positive towards the end."
Cameron Young and Jason Day were two shots behind the leading trio, while defending champion Scottie Scheffler was three under through 14 holes.
Shane Lowry, Xander Schauffele, Adam Scott and amateur Sam Bennett are among a host of players well poised on four under, while Rory McIlroy has work to do at one over through 14.
Jamaican fitness athlete Deidre Lewis has rebounded from a two-year anti-doping suspension, to win her Pro Card following an outstanding showing at the Mr and Miss America IFBB Cup in Lima, Peru, last weekend.
During the competition that ran from April 1-2, Lewis won the Bikini Senior Up to 160cm Class over Ambar Canas of Venezuela, Aminta Jeanette Lopez Ramirez of El Salvador, Vivian Isabel Buella Guevara of Peru, Pamela Sosa of Guatemala, Alejandra Milargros Chang Yui of Peru and Helen Orellana of Chile.
She also won the Overall Bikini Fitness title over Costa Rica’s Darla Gomez Bolanos and El Salvador’s Aminta Jeanette Lopez Ramirez.
The success means that Lewis would finally earn her Pro Card.
“I am very happy with my success. It has been long overdue,” an elated Lewis told Sportsmax.TV after returning home earlier this week.
“I was delayed but never denied. Delayed with entering shows previously and coming very close to earning the card and didn’t get it and second, the suspension for Zeranol, which didn’t give me any advantage and is a naturally occurring substance that comes from food and I had to stay away from the stage,” she said.
“So, I am here once my suspension was up I hit the ground running because I just wanted to get back on the stage.”
She explained that during her time off, she worked to get her body in peak condition with the goal of earning her Pro Card.
“I started operating like a pro. I trained like a professional and now I am a professional,” she said.
“I won my height class first and I was so overwhelmed because it was a really tight show. It was really great and I had the muscles that they were looking for on the day so I am very happy with this win.”
Lewis, who intends to make her professional debut at the Roger Boyce Classic in Barbados from June 1-4 depending on if she can get sponsored, said the success has helped put her mind at ease and boosted her self-belief.
“It has made me content, very content and happy. Actually, happy is an understatement. I am overwhelmed, elated because I have waited so long to come back to the stage it, it hurt my spirit to be away from the stage so I am happy I could have come back and come back with a bang,” she said.
“I am more confident in my abilities now. I have changed my mindset upon entering the competition because before I was more nervous, doubting my abilities. I have also revamped how I approach competition. It is important to have confidence on the stage and that oozed out of me on the stage and that was why I was triumphant.”
She reveals, however, that she remains rankled by the suspension that robbed her of two years in the sport.
“I am still not over it, 100 per cent,” she said.
“I am just disheartened that the substance (Zeranol), it was a minute amount, it is a naturally occurring substance. The expert said that this was not something that I took and I still had to serve a suspension for that just because I simply could not tell them where it came from,” she said while suggesting that changes need to be made to some of the rules governing doping.
“I think they need to change those rules in cases like these when it was not something I took deliberately. I am still disheartened by it but I am looking forward from all of it.”
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