The Star Online: Sports
The Star Online: Sports |
- Kerr and Mahan win Begay Challenge
- Carmelita Jeter highlights US sprints at worlds
- Soderling withdraws from US Open due to illness
| Kerr and Mahan win Begay Challenge Posted: 31 Aug 2011 05:01 PM PDT VERONA, New York (AP): Hunter Mahan and Cristie Kerr combined to win the Notah Begay Challenge charity event on Wednesday, and Tiger Woods was at least smiling as his pairing came in third. Mahan and Kerr shot an 11-under 61 in the best-ball format event, coming in a stroke ahead of Annika Sorenstam and Rickie Fowler. Woods and LPGA Tour star Suzann Pettersen were third, two strokes off the pace. "Oh Lord. It's going to be one of those days," Woods said before the round after Notah Begay III, his college roommate, promised some trash-talking as they prepared to play. It was one of those days, all right, with Pettersen doing much of the heavy lifting for Woods. "She played great," Woods said about Pettersen. "She definitely carried me." Woods, who has played only eight PGA Tour events this year because of injuries to his left knee and left Achilles' tendon, started the day with a perfect drive that set up a nice birdie at the par-4 opening hole, smiling broadly as fans shouted his name. The shouts of encouragement never waned as Woods made his way around the course, but his game didn't approach the performance he put on here two years ago. With more than 3,000 awestruck fans watching his every move, Woods hit nearly every fairway and won three of the final four holes in a skins game format to beat Camilo Villegas in 2009. "It was all right today," Woods said. "I've been hurt the majority of the year and haven't quite gotten to be able to (get) the reps that I need to do what (swing coach) Sean (Foley) wants me to do. We were right on track at Augusta, but unfortunately I got hurt there and then it was a huge setback. We're just trying to get back to where I was at Augusta, and it's coming around. I just need more reps." Begay said he liked much of what he saw in Woods' performance. "I saw enough good things to know that he's making some progress," Begay said. "It was nice to be out there with him." Begay received a check for $500,000 for his foundation and said he hoped to be able to surpass $1 million after an auction. The event is the chief fundraiser for Begay's foundation, which is dedicated to helping fight obesity and diabetes in the Native American community. It's a cause close to Woods' heart. "I can relate to this because my father went through it," Woods said. "My father developed type-2 diabetes. It's tough to watch someone go through that, and what Notah's trying to do is cut that off. I want to be here for that. To be here and have the opportunity to do this, it's an honor." |
| Carmelita Jeter highlights US sprints at worlds Posted: 31 Aug 2011 04:28 PM PDT DAEGU, South Korea (AP): Try as she might, Carmelita Jeter couldn't fall asleep the night of her surprise win in the 100 meters. The American sprinter tossed and turned, replaying the race at the world championships over and over in her mind. Never has a restless night been so rewarding. And yet it's the rest of the world that may be causing some sleepless nights for the U.S. sprinters in the build-up to next year's London Olympics. No longer are the powerful Jamaicans the only threat. Instead, unknowns are bursting on the scene at the championships this week, stealing the spotlight from more traditional American stars such as Allyson Felix and LaShawn Merritt. This was supposed to be Felix's race in the 400, the first leg of her difficult double that would culminate with her trying to win a fourth straight 200 title. But an unheralded Amantle Montsho of Botswana used a strong finish to beat Felix at the finish and leave the charismatic American wondering whether she will even go for the double in London. Kirani James, a teenager from tiny Grenada, then unseated Merritt as champion in the men's 400 with a lean at the finish line. He was able to reel in Merritt over the final few meters, something that never used to happen. Merritt is hardly race sharp as he's coming off a 21-month suspension for doping. He still has plenty of time to get back into elite form to compete in London, provided, of course, he's even eligible. He has to wait on a verdict from the Court of Arbitration for Sport on the IOC's "six-month rule," which prevents athletes who receive doping bans of more than six months from competing at the next Summer or Winter Games. A decision is expected to be rendered in late September. Nothing he can do about that. But on the track, it's completely within his power. "I came in with a game plan and didn't quite stick with the plan. That's on my part," said Merritt, who will be a member of the 4x400-meter relay that begins Thursday. "I'm feeling healthy. I still feel strong. I'm just looking to move forward." Even when Usain Bolt, the biggest star in track, isn't in the race, the United States failed to win gold. After Bolt jumped the gun and was disqualified in the 100 for a false start, another Jamaican, Yohan Blake, kept the title in the Caribbean island. Walter Dix couldn't close the gap and settled for silver. That was a golden chance that slipped away. The competition is only going to be more heated in London, especially with Asafa Powell (groin) and Tyson Gay (hip) returning to the field after sitting out at the worlds. And don't count on Bolt false-starting there. That's probably not going to happen again to the world's fastest man. Bolt will have a chance at atonement beginning Friday in the first round of the men's 200, while it's Jeter who will be going for a surprising sprint double in Daegu. Sure, she had the fastest time in the world this season in the 100. But given the Jamaicans dominance in the event and Jeter's history of not coming through in big races, she seemed like an unlikely winner. It took her 10.90 seconds to erase that perception. When Jeter held off Veronica Campbell-Brown to finally win gold, she showed she can step up and may have just established herself as the favorite heading into the Olympics. Now, she's feeling no stress heading into the 200. "All the pressure is pretty much over," Jeter said. That's not quite the case for Felix. She wanted to challenge herself at the worlds this year and just not focus on her signature event, the 200. A little drained from all the rounds of the 400 - and no gold to show for it - she will have her hands full with Campbell-Brown & Co. As for whether she might double in London, Felix said she won't make any decisions until after the worlds, once she's had a chance to assess how much strain the two events placed on her body. She did set a personal best in the 400, though, finishing in 49.59 seconds, a fraction behind Montsho. "I think the disappointment really overshadows it," Felix said. "But I'm grateful for this experience, to be on this stage in the 400. If you would've asked me a few years ago, I would never have thought I would've been here (in the 400)." Hardly a surprise, the Americans are in the mix at the top of the medal standings with nine overall, one fewer than Russia. Another surprise gold for the Americans came from Jason Richardson, who crashed the party in the 110-meter hurdles. The race featured the three fastest hurdlers in history - Dayron Robles, Liu Xiang and David Oliver. Oh, and Richardson, too. He initially finished behind Cuban world-record holder Robles to take the silver. But Richardson was bumped up to winner when Robles was disqualified for repeatedly bumping the hand of Liu going over the final few hurdles. "It still hasn't completely set in," said Richardson, a 25-year-old who trains in Southern California with Jeter under the direction of coach John Smith. "But I definitely know that it's coming because the moment is starting to get more and more real. I'm anticipating the final culmination when I realize I'm actually world champion." For Jeter, that realization began to set in the moment her head hit the pillow the night of the race. Sleep would never arrive. "I just couldn't turn my brain off," Jeter said. "I kept thinking of the joy of seeing everybody else's face so happy and so happy for me. |
| Soderling withdraws from US Open due to illness Posted: 31 Aug 2011 04:24 PM PDT NEW YORK (AP): Sixth-seeded Robin Soderling withdrew from the U.S. Open because of illness. The Swede was scheduled to face 618th-ranked qualifier Louk Sorensen in the first round Wednesday. "Lucky loser" Rogerio Dutra da Silva of Brazil took his spot. His agent said in a statement that Soderling started feeling "really bad" Tuesday night with stomach pain and a headache. A doctor recommended he not play. Soderling had not played since withdrawing from Montreal with a wrist injury in early August. The 114th-ranked Dutra da Silva went from losing in qualifying to the second round of a major tournament. In his Grand Slam debut, the 27-year-old advanced when Sorensen withdrew because of cramps with Dutra da Silva leading 6-0, 3-6, 6-4, 1-0. Soderling had tweeted Aug. 21: "Wrist is feeling better. Travelling to NY tomorrow," He missed Cincinnati because of a throat problem that agent Nina Wennerstrom said might be related to the virus that sidelined him in New York. He won at Bastad in his last tournament in mid-July. The two-time French Open runner-up reached the quarterfinals at Flushing Meadows last year to equal his best result. It's been a wild swing of emotions for the 26-year-old Sorensen, who retired from tennis early this year because of a long, long list of injuries. He had been coaching and playing for fun in Germany, where he was born and currently lives. Sorensen plays for Ireland, for which his father is a former Davis Cup player. Realizing he had some protected rankings, Sorensen decided to try to qualify for the Open and visit New York for the first time. It took about 10 players withdrawing for Sorensen to even get into qualifying, then he won three matches to reach the main draw of a major tournament for the second time in his career. In the locker room as he prepared to take the court, somebody told him he wasn't playing Soderling. "I said, 'Yes, I am,"' Sorensen recalled with a laugh. "He said, 'No, no, the Brazilian guy just told me he got in."' Sorensen was a bit disappointed - he'd been looking forward to facing a top-10 player for the first time. Then again, taking on a lucky loser was a great opportunity to win another Grand Slam match. Instead, his hand started cramping at 3-3 in the third set. Now Sorensen is considering coming out of retirement. He's just never been able to stay healthy enough to play five tournaments in a row. Asked to describe his injuries, he sighed and said, "You want me to list everything?" "I had surgery on my right knee, left knee; my pubic bone got inflamed - that was six months; I tore my muscle - that was four months; had a virus on my heart; twisted my ankle eight times; my back had a broken disk; and a couple of other things." |
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