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☆ Matt Fitzpatrick criticizes US Open's Los Angeles course and 'very poor' atmosphere
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-18 | by ( Jack Bantock | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Yet not everyone has given the host glowing reviews, including the major’s reigning champion Matt Fitzpatrick. And following Saturday’s third round, Fitzpatrick – whose hopes of becoming the first player to defend the US Open title since Brooks Koepka look slim – again spoke about the quality of the course and the atmosphere. Fitzpatrick added: “I’ve seen Brooks’ comments and I tend to agree with what he feels like that about this golf course. Yet firmer greens and fairways brought fresh criticisms of the course, and atmosphere, from Fitzpatrick on Saturday. “Very poor … It’s disappointing on the USGA side,” said Fitzpatrick of the atmosphere, according to Barstool Sports journalist Dan Rapaport.

Persons: Matt Fitzpatrick, England’s Fitzpatrick, ”, Fitzpatrick –, Brooks, I’d, Koepka, Fitzpatrick, “ I’m, ” Koepka, I’ve, Brooks ’, you’ve, “, ” Fitzpatrick, Matt York, Padraig Harrington, ” Harrington, ” Brooks, Scottie Scheffler, ” Scheffler, Rickie Fowler, Xander Schauffele, Dan Rapaport, Collin Morikawa, Tom Kim, ” Kim, can’t Organizations: CNN, Los Angeles Country Club, Sky Sports, ESPN, United States Golf Association, USGA, Barstool Sports, Los Locations: American, LA, Los Angeles, Korean

☆ US Open: Defending champion Matt Fitzpatrick, eventually, celebrates shooting tournament’s third hole-in-one
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( Jack Bantock | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Stone-faced and walking, it was an unusually muted reaction from a golfer who had just shot the first hole-in-one of his PGA Tour career and the 51st in US Open history. Then Matt Fitzpatrick, the defending champion, realized and quickly made up for lost time. Having started from the 10th hole, Fitzpatrick shot five consecutive pars before arriving at the adjusted 115-yard 15th hole. “As soon as I hit it I thought that it’s got a good chance of going close,” Fitzpatrick told reporters. The quartet of Doug Weaver, Mark Wiebe, Jerry Pate and Nick Price navigated the 159-yard 6th hole in one swing, and all during the second round.

Persons: CNN —, Matt Fitzpatrick, France’s Matthieu Pavon, Sam Burns, Fitzpatrick, Richard Heathcote, Cameron Smith, Sam Bennett, it’s, ” Fitzpatrick, “, I’ll, Doug Weaver, Mark Wiebe, Jerry Pate, Nick Price, Brooks Koepka, Scottie Scheffler, Will Zalatoris, Rickie Fowler, Xander Schauffele Organizations: CNN, Tour, Los Angeles Country, Getty, Oak Hill Country Club, Sheffield, RBC Heritage Locations: Massachusetts

☆ U.S. Open Shows a Fiercer Side, but Low Scores Abound Anyway
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( Alan Blinder | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Few golfers relish a U.S. Open quite like Brooks Koepka. He first lifted a major trophy at Erin Hills in 2017, and then he did it again the next year at Shinnecock Hills. But Koepka has this week become a paradoxical, brand-name exhibit in an unexpected debate: Is this U.S. Open, the first at the venerable and cloistered Los Angeles Country Club, too easy? It was only on Tuesday that Koepka had been talking about how the tournament’s historical ferocity was a perverse source of comfort. “If it’s going to be a birdiefest where 20-, 21-under wins,” Koepka added, “that’s really not the style.”

Persons: Brooks Koepka, Koepka, “, ”, —, ” Koepka, “ that’s Organizations: Olympic Club, Los Angeles Country Club Locations: U.S, Pinehurst, Shinnecock, Erin

☆ US Open: Records tumble and hole-in-ones fall as Rickie Fowler and Xander Schauffele lead breathless first round
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-15 | by ( Jack Bantock | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Two record-breakers, a pair of hole-in-ones, and a sea of low scores: Los Angeles Country Club served up a Hollywood blockbuster with a thrilling first round at the US Open on Thursday. The pair of hole-in-one’s highlighted a day of widespread low scoring, as birdies rained down around the North Course. Thursday’s 71.34 scoring average marked the lowest ever recorded in a first round at the US Open, beating the previous low of 72.29 at the 1993 tournament. Fowler’s 10 birdies marked the most ever recorded in a US Open round. “I joked a bit earlier, I think the USGA will be a bit frustrated that the number was that low today,” Scheffler told reporters.

Persons: Rickie Fowler, Xander Schauffele, Dustin Johnson, Wyndham Clark, LIV Golf’s Johnson, Clark –, France’s Matthieu Pavon, Sam Burns, Fowler, Richard Heathcote, Rory McIlroy, Brian Harman, Bryson DeChambeau, Scottie Scheffler, Harris, Sam Bennett, Korea’s Kim Si, France’s Paul Barjon, McIlroy, David Cannon, Branden Grace, ”, I’m, ” Berry Henson, “, ” Scheffler, Burns, Pavon, ” Pavon Organizations: CNN, Los Angeles Country Club, Getty, US, USGA, skyward Locations: American, West Coast, Pavon

☆ Coco Gauff defeats Mirra Andreeva at French Open
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-03 | by ( Issy Ronald | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —It wasn’t too long ago that Coco Gauff exploded onto the scene as a 15-year-old, defeating Venus Williams at Wimbledon in 2019. Andreeva won the first set against Gauff. Christophe Ena/APDespite her age, Gauff has already played in numerous French Open tournaments and reached the final last year. Armed with that experience, she reset, shored up her second serve, and harnessed her powerful backhand to ultimately outmaneuver Andreeva. 4 Elena Rybakina withdrew from the French Open citing an upper respiratory illness.

Persons: Coco Gauff, Venus Williams, Gauff, ” Gauff, ” Andreeva, Roland Garros, Andreeva, Christophe Ena, outmaneuver, Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, Swiatek, China’s Wang Xinyu, Elena Rybakina Organizations: CNN, Wimbledon, American, Guardian, WTA, Gauff Locations: Andreeva

☆ Michael Block shoots sensational hole-in-one to cap storybook PGA Championship ending
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( Jack Bantock | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —Hollywood screenwriters might have rejected the script for being too unbelievable, but Michael Block would not be denied the storybook ending to his PGA Championship fairytale. The 46-year-old – head pro at a public golf club in California – drilled a hole-in-one to put the gloss on a remarkable performance at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, New York on Sunday. Or, based on what he charges for an hour-long session at Arroyo Trabuco Golf Club, 1,922 golf lessons. “If it makes any sense, the one thing in the world that makes me cry is golf,” an emotional Block told reporters. They kind of documented my big goal this week was to be the low club pro; right?

☆ North America Got the 2026 World Cup. Which City Will Get the Final?
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Victor Mather | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

At most other World Cups, there is an obvious choice for the final game. Moscow, Rio de Janeiro and Paris were always going to be chosen when their countries hosted the tournament. But there are several attractive candidates for the 2026 final, to be played July 19. The only previous time the United States hosted the World Cup, in 1994, the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif., got the final. This time, SoFi Stadium is the Los Angeles-area site on the list of stadiums for 2026.

☆ US Women's Open: Nine-year-old Brazilian Bella Simoes becomes youngest ever to attempt qualification
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Jack Bantock | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

At nine years old, the Brazilian is the youngest player ever to attempt qualification to the tournament, set to tee off at California’s acclaimed Pebble Beach course for the first time in its 78-year history in July. Follow along @FSGA ➡️ https://t.co/622czXdhXk pic.twitter.com/4aYolLLL21 — U.S. Women's Open (USGA) (@uswomensopen) May 9, 2023Yet that should come as no surprise given Simões’ already-impressive résumé. Aged 14 in 2004, she bested many of the world's top men's players' and major winners at the Sony Open (pictured) despite narrowly missing the cut. The Brazilian shot 23-over par, as two players – Lindy Duncan and Brooke Matthews – secured automatic qualification with scores of 10-under and 8-under respectively. Kimberly Williams, a 60-year-old pro from Bethesda, Maryland, was the oldest player to attempt qualification this year, according to the USGA.

☆ World record crowd watches England complete Grand Slam against France in Women’s Six Nations
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-29 | by ( Issy Ronald | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —When England’s women first played at Twickenham in 2003, the crowd was scattered about the vast stadium, almost imperceptible in the pictures taken that day. Twenty years later, in the latest historic occasion for women’s rugby, a world record crowd of 58,498 supporters watched England win the Women’s Six Nations by defeating France 38-33 in a thrilling finale at Twickenham, the home of English rugby union. The previous record for a women’s game was 42,579, set at the 2022 women’s rugby World Cup final in New Zealand. To produce a game like that on a stage like this is everything that is good about the game. Ultimately, however, it was too little too late – France’s last try arrived as the clock ticked into the red – and England clung on for victory.

☆ College Basketball’s New Secret Weapon: Geezer Upperclassmen
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Laine Higgins | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

HOUSTON—Connecticut, Florida Atlantic, Miami and San Diego State will form one of the most unlikely Final Four fields ever when they convene here on Saturday in search of the NCAA men’s college basketball titleOne archetype of the tournament’s recent history will be glaringly absent, however: The star freshman who is passing through on the way to the NBA.

☆ Star Freshmen Are Out and Veterans Are In at the Final Four
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Laine Higgins | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

☆ Star Freshman Are Out and Veterans Are In at the Final Four
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Laine Higgins | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Miami celebrates after their win against Texas in the Elite Eight. At this time last year, a collection of college basketball’s royalty—Duke, Kansas, North Carolina and Villanova—was preparing to gather for one of the highest-pedigreed Final Fours in men’s tournament history. This season, the glamor teams are out, replaced by a trio of lesser-known underdogs from beach communities—Miami, San Diego State and Florida Atlantic—plus the northerners from Connecticut, who are by far the most familiar basketball power in the pack. It is the first time since 2011 that none of the tournament’s No. 2 seeds reached the Final Four.

☆ Princeton Stuns No. 2 Arizona in the NCAA Tournament
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Robert O Connell | Laine Higgins | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Princeton guard Matt Allocco, forward Zach Martini and forward Caden Pierce celebrate during a win against Arizona. When it comes to playing the role of underdog, Princeton coach Mitch Henderson learned from the best. Playing for the legendary coach Pete Carril in 1996, he was a point guard for the 13-seed Princeton team that knocked off defending national champion UCLA, 43-41 in one of the NCAA tournament’s greatest upsets. Henderson authored his own upset masterpiece on Thursday evening—using nearly the same game plan as his former coach, who died last year—as Princeton, a No. 15 seed, knocked out second-seeded powerhouse Arizona 59-55.

☆ Uber's Mideast business Careem to cease operations in Qatar
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( Reuters Staff | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

FILE PHOTO: A customer uses Careem application with his smartphone in Mosul, Iraq September 25, 2019. REUTERS/Abdullah RashidDOHA (Reuters) - Uber’s Middle Eastern business Careem will cease operations in Qatar on Tuesday, the company announced in a message sent to customers in the Gulf Arab state on Monday. “Unfortunately, Careem’s ride hailing operations will no longer operate in Qatar as of February 28, 2023,” said the message, which also informed customers holding Careem credit that the company would issue a full refund by March 15. Careem was bought by Uber Technologies Inc in 2019 for $3.1 billion, giving the U.S. firm market dominance across the Middle East and Pakistan. Uber’s smart phone application offers ride-hailing services in Qatar and continued to operate normally late Monday.

☆ The New York Liberty Sign Breanna Stewart, and Build Their Superteam
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( Robert O'Connell | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Breanna Stewart has done just about everything a basketball player can do. In college, at the University of Connecticut, she won four NCAA tournament championships in four years and was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player each time. With Team USA in the Olympics, she’s won two gold medals. Over six seasons with the Seattle Storm, she won two WNBA titles and an MVP award. Bringing a championship to a basketball-crazed city that hasn’t seen an NBA or WNBA title since 1973.

☆ France and Argentina bring multiple plot lines to mouthwatering World Cup final
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Amy Woodyatt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Standing in Messi’s way is his Paris Saint-Germain teammate Kylian Mbappé, as France seeks to win back-to-back World Cup trophies. After a shock defeat by Saudi Arabia in its opening group game, Argentina’s World Cup campaign got off to the worst possible start. When asked whether Sunday’s game will be his last at a World Cup, Messi replied: “Yes. Like Griezmann, the 36-year-old Giroud has had a renaissance in this World Cup, after failing to score a single goal in 2018. We’ll enjoy it now and get ready for the last match of this World Cup.”

☆ Lionel Messi confirms final will be last World Cup game ever as Argentina overpowers Croatia 3-0
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-13 | by ( Matias Grez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

JUAN MABROMATA/AFP/AFP via Getty ImagesWhen asked whether Sunday’s game will be his last at a World Cup, Messi replied: “Yes. To finish my World Cup career playing my last game in a final. Everything I’ve lived in this World Cup, what people experienced and how much the people back in Argentina are enjoying it all is very emotional. Luka Modric was unable to guide Croatia to a second consecutive World Cup final. That was Messi’s 11th World Cup goal, taking him past Gabriel Batistuta as Argentina’s all-time leading goalscorer in World Cup finals.

☆ Qatar 2022: $480,000-per-week yacht plays host to super rich
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Ben Church | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Doha, Qatar CNN —It’s been dubbed the ‘Arabian Riviera,’ where the streets are immaculate and are interspersed with luxury hotels offering shimmering views across the marina. Now in Doha, guests can organize limousines ferrying them to World Cup stadiums for the tournament’s games. Guests can also request to take the yacht out of the marina to view the city from afar. A superyacht World Cup stay offers something very different from some of the other accommodation available to guests in the city during the tournament. From tents in the desert to portacabins on the edge of Doha, World Cup organizers have had to be innovative in providing accommodation options to fans with the influx of an estimated 1.5 million people staying in a nation smaller than Connecticut.

☆ Morocco rewrite Africa's World Cup history
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Mark Gleeson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Cameroon upset holders Argentina in the opening match of the 1990 World Cup in Italy and went on to the quarter-finals while Senegal did the same to France when they began the defence of their title in 2002. Of the 160 matches played by African sides at the World Cup, only 37 have been won for a success rate below 25%. Most of Africa was still under colonial rule when the World Cup resumed after the Second World War but as countries gained independence, so CAF membership increased and Africa began to flex some muscle. HANDBALLThat achievement held out the promise that Africa would not take long to produce a World Cup winner, but only Senegal in 2002 and Ghana in 2010 were able to make the last eight. It got even worse in Russia in 2018 when no African teams made it to the last 16, sparking serious reflection about the direction of the game on the continent.

☆ From bloody Balkan war to World Cup heavyweight: the making of Croatia as a soccer nation
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Ben Morse | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

Croatia’s World Cup pedigree is an altogether different story. Štimac challenges Clarence Seedorf of the Netherlands during the 1998 World Cup third place playoff match, which Croatia won 2-1. The Croatia players celebrate a goal against France in the 1998 World Cup semifinals. Having been appointed after the team’s qualification for the 2018 World Cup, Dalić came with pressure on his shoulders. Antonio Bronic/Reuters“There is no place in the national team dressing room of Croatia for big egos, and everyone knows that.

David Beckham, England — World Cup (1998, 2002 and 2006)Nate: The uncontainable aura of a man who transcended the sport and captured the world’s eyes. Eusebio, Portugal — (World Cup 1966)Nate: Rising high by the crowd that carries him; adored by Benfica, adored by Portugal, adored by the whole world. Zlatan Ibrahimović , Sweden (World Cup, 2002 and 2006)Nate: An ever present mythos … seemingly reversing time whilst being a journeyman through it. Lionel Messi, Argentina — (World Cup, 2006, 2010, 2014 and 2018)Nate: Ladies and gentlemen … It’s Lionel Messi. Socrates, Brazil — (World Cup, 1982 and 1986)Nate: Philosopher by name … glory that belongs in the Colosseum.

☆ Morocco Stuns Portugal to Advance to World Cup Semifinals
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-10 | by ( Bruce Orwall | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

DOHA, Qatar—For three weeks here, Morocco had been immersed in one of the unlikeliest fantasies the World Cup has ever seen. It became the first team from an Arab nation to reach the tournament’s quarterfinals, seeming to unite the entire Arab world. A win against Portugal on Saturday would make it the first African team to make the semifinals. Late in the first half at Al Thumama Stadium, Morocco looked poised to add another, even more dreamlike chapter to the story. Morocco’s Youssef En-Nesyri skied high above Portugal defender Ruben Dias to head the ball into the goal and give Morocco a 1-0 lead just before halftime

☆ Morocco, France fans clash with police in Paris after World Cup win
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Soccer Football - FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 - Fans gather in Paris for Morocco v Portugal - Paris, France - December 10, 2022 Police officers are seen near a motorbike during the Morocco fans celebrations REUTERS/Benoit TessierPARIS, Dec 10 (Reuters) - French police fired tear gas on the Champs Elysees in Paris as fans were celebrating victories by France and Morocco in the World Cup, sending them to the tournament’s semi-finals. Thousands of supporters had filled the famous Parisian avenue soon after the match between Morocco and Portugal, chanting, waving flags and honking their horns amid large police deployment. Reuters TV footage showed people smashing shop ventures and fights with police. Some fires could also be seen on avenue de Friedland close to the Champs Elysees. Reporting by Antony Paone and Sybille de La Hamaide; Editing by David GregorioOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Morocco write World Cup history as they reach semi-finals
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-10 | by ( Mark Gleeson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Morocco had already taken the scalps of Belgium and Spain in this tournament but the win over Portugal is of much greater significance. But the supply quickly dried up thereafter as Morocco closed the passing lanes and frustrated the Portuguese attackers. Joao Felix had two more half chances in the first half but Morocco gained in confidence and found a sudden spring in their step, frequently breaking on the counter attack. Bruno Fernandes hit over the top of the crossbar five minutes later as Portugal threw more into attack and Morocco began to sit deeper. Leaving the World Cup always hurts."

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