Robert Allenby shot a seven-under 65 yesterday for a one-shot lead after the first round of the Dubai World Championship.
The 38-year-old Australian, who plays mainly on the US PGA Tour, had eight birdies and only one bogey on the Earth Course, which is hosting the US$7.5 million final event of the European Tour season.
Allenby was one shot ahead of England’s Lee Westwood, Chris Woods and Colombian Camilo Villegas, who all shot six-under 66s.
When the tournament ends on Sunday, the top player on the European Tour’s money list will win a US$1.5 million bonus from the new Race to Dubai.
Westwood, lying second in the race, was two shots ahead of money leader Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland.
■CAMBODIAN OPEN
AFP, SIEM REAP, CAMBODIA
Australia’s David Gleeson broke away from a bunched leaderboard to take the first-round lead at the Johnnie Walker Cambodian Open yesterday.
Gleeson, a two-time Asian Tour winner, shot a five-under 67, including a birdie at the 18th hole, to lead by one shot.
Filipino Artemio Murakami, Taiwan’s Lin Wen-hong, Malaysian Khor Kheng Hwai and Thai trio Pariya Junhasavasdikul, Annop Tangkamolprasert and Atthaphon Prathummanee share second place after shooting 68s at the Phokeethra Country Club.
Lin, who is the younger brother to five-time Asian Tour winner Wen-tang, fired a flawless outward nine from the 10th hole to make the turn in 31, but suffered one bogey coming home.
■DUNLOP PHOENIX
AFP, MIYAZAKI, JAPAN
Japan’s Kenichi Kuboya hit a six-under 65 to take a three-stroke lead after the first round of the Dunlop Phoenix yesterday.
Kuboya sank eight birdies against two bogeys for the lead over six Japanese, including Kiyoshi Miyazato, at the Phoenix Country Club course.
Steven Conran of Australia was the best foreign golfer, hitting a 69 to be tied at eighth place with five other Japanese.
Sweden’s Robert Karlsson was tied at 14th place with 16 golfers. Three-time major winner Vijay Singh of Fiji hit a 71.
Revelations of positive doping tests for nearly two dozen Chinese swimmers that went unpunished sparked an intense flurry of accusations and legal threats between the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the head of the US drug-fighting organization, who has long been one of WADA’s fiercest critics. WADA on Saturday said it was turning to legal counsel to address a statement released by US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) CEO Travis Tygart, who said WADA and anti-doping authorities in China swept positive tests “under the carpet by failing to fairly and evenly follow the global rules that apply to everyone else in the world.” The
Taiwanese judoka Yang Yung-wei on Saturday won silver in the men’s under-60kg category at the Asian Judo Championships in Hong Kong. Nicknamed the “judo heartthrob” in Taiwan, the Olympic silver-medalist missed out on his first Asian Championships gold when he lost to Japanese judoka Taiki Nakamura in the finals. Yang defeated three opponents on Saturday to reach the final after receiving a bye through the round of 32. He first topped Laotian Soukphaxay Sithisane in the round of 16 with two seoi nage (over-the-shoulder throws), then ousted Indian Vijay Kumar Yadav in the quarter-finals with his signature ude hishigi sankaku gatame (triangular armlock). He
Rafael Nadal on Wednesday said the upcoming French Open would be the moment to “give everything and die” on the court after his comeback from injury in Barcelona was curtailed by Alex de Minaur. The 22-time Grand Slam title winner, back playing this week after three months on the sidelines, battled well, but eventually crumbled 7-5, 6-1 against the world No. 11 from Australia in the second round. Nadal, 37, who missed virtually all of last season, is hoping to compete at the French Open next month where he is the record 14-time champion. The Spaniard said the clash with De Minaur was
RALLY: It was only the second time the Taiwanese has partnered with Kudermetova, and the match seemed tight until they won seven points in a row to take the last set 10-2 Taiwan’s Chan Hao-ching and Russia’s Veronika Kudermetova on Sunday won the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix women’s doubles final in Stuttgart, Germany. The pair defeated Norway’s Ulrikke Eikeri and Estonia’s Ingrid Neel 4-6, 6-3, 10-2 in a tightly contested match at the WTA 500 tournament. Chan and Kudermetova fell 4-6 in the first set after having their serve broken three times, although they played increasingly well. They fought back in the second set and managed to break their opponents’ serve in the eighth game to triumph 6-3. In the tiebreaker, Chan and Kudermetova took a 3-0 lead before their opponents clawed back two points, but