A thrifty investment helped Anthony Wall take the lead after the Sicilian Open second round, the Briton attributing his four-under-par 67 on Friday to an iPhone application costing less than £1 (US$1.62).
Wall, who finished two shots ahead of France’s Raphael Jacquelin (69) and Australian left-hander Richard Green (67) after his bogey-free round, said the application had aided his putting.
“I bought a Dave Stockton [twice former US PGA champion] iPhone app about reading greens and that is the best 59 pence I have ever spent because his tips have really simplified things,” -Englishman Wall told the European Tour’s Web site after carding a nine-under total of 133. “I have just been looking at the low side of every putt for the last two days, really concentrating on the last third of the putt as opposed to the whole putt and that has definitely helped me.”
Former European Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie overcame illness to fire a second straight 69.
“I’m not feeling very well, I have terrible flu, so I did well today. I haven’t dropped a shot since the first two holes of round one, things are looking up,” said Montgomerie, who is chasing his first top-10 finish since 2008.
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Roger Federer on Wednesday said that staying involved with tennis in retirement helped him avoid feeling “like an alien” ahead of this week’s Laver Cup in Berlin. Federer, who helped create the tournament, retired at the Laver Cup in London two years ago and has since stayed involved with the competition as an ambassador. “I’m happy I went back right away to some tournaments,” the 43-year-old told reporters. “I feel I ripped the Band-Aid off quite quickly and when I walk around the tennis sites I still feel I belong there,” he said. “I don’t feel like an alien, which is a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Taiwan yesterday survived Bosnia and Herzegovina to win their Davis Cup World Group I tie at the Taipei Tennis Center. The tight series started on Saturday with world No. 123 Jason Tseng losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Mirza Basic in the opening singles matchup. However, teammate Tony Wu kept the tie even, dominating world No. 86 Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 6-1. Yesterday, 24-year-old Ray Ho and partner 25-year-old Hsu Yu-hsiou kept up the momentum, making short work of Basic and Nerman Fatic, winning 6-3, 6-4. Tseng then suffered another defeat, losing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 to Dzumhur in a brutal match that lasted more than two