GOLF
Matsuyama piles up birdies
Hideki Matsuyama yesterday made nine birdies in suddenly chilly conditions for a seven-under 65 that gave him a three-shot lead going into the weekend at the HSBC Champions in Shanghai. Neither the rain nor the bone-chilling cold seem to matter to the Japanese star. He has 19 birdies over two rounds, even though Matsuyama remains dissatisfied with how he is hitting the ball. He was at 13-under 131. Defending champion Russell Knox had a 68, while Bill Haas had a 67 and were at 10-under 134. Rory McIlroy did his best to get back in the game, slowed only by an errant tee shot on the 16th that led to his lone bogey in a round of 66. He was six shots behind. Rickie Fowler (73) slipped to seven shots back.
BASEBALL
Cubs fuel World Series fever
Chicago Cubs fans hoping to see their team end a World Series title drought stretching back more than a century are paying a hefty price for the opportunity. After splitting the first two games of MLB’s Fall Classic with the Indians in Cleveland, the Cubs head home for games 3, 4 and 5, with ticket prices at venerable Wrigley Field skyrocketing. Prices posted on ticket reselling site StubHub for Game 3 — the first World Series game at Wrigley Field in 71 years — showed a pair of standing room only tickets being offered at US$2,250 apiece, while a pair of tickets to box seats near a dugout were offered at US$30,000 each on Thursday afternoon. ESPN, citing “insiders” with access to StubHub buyer and seller data, said the median price of a ticket sold via the site for game three was US$3,000.
GOLF
Yang eagles par-four 11th
Amy Yang yesterday holed a pitching wedge for eagle on the par-four 11th hole and stretched her lead to three strokes in the hot, humid and stormy Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia. The 27-year-old South Korean player shot a two-under 69 to reach 10-under 132 at TPC Kuala Lumpur. Her 125-yard shot on 11 hit on the front of the green, hopped and rolled in. Kaohsiung-born Candie Kung, Anna Nordqvist and Mi Jung-hur were tied for second after the round that was delayed 1 hour, 43 minutes because of lightning, with the last group in the 16th fairway. A day after opening with a 63 to miss her own course record by a stroke, Yang parred the first 10 holes before the eagle. Kung fired a six-under-par 65, while her fellow Taiwanese competitor Yani Tseng carded a three-over-par 74.
NFL
Sharper gets more jail time
Former NFL player Darren Sharper was sentenced to up to eight years in prison by a Las Vegas judge on Thursday on a charge of attempted sexual assault, though his lawyer said the sentence would run concurrently with his existing prison stint. Sharper, who retired from the NFL in 2011 after helping lead the New Orleans Saints to a Super Bowl championship, did not appear in court as he is in prison after pleading guilty in a federal Louisiana court to drugging three women and having sex with them while they were incapacitated. Sharper was sentenced to between 36 months and 96 months, Clark County Courts spokeswoman Mary Ann Price said. Sharper’s attorney, David Chesnoff, said the sentence would run concurrently with his existing 18-year prison sentence on the federal charges.
Badminton world No. 3 Anders Antonsen clinched his first Indonesia Open title yesterday after beating Taiwan’s Chou Tien-chen, while South Korea’s An Se-young won her second championship in Jakarta. The 28-year-old Dane sank world No. 7 Chou at the Indonesian capital’s Istora Senayan arena, winning 22-20, 21-14 in a 60-minute match to secure the prestigious Super 1000 event. Antonsen came out on top in a tightly contested first game before cruising to victory in the second. In a more closely fought women’s singles final, South Korean ace and world No. 1 An fought back from one game down to beat China’s
Italy crashed to a 3-0 loss away to Norway, as the four-time FIFA World Cup champions made a disastrous start to their 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign on Friday, while Belgium had to settle for a draw in North Macedonia. Alexander Sorloth, Antonio Nusa and Erling Haaland all scored in the first half in pouring rain in Oslo as Norway made it a night to forget for Italy, who missed out on the past two World Cups. “I have no explanation. Our supporters don’t deserve this kind of match. We need to do some soul-searching. It’s unacceptable,” Italy captain and goalkeeper Gianluigi
‘STILL’: In front of a packed New Jersey arena attended by Donald Trump and Mike Tyson, UFC 316 delivered high drama as Merab Dvalishvili retained his title Georgia’s Merab Dvalishvili scored a second-round submission win over Sean O’Malley to retain his bantamweight title at Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) 316 on Saturday, with Kayla Harrison also winning by submission in the co-main event, tapping out Juliana Pena to claim the women’s bantamweight crown. In front of a packed crowd at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, which included US President Donald Trump and retired heavyweight great Mike Tyson, Dvalishvili, a 34-year-old from the country of Georgia, won the belt in a convincing, although not aesthetically pleasing, unanimous decision. Dvalishvili (19-4) sat on top of the cage and shouted
Manchester City on Monday completed the signing of left-back Rayan Ait-Nouri from Wolverhampton Wanderers for a reported ￡31 million (US$41.8 million). The 24-year-old Algeria international has signed a five-year contract and will be available for the FIFA Club World Cup, which begins later this week. Ait-Nouri is expected to be just one of a trio of new City faces for that tournament with deals close to completion for AC Milan midfielder Tijjani Reijnders and Olympique Lyonnais playmaker Rayan Cherki. After missing out on a major trophy in the recently completed season for the first time since 2016-2017, City are hoping
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