Off the wire

Pavon scores first victory

Matthieu Pavon made an 8-foot putt for a dramatic birdie on No. 18 at Torrey Pines South for a one-shot victory in the Farmers Insurance Open on Saturday that made him the first Frenchman to win on the PGA Tour. Pavon raised his arms in celebration and shouted before hugging his caddie after the putt rolled in as dusk began falling at the municipal course high above the Pacific Ocean. His only birdie on the back nine saved him from a playoff. His final-round 3-under 69 put him at 13 under, one stroke better than Nicolai Hojgaard. Pavon was two shots ahead of Stephan Jaeger, who led after the second and third rounds, and Nicolai Hojgaard and Nate Lashley. Pavon is a 31-year-old PGA Tour rookie.

Korda holds 2-shot lead

Nelly Korda birdied three of her final four holes on Friday to shoot a 4-under 67 and take a two-shot lead midway through the LPGA Drive On Championship. Seeking her first LPGA Tour victory since 2022, the former world No. 1 was at 10-under 132 through 36 holes at Bradenton (Fla.) Country Club, a Donald Ross-designed course in her hometown that she hasn’t played all that often. Korda got a big roar when she closed her round by hitting a 6-iron to about 6 feet for birdie on the par-3 ninth hole. So Mi Lee had the second-best round of the day, a 65. She was two shots back. Lydia Ko, who won last week’s season opener and shared the first-round lead with Korda, was three shots behind after a 70, alongside Xiyu Lin (66) and Ayaka Furue (67). Former University of Arkansas golfer Gaby Lopez struggled on Saturday and shot a 75. She is at 3-over 216 overall.

Baffert wins 3rd Pegasus

Bob Baffert was the first trainer to win the Pegasus World Cup Invitational twice. And now, he’s the first to win it three times. National Treasure, the Preakness winner last year, dug deep in the stretch to win the 1 1/8-mile Pegasus World Cup at Gulfstream Park on Saturday. The Grade 1, $3 million race is the richest of the year at Gulfstream, and National Treasure — the 5-2 favorite — had to hold off hard-charging Senor Buscador in the stretch run to get the victory. Crupi, a 30-1 shot, was third. National Treasure returned $7.20, $5.40 and $3.80 after finishing in 1 minute, 50.51 seconds. National Treasure handled it all with ease and was all alone in the stretch until the very final strides. Senor Buscador paid $7.20 and $5.20, and Crupi paid $12.60 to show.

Knicks’ Randle injured

Julius Randle is being evaluated for a right shoulder injury after he was hurt on a fall late in the New York Knicks’ 125-109 victory over the Miami Heat on Saturday. Randle was driving toward the basket with 4:27 remaining when Heat rookie Jaime Jaquez Jr. stepped in front of him trying to take a charge. Randle landed hard and once he finally got up, he was holding the area around his shoulder and quickly went to the locker room. Coach Tom

Thibodeau said after the game that he knew only that Randle was being checked by the medical staff and didn’t know the nature of the injury. Randle finished with 19 points and nine rebounds in the Knicks’ sixth consecutive victory.

Missouri names new DC

Missouri hired Corey Batoon away from South Alabama to be their defensive coordinator on Saturday, replacing Blake Baker, who left earlier this year for the same position at SEC-rival LSU Batoon has previous experience in the SEC after spending five years at Ole Miss. He also coached at Florida, Hawaii and Florida Atlantic, among other places, before landing at South Alabama, where he orchestrated one of the nation’s best defenses. The Jaguars finished 15th in the Football Bowl Subdivision in total defense at 313.2 yards per game.

Bears hire defensive coach

Eric Washington is returning to Chicago as the defensive coordinator for the Bears, with whom he began his NFL coaching career. Washington spent the previous four seasons with the Buffalo Bills. He was promoted to assistant head coach/defensive line coach before this season. Washington’s first NFL coaching job was with the Bears in 2008, serving as a defensive assistant. The Shreveport native was promoted to defensive line coach in 2010.

Cubs add reliever Neris

The Chicago Cubs and Hector

Neris have agreed to a $9 million, one-year contract, giving Manager Craig Counsell another late-inning arm for his bullpen, a person familiar with the deal told The Associated Press. The contract includes a team option that converts to a player option if Neris appears in 60 games, according to the person who spoke to the AP on Saturday on condition of anonymity because the agreement is pending a physical. The 34-yearold Neris went 6-3 with a 1.71 ERA in 71 games with Houston last season. The right-hander has made at least 60 appearances six times, including each of the last three years.

Royals, Frazier reach deal

The Kansas City Royals and utility man Adam Frazier agreed to a $4.5 million, one-year contract to provide the club with a left-handed bat and some versatility in the lineup, a person with knowledge of the deal told The Associated Press on Saturday. Frazier will make $2 million this season with an $8.5 million mutual option for next season and a $2.5 million buyout, according to the person who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the deal was pending a physical. The 32-year-old Fraizer spent last season with the AL East champion Orioles, hitting .240 with career highs of 13 home runs and 60 RBI across 141 games.

Rangers’ Trouba suspended

New York Rangers defenseman Jacob Trouba was suspended for two games without pay by the NHL on Saturday for elbowing Vegas forward Pavel Dorofeyev. Trouba elbowed Dorofeyev late in the second period in the Golden Knights’ 5-2 victory over the Rangers on Friday night. The suspension will cost Trouba $83,333.

Chock/Bates capture title

Madison Chock and Evan Bates have become so dominant in ice dance that not even a sudden illness could stop them Saturday. Two days after they began developing flu-like symptoms, the longtime figure skating partners took to the ice and laid down a free dance at the U.S. championships that was good enough for gold. Chock and Bates scored 215.92 points to easily outdistance Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko for their third consecutive title and fifth overall. Carreira and Ponomarenko actually outscored the reigning world champions in the free skate to finish with 210.04 points, while Emily Bratti and Ian Somerville leaped over Caroline Green and Michael Parsons to take the bronze medal.