PGA of America loves Charlotte
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The PGA Championship starts today, but officials are already talking about a return engagement in Charlotte. PGA of America CEO Pete Bevacqua said “it’s 100 percent in our plans to bring the PGA Championship back to Quail Hollow.” That couldn’t be until 2024 at the earliest, given the PGA Championship sites are set for the next six years. Bevacqua didn’t mention a specific date for a potential return, but he’s pleased with the excitement surrounding the event, including record ticket sales. “Operationally, we think the championship just sets up well here,” Bevacqua said Wednesday during a pre-tournament news conference. “So we of course need to get through this week, but I would tell you we can’t wait to get back here.” This is the first time Charlotte has hosted a major golf championship. Bevacqua praised Johnny Harris for his leadership in bringing the tournament to Charlotte and lauded the course setup. Several players, including 2005 PGA Championship winner Phil Mickelson, have praised the decision to host the tournament at Quail Hollow, which is ranked as the sixth-best golf course in North Carolina by Golf Digest.
FOOTBALL
› OXFORD, Miss. — Ole Miss will appear in front of the NCAA’s Committee on Infractions on Sept. 11 in Covington, Ky. On Wednesday, the school released documents detailing the hearing on its website. The NCAA said the panel has set aside “two to three full days for this hearing.” NCAA infractions hearings are closed to the public. Ole Miss has been under investigation by the NCAA for nearly five years. The football program is facing 21 rules violations, including 15 classified as Level I, which the governing body considers the most serious. The sprawling case involves alleged academic, booster and recruiting misconduct.
BASEBALL
›CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Indians have never been so happy to put a player on the disabled list. Michael Brantley’s injury isn’t serious after all. Brantley hurt his right ankle after taking a few steps toward a fly ball Tuesday night against Colorado, and the club decided Wednesday to place him on the 10-day DL, a move the Indians executed while breathing a collective sigh of relief. The sight of Brantley — who has inspired his teammates by having an All-Star comeback season after playing in just 11 games last year — sitting in the outfield grass was jarring enough. Brantley, who was sidelined earlier this season with an injury to the same ankle, initially feared he tore his Achilles’ tendon after he broke to his left while tracking a fly ball hit by Colorado’s Mark Reynolds. He abruptly stopped and dropped to the grass and waited to be checked by a trainer and manager Terry Francona. As he sat with his legs extended, Brantley’s facial expression indicated he was afraid his season was over. An MRI revealed it was nothing major, but Francona didn’t provide any specifics about the injury.
TRACK & FIELD
› LONDON — Shaunae Miller-Uibo pulled up with about 30 meters to go. Allyson Felix uncharacteristically faded near the finish. Phyllis Francis? She just kept on running. The rematch between Felix and Miller-Uibo in the women’s 400-meter run on a rainy Wednesday night at the world track and field championships took an unexpected turn. Neither runner wound up on the top step of the podium. That honor belonged to Francis, the 25-year-old American who seemed as shocked as anyone to be crossing the line first. “At the finish line I was surprised. I thought I was second or third,” Francis said, “but then they told me ‘You are first.’ That is crazy.” Francis was among the also-rans during last year’s final at the Olympics, which will be remembered for one thing: Miller-Uibo’s dive over the finish line to edge out Felix. For 2017, Felix skipped her signature distance, the 200, to focus on the 400, which set up a rematch in London. It didn’t work out the way anyone expected — Francis was first in 49.92 seconds, .14 ahead of Bahrain’s Salwa Eid Naser, with Felix third in 50.08 and Miller-Uibo fourth.