English tied for 11th early
ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. — Camilo Villegas made a 10-foot birdie putt on his final hole Thursday for a 6- under- par 64 and a share of the lead with Matt Wallace after the first round of the RSM Classic. Villegas and Wallace each finished with big putts on the Seaside Course at Sea Island Golf Club. Villegas, a 38-year-old Colombian with four PGA Tour wins, capped a bogeyfree round on the ninth hole for his lowest score in four years. Wallace, a 30-year-old Englishman who has slipped in out of the top 50 in the Official World Golf Ranking in recent months, hit into a hazard on the 18th but saved par with a 30-foot putt. They were a shot ahead of eight players, a group that included Sea Island resident Patton Kizzire and Robert Streb, who won his only PGA Tour title at Sea Island five years ago. Each had a 5-under 67 on the Plantation course, which played about three-quarters of a shot harder. The tie for 11th at 4 under included Sea Island resident Harris English, who had a 66 on the Seaside. He’s one of three Baylor School graduates in the 156-man field — half of which shot par or better Thursday — with Chattanooga native and St. Simons resident Keith Mitchell (69 Seaside) tied for 49th at 1 under and Augusta resident Luke List (74) tied for 105th at 2 over. The weather wasn’t as pleasant as it was at this past weekend’s Masters — about 3 1/2 hours northeast in Augusta — with heavy clouds, cooler temperatures and strong wind Thursday on the Georgia coast.
BASKETBALL
› SAN FRANCISCO — Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson has a torn right Achilles’ tendon and is expected to miss the 2020-21 NBA season, the team said Thursday. The Warriors revealed via Twitter that an MRI performed in Los Angeles had confirmed the injury, which occurred in a pickup game in Southern California on Wednesday. Golden State general manager Bob Myers had previously said athletic trainers would head south to accompany Thompson as he underwent the test. The injury could be a severe blow for the Warriors, who made five straight trips to the NBA Finals from 2015 to 2019 and won three titles in that stretch but finished worst in the league this past season, when they struggled without Thompson and at times without star shooter Stephen Curry, who was nursing a broken left hand that sidelined him for more than four months. Thompson didn’t play at all during the coronavirus pandemic-shortened season as he worked back from surgery for a torn ACL in his left knee sustained in the deciding Game 6 of the 2019 NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors. Myers said Thompson’s injury had Golden State considering altering its draft decisions Wednesday night, but the Warriors stuck with their plan to select University of Memphis center James Wiseman with the No. 2 overall selection.
SOCCER ›
NEW YORK — Nashville SC center back Walker Zimmerman is Major League Soccer’s defender of the year. Nashville allowed an average of 0.96 goals a game in 2020, lowest of an expansion team in league history, and the Tennessee team had nine shutouts and allowed just 22 total goals, third- fewest in the league this year. In 22 starts, Zimmerman had an assist and three goals, including the first in the club’s debut match. Zimmerman, 27, came to Nashville for its inaugural season after two years with the Los Angeles Football Club. He started his MLS career in 2013 as the No. 7 overall pick in the SuperDraft by FC Dallas. MLS awards are determined by a vote of the league’s technical staffs and players plus media who cover the league. Zimmerman received 28.37% of the vote announced Wednesday, while Philadelphia’s Mark McKenzie was second with 23.04%. Nashville earned a spot in the play-in round for the postseason and will host fellow expansion club Inter Miami CF tonight.