Horschel, Bramlett lead with 65s
PALM BEACH GARDENS, FLA. » Billy Horschel has never won a PGA Tour event in his home state of Florida. His quest to change that is off to a fine start.
Horschel shot a 5-under 65 on Thursday, tying him with Joseph Bramlett for the first-round lead in the Honda Classic at PGA National. Bramlett had a bogey-free round; Horschel had six birdies and one bogey.
“Just played really solid,” Horschel said. “Didn’t do anything special. Hit some quality iron shots here and there. I wouldn’t say everything was sort of automatic and it was easy. I had to just sort of work my way into making some good swings here and there. But overall, it was a really solid day of golf.”
Horschel’s pre-Honda preparations included a trip to the doctor, finally giving in and getting a prescription after trying to fight off a sinus infection for a few days. He might have felt tired, but it didn’t show.
The 65 was his best score in 33 rounds as a pro at PGA National. He’d shot 66 on two previous occasions.
Bramlett scrambled nicely when he had to. He missed six of 14 fairways and hit 13 of 18 greens.
Pierceson Coody — a sponsor exemption playing his first PGA Tour event as a professional — finished the first round at 4 under, alongside Justin Suh. Coody has two wins in 15 starts on the Korn Ferry Tour since turning pro in June.
Murray reaches semifinals
DOHA, QATAR » Andy Murray reached the semifinals of the Qatar Open by beating French qualifier Alexandre Muller 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 on Thursday.
Murray, 35, will next face Jiri Lehecka after the Czech player upset top-seeded Andrey Rublev 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 in the quarterfinals.
Murray, a three-time Grand Slam champion who has had two hip operations, eliminated fourth-seeded Alexander Zverev in the previous round as the Scot seeks his third title in Doha. He’s currently ranked 70th.
Second-seeded Felix Auger-Aliassime will face Daniil Medvedev in the other semifinal.
The 22-year-old Canadian reached the last four by beating Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 6-4, 7-6 (5). Medvedev beat Christopher O’Connell of Australia
6-2, 4-6, 7-5.
Five tied for LPGA lead
PATTAYA, THAILAND » Jennifer Kupcho of the United States fired a bogey-free 7-under 65 to share the lead alongside four other golfers after the opening round of the LPGA Thailand.
The crowded leaderboard was no surprise on the Pattaya Old Course: The average winning score over the past 10 years is 21 under par.
Kupcho’s round was highlighted by a birdie-birdie finish and an eagle on the par-5 10th hole at Siam Country Club.
With her in the lead were 2014 champion Anna Nordquist of Sweden, six-time USLPGA Tour winner Nasa Hataoko of Japan, local hope and tour rookie Jaravee Boonchant, and last year’s runner-up, Lin Xiyu of China.
Gauff wins, meets Swiatek
DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES » Coco Gauff set up a semifinals match against top-ranked Iga Swiatek at the Dubai Championships by beating Madison Keys 6-2, 7-5 on Thursday.
Swiatek, who reached the last four in a walkover after Karolina Pliskova withdrew because of an illness, is 5-0 against Gauff and beat the 18-year-old American in last year’s French Open final. Gauff is yet to win a set against the three-time Grand Slam champion.
The fifth-seeded Gauff relied on her steady serve and capitalized on Keys’ mistakes in their all-American quarterfinal match. Keys committed 51 unforced errors.
Barbora Krejcikova upset secondranked Aryna Sabalenka 0-6, 7-6 (2), 6-1. Sabalenka, the Australian Open champion, was on a 13-match winning streak and led 3-1 in the second set before Krejcikova’s comeback. It was Sabalenka’s first loss this season.
Del Mar to host Breeders’ Cup
DEL MAR, CALIF. » The Breeders’ Cup has selected Del Mar to host the 41st world championships next year, marking the third time the picturesque Pacific track will stage the season-ending graded stakes races that feature the top thoroughbreds.
Del Mar will present 14 Grade 1 races with purses worth more than $31 million on Nov. 1-2, 2024.
The track last hosted in 2021 at 50% capacity because of coronavirus pandemic restrictions but still set a then-record allsources handle of more than $183 million. The 2017 Breeders’ Cup there established a then-record $25,181,317 ontrack wagering handle and generated a $96 million economic impact.
Verstappen sets pace
SAKHIR, BAHRAIN » Formula One champion Max Verstappen picked up where he left off last season by setting the fastest time in the first session of preseason testing Thursday.
Verstappen lapped the Bahrain International Circuit nearly .3 seconds faster than Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz.
Alex Albon was third fastest as Williams seemed to have improved its pace from last season, but George Russell was only fifth fastest for Mercedes behind Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu.
Paul shoots 7-under 65
NEW DELHI » Yannik Paul birdied his last four holes to shoot 7-under 65 and take a one-stroke lead after the first round of the Indian Open on the European tour.
The No. 119-ranked German’s hot finish lifted him above Honey Baisoya, who was leading a contingent of Indian players making a fast start at DLF Golf and Country Club in New Delhi.
Baisoya was in outright second place on 6 under while compatriots Angad Cheema and Shubhankar Sharma were tied for fourth place after shooting 68s.
Three more Indian players — Manu Gandas, M Dharma and Yuvraj Sandhu — were also in the top 10 on 2 under, with Sandhu having one hole still to play in his first round.