Eagle helps Watson soar to lead at Riviera
LOS ANGELES — Back to his day job, Bubba Watson began with a tap-in eagle at Riviera and finished with a 6-underpar 65 on Saturday to take a one-stroke lead over Patrick Cantlay in the Genesis Open.
Watson, a two-time winner at Riviera, has gone two years since his last victory and has fallen out of the top 100 in the world.
But he loves L.A. — and not just the golf course.
Taking in the full entertainment this city offers, Watson took part in the NBA All-Star celebrity game Friday night and made the wrong kind of highlight when he passed up a jumper, drove toward the basket and was rejected by Tracy McGrady.
He also shot an air ball from just inside the top of the key.
Watson was much better with a golf club in his hand the next day. He chipped in from short of the par-3 sixth green, made two more birdies to go out in 30, and then began the back nine with a birdie on No. 10, his least favorite hole at Riviera. The only blip was a bogey on the 15th.
Watson was at 10-under 203 and will be in the final group with Cantlay, the former No. 1 amateur in the world and polar opposite of Watson.
Cantlay thrives on his ability to keep his head on the shot in front of him, and to keep his emotions from swinging too much — swinging anywhere, really — in either direction. He ended his round with a 55-foot birdie putt for a 69 to get within one shot of Watson.
Cameron Smith (65), Kevin Na (67), Graeme McDowell (70) and Tony Finau (68) were two shots back. In other golf news: • Joe Durant birdied five of the last eight holes for a 9-under 63 to match Steve Stricker’s finish and take the secondround lead in the PGA Tour Champions’ Chubb Classic at Naples, Fla. Durant rebounded from a three-putt bogey on the par-4 10th with birdies on the next two holes and also birdied Nos. 15-17. He had a 14-under 130 total on TwinEagles’ Talon course for a one-stroke lead over Stricker. First-round leader Miguel Angel Jimenez was two strokes back. He birdied three of the last four in a 68 after opening with a 64.
• Jin Young Ko continued her domination of the Women’s Australian Open at Adelaide, shooting a 1-under 71 to increase her lead to four strokes after three rounds. The South Korean, who led after each of the opening two rounds of the LPGA tournament, had a three-round total of 11-under 205 at Kooyonga Golf Club. Australian Hannah Green moved into second place after a 66.
BASEBALL Fletcher helps UH bounce back
Aaron Fletcher pitched five shutout innings in his first career start as Houston beat Holy Cross 7-1 at Schroeder Park to even its record at 1-1.
Fletcher, a junior lefthander, struck out a career-high six and held the Crusaders to a pair of singles over five innings. In other games: • Freshman Justin Collins’ two-run homer in the eighth inning — his first hit as a collegian — helped lift Rice to a 5-4 victory over Central Florida at Orlando, Fla.
• Austin Todd’s tworun homer with two out in the ninth inning propelled Texas to a 5-3 victory over Louisiana-Lafayette at Austin.
• Freshman Zach DeLoach’s two-run single with one out in the ninth inning lifted Texas A&M to a 4-3 victory over Rhode Island at College Station.
• Designated hitter Brady Batten’s two-run single in the eighth inning lifted Houston Baptist to a 5-2 victory over Baylor at Waco.
Players prevail in arbitrations
Cincinnati Reds second baseman Scooter Gennett has won his salary arbitration case, giving players a final 12-10 margin over clubs this year.
Gennett was awarded a raise from $2,525,000 to $5.7 million. The Reds offered $5.1 million.
Players finished with a winning record for the second time in three years but only their fourth since 1996.
The 22 decisions were the most since players went 14-10 in 1990. Just five players settled among the 27 who swapped proposed salaries with their teams last month.
Gennett hit .295 last year and set career bests with 27 homers and 97 RBIs in his first season with the Reds. He hit four homers in a game on June 6.
TENNIS Federer to play Dimitrov in final
A day after ensuring his return to the top of the tennis rankings, Roger Federer sealed a place in the final of the ABN AMRO World Tournament at Rotterdam, Netherlands, by beating Andreas Seppi 6-3, 7-6 (3).
In Sunday’s final, the 36-year-old Federer will win his 97th career title if he beats Grigor Dimitrov.
Federer then will become the oldest person to hold the No. 1 position when the rankings are updated Monday.
HOCKEY Ritchie,Ducks win 11-round SO
Nick Ritchie scored in the 11th round of a shootout, and John Gibson stopped seven straight shots in Anaheim’s 3-2 victory over Minnesota at St. Paul, Minn. After the teams combined for 13 consecutive misses, Ritchie beat Devan Dubnyk.
From staff and wire reports