McIlroy, Conners share lead with 66 at Bay Hill
Bay Hill was bustling Thursday, just like golf before the pandemic. The fans were limited in numbers but they all wanted the same dose of entertainment provided by Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau.
First it was McIlroy, slowly feeling better about his game, and with good reason. Starting with a 55-foot putt on the par-3 second hole, he ran off five birdies in a row for a share of the lead with Corey Conners in the
Arnold Palmer Invitational at 6-under 66.
In the group behind McIlroy was DeChambeau, who has been contemplating a shot across the water to cut the 528-yard sixth hole down to size by going for the green. This was not the day with a slight breeze into his face, so the U.S. Open champion had some fun. He took out an iron, and then hit a conservative tee shot (309 yards) to the middle of the fairway.
It was a boring birdie, his third in a row, and he opened with a 67.
“There was a high expectation level of me trying to go for the green there, and it was a little pressure that I wasn’t expecting,” DeChambeau said. “But no, it was fun.
Shadow Creek winner
Jason Kokrak opened with a 68. Of the 60 players who teed off in the morning, only six broke 70. Defending champion
Tyrrell Hatton shot a 77, while past Bay Hill winner
Francesco Molinari took a step back from his progress with a 78.
ETC.
NFL: The Steelers and quarterback Ben Roethlisberger agreed on a new contract for the 2021 season that will pay him $14 million, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported.
The new agreement will bring Roethlisberger’s cap hit down from the $41.2 million hit that was on the books for 2021 to $26.2 million. The contract structure all but guarantees the 2021 season will be Roethlisberger’s final one with the Steelers . ... Linebacker Thomas Davis and tight end Greg Olsen are signing one-day contracts to retire as members of the Carolina
Panthers.
College basketball: Franz Wagner scored 19 points, Hunter Dickinson added 14 and No. 2 Michigan (19-2, 14-2 Big Ten) wrapped up the Big Ten title with a 69-50 win over Michigan State.
MLB: The major leagues will hold Lou Gehrig Day on June 2, adding Gehrig to Jackie Robinson and Roberto Clemente on the short list of players honored throughout MLB. Each home team will have “4-ALS” logos in ballparks to mark Gehrig’s No. 4, and all players, managers and coaches will wear a Lou Gehrig Day patch.
Soccer: Liverpool has lost five straight matches at home for the first time in its 128-year history following a 1-0 loss to Chelsea . ... Alexis Sanchez scored twice to help Inter Milan win 2-1 at relegation-threatened Parma to open up a sixpoint gap at the top of Serie A . ... Richarlison kept up Everton’s charge toward the Champions League by scoring a second-half header in a 1-0 win at West Bromwich Albion in the Premier League.