Off the wire

Kim remains two shots in front

Sei Young Kim hit her best shot on the final hole Friday, leaving her a tap-in birdie for a 5-under 67 that kept her lead at two shots in the CME Group Tour Championship and moved her one step closer to the richest prize in women’s golf. Caroline Masson of Germany holed a 40-foot birdie putt from off the 18th green for a 66 to get within one shot until Kim answered with a birdie. Kim was at 12-under 132. Nelly Korda battled Kim all day for the lead until she missed a 2-foot par putt on the 16th hole, and then lost a chance for an easy birdie on the par-5 17th with a hooked tee shot that finished under a tree. The winner gets $1.5 million.

Seahawks place Dickson on IR

The Seattle Seahawks placed tight end Ed Dickson back on injured reserve Friday, just two days after activating him. Coach Pete Carroll said Dickson wasn’t ready to contribute physically and it became clear when the team increased his workload in practice this week. The Seahawks signed Tyrone Swoopes from the practice squad to take Dickson’s place. The addition of Dickson earlier this week was an important move since Seattle’s depth at tight end has been tested all season. The Seahawks lost Will Dissly to a season-ending Achilles injury last month and Luke Willson suffered a hamstring injury two weeks ago against San Francisco. Dickson was initially placed on injured reserve at the start of the season with a knee injury. Seattle is opting to go with Swoopes and Jacob Hollister as its healthy options against Philadelphia on Sunday. Defensive end Jadeveon Clowney is questionable to play against the Eagles after leaving the team for treatment of a hip injury Friday. Clowney is set to rejoin the team in Philadelphia this weekend and will be a game-time decision.

Stafford to miss another week

The Detroit Lions have ruled out quarterback Matthew Stafford for a third consecutive game and will also be without several other players this weekend at Washington. Stafford is out with back and hip problems, putting Jeff Driskel in the lineup at quarterback. Detroit has also ruled out two former Arkansas Razorbacks from Sunday’s game — defensive end Trey Flowers (concussion) and offensive lineman Frank Ragnow (concussion). Also out are: cornerback Jamal Agnew (ankle), defensive lineman Da’Shawn Hand (ankle) and defensive back Tracy Walker (knee).

Two-time Pro Bowl tackle out

The Philadelphia Eagles won’t have two-time Pro Bowl right tackle Lane Johnson against the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday and could be without other key players on offense. Johnson is out with a concussion and wide receivers Alshon Jeffery and Nelson Agholor and running back Jordan Howard are questionable. Jeffery missed last week’s 17-10 loss to the Patriots because of an ankle injury and Howard also didn’t play because of a shoulder injury. Agholor injured his knee while failing to catch a potential game-tying touchdown in the fourth quarter.

Yanks refusing to pay Ellsbury

The New York Yankees plan to not pay Jacoby Ellsbury the remaining $26 million due under his contract, contending he violated the deal by getting unauthorized medical treatment. The Yankees sent a letter to Ellsbury and his agent, Scott Boras, informing them the team converted his contract to a nonguaranteed deal, a person familiar with the decision told The Associated Press on Friday. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the team had not made any public statements. Ellsbury has not played since 2017 and was released by the Yankees on Wednesday. According to the person who spoke with the AP, the Yankees said he was treated by Dr. Viktor Bouquette of Progressive Medical Center in Atlanta without the team’s permission. Ellsbury is owed more than $26.2 million as part of his $153 million, seven-year contract: more than $21.1 million for the final guaranteed season plus a $5 million buyout of a $21 million team option for 2021. If Ellsbury is not paid, nearly $21.9 million would come off the Yankees’ luxury-tax payroll next year.

Spain advances in Davis Cup

Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal both played singles and doubles on Friday, but only the Spaniard was able to lead his team into the final four at the Davis Cup Finals. Nadal guided Spain to a 2-1 comeback victory over Argentina, while Djokovic couldn’t prevent Serbia from being eliminated after a 2-1 loss to Russia. Andy Murray didn’t play again on Friday, but Britain made the last four by beating Germany 2-0. Spain will make its second consecutive semifinal appearance after Nadal and Marcel Granollers defeated Maximo Gonzalez and Leonardo Mayer 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 in the decisive doubles match in front of a lively and vocal crowd at the Caja Magica center court. Guido Pella had defeated Pablo Carreno Busta 6-7 (3), 7-6 (4), 6-1 in the first singles, but Nadal had kept Spain in contention with an easy 6-1, 6-2 win over Diego Schwartzman for his 27th consecutive Davis Cup singles victory.

OSU facing NCAA violation

The NCAA warned Oklahoma State on Friday that it may be guilty of a major infraction tied to the actions of former assistant basketball coach Lamont Evans. The school released the NCAA’s notice that alleges Evans “engaged in unethical conduct” from April 2016 through September 2017 by accepting at least $18,150 in bribes from financial advisors Marty Blazer and Munish Sood. The NCAA said the money was paid in exchange for Evans’ agreement to arrange meetings between the advisers and players and influence them to retain their financial advisory and business management services. The school said it agreed with the NCAA. Evans was sentenced in June to three months in prison for accepting bribes in the case. The NCAA also said those in authority “condoned, participated in or negligently disregarded” Evans’ conduct and believes the school could be guilty of a Level I violation that could include scholarship reductions and postseason bans.