Burns leads Johnson, Spieth
Sam Burns wanted to pay respect to tough Riviera by playing it safe. It led to a 5underpar 66 on Friday to tie the 36hole record at the PGA Tour’s Genesis Invitational and build a fiveshot lead going into the weekend in Los Angeles.
Burns was at 12under 130, matching the record set by Davis Love in 1992 and matched by Mike Weir and Shigeki Maruyama in 2004.
Among those chasing is Dustin Johnson, the No. 1 player in the world and a past winner at Riviera, who led a group at 7under after a 67. Another shot back was Jordan Spieth (68).
Burns kept his bogeyfree day intact toward the end of the round when he came up short of the eighth green, his 17th of the morning. He chipped it about 10 feet short — anything too strong could lead to big trouble — and made the par putt.
He also handled two of the par 5s, and picked up so much roll on the firm turf at the 476yard 12th hole that he had only a pitching wedge into the green and made a 5foot putt.
“Whenever we were kind of in a tricky spot, just kind of took what the golf course gave us,” Burns said. “There’s definitely times where I’ve tried to force it a little bit, but this just is not a golf course you want to do that.”
Rory McIlroy made only one birdie in his round of 76 and missed the cut. He had the PGA Tour’s longest active cut streak at 25 events dating to the 2019 British Open at Royal Portrush. The longest streak now belongs to Xander Schauffele at 22.
⏩ The PGA Tour Champions said Phil Mickelson is set to play the Cologuard Classic next week in Tucson, where he will try to become the first player to win his first three tournaments on the 50andover tour.
ELSEWHERE Thomas scores 19 for U.S. in return
Twotime NBA AllStar Isaiah Thomas scored 19 points in his first competitive game in more than a year, helping the U.S. to a 9377 victory over the Bahamas in a FIBA AmeriCup qualifying game in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Thomas, 32, averaged 28.9 points per game for the Boston Celtics in the 201617 season. But he suffered a hip injury late in that season and has never regained that form. He most recently played for the Washington Wizards last February.
The U.S. (50) has clinched a berth in the AmeriCup tournament to be played in 2022, but brought a strong roster to San Juan that features eight players who have NBA experience, including seventime AllStar Joe Johnson, who finished with 11 points, nine rebounds and six assists.
NFL: The Green Bay Packers released linebacker Christian Kirksey and tackle Rick Wagner, two of their main freeagent additions from a year ago. Releasing both opens about $10 million in cap space.
⏩ The Carolina Panthers reportedly are releasing veteran safety Tre Boston, defensive end Stephen Weatherly and punter Michael Palardy to free up about $11.5 million in cap space.
Courts: Former NFL tight end Kellen Winslow II, 37, agreed to accept a 14year prison sentence for raping a homeless woman and assaulting two other women.
In 2019, Winslow was convicted of raping a 58yearold homeless woman in Encinitas (San Diego County), and later pleaded guilty to raping an unconscious teenager in 2003 and to the 2018 sexual battery of a 54yearold hitchhiker in Encinitas.
⏩ Former A’s outfielder and Boston Red Sox 2004 World Series hero Johnny Damon, 47, was arrested in Windermere, Fla., on a charge of resisting an officer after he was pulled over for suspicion of driving under the influence, according to court and jail records.