Johnson, Ortiz share lead at LIV tourney
The outcry that marked the start of the Saudi Arabia-funded LIV Golf series’ first American stop quieted a bit Friday, putting the focus on the play at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club in North Plains, Ore.
Modest crowds and mild temperatures in the mid-70s greeted the players on the upstart series bankrolled by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund. The tour has faced widespread criticism because of that country’s human rights abuses.
Dustin Johnson, the 2020 Masters winner, shared the lead with Carlos Ortiz of Mexico going into the final round of the 54-hole tournament Saturday. Johnson shot a 4-under-par 68 on Friday to reach 8-under.
Ortiz birdied the final hole for a 69 to pull even with Johnson.
A lone protestor was outside the gate at the club some 20 miles west of Portland, holding a sign that simply said “Fallon Smart 2000-2016.”
Smart was 15 when she was killed by a hit-and-run driver in Portland. A Saudi national attending school in Oregon was charged in her death, but removed a monitoring device before the start of his trial and fled. U.S. officials believe the Saudi government helped spirit him away.
J.T. Poston took a four-stroke lead into the weekend in the PGA Tour’s John Deere Classic in Silvis, Ill., following an opening 9-under 62 with a 65 at TPC Deere Run.
Spanish golfer Jorge Campillo was the pace-setter halfway through the European tour’s Irish Open at Mount Juliet. Campillo added a 4-under 68 to his opening bogey-free 65 for a halfway total of 11-under, one shot ahead of Poland’s Adrian Meronk (67) and Paraguay’s Fabrizio Zanotti (69).
WNBA: Hayward’s Chelsea Gray scored 21 points, passed out five assists and grabbed six rebounds to lead the Las Vegas Aces past the host Minnesota Lynx 91-85 . ... Stanford alum Nneka Ogwumike scored 21 points as the visiting Los Angeles Sparks beat the Dallas Wings 97-89.
Soccer: FIFA, soccer’s world governing body, will introduce technology to improve offside calls at the World Cup in Qatar this year, using a limb-tracking camera system.
FIFA said it is ready to launch semi-automated offside technology (SAOT) that uses multiple cameras to track player movements plus a sensor in the ball — and will quickly show 3D images on stadium screens at the tournament to help fans understand the referee’s call.
⏩ Maria Sole Ferrieri Caputi will become the first woman to officiate in the Italian top flight after she was promoted to the Serie A refereeing pool from next season.
NFL: Jaylon Ferguson, an outside linebacker with the Baltimore Ravens who died last month after being found unresponsive in a North Baltimore home, died from the combined effects of fentanyl and cocaine, authorities said. Maryland officials said Ferguson’s death had been ruled accidental.
The Ravens selected Ferguson during the third round of the 2019 NFL draft as the 85th overall pick after the Louisiana native and a graduate of Louisiana Tech broke the NCAA record for career sacks with 45.