UIHLEIN LEADS IN LAS VEGAS; SPIETH 3 SHOTS BACK
Peter Uihlein topped the leaderboard at 8under 63 on Thursday in the Shriners Hospitals For Children Open, with Jordan Spieth three strokes back in his season debut.
Uihlein birdied six of his final nine holes in the morning round at TPC Summerlin.
“It’s nice to get off to a good start, especially when there wasn’t much wind,” Uihlein said. “I’ve heard mixed reviews on the forecast this week, so nice to get off to a good start and take advantage of good conditions early.”
Seth Reeves shot 64, electing to finish the par5 ninth after the horn sounded suspending play because of darkness. Harold Varner III and Robert Streb were two strokes back at 65.
Spieth shot 66 in his first career start in a domestic fall event.
Bettman: NHL plans regular season games in Prague, Stockholm.
HELSINKI» NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said that the NHL is planning to play a seasonopening game in Prague and another two games in Stockholm next season.
Bettman, speaking before the Florida Panthers and the Winnipeg Jets play for the first of their two regularseason games in Finland on Thursday, said the league is planning to keep a presence in Europe in the future.
Cubs’ Heyward, Giants’ Melancon keep contracts.
YORK» Chicago NEW
Cubs outfielder Jason Heyward and San Francisco reliever Mark Melancon let the deadline pass for exercising optout provisions in their contracts.
Doing the same were two Cuban outfielders who have been major disappointments and spent all of this season in the minor leagues: Boston’s Rusney Castillo and Arizona’s Yasmany Tomas.
Heyward keeps the $184 million, eightyear deal that pays him $106 million in the next five seasons. The others all have two years left in their contracts: Melancon is owed $28 million, Tomas $32.5 million and Castillo $24.5 million.
They all had to make their decisions by Wednesday night.
WNBA to cut short labor contract after 2019 season.
NEW YORK
WNBA players have exercised their right to terminate their collective bargaining agreement after the 2019 season, cutting the deal short by two years.
The current labor contract started on March 5, 2014, and had been scheduled to run through October 2021 or the day after the last playoff game, whichever was later. The move announced by the players’ union on Thursday ends the deal on Oct. 31, 2019, or the day after the postseason finale.
The move allows the sides to negotiate a new deal that would go into effect for the 2020 season during an Olympic year.
Injured Oklahoma back Rodney Anderson to enter NFL draft.
» Injured Oklahoma running back Rodney Anderson will forego his senior season and enter the NFL draft.
Anderson suffered a seasonending knee injury in the second game of this season against UCLA. He made the announcement that he would not return to the Sooners on Thursday on social media.
Bolt’s bid for pro contract in Australia ends without a deal.
» Usain Bolt’s bid to become a professional soccer player in Australia has ended with the Olympic sprinting great failing to agree on a contract with the Central Coast Mariners.
Central Coast reportedly offered Bolt a contract worth 150,000 Australian dollars ($110,000) and hoped to get a thirdparty endorsement to increase the package into the millions, but management for the eighttime Olympic gold medalist rejected the offer. — The Associated Press