Johnson avoids slip-up in return
Five-time Olympian Walsh Jennings breaks fromAVP tour, partner
Six weeks away from competition didn’t keep Dustin Johnson from extending one streak on Thursday, with hopes of adding to another.
Johnson showed more game than rust at the Wells Fargo Championship, where he missed only two greens — and plenty of putts — for a 2-under 70 that left him four shots behind leader Francesco Molinari at blustery Eagle Point Golf Club.
It was Johnson’s 13th consecutive round at par or better.
It was his first time playing since he slipped in his socks down the stairs at his rental house in Augusta, hurting his back and knocking him out of the Masters.
“Since I hadn’t played in so long, I’m happy with the way I played,” Johnson said.
Molinari ran off five birdies in a seven-hole stretch on the front nine and closed out his round with a 20-foot birdie putt on the par-5 18th.
Lydia Ko beat home favorite Ana Menendez, and the Jutanugarn sisters set up a second-round showdown in the Lorena Ochoa Match Play. The topranked Ko edged Menendez 3 and 2 at Club de Golf Mexico. Third-ranked Ariya Jutanugarn will face older sister Moriya in the second round. Ariya beat Amy Anderson, and Moriya topped Alena Sharp.
Volleyball
Five-time Olympian Kerri Walsh Jennings is looking for a new partner — and a new beach volleyball tour — after rejecting an exclusivity agreement with the AVP. The deal would have locked her into the circuit through the 2020 Summer Games in Tokyo. Walsh Jennings tells The Associated Press that the deal was “a death sentence for our sport.” The decision means a split with April Ross and the end of the bronze medalwinning team from the Rio Olympics.
Auto racing
NASCAR has penalized Joey Logano after his win at Richmond International Raceway for a rear suspension violation. It strips him of nearly all benefits that came with the Monster Cup Series victory.
Jurisprudence
A jury has ruled that former Iowa athletic administrator Jane Meyer was the victim of discrimination, retaliation and unequal pay and awarded her $1.4 million in total damages. Meyer alleged she suffered discrimination as a gay woman in a relationship with field hockey coach Tracey Griesbaum.
Cycling
Two riders from the Italian team Bardiani CSF have been kicked out of the Giro d’Italia on the eve of their nation’s biggest race after testing positive in an out-of-competition doping test. The UCI, the sport’s governing body, says Nicola Ruffoni and Stefano Pirazzi returned positive tests for growth hormone-releasing peptides in samples collected last week.
NFL
The Indianapolis Colts have signed 18 undrafted rookies, including receivers Trey Griffey and Jerome Lane, whose fathers were pro athletes.
Griffey is the son of baseball Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr. Lane’s father, also named Jerome, played in the NBA and became instantly famous after breaking a backboard while playing at Pittsburgh.
Houston Texans inside n linebacker Max Bullough has been suspended without pay for the first four games of next season for violating the league’s policy on performance enhancing substances.
Horse racing
Paradise Woods is the filly to beat at Friday’s Kentucky Oaks.