Off the wire

GOLF Johnson, Rahm advance

Dustin Johnson and Jon Rahm advanced Saturday to the semifinals of WGC Match Play in Austin, Texas, staying on track for a potential showdown between the No. 1 player and Spain’s rising star. Johnson lost a 3-up lead at the turn and for the first time in 71 holes of this event, he was in a match that was all square. He answered with two birdies and put away Alex Noren. Rahm was so dominant Saturday that he played only 27 holes in his two matches. The 22-year-old rookie has yet to play the 18th hole at Austin Country Club. Johnson faces Hideto Tanihara in the semifinals. Rahm plays Bill Haas, who eliminated Phil Mickelson in the quarterfinals, 2 and 1.

Stroud up by 1

Chris Stroud birdied his final hole Saturday to cap off a 5-under 67 and take a one-shot lead in the Puerto Rico Open as he goes for his first PGA Tour victory. One shot behind was a pair of past PGA Tour winners, Bill Lunde and D.A. Points, who each shot 69. The Puerto Rico Open is the 277th start of Stroud’s career. The closest he came to winning was a playoff loss in the 2013 Travelers Championship. He lost full status on the PGA Tour last year for the first time since 2008. Stroud was at 15-under 201 and has more than just Lunde and Points to worry about. Ten players were within three shots of the lead. Andrew “Beef” Johnston was among those two shots behind.

Lee out front

Mirim Lee shot a 5-under 67 Saturday in the third round of the Kia Classic at Carlsbad, Calif., to go to 13 under and take a one shot lead over Mi Jung Hur, who made a 67foot putt on No. 18 to card a 66. Another South Korean, In Gee Chun, was tied at 10 under with Cristie Kerr, who was tied for the lead after the first round and was alone atop the leaderboard after 18 holes. Brittany Lincicome made an early run with four birdies and an eagle in her first eight holes to get to 10 under before she had two bogeys on the back nine in a round of 67 that tied her with Austin Ernst and Karine Icher at 9 under. Kerr, the

2015 Kia champion, had her most erratic round of the tournament, a 1-under 71. Stacy Lewis (Arkansas Razorbacks) had a 71 and is 2 under going into today’s final round.

Wittenberg still leads

Casey Wittenberg continued to lead the Louisiana Open on Saturday, although a number of players were unable to finish because of darkness. Wittenberg was 16 under after 12 holes. Four were tied for second at 12 under — Sebastian Vazquez, who completed his round, shot a 7-under 64, but Xinjun Zhang, Keith Mitchell and Aaron Wise were unable to finish. Taylor Moore (Arkansas Razorbacks) shot a 66 and was tied for 13th at 10 under. Andrew Landry (Razorbacks) had a 68 and was tied at 8 under. Sebastian Cappelen (Razorbacks), who also shot a 68, was tied at 6 under.

TENNIS Federer advances

Roger Federer won his opening match Saturday at the Miami Open, returning to the tournament after a two-year absence and beating 19-year-old American qualifier

Frances Tiafoe 7-6 (2), 6-3. Federer took the lead with a flawless tiebreaker after both players held easily throughout the first set, and Tiafoe then became more inconsistent with his groundstrokes. The resurgent Federer is among the favorites this year. He is 14-1 in 2017, including his 18th Grand Slam title at the Australian Open and a title at Indian Wells last week.

Stan Wawrinka, seeded No. 1 in an ATP Masters 1000 tournament for the first time, easily won his opening match against Horacio

Zeballos, 6-3, 6-4.

MOTOR SPORTS Larson wins at Fontana

Kyle Larson hopes his NASCAR Xfinity race victory will catapult him to a weekend sweep at Fontana. The way this season is going for the overall Cup series points leader, it’s tough to argue against it. Larson held off Joey Logano on the final lap to win another Xfinity race dominated by Cup drivers on Saturday. Larson thrived out of a late restart with smart moves and a clever lane choice on Fontana’s fivewide asphalt. The native Californian won the Xfinity race at Fontana for the second time in his Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet. Kyle Busch finished third. Erik Jones was fourth, and rookie William Byron came in fifth. Larson earned his sixth career Xfinity victory when he kept Logano behind him off a late restart, winning by just over a car length. Larson is also on the pole for today’s race. He has finished second in three consecutive Cup races, propelling him into the overall lead without a victory. Cup regulars Larson, Busch and Logano dominated on a cloudy day at Fontana.