Wolff has two-shot lead
PLAYA DEL CARMEN, Mexico —
Matthew Wolff was on the verge of building an even bigger lead Friday in the World Wide Technology Championship until a pair of late bogeys forced him to settle for a 3-under-par 68 and a two-shot advantage through 36 holes over fast-closing Scottie Scheffler in this PGA Tour event at the Mayakoba resort. Wolff, who opened with a 10-birdie round of 61, had no trouble gaining ground as he birdied all the par-5 holes on the El Camaleon Course for the second straight day, the last one with a nifty pitch to six feet at No. 13 that took him to 15 under. But he found a greenside bunker on the tough par-4 16th, which played into a light wind, and failed to get up and down with a 35-yard sand shot. His 3-wood shot off the tee at the 18th sent the ball left into a bunker, and he missed a 12-foot par putt on his final hole. That dropped him to 13-under 129, still in the lead and still seemingly in command of his game. The 16th and 18th are two of the three toughest holes on the course. Scheffler, who has performed well in majors and in the Ryder Cup but hasn’t won on the PGA Tour, was closer to the cut line than the lead until he ran off five straight birdies, the last one a 35-foot putt on the par-3 eighth. He finished with a par for a 64 and wound up within two shots of Wolff. Carlos Ortiz of Mexico and reigning tournament champion
Viktor Hovland of Norway each had a 65 and were three shots behind, with 10 players tied for fifth at 9 under. Of three Baylor School graduates in the field, only
Keith Mitchell made the cut, which was at 4-under 138. Mitchell’s 69 was one worse than his opening round and included back-to-back bogeys on the 16th and 17th holes, but it left him in the field with a shot to spare and tied for 41st. Luke List (70) missed the cut by one shot and
Stephan Jaeger (74) missed it by three.
BASEBALL
› HOUSTON — Dusty Baker will return as manager of the Houston Astros for a third season after agreeing to a oneyear contract with the American League champions. Baker took over from AJ Hinch, who was suspended by MLB for his role in the team’s sign stealing scandal and then fired. The Astros lost to the Tampa Bay Rays in the 2020 AL Championship Series and to Atlanta in this year’s World Series, which wrapped up with the Braves’ 7-0 win in Game 6 on Tuesday in Houston. “We have an exciting future here — and present,” Baker said Friday. “I just had some unfinished business to take care of, but we’re close. We’re getting better every year.” Baker, 72, has 1,987 wins as a Major League Baseball manager but has never won a World Series title in that role with five franchises.
MOTORSPORTS
› AVONDALE, Ariz. — Kyle Larson was the best of the four NASCAR Cup Series title contenders Friday in the final practice before the championship is decided in the season finale Sunday at Phoenix Raceway. Larson turned in the top speed of 135.293 mph among the finalists, was second-fastest overall in 10-lap average at 131.935 in the No. 5 Chevrolet and also set the fastest five-lap average. Saturday’s qualifying session will set the race lineup, but the championship showdown at the one-mile track comes down to Hendrick Motorsports versus Joe Gibbs Racing. Larson and reigning Cup Series champion Chase Elliott represent Hendrick, NASCAR’s all-time leader in team wins. Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. will race for the checkered flag for JGR, which has five Cup Series title in its history. Elliott was fifth Friday with a top lap of 135.019, Hamlin was eighth at 134.118 and Truex was 18th at 133.427. Elliott was right behind Larson for best 10-lap average at 131.776. Brad Keselowski had the fastest practice lap of the session at 135.384 mph as he enters his final race for Roger Penske. Fellow Team Penske driver Ryan Blaney had the best 10-lap average at 132.596. Both were eliminated from the playoff field last Sunday, along with Penske’s Joey Logano and JGR’s Kyle Busch.