Golf limits video penalties
In a swift response to increasing debates over television reviews, golf ’s ruling bodies issued a decision on the Rules of Golf that limits the use of video evidence and could spare players from being penalized even if they violate a rule.
The decision, effective immediately on all tours around the world, has two standards. Players can avoid a penalty if the violation could not be noticed with the naked eye. That would have spared Anna Nordqvist a twoshot penalty during a playoff in the U.S. Women’s Open last year when her club nicked the sand while she was playing from a fairway bunker. Rules officials also can eliminate penalties if they believe players made a “reasonable judgment” in taking a drop or replacing their balls on the putting green. College baseball: Quinn Brodey hit two home runs, including a three-run shot that put Stanford ahead 3-2 in the sixth inning, and the No. 18 Cardinal (24-12) rolled to an 8-2 victory over Santa Clara (8-31) at Sunken Diamond.
Brady Bate and Ross Puskarich homered to lead USF (22-20) to a 7-2 win over visiting Cal (19-19). Cycling: Fabio Felline of Italy won the Tour of Romandie prologue in Aigle, Switzerland, and dedicated his victory to compatriot Michele Scarponi, the 2011 Giro d’Italia winner, who died Saturday after a collision with a van while training near his home. Broadcasting: Mike Tirico is taking the reins from Tom Hammond as a host of NBC’s Triple Crown horse-racing coverage. Tirico adds the job to his recently announced duties as host of the network’s prime-time Olympics coverage starting next winter in South Korea. Soccer: Orlando’s Kaka is Major League Soccer’s highest-paid player for the third straight season, just ahead of Toronto’s Sebastian Giovinco, and German midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger has a $5.4 million salary in his first year with the Chicago Fire . ... Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale is expected to miss the Champions League semifinals because of a calf-muscle injury . ... Diego Costa ended a seven-game goal drought in style to help Chelsea open a seven-point lead in the Premier League with a 4-2 victory over Southampton . ... Atlético Madrid’s 11-game unbeaten streak came to an end after it squandered a series of chances and then conceded a late goal to lose 1-0 at home to Villarreal in the Spanish league. Tennis: A day before Maria Sharapova was to play her first match since being banned for doping, the debate about the Russian’s wild-card entry for the Porsche Grand Prix in Stuttgart, Germany, continued. Simona Halep and Alize Cornet joined the growing legion of players criticizing organizers for offering Sharapova a direct spot in the main draw.