Kitayama handles windy Bay Hill as Rahm tumbles back
ORLANDO, Fla. — Kurt Kitayama handled the wind that only made Bay Hill tougher Friday, posting a 4-under 68 for a twoshot lead at the Arnold Palmer Invitational over Jordan Spieth, a three-time major champion and former No. 1 player.
“Right now I feel like I’m just trying to get that win,” said Kitayama, who fell one shot short of his first PGA Tour victory at three events last year.
First-round leader Jon Rahm finally looked human. His final five holes included a double bogey, three bogeys and a birdie. He shot 76, his highest score since a 76 in the third round of the PGA Championship last May, and fell six shots behind.
“How would I characterize it? What do you think I’m going to say? Excuse my language, but it’s (expletive) hard,” Rahm said. “It’s firm. It’s fast. And it’s blowing 30 miles an hour.”
ELSEWHERE Young and Stroud answer their critics
Bryce Young and C.J. Stroud, the two quarterbacks generally regarded as the best in this year’s draft class, took the main stage at the NFL’s annual scouting combine in Indianapolis with messages for their critics.
Doubters of the 2021 Heisman Trophy winner contend Young may be susceptible to injuries in the NFL and could struggle to replicate the success he had at Alabama because of his size, somewhere between 5-foot-10 and 6-0.
“I've been this size, respectfully, my whole life,” Young said with a smile. “... I'm confident in myself. I know what I can do.”
Stroud, meanwhile, has been knocked because he didn’t run much at Ohio State. But he said, “If you turn on the film and really watch what I do and you really look at film game to game, I have used my athleticism.”
He added that he thinks he’s the best player in the draft.
Tennis: Daniil Medvedev halted Novak Djokovic’s 20match winning streak by beating the world’s top-ranked player 6-4, 6-4 to reach the final at the Dubai
Championships.
The third-seeded Medvedev will face defending champion Andrey Rublev in an all-Russian final that could have political overtones after Rublev reiterated his call for peace.
Rublev advanced by beating Alexander Zverev 6-3, 7-6 (9) in the other semifinal.
Auto racing: Chase Elliott injured his leg in a snowboarding accident in Colorado on Friday and will miss this weekend’s NASCAR race at Las Vegas.
Hendrick Motorsports said NASCAR’s most popular driver was scheduled to have surgery Friday evening.
Josh Berry will drive the No. 9 Chevrolet on Sunday in place of Elliott.
NBA: Jonathan Isaac’s comeback story has been sidelined again by another season-ending injury, this time a torn adductor.
Isaac had surgery Friday to repair the muscle and will miss the remainder of the regular season, the Magic said.
College baseball: Carter Graham and Drew Bowser each hit a two-run homer and Quinn Mathews did not allow an earned run in 62⁄3 innings as No. 3 Stanford (7-2) picked up a 7-1 victory over Cal State Bakersfield (7-3) at Sunken Diamond . ... In the Frisco (Texas) Classic, Cal (6-2) got home runs from Rodney Green and Jag Burden but fell 9-5 to Oklahoma (5-4), which got a pair of two-run homers from Jackson Nicklaus.