Korda wins 3rd straight start on LPGA Tour

Top-ranked Nelly Korda became the first LPGA Tour player in eight years to win three straight starts, shooting a 7-under 65 on a soggy Sunday for a two-stroke victory at the Ford Championship in Gilbert, Arizona.

Korda won the Drive On Championship in her hometown of Bradenton, Florida, before sitting out all of the LPGA Tour’s Asian swing. She was still sharp after a seven-week break, winning the Fir Hill Seri Pak Championship in a playoff last week outside Los Angeles to move back atop the world ranking.

The 25-year-old stayed steady through four days in the desert, entering the final round two strokes back through weather that got worse at Seville Golf and Country Club.

Korda nearly holed out her second shot on the short par-4 16th to take the lead and birdied No. 18 to finish at 20-under 268 for her 11th career LPGA victory. She’s the first LPGA Tour player to win three straight starts since Ariya Jutanugarn in 2016 and first American since Nancy Lopez won five straight 1978.

College basketball: SMU was close to hiring Southern California coach Andy Enfield to take over the Mustangs, according to reports. They’re moving next season into the basketball-rich ACC. The Trojans were 15-18 this season with Bronny James as a freshman, ending a run of four consecutive years winning more than 20 games. Enfield, 54, is 220-147 in 11 years at USC. Rob Lanier was fired after two seasons as SMU’s coach on March 21, a day after the Mustangs lost 101-92 at Indiana State in the first round of the NIT.

NBA: The league fined rookie Victor Wembanyama $25,000 for his celebratory tossing of a ball into the stands at the end of the Spurs’ 130-126 OT win over the Knicks on Saturday. Wembanyama, the No. 1 overall pick in the draft, had 40 points, 20 rebounds and seven assists in the game. It was the first such stat line by an NBA rookie since 1974.