McIlroy fires 65, takes lead in Memphis
Rory McIlroy snapped his string of three straight missed cuts in style Friday, shooting a 5-under-par 65 to take the lead into the weekend at the St. Jude Classic in Memphis, Tenn.
McIlroy came to Memphis looking to tune up his game before heading to San Francisco for his U.S. Open title defense at The Olympic Club. He birdied three of his final four holes, and had an eagle, five birdies and two bogeys to match his lowest PGA Tour round this year.
With a birdie on No. 18, McIlroy reached 7 under to break out of a four-way tie for the lead.
Jeff Maggert, tied for the first-round lead, shot a 68 to match J.B. Holmes (64) and Kevin Stadler (65) at 6 under. John Merrick, the other first-round leader, had a 69 to join Chad Campbell (67) and Kevin Kisner (66) at 5 under.
Davis Love III, the Americans’ Ryder Cup captain, had a 68 and was tied with Padraig Harrington (68) at 4 under.
• Pak leads at halfway point: Se Ri Pak, playing for the first time since injuring her left shoulder in early April, shot a 1-under 71 to take a one-shot lead after the second round of the LPGA Championship in Pittsford, N.Y.
Pak was at 3-under 141, one shot ahead of Inbee Park, Paula Creamer, Mika Miyazato, and Sandra Gal. Park shot a 70, Gal had a 71, and Creamer and Miyazato shot 72. Wendy Ward of Edwall, Wash., shot her second consecutive 79 and missed the cut.
• Ex-major champ Park retires: Grace Park, 33, who won one major among her six victories on the LPGA Tour, announced her retirement.
• Glasson leads Champions major: Bill Glasson shot a 3-under 69 to take a two-stroke lead over Russ Cochran after the second round of the Regions Tradition, the second Champions Tour major of the year, in Birmingham, Ala.
Glasson had a 9-under 135 total at Shoal Creek, and has made only one bogey – on No. 16 – in the first 36 holes. Cochran had a 68. Former Pullman resident Kirk Triplett followed his opening-round 70 with a 73.
Tagliani wins Texas pole in IndyCar race
Auto racing: Alex Tagliani has won the pole for the IndyCar Series race at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth.
Tagliani turned a lap at 215.691 mph late in the qualifying session to bump Dario Franchitti from the top starting spot. Franchitti went 215.646 to qualify second.
Graham Rahal qualified third and Scott Dixon was fourth to give Honda the top four qualifying spots for tonight’s race.
There’s a tension surrounding Texas Motor Speedway that began in the offseason, when drivers still reeling from the death of Dan Wheldon questioned the compatibility of IndyCar and high-banked ovals.
It’s led to a conflict between a track promoter, who champions himself a longtime IndyCar supporter, and the stars of the series, who want to ensure they will be safe tonight when racing returns to Texas for a 16th consecutive year.
• Sauter wins Truck Series race: Johnny Sauter took the checkered flag again at Texas, and this time got the NASCAR Truck Series victory.
Sauter passed teammate Matt Crafton for the lead with 22 laps left, and went on to become the seventh driver to win in the first seven races.
It was at Texas last June when Sauter pulled away on a final restart with two laps left before being black-flagged by NASCAR. He took the checkered flag that night, but was dropped to 22nd after going from the outside lane to inside in front of Ron Hornaday Jr.
Clemens’ wife admits to HGH injection
Miscellany: While it’s an open question whether jurors think Roger Clemens used performance-enhancing substances, they now know one thing for certain: His wife, Debbie, sure did.
She said it happened on a whim, inspired by a newspaper article with the headline: “Boomers believe they’ve found a fountain of youth in a syringe.” She said it happened in her posh master bathroom, which she described as being “like the size of a kitchen.” She said she pulled up her shirt so that Brian McNamee could pinch her skin and inject her in the belly. She said no one else was there. She said she didn’t tell her husband it was happening.
In fact, she said her husband was away, even though the reason McNamee would have been staying at the Clemens’ house would have been to train Roger Clemens. And, she said that when she told her husband about it later on the phone, she didn’t have to tell him what human growth hormone – HGH – was.
“I don’t think he thought it was bad,” she testified.
Debbie Clemens was always going to be a risky witness for her husband.
• Wiggins maintains Dauphine lead: Bradley Wiggins retained the overall lead of the Criterium du Dauphine by fending off a downhill attack by Cadel Evans in a mountainous fifth stage won by French cyclist Arthur Vichot in a late breakaway in Rumilly, France.
After the pack scaled three Alpine climbs, Vichot went ahead with 4 miles left in the 116-mile course from Saint- Trivier-sur-Moignans to Rumilly.