Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - June 24, 2024, Winnipeg, Manitoba MONDAY, JUNE 24, 2024WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM ● C5 SPORTS SETH WENIG / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Scottie Scheffler holds up his trophy after winning the Travelers Championship golf tournament at TPC River Highlands Sunday in Cromwell, Conn. Scheffler outlasts protest, beats Kim to win Travelers in playoff C ROMWELL, Conn. — Scottie Scheffler had to wait out a cli- mate protest on the 18th green and Tom Kim’s tying birdie on the last hole of regulation. Those events only delayed what seems to be inevitable on the PGA Tour this season: the best golfer in the world walking off with the trophy. Shrugging off a protest that inter- rupted the tournament on the 72nd hole while the leaders were lining up their putts, Scheffler won the Travel- ers Championship on the first hole of sudden death on Sunday for his sixth win of the year, the most in one season on the PGA Tour since Tiger Woods had six in 2009. “When something like that happens, you don’t really know what’s happen- ing, so it can kind of rattle you a little bit,” Scheffler said. “That can be a stressful situation, and you would hate for the tournament to end on something weird happening because of a situation like that,” he said. “Tom and I both tried to calm each other down so we could give it our best shot there on 18.” Scheffler closed with a 5-under 65 and a 22-under 258 total at the TPC River Highlands, and Kim matched him with a final-round 66. Tom Hoge and Sungjae Im tied for third, two shots back, with Patrick Cantlay, Tony Finau, Justin Thom- as and Akshay Bhatia tied for fifth at 18 under. Bhatia was also in the final group that was disrupted by the protest. “I was scared for my life,” he said. “I didn’t even really know what was happening. … But thankfully the cops were there and kept us safe, because that’s, you know, that’s just weird stuff.” It was Scheffler’s fourth victory of the year in the tour’s $20 million, limit- ed-field signature events, earning him a payday of $3.6 million. He also won the Masters and The Players Champi- onship. And Scheffler still has two months to go. “As much as I love him, I would have loved to take that away from him,” said Kim, who shares a birthday and a friendship with Scheffler. “But I’m happy for him, and after I tapped out, after he tapped out, he said some really nice words and it meant a lot to me.” Scheffler had a one-stroke lead head- ing to the 18th green on Sunday when six people stormed the course, waving smoke bombs that left a red and white powdery residue on the putting sur- face. Some wore white T-shirts with the words “NO GOLF ON A DEAD PLANET” in black lettering. They were tackled by police and taken off. The activist group Extinction Rebellion, which has a history of disrupting events around the world, claimed responsibility for the protest. In a statement emailed to The Associ- ated Press, the group blamed climate change for an electrical storm that injured two people at a home near the course on Saturday. After a delay of about five minutes, when tournament officials used towels and blowers to remove the powder and any other marks that might affect play, Scheffler left a 26-foot putt from the fringe on the edge of the cup and tapped in for par. Kim then made a 10-foot birdie putt for a 66 to match Scheffler. “Obviously it is a disruption and you don’t want it to happen, but for me it just kind of slowed things down,” Kim said. “It took the meaning of the putt away for a second. Because for the past 17 and a half holes all you’re thinking about is golf, and suddenly when that happens your mind goes into a complete — like, you’re almost not even playing golf anymore. I thought it was a dream for a second.” The hole location on the 18th was moved for the playoff to avoid the parts of the green affected by the protesters. Scheffler hit his approach in the playoff to 11 feet while Kim found a greenside bunker. Kim’s blast from a plugged lie ran 36 feet past the hole, leaving Scheffler with an easy two- putt par for the victory. Afterward, his wife, Meredith, met him on the green, carrying their 6-week-old son, Bennett. “It’s fun competing against your friends,” Scheffler said. “But at the same time, it’s difficult. Because part of me wants him to miss the putt and part of me wants him to make the putt. … But he should remember that putt he made on 18, because it was pretty special. And he’s a great player and a great champion.” Coming off a tie for 41st in the U.S. Open — by far his worst finish of the year — Scheffler trailed Kim by three strokes after the first round, by two after the second round and by one heading to the tee on Sunday. Scheffler took a one-shot lead over Kim with three straight birdies on Nos. 13-15 — he had putts for eagle on two of them. While Hoge signed for a 62 to finish at 20 under, and Im joined him there, Scheffler and Kim matched pars over the next two holes to set up the surprising finish. Scheffler and Kim share a June 21 birthday — Scheffler is six years older — and they celebrated with New Haven pizza before the tournament about 30 miles north. The Dallas-area residents played together in the final group on Sunday, chatting and joking around. But only one of them could hold the trophy at the end. And just like it’s been so often, it was Scheffler. Kim said being in a pack of leaders with his birthday buddy allowed him to focus on his own game. “You don’t need to worry about him, because he’s going to play well,” Kim said. “Obviously he’s a phenomenal player, world No. 1, all those titles. But at the same time for me he’s just Scot - tie Scheffler, he’s just a good friend. “To come down with someone that I play a lot of golf with, who beats me a lot at home — and, unfortunately, he beat me in the playoff too,” Kim said. “But it definitely made it a lot more enjoyable out there.” Adam Svensson (68) of Surrey, B.C., finished the tournament at 14 under to tie for 16th. He is projected to move 12 spots up the FedEx Cup standings to 76th when they are updated today. Taylor Pendrith (69) of Richmond Hill, Ont., tied for 23rd and will likely move one spot up the FedEx Cup stand- ings to once again become the highest ranked Canadian on the PGA Tour this season. Corey Conners (66) of Listowel, Ont., and Adam Hadwin (67) of Abbotsford, B.C., tied for 27th at 11 under, a shot behind Pendrith. Mackenzie Hughes (65) of Dundas, Ont., tied for 36th and Nick Taylor (67) of Abbotsford was tied for 42nd. — The Associated Press JIMMY GOLEN BRIEFS DECIDING GAME FORCED IN COLLEGE SERIES OMAHA, Neb. — Tennessee’s Dylan Dreiling hit the go-ahead homer in the seventh inning and Nate Snead turned back a scoring threat by Texas A&M in the bottom of the ninth to force a deciding third game of the College World Series finals with a 4-1 victory Sunday. One of the teams will win its first national title in baseball and become the fifth straight champion from the Southeastern Conference when they meet tonight. Dreiling sent freshman Kaiden Wilson’s 1-1 pitch 390 feet into the right-field seats to give the Vols (59-13) a much-needed jolt after Texas A&M pitchers had held their prodigious offense to four hits. To that point, the Vols had been 2 for 20 with runners in scoring position over the first two games of the finals and Texas A&M had not trailed in any of its CWS games. Tennessee built a three-run cushion when Cal Stark, its No. 9 batter, homered in the eighth. He had been 0 for 16 with nine strike- outs in the CWS before he launched a pitch from Wilson over the left-field bullpen. SAVARD JOINS LEAFS AS ASSISTANT COACH TORONTO — Marc Savard was hired by the Toronto Maple Leafs as an assistant coach on Sunday. The hiring completed head coach Craig Berube’s staff for the upcoming season. Berube’s coaches includes associate Lane Lambert, assistant Mike Van Ryn, goaltend- ing coach Curtis Sanford, and video coaches Jordan Bean and Sam Kim. Savard joins the Maple Leafs after serving as an assistant coach with the Calgary Flames last season, following two seasons as head coach of the Ontario Hockey League’s Windsor Spitfires. During his two seasons (2021-22 and 2022- 23) in Windsor, Savard guided the Spitfires to a record of 88-35-8-5 and an appearance in the OHL finals in 2022. The Ottawa native began his coaching ca- reer with the St. Louis Blues in 2019-20 before his tenure in Windsor. As a player, Savard suited up in 807 regular season games and 25 playoff contests with the New York Rangers, Calgary Flames, Atlan- ta Thrashers and Boston Bruins, collecting 706 points (207 goals, 499 assists). He made two NHL All-Star Game appearances (2008 and 2009) and captured one Stanley Cup cham- pionship with the Boston Bruins in 2011. Savard was drafted by the New York Ran- gers in the fourth round (91st overall) of the 1995 NHL Draft. SLUGGER STANTON TO MISS FOUR WEEKS NEW YORK — Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton expects to miss about four weeks because of a strained left hamstring that caused him to go on the injured list for the eighth time in six seasons. A 34-year-old former MVP, Stanton left Saturday night’s 8-3 win over Atlanta and had imaging Sunday that led to the strain being evaluated as mild, according to manager Aaron Boone. Stanton had a platelet-rich plasma injection and gave the timetable for a return after the series-ending 3-1 loss to the Braves. “Should be a four-week range,” he said of a return. “As soon as possible, close to that.” Stanton doubled off the centre-field wall in the fourth inning Saturday and winced when he rounded third base on Gleyber Torres’ double. Trent Grisham pinch hit for Stanton leading off the sixth. — from the wire services Yang wins Women’s PGA Championship SAMAMMISH, Wash. — Standing in the 18th fairway, Amy Yang leaned over to caddie Jan Meierling and ac- knowledged the anxiety and nerves she carried for the previous 17 holes. “This has been the longest 18 holes I’ve ever played in my career,” Yang told Meierling. After years of near-misses in the majors, Yang finally enjoyed the cele- bration she’d long sought: standing on the 18th green, doused in Champagne by her peers as a major champion. “At one point I thought, ‘Will I ever win a major championship before I retire?’” Yang said. “And I finally did it and it’s just amazing.” Steady over four days at demanding, tree-lined Sahalee, Yang built a huge lead and survived a couple of late mis- takes to win her long-awaited major title on Sunday, a three-shot victory in the KPMG Women’s PGA Champion- ship. Yang closed with an even-par 72 to finish at 7-under 281. She was near- ly flawless for the first 15 holes and reached 10 under for the tournament for a seven-shot lead before running into a little bit of trouble. But none of her pursuers was able to mount a significant charge. At age 34, Yang is the oldest major winner on the LPGA Tour since Ange- la Stanford won the 2018 Evian Cham- pionship at age 40. Anna Nordqvist had recently turned 34 when she won the Women’s British Open in 2021. This was Yang’s 75th major start, the most before a player’s first major title since Stanford, who was playing her 76th. As she spoke to reporters, a group of children waited outside the interview tent, chanting “Amy, Amy,” and seeking an autograph from the newest major champ. “It’s been incredible all this week. Everyone was rooting for me. I want to go sign some autographs for them,” Yang said. Yang’s sixth LPGA victory was her first since last year’s CME Group Tour Championship, which was also the most recent victory by a South Korean player. She earned a spot in the Paris Olympics, where she will represent South Korea for the third time. “The first half of the year she was kind of like in between. Motivation is kind of a roller-coaster ride for her because she’s done a lot of things, but there’s definitely some goals she wants to accomplish, this being one of them,” Meierling said. “These weeks get her reinvigorated.” Lilia Vu and Jin Young Ko each shot 71 to tie for second at 4 under. Vu shot three rounds under par, but couldn’t overcome a 75 in the first round. “If (you) hit like Amy, you can win, too,” Ko said. Twice earlier in her career, Yang held the 54-hole lead in a major only to fall short. At the 2014 U.S. Wom- en’s Open at Pinehurst, Yang was tied with Michelle Wie going into the final round, but shot 74 as Wie won. A year later in the same tournament at Lancaster Country Club, Yang had a three-shot advantage, but In Gee Chun shot 66 to win by one. Nine times, Yang finished second, third or fourth in a major without a title. Until now. “Golf is really just like a fight against myself. I think I proved myself that I can compete and I can do this,” she said. Yang was remarkably steady until her final few holes. She made five bo- geys over her first 69 holes before she three-putted the 16th. Then she pushed her tee shot on the par-3 17th well right and it bounced into a lake, leading to double bogey. — The Associated Press TIM BOOTH GERALD HERBERT / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Amy Yang holds the trophy after winning the Women's PGA Championship golf tournament at Sahalee Country Club Sunday in Sammamish, Wash. ;