Brief Add-on up top by noon, Tuesday.
[Posted Sunday p.m. before late action.]
U.S. Open Tennis Quiz: 1) In the “Open Era,” post-1968, name the six men with four of more U.S. Open titles. 2) Name the four women with four or more. Answers below.
Tour Championship
The long PGA Tour season is wrapping up as always at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, Ga., the winner to receive $10 million and the FedEx Cup title, which carries a 5-year exemption.
After the first round….
Russell Henley -9
Scottie Scheffler -7
Collin Morikawa -6
Justin Thomas -6
Patrick Cantlay -6
Robert MacIntyre -6
Tommy Fleetwood -6
Rory McIlroy -4
Cantlay is gunning for a Ryder Cup spot.
And after round two….
Fleetwood -13
Henley -13
Cameron Young -11
MacIntyre -10
Cantlay -10
Scheffler -8
Rory, JT, Sam Burns, Chris Gotterup among the many at -7.
Cameron Young is another trying to impress Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley, who was himself at -6.
And after Saturday’s action….
Cantlay -16
Fleetwood -16
Henley -14
Bradley -13…after a 63
Scheffler -12
Young -10
It’s going to be a fun Sunday.
And after the front nine, Tommy Fleetwood has a 3-stroke lead!
Fleetwood -18…thru 9
Cantlay -15…9
Henley -15…10
But he hits his drive on No. 10 way, way left.
And Fleetwood bogeys, Cantlay birdies….goodness gracious….
Fleetwood -17…10
Cantlay -16…10
But after 14…Fleetwood having birdied 12 and 13…it’s….
Fleetwood -19
Cantlay -16
On to the stressful par-13 15th…a water hole….
Fleetwood bogeys it (but at least stayed dry), Cantlay pars it….
Fleetwood -18
Cantlay -16
Three holes to go.
And after 16, Fleetwood is up by three.
Fleetwood -18
Cantlay -15
Henley -15…17
And he goes to 18 up 3….
Go Tommy!
And he completes!
-18
Cantlay -15
Henley -15
Scheffler -14…14th consecutive top 8…matching Ben Hogan….
Young -14
Corey Conners -14…after a 62….
First win, finally…$10 million dollars! We love you, Tommy!
–So now we await Keegan Bradley’s ‘captain’s picks’ for the Ryder Cup, which he will name Wednesday. He has already said this will be “the biggest decision of my life.”
One thing he obviously has to take into consideration is who is best paired, at least initially, with Bryson DeChambeau?
And will Keegan select himself, especially after this week’s performance?
[The six automatic U.S. bids are going to Scheffler, Spaun, Schauffele, Henley, English and DeChambeau.]
European captain Luke Donald makes his captain’s pick selections Sept. 1. The Euro team’s six points qualifiers are Rory, Fleetwood, Rose, MacIntyre, Rasmus Hojgaard, and Hatton thus far.
–Meanwhile, the PGA Tour made some waves with the release of its 2026 schedule, with President Trump getting a spot on the grid, a new signature event to be called – for now – the Miami Championship played at Trump Doral’s Blue Monster, where a regular event was held for over 50 years until it was dumped from the schedule in 2016 when title sponsor Cadillac elected to end ties with the Tour and the tournament and a replacement couldn’t be found there. Instead, the Tour moved the event south of the border, which became the VidantaWorld Mexico Open. In the new schedule, the Mexico Open will now be contested as part of the FedEx Cup Fall.
But by adding a ninth signature event to the schedule, that creates all kind of issues. We now have a stretch of two majors and three signature events in a span of six weeks, beginning with the Masters in April through the PGA Championship in May.
The Masters, RBC Heritage (signature event), Zurich Classic, Miami Championship (signature event), Truist Championship (signature event) and PGA Championship will all be played in a row, with just two opportunities (including an opposite event) during that period for the rank-and-file.
As Bob Harig of Sports Illustrated points out, it’s terrible for Zurich, the team event, which can’t expect to compete. And it’s not great for the Truist Championship, played at Quail Hollow, which could very well see some players skip it before a major.
And it’s horrible for the PGA Tour regular events, which at least had some hope of name players working those tournaments into their schedule. But now there is yet another $20 million tournament – without a 36-hole cut – as competition.
The PGA Tour has had a terrific 2025 ratings wise, blowing away LIV Golf head-to-head, Rory winning the Masters, Scottie putting together another historic season.
But now the challenge is to provide balance, if he wants to, which is up to new PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp.
Here’s what we learned this week as Rolapp began to take charge. There will be no deal with the Public Investment Fund and LIV Golf.
And Rolapp announced that Tiger Woods would lead a new committee charged with reimagining the very basics of the Tour’s competitive model. Possible changes include fewer events, smaller fields and higher stakes, all to get the game’s biggest stars playing together more often, something fans have called for in surveys conducted in recent years.
“Nothing’s off the table,” Woods, 49, said in an interview. “We’re going to run through a lot of different scenarios and a lot of different things that could happen.”
The committee is composed of six players, including Adam Scott and Patrick Cantlay, and three business advisers, with longtime baseball executive Theo Epstein among them. Now a senior adviser for Fenway Sports Group, which is part of a consortium that has invested in the PGA Tour, Epstein was a driving force behind the implementation of MLB’s pitch clock that dramatically sped up games. That’s the type of overhaul the PGA Tour is looking for.
But there is little doubt that while this will benefit some – it will hurt others. That’s a reality Woods acknowledged, but he says it isn’t just about what’s best for individual players. It’s about improving the entire sport.
“It’s one of the most exciting times in our sport to be able to create something that is truly transformative,” Woods says. “Sometimes you never get an opportunity like that in your entire career. But we have that moment right now.”
This, and the 2026 crowded schedule, is going to be a huge topic of conversation the next year.
MLB
—Another up-and-down week for the Mets, battling for a wild card slot. After taking the last two of a 3-game series with the Mariners at Citi Field last Sunday, a good sign, on Tuesday, the Mets blew out the Nationals in D.C., 8-1, hitting 4 homers and David Peterson going 8 innings.
The Mets were on their way, finally.
But then they inexplicably fell to the Nats 5-4, Wednesday, and 9-3, Thursday, as starters Kodai Senga and Sean Manaea continued to come up small. Thursday, Juan Soto was 0-for-5, his average down to .247.
The Mets had also learned during the week that catcher Francisco Alvarez, who was playing great after his stint in the minors to ‘get his mind right,’ was likely out for the season after tearing a ligament in his right thumb. [They are calling it a “sprain,” but it’s more than that.] Manager Carlos Mendoza said Alvarez needed surgery but they were hoping he could come back in a few weeks and play through the pain.
On to Atlanta, and Friday the Mets got a needed lift from rookie starter Nolan McLean who went 7 innings, 2 runs, New York winning it 12-7, Soto with 3 hits, 2 walks, a homer, 4 RBIs, and 3-for-3 with runners in scoring position, something he has struggled mightily with all season. The Mets banged out 21 hits.
But McLean’s length represented the first time since June 7 that a starter other than Peterson had gone six innings! 63 games! They set an all-time MLB record when it was at like 54 games without a second starter going six.
The Mets moved 1 ½ ahead of the Reds in the final wild card slot race, Cincy falling to the Diamondbacks 6-5 in 11.
Saturday, the Mets belted the Braves again, 9-2, hitting six home runs, two apiece for Jeff McNeil and Mark Vientos, as Clay Holmes (11-6, 3.60) went 6 1/3. That’s right…back-to-back 6+ innings from the starters!
[After the game the Mets announced that pitcher Frankie Montas probably needs Tommy John surgery. So much for that 2-year, $34 million contract…Montas a total bust.]
And New York’s lead in the wild card race is now 2 ½, after the Reds fell to the D’Backs again, 10-1.
But Sunday, after taking an early 2-0 lead on another Vientos home run, David Peterson couldn’t get out of the sixth, Atlanta tied it, and the Mets’ bullpen faltered as they fell 4-3, a ninth inning rally falling short as Pete Alonso and Jeff McNeil popped up with runners on first and second, Juan Soto having driven in a run with a clutch hit, Mets falling 4-3.
That’s how the last 60+ games have seemingly gone for my Metropolitans. It’s not a great team. But they can obviously still make the playoffs.
–The Yankees started a big 4-game series with the Red Sox at the Stadium, Thursday, and they laid an egg, losing 6-3, Boston’s stud rookie Roman Anthony 2-for-5, a homer and 3 RBIs.
Friday, the Red Sox won it 1-0, their seventh straight win over the Yanks, as Brayan Bello went 7 innings, allowing three singles, as he moved to 10-6, 3.07. For New York, Max Fried at least looked like the first-half version, 6 innings, no runs.
Saturday, Boston made it eight straight over New York, blitzing the Yanks 12-1, as Garrett Crochet was superb, 7 innings, one run, 11 strikeouts…Crochet, a top Cy Young Award contender, 14-5, 2.38.
For New York, let’s just say they have issues. Aaron Judge, since coming back from his injury, is 12-for-55, and when you add his performance before he went on the shelf for 10 days, he’s 16-for-85, .188 over a rather large sample size, 5 homers, 11 RBIs. And since he can’t throw, he’s left to DH, which puts Giancarlo Stanton in right field if they are to keep his bat (the only hot one) in the lineup.
And then there’s the case of Anthony Volpe, now hitting .208 for the season, but .169 in August, after .172 in July and .205 in June.
We’re talking the guy plays shortstop every day! The Yanks refuse to send ‘Boy Wonder’ down for some time in the box, let alone even bench him for a few games. He has literally played 128 of the Yanks’ 129 games.
You ought to hear sports talk radio in New York rip Volpe and manager Aaron Boone for playing the guy. But the organization so desperately wants him to be the next Derek Jeter.
Tonight, Red Sox-Yankees in the ESPN showcase.
Going back to last Tuesday and Wednesday, the Yankees matched a franchise record with nine home runs in a 13-3 victory over the Rays in Tampa. They became the first team in MLB history with multiple nine-homer games in a single season. [The Blue Jays hold the record for most homers in a game, 10, set in an 18-3 win over the Orioles on Sept. 14, 1987.]
The Yanks then hit five more home runs Wednesday, beating Tampa Bay 6-4, thus tying a major league record for most homers in consecutive games.
But then they faced the Red Sox.
—In Miami Friday night, the first-place Blue Jays got another huge lift as trade deadline acquisition Shane Bieber went 6 innings, allowing just one run, Toronto winning it 5-2.
But here’s the thing. How brilliant might the trade pickup be? Bieber, a former Cy Young Award winner, was making his first start since April 2024 when he underwent Tommy John surgery. If Bieber is really back (and he got extensive work in the minors this season), it’s a spectacular decision on the part of Blue Jays management; Toronto five up on the Red Sox (5 ½ over the Yankees) in the AL East.
—Friday, the Nationals got perhaps their best win of the season, scoring two in the top of the ninth against Phillies closer Jhoan Duran for a 5-4 win, Duran’s first slip up in eight appearances for Philadelphia.
And the Phillies received some awful, though not unexpected, news Saturday as ace Zack Wheeler will have to undergo thoracic outlet decompression surgery after being diagnosed with a blood clot in his throwing shoulder. He’ll be out 6-8 months, so you’re thinking long term, he’s maybe available next June.
But they need Wheeler now if they are to have a shot at getting to the World Series. He’s 10-5, 2.71, an NL-leading 195 strikeouts in 149 2/3. A massive blow for Philadelphia fans.
Saturday, the Phils did beat the Nationals 6-4, as Duran bounced back for the save.
And they won today, 3-2.
—The Dodgers had another big series with the Padres, this one in San Diego, and Friday the Padres prevailed 2-1, as Yu Darvish (6 innings, one run) outdueled Blake Snell (7 innings, 2 runs).
And San Diego is now a game up on L.A. after taking Saturday’s game 5-1, both teams combining for just five hits, but the Padres taking advantage of six walks.
–The Mariners beat the A’s Friday in Seattle, 3-2, as starter Bryan Woo went 7 innings, one run to improve to 11-7, 2.94. Woo has now pitched at least six innings in all 25 starts this season. Historic.
–The Cubs benched Kyle Tucker for a few days this week and his months-long slump has been stunning.
After a strong start to the season, in what is his walk year, after which he is supposed to sign a mammoth 10-year, $400 million+ contract, he hit .218 with one homer in July, and through Aug. 19, he had hit .148 this month in 54 at bats, zero extra-base hits.
For July and August, he was 25-for-132, one homer, 10 RBIs.
So Tucker came back Aug. 21 and went 1-for-8 in his first two games, with a solo homer Friday.
And whaddya know…Saturday he busted out with a double and two home runs, 5 RBIs as the Cubs, comfortably ahead in the wild card race, blasted the Angels 12-1.
—The Wall Street Journal’s Jared Diamond had a piece this weekend on Paul Skenes and the historic start to his career. Skenes, who went to the mound Sunday to make his 50th career start, has pitched to a 2.07 ERA in his first 49 starts. Only Vida Blue posted a lower ERA over this first 50 with the Oakland A’s from 1969 to 1972, 2.01.
As Diamond notes: “The game has changed in many ways since Blue burst onto the scene, but one of the most dramatic is how starting pitchers are used now. Blue averaged about 7 2/3 innings in his first 50 starts. Skenes is averaging closer to 5 2/3 and has yet to throw a nine-inning complete game in MLB. In 1971, Blue had two separate outings in the same month where he lasted 11 innings.”
Skenes has as good a shot at the NL Cy Young Award as anyone, but his record is 7-9, and no one has ever won the award with a losing record.
So Sunday, in the Roku game against the Rockies in Pittsburgh, Skenes threw seven scoreless, 7 strikeouts, no walks, and the Pirates won it 4-0, Skenes now 8-9, 2.07 for the year.
But Pittsburgh has another stud pitching prospect, 22-year-old Bubba Chandler, No. 1 prospect in baseball, and Friday Chandler made his major league debut and set a major league record. He became the first pitcher to throw four scoreless innings and record a save in his debut since saves became an officially recognized statistic in 1969…four innings, no runs, no walks, 3 Ks.
–I saw a piece in The Athletic on most searched athletes on eBay for trading cards and the A’s Nick Kurtz is right up there, actually No. 1 in sales data on eBay, according to GemRate, which tracks graded card populations.
—MLB and ESPN have a framework agreement that would give the network the exclusive rights to sell all out-of-market regular-season games digitally and in-market games for five clubs over the next three years.
ESPN would continue to broadcast around 30 regular-season games, but not “Sunday Night Baseball.” ESPN could move to a different night during the week. The games on the network would remain exclusive, meaning viewers would only be able to watch these matchups through ESPN. The agreement would begin next season. It’s expected the agreement will be signed in September.
Under the framework agreement between MLB and ESPN, ESPN would have MLB.TV as part of its direct-to-consumer offering.
Netflix remains the heavy favorite to pick up the Home Run Derby for the next three years, while NBC and Apple are considered the top landing spots for “Sunday Night Baseball” and the first round playoff games, which ESPN currently carries.
—President Trump, who really has a lot on his plate, took the time this afternoon to post the following on Truth Social:
“I played Golf yesterday with the Great Roger Clemens and his son, Kacy. Roger Clemens was easily one of the few Greatest Pitchers of All Time, winning 354 Games, the Cy Young Award seven times (A Record, by a lot!), and played in six World Series, winning two! He was second to Nolan Ryan in most strike-outs, and he should be in the Baseball Hall of Fame, NOW! People think he took drugs, but nothing was proven. He never tested positive, and Roger, from the very beginning, totally denies it. He was just as great before those erroneous charges were leveled at him. That rumor has gone on for years, and there has been no evidence whatsoever that he was a ‘druggie.’ This is going to be like Pete Rose where, after over 4,000 Hits, they wouldn’t put him in the Hall of Fame until I spoke to the Commissioner, and he promised to do so, but it was essentially a promise not kept because he only ‘opened it up’ when Pete died and, even then, he said that Pete Rose only got into the mix because of DEATH. We are not going to let that happen in the case of Roger Clemens. 354 Wins – Put him in NOW. He and his great family should not be forced to endure this ‘stupidity’ any longer!”
College Football
–The season is underway and 22 Iowa State had a nice win over 17 Kansas State, 24-21, in Dublin, Ireland. It was an entertaining affair…and a great commercial for Ireland.
But, boy, it’s a long trip from Iowa and Kansas, yet the fans for both schools showed up in droves. Good for them.
–I didn’t watch Hawaii’s 23-20 win over Stanford, but there are some who believe the Cardinal will win one game all season, if that. They are that bad. And interim head coach Frank Reich cost them a win last night when he failed to use his timeouts.
–Many eyes are on Penn State, which is ranked top 3 in the various polls (No. 2 AP), and this year they play Oregon and Ohio State. But it’s about coach James Franklin as much as the players, as he is 1-15 at PSU against top-five ranked teams.
But with the 12-team playoff field, the Nittany Lions can stumble once, maybe twice, and still make the field.
–Texas’ Arch Manning disputed a statement by grandfather Archie that he would definitely return to Austin for another season in 2026. Arch said he’s taking everything day by day.
NFL Bits
The league is wrapping up its exhibition season this weekend, then takes the next two weeks off to prepare for Week 1 of the regular season. Most of the starters did not play in the preseason finales.
But teams made some big decisions over the past few days.
—Joe Flacco was named the Browns’ starting QB, age 40. And there is talk the Brownies like Dillon Gabriel more than fellow rookie Shedeur Sanders.
—Daniel Jones is getting the nod as starter for the Colts, following an offseason battle against Anthony Richardson, the team’s fourth overall pick in 2023. Richardson and his ‘team’ are not happy with how he’s been treated.
As for former Giant Jones, he was 24-44-1 as a starter in New York, with a passer rating of 84.3, which kind of sucks.
Premier League
–A few games to note…Friday, Chelsea blitzed West Ham 5-1 on the road; Saturday, Arsenal blew out Leeds 5-0, and for a second straight year, Tottenham took it to Manchester City at their place, 2-0.
So my Spurs are 2-0 with new manager Thomas Frank. Kind of amazing, but the roster has been totally turned over in the last 2 to 2 ½ years. I used to know every player. Not anymore. Gotta get up to speed.
Manchester United and Fulham tied 1-1 today.
Stuff
—Ryan Blaney won an exciting race at Daytona Saturday in the regular-season finale, a victory that gave Alex Bowman postseason life (as well as Tyler Reddick), Bowman and Reddick qualifying for the 16-man playoff field despite neither winning a race this season.
And I have to note that hours before the race began, Team Penske noted the death of Karl Kainhofer, the first employee Roger Penske hired when he launched the motorsports juggernaut in 1966.
Kainhofer was part of 10 of Penske’s 20 Indianapolis 500 wins, including Mark Donohue’s 1972 win as chief mechanic. Donohue was Penske’s second hire.
Kainhofer, 94, died Friday.
Mark Donohue is buried less than a mile from StocksandNews’ global HQ. He was a Summit native.
–The Grade 1, $1.25 million Travers Stakes, the ‘mid-summer derby,’ was held at Saratoga, Saturday, and race fans were hoping for another duel between Sovereignty and Journalism, but it was just Sovereignty, the winner of the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes (in Saratoga) that was in the field.
Sovereignty then won the race in impressive fashion (again), becoming the first horse since 1995 to win the Derby, Belmont and Travers.
As for Journalism, winner of the Preakness (and Haskell Invitational at Monmouth Park), his owners held him back in Del Mar, where it appeared he would run in the Grade 1, $1 million Pacific Classic next week.
Should Journalism run Saturday, that’s likely it until the Breeders’ Cup Classic on Nov. 1 and the highly anticipated final rematch between the two stars, who you would expect would then head to a happy life of, err, err, mounting…well, you know….
–And horse racing lost a giant, jockey Ron Turcotte, the Hall of Famer who rode Secretariat to history and a record-setting Triple Crown in 1973. Turcotte was 84.
Turcotte also rode Riva Ridge to victories in the 1972 Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes.
In a statement the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame said: “Ron was a legendary rider and also an inspiration for all he achieved and overcame during his incredible life. Although best known for sweeping the Triple Crown with Secretariat, culminating with a 31-length victory in the 1973 Belmont Stakes, Turcotte’s Hall of Fame career spanned 18 years and more than 3,000 wins. As an ambassador for both the sport and the legacy of the great Secretariat, Ron made countless people into fans of racing through his kindness and the time he gave to all, whether telling stories about Big Red, signing autographs or posing for pictures. He was a fierce competitor on the track and a gentleman off of it. He will forever be remembered as one of the game’s greats.”
Turcotte’s career ended in the summer of 1978, when he was paralyzed in a fall at Belmont Park.
Turcotte was the longest surviving of Secretariat’s connections. Eddie Sweat, 58, Secretariat’s hard-working groom, died in 1998. Lucien Laurin, 88, who trained Secretariat, died in 2000, and breeder-owner Penny Chenery Tweedy, 95, passed away in 2017. Big Red himself preceded them all, euthanized in 1989 at age 19 after he got laminitis.
Top 3 songs for the week of 8/24/74: #1 “(You’re) Having My Baby” (Paul Anka with Odia Coates) #2 “The Night Chicago Died” (Paper Lace) #3 “Tell Me Something Good” (Rufus)…and…#4 “Feel Like Makin’ Love” (Roberta Flack) #5 “I Shot The Sheriff” (Eric Clapton) #6 “Waterloo” (Abba) #7 “Wildwood Weed” (Jim Stafford) #8 “I’m Leaving It All Up To You” (Donny & Marie Osmond) #9 “Rock Me Gently” (Andy Kim) #10 “Keep On Smilin’” (Wet Willie…week starts pretty strong but it’s a B-, boys and girls…)
U.S. Open Tennis Quiz Answers: 1) Post-1968, most men’s titles…Roger Federer, 5; Pete Sampras, 5: Jimmy Connors, 5; Novak Djokovic, 4; Rafael Nadal, 4; John McEnroe, 4. 2) Most women’s titles…Chris Evert, 6; Serena Williams, 6; Steffi Graf, 5; Martina Navratilova, 4.
No American man has won a Grand Slam since Andy Roddick in 2003.
Singles play got underway today at Flushing Meadows…
Brief Add-on up top by noon, Tuesday.
