lingzi
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IRVING, Texas—A month ago, Jason Dufner was a single man still in search of
his first PGA Tour victory. Joe Flacco Womens Jersey . Life has certainly
changed for the 35-year-old golfer who last summer at the PGA Championship blew
a four-stroke lead with four holes to play and lost in a playoff. With a 25-foot
birdie putt on the final hole of the Byron Nelson Championship on Sunday, Dufner
closed out a one-stroke victory over Dicky Pride to win for the second time in
four weeks. “You probably couldnt dream it any better than whats been going on
here,” Dufner said. “The wedding has been in the works for close to a year, so
we know thats been coming around the corner. And theres been a lot of good golf
since then, but to win two events and get married in the span of 22 days, pretty
remarkable.” Graham DeLaet of Weyburn, Sask., finished 1-over 281 at the
tournament. Dufner got his first victory April 29 at New Orleans, then got
married the following week. Now he has already won again, this time making
US$1.17 million and taking over the top spot in the FedEx Cup standings. His
closing birdie wrapped up a 3-under 67 round for an 11-under 269 to avoid a
playoff with Pride. Pride, whose only PGA Tour victory in a 20-year professional
career came in 1994, was at 10 under with a par-saving 22-foot putt at No. 18
for a round of 67 after hitting his drive into the water. Moments later, Dufner
made a putt that was only a few feet longer but on virtually the same line.
“Apparently that was not a very difficult putt on 18, from the long right,”
Pride said chuckling. J.J. Henry, who had an early hole-in-one, was in the lead
at 11 under after consecutive birdies at Nos. 15 and 16, overcoming a bad tee
shot on the first and a greenside bunker on the second. Pride made a 13-foot
birdie at No. 17 right before Henry, in the final group with Dufner, hit a
7-iron over the par-3 green. The former TCU star lost the lead with a double
bogey after a 4-foot putt slid just outside the cup. “To be honest, I thought I
hit a good shot on 17. I thought the wind was a little into me,” Henry said. “I
hit the line exactly where I tried to and it just carried about 6 or 7 yards too
far.” After watching Henrys meltdown, Dufner made a tap-in par at No. 17 and
then hit a big drive on No. 18 in the middle of the fairway. He hit a sand wedge
to the middle of the green, then avoided a playoff with the long putt to join
Hunter Mahan as the only two-time winners this season. “I knew I was tied after
I hit the tee shot,” Dufner said. “I knew if I made birdie that I would win, par
would be a playoff, but the playoffs arent much fun. My experience in them arent
too great.” While Dufners win at New Orleans came in a two-hole playoff against
Ernie Els, he lost twice in playoffs last season, including to Keegan Bradley in
the PGA Championship. Joe Durant, who was the final alternate added to the
Nelson field, shot a 65 to finish in a tie for third at 271 with Henry (68),
Marc Leishman (66) and rookie Jonas Blixt (66). Phil Mickelson, making his first
Nelson start in five years, had four consecutive birdies on the front nine and
went on to a round of 66 to finish four strokes back. He tied for seventh with
Ken Duke, who also had a string of four birdies in a row in his own 66. Pride
let out a scream when his final putt dropped. Pride, who went to the University
of Alabama, then watched the final group play the hole, and applauded on the
clinching putt by Dufner, who went to rival Auburn. “Everybody is making a big
deal about that,” Pride said of their college affiliations. “But he married a
woman from Alabama to show him around.” Matt Kuchar, the worlds fifth-ranked
player who won The Players Championship a week earlier, had 70 and finished at
276 in a tie for 15th. He was trying to become the first PGA Tour player since
Tiger Woods in 2009 to win in consecutive weeks. Henrys ace came at the 154-yard
No. 5 hole, when he hit a pitching wedge. When the ball rolled back into the
cup, Henry thrust both of his arms in the air, then had an emphatic uppercut and
he celebrated with the gallery. After Henrys drive at the 504-yard 15th was way
right and under a tree, he hit his approach to the middle of the green and made
a 32-foot birdie putt that led to another, though more subdued fistpump. His
approach at the easier par-5 16th went in a greenside bunker, but he blasted
inside 2 1/2 feet for a birdie to get to 11 under. Dufner had consecutive bogeys
at Nos. 2 and 3, but quickly responded with consecutive birdies on the following
two holes. After a bogey at No. 11 following a bad tee shot, Dufner got back to
10 under with his birdie at the par-5 16th, when he blasted out of a greenside
bunker to 6 feet. The last of Mickelsons four birdies in a row came when he
holed a 30-footer at the 461-yard eighth hole. That got the 10th-ranked player
to 6 under at about the same time Dufner and Henry were finishing at No. 1, both
at 8 under. Mickelson was 8 under after a birdie at the par-5 16th, but his 3
1/2-foot par putt at the following par 3 circled the cup and rolled back toward
him for his first bogey of the day. “I was certainly disappointed with not
getting that birdie,” he said. “If I could get 17 or 18, get to 9 of 10 (under),
you just never know.” Divots: Vijay Singh, a 34-time PGA Tour winner whose last
victory was in 2008, was within two strokes of the lead after his third-round
66. He started Sunday with three consecutive bogeys, on way to a 71 and part of
a ninth-place tie at 275. ... Bradley the nephew of LPGA great Pat Bradley who
got his first PGA Tour victory at last years Nelson, had a triple-bogey 7 at the
232-yard 11th hole for the second day in a row. He shot 72 for a 278 total. Lardarius Webb Jersey . It doesnt mean the
shooting guard will be switching teams next season. During a break at Saturdays
annual Indiana-Kentucky boys All-Star game in Indianapolis, Gordon told The
Associated Press that he would like his next NBA city to be a long-term
destination—even if he winds up staying in New Orleans. Marshal Yanda Jersey . As the Blue Jays were
struggling in a 12-0 loss to the Baltimore Orioles on Tuesday, rain began to
fall on some of the fans when the retractable roof did not close in time during
the middle innings. http://www.shopthebaltimoreravensjerseys.com/terrell-suggs-jerseys
. And when the obligatory “M-V-P” chants started up, James waved again. Hell be
back next weekend, with bigger goals in mind. James finished with 32 points and
eight rebounds, Norris Cole added 16 points and the Heat pulled away in the
final minutes to beat Houston 97-88 on Sunday night and eliminate the Rockets
from post-season contention. Courtney Upshaw Jersey . A BBC documentary
this week showed footage of Ukrainian hooligans attacking Asian fans supporting
the same team at a domestic league match, as well as examples of blatant
anti-Semitism. Former England soccer player Sol Campbell has warned English fans
to stay home or risk returning “in a coffin. Cary Williams Jersey . —Eugene Wong of
North Vancouver, B.MONTREAL—Organizers of an exhibition tennis event are
hoping the rising star power of Milos Raonic and Genie Bouchard will help fill
the Bell Centre for a night. Raonic, Canadas top-ranked mens player of all time
at No. 15, and Wimbledon junior champion Bouchard will take on opponents yet to
be determined at the Montreal Rendez-Vous on March 18. “It was a delightful
opportunity because Ive tried to do the same thing in Toronto to help the sport
grow,” Raonic said at the announcement on Monday. “Tennis is difficult. “You
dont know how results and schedules will play out, so if you have something
pre-set in advance and advertised well, its pretty special. It gives an
opportunity not only for tennis fanatics but sports fans in general to come out
and see us play.” Players and organizers spoke of top talent like Jo-Wilfried
Tsonga or even Roger Federer as possible opponents for Raonic and Serena
Williams or Maria Sharapova for Bouchard, but it remains to be seen who they
will face. “Anyones special,” said 18-year-old Bouchard, the Westmount, Que.,
native who won junior titles in singles and doubles at Wimbledon and is now
tackling a pro career. “Ill see how I do against an opponent like that. “After
the off-season, Ill start again in January and play lots of pro tournaments and
hopefully Ill be a better player than I am now.” The event is run by StarGames,
Madison Square Garden and local promoter Evenko. The event started last year
with former stars like Andre Agassi and Ivan Lendl and drew 8,200 fans. “We know
that the 2013 version, headlined by Milos Raonic, will be even more compelling
to the Montreal market,” StarGames president Jerry Solomoon said. Arthur Jones Jersey. “Itll be top level,
world class players. Some of them are players who have played for us in other
events. Its a great date on the international tennis calendar. They have a few
days off between Indian Wells and Miami, so it works well for them.” Solomon
said a similar event is going into its sixth year in New York and he plans to
announce a third one in another city on another continent soon. The 21-year-old
Raonic, of Thornhill, Ont., is coming off a pair of singles wins as Canada
downed a depleted South Africa squad 4-1 on the weekend to keep its place in the
top-level World Group for next year. Its unusual that Canada won its Davis Cup
tie despite losing the doubles match, as veteran doubles ace Daniel Nestor was
Canadas strong point before Raonics rise in singles rankings. Vasek Pospisil and
Frank Dancevic, as well as Wimbledon and U.S. Open junior champion Filip Peliwo,
give Canada added depth in singles. “To be honest, its singles that gets all the
limelight and attention,” said Raonic. “Its singles performances that are going
to help the sport grow, especially here in Canada.” The tennis event could get
even greater attention if the NHL lockout that began at midnight on Saturday
drags through the winter. “I think so, but theres still quite a bit of talk
going on about the lockout, so that will take a bit of time, said Raonic. “Its
definitely a good opportunity, but at the same time, its an opportunity thats
not going to be there consistently. “Maybe we can use it to grow, but Id want
tennis to become a tradition where it doesnt depend on hockey being locked out,
where it can grow on its own and hold its own.” ’ ’ ’
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