Tiger Woods shoots 4-under 67 | Round 3 | Genesis | 2023 - His best round since the 2020 Masters - Riviera Country Club,Pacific Palisades,California

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Is Tiger Woods Back in Top Form? -plus about Abeer Nehme

It was a different Tiger Woods in action at the Wyndham Championship today in Greensboro,North Carolina than we have seen the past few years.Uplifted by the supportive crowd,Woods,who is 39,shot an 11 under par 65 to tie for the lead with an unknown,Tom Hoge,26,and looked to have a good chance at his first win since the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational in 2013.Indeed,Woods must win or possibly finish second to go on to the first of the PGA Playoffs next weekend.
Tiger Woods is second on the all-time PGA win list with his 79 career victories,behind only Sam Snead,who had 82.Woods has never played in the Wyndham before,but Snead won it an astonishing eight times.
It was a grind day,Woods said.I hung in there with my speed and it came out OK.The people here have been just fantastic.The proximity of the players to the fans-it's a vey intimate atmosphere.
The greens are getting faster.We were all surprised on the first hole,right out of the gate.I came here to win it,and right now I'm in good shape.*
Tonight is featured another song from the Lebanese musicologist and singer Abeer Nehme-yes,she changed the English transliteration of her first name from "Abir" to "Abeer."Ms.Nehme,35,performs traditional Middle Eastern music;sacred music from the Syriac Orthodox,Syriac-Maronite and Byzantine traditions;ancient Syriac and Maronite chants,and even some opera and Western music.She has a Bachelor's degree in Oriental Singing and a Master's in Musicology from Universite Saint-Esprit de Kaslik in Mount Lebanon.She also has a diploma with high distinction in advanced traditional Arab music performance.
Abeer Nehme has performed at the Vatican,the Fes Festival 2013 of World Sacred Music in Morocco and the Festival Orientales in Paris.She won the 2007 Honor award from the Apostoliki Diakonia in Greece,and the 2010 Murex D'Or distinction award.She has also given master classes and appeared on The National Turkish Television as permanent guest and Leading Performer for one year on the cultural music programme "One Thousand and One Nights."

Tiger Woods in Turkey;Arctic Outbreak;Knicks Win

Tiger Woods zeroed in on the Turkish Airlines Open at the Montgomerie Maxx Royal in Antalya,Turkey on Friday,carding a sterling eleven under par 63.Woods logged a bogey-free round-his third of 2013-and scored nine birdies to lift himself within one shot of the lead,jointly held by Henrik Stenson and three others at -12.
Stenson,the 213 FedEx Cup champion,is currently leading the European Tour overall championship run,the Race To Dubai,which culminates next weekend in the UAE.Woods isn't in that overall competition,but has won 39 European Tour tournaments in his career,with a win percentage of 31.2%.
Stenson is complaining of a sore left wrist.I'm just hanging in and it's day by day,the big Swede said.It's not in great shape,but I'm hanging in there.*
1.Justin Walters RSA -12
Ian Poulter ENG -12
Victor Dubuisson FRA -12
Henrik Stenson SWE -12
5.Tiger Woods USA -11
6.Richard Sterne RSA -10
7.Jamie Donaldson WAL -9
Alejandro Carnizares ESP -9
9.Ross Fisher ENG -8
David Lynn ENG -8
An arctic outbreak is on the way south from Canada,and nothing is stopping it,said The Weather Channel.It is a Blue Norther,and will reach all the way to the Gulf Coast.Forecast models disagree on snowfall.One of them shows heavy snow for the Northeast;another one takes it out to sea.*
The New York Knicks cuffed the Charlotte Bobcats 101-91 at Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte Friday night.Carmelo Anthony led the Knicks with 25 points and 8 rebounds,while Kemba Walker contributed 25 points and 3 rebounds to the Bobcat effort before 16,465 fans at the North Carolina contest.*
Catch the latest music pick on Twitter @Businessblogger.
Update:Tiger Woods played poorly in the third round of the Turkish Airlines Open,dropping to six strokes back of the leader,Victor Dubuisson of France.Woods made three bogeys on the back nine and had trouble hitting fairways.Ian Poulter dropped to second place and Henrik Stenson slipped to third alongside Woods and two others.

Bridgestone and St.Andrews Golf

The complex world of professional golf offers a panorama of tournaments,global locations and series for the avid fan to follow this weekend.In the US,Tiger Woods was totally dominant in the second round of the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational at the Firestone Country Club in Akron,Ohio Friday.Woods matched his PGA Tour career best and the course record with his superb 13 under par 61.I had it going today,Woods said.The weather's coming in tomorrow.We're gonna have to make a few adjustments.We'll see how it goes.The top three:1.Tiger Woods(USA)-13 2.Keegan Bradley(USA)-6;Chris Wood(ENG)-6*The women's pro golf scene is underappreciated.It's not boring to watch.At The Women's Open Championship on The Old Course at St.Andrews,Scotland,the typically unflappable Na Yeon Choi was unfazed by brisk winds that barreled into the afternoon session,topping the leader board with her crisp 10 under par 67.Not content with one complete success,Miki Saiki hammered down second place with two eagles.The top three:1.Na Yeon Choi(ROK)-10 2.Miki Saiki(JAP)-9 3.Morgan Pressel(USA)-8*Bernhard Langer is playing in his native Germany this weekend.At the European Senior Tour Berenberg Masters,Golf-und Land-Club,Koln,Refrath,Germany,the top 3:1.Turner,Greg(NZL)-7 2.Lane,Barry(ENG)-5;Langer,Bernhard(GER)-5;Woosnam,Ian(WAL)-5*The European Senior Tour Order of Merit top three:1.Bernhard Langer(GER) 2.Peter Senior(AUS) 3.Paul Wesselingh(ENG).*Langer is also pursuing his second Charles Schwab Cup,the overall trophy for senior pro golfers in the US.The PGA Champions Tour Charles Schwab Cup Standings:1.Kenny Perry(USA)2508 2.Bernhard Langer(GER)1713 3.David Frost(RSA)1613 *Update:Tiger Woods continued his brilliant campaign,topping the leader board at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational with his 15 under par 68 in Saturday's third round.The third round of The Ricoh Women's British Open was suspended because of high winds,and will restart shortly.At the Berenberg Masters on the European Senior Tour,Steen Tinney(DEN)and Nick Job(ENG)are tied for first place at -6,while Bernhard Langer(GER)has dropped back to sixth with his -4.

Dhaulagiri Climbing Conditions;NBA Playoffs;PGA Tour

April and May are prime climbing months for Dhaulagiri in Nepal.It is one of the 8,000 meter peaks and a Major Mountain Expedition at 8167 meters/26,796 feet.The closest peak to it is Nilgiri Himal at 14.2 miles and 23,167 feet.Annapurna,at 26,547 feet,is 28.7 miles from Dhaulagiri.
The current temperature at the Kathmandu International Airport is 77F,133.6 miles from Dhaulagiri.Under hazy sun,there are light southwest winds.
At the summit of Dhaulagiri,there will be snowfall of 3.1 inches,considered heavy snowfall,on Saturday afternoon.It will be extremely cold at -18F,with a windchill of -49F.The freezing point on the mountain will be 14,900 feet.
This gives you some idea of what is involved at this professional level of mountaineering.Good luck if you want to take it on.
In other sport,the San Antonio Spurs slammed the Golden State Warriors 102-92 in the NBA Conference Semifinals.That gives the Spurs a 2-1 lead in the series.At The Players Championship in Florida,Sergio Garcia of Spain tops the leader board,with Tiger Woods in second at the end of round 2.

Tiger Woods Tops Cadillac Championship;Mexico Beats Team USA

Tiger Woods shot a superb second round 13 under par 65 to take the lead of the WGC Cadillac Championship at TPC Blue Monster at Doral in Miami,Florida Friday.Woods scored eight birdies and only one bogey on the dry,rapid greens.
Northern Ireland's Graeme McDowell carded a very good 11 under par 67 for second place,while Phil Mickelson and Steve Stricker shared third with their good 10 under par 67s.
At the World Baseball Classic in Phoenix,Arizona,Mexico beat the USA 5-2 on strong pitching and Adrian Gonzalez's third inning two run homer.Team USA was out-hit by just one hit,9-8,but couldn't put their hits together.
Winning pitcher for Mexico was Yovani Gallardo,while loser for Team USA was 2012 Cy Young Award winner R.A. Dickey.The save went to Sergio Romo.
Team USA,0-1,must beat 2-0 Italy tomorrow night or face elimination,while 1-1 Mexico has a chance to eliminate 0-1 Canada tomorrow afternoon.
The WBC is only being televised on MLB-TV.This is limiting media coverage of the event somewhat,since relatively few Americans get the cable channel.It is the only fully international professional level baseball tournament,since baseball was scratched from the Summer Olympics.
Update:Team USA defeated Italy 5-2 in Phoenix Saturday night on a David Wright grand slam in the top of the 5th.They face Canada in an elimination game Sunday afternoon.The winner goes on to the second round in Miami.

Golf's Two Woods:Tiger Woods and Chris Wood On Top

Men with sylvan surnames topped the leader boards of their respective tournaments Friday and Saturday as professional golf was fully underway in the warmer areas of the planet.Full slates of name players were in the early stages of their quest for glory at either ends of the globe.
At Torrey Pines Golf Course along the Pacific Ocean in San Diego,California,Tiger Woods shot an eleven under par 65 at the Farmers Insurance Open.Fellow American Billy Horschel was in second place with his nine under par 69.Canada's Brad Fritsch held third at -8 with several others.
Woods has won seven times at Torrey Pines and wants to bring the US Open back to the public golf course.
The course is named after the torrey pine tree(Pinus torreyana).It is one of only two sites in the world where the endangered species grows naturally.The other site is Santa Rosa Island off the coast of Santa Barbara,California.The broad,open-crowned trees have an IUCN status of VU,or Vulnerable.There are about 3,000 of them left in the wild.
Across the globe,the European Tour's Commercial Bank Qatar Masters was led by England's Chris Wood with his third round 15 under par 64 at the Doha Golf Course.Second place was shared by fellow Englishman Simon Khan,Sweden's Alexander Noren and Michael Campbell of New Zealand at twelve under par.
Chris Wood has three career second place finishes on the European Tour.
Parts of the Mid-Atlantic region were coated with a light amount of powder snow on Friday,delighting the local ski resorts.

POW/MIA Recognition Day;Yankees Top Standings

Americans paused to remember their missing service members Friday,POW/MIA Recognition Day.The iconic white on black flag of the National League of Families was widely flown and displayed in posters and Internet graphics.A total of 83,417 members of the US Armed Forces remain unaccounted for from the nation's wars.Most of the MIAs went missing in World War II,the Korean War and the Vietnam War.This blog will never forget them and supports the ongoing effort to bring them all home.
On a less somber note,the New York Yankees continued their run atop the American League East Friday night by beating the Oakland As 2-1 in extra innings in the Bronx.The Yankee stadium crowd was thrilled by catcher Russell Martin's walk-off home run in the bottom of the tenth inning.At Fenway Park in Boston,the Baltimore Orioles stayed one game back of the Yankees by defeating the Boston Red Sox 4-2.
At East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta,American Jim Furyk mastered the tricky course with an excellent second round 7 under par 64 at the Tour Championship by Coca-Cola.England's Justin Rose was second on the leader board with his 6 under par 68.Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson were well back at 12th and 16th place,respectively.

Haunted By Hanta;Vijay Leads at Crooked Stick

Americans are worried about their outdoor activities because of two viruses popping up this late summer.The hantavirus,which is transmitted by inhaling or direct contact with the droppings and urine of deer mice,is troubling visitors to Yosemite National Park,California.The virus has killed three so far and sickened five others.About one in three infected by the virus die.Although there is no cure,those who seek early treatment have the best chance of survival.Early symptoms are flu-like.
It is believed that deer mice got inside of tent cabin walls and campers inhaled the virus that they deposited there.The National Park Service has warned 29,000 recent visitors from around the world about early symptoms from hantavirus.
The other viral threat is much more widespread.West Nile virus has appeared in all lower 48 states.The mosquito-transmitted illness has sickened 1993 people and killed 87,the highest death toll in years.There is no cure for this virus,either.Those in good health usually recover from flu-like West Nile within a few weeks.
Vijay Singh,49,is feeling well atop the BMW Championship leader board at Crooked Stick Golf Club in Carmel,Indiana.The Fiji citizen shot a 13 under par 66 in the second round,while world number one Rory McIlroy was secondafter his 12 under par 68,joined by Tiger Woods with a 12 under par 67.
Phil Mickelson was tied for 13th place with several others,firing off an 8 under par 67.The course has been wet the first two rounds,resulting in a lot of precise shots and the many low scores.
The New York Yankees pulverized the Baltimore Orioles with six homers in Baltimore Friday night,retaking first place in the American League East from them.All of the Yankees' runs were from their home runs.

Tiger Woods in the Hunt;TS Isaac Getting Near

It was a sunny day at Bethpage Black in Farmingdale,New York as Tropical Storm Isaac drew closer to South Florida,darkening skies at Key West,the southernmost tip of the United States.Sergio Garcia of Spain and America's Nick Watney shared the lead of The Barclays,the first of the four PGA Tour Playoffs  for the FedEx Cup,at the difficult and classic public golf course,part of Bethpage State Park on Long Island.
Each of the park's five courses has a color for a name.Bethpage Black was designed in the 1930s and features numerous huge bunkers with amoeba shapes.The greens of the lengthy course were drying fast,making them firm and bouncy.Garcia and Watney managed the tough old course better than most,ending the second round at eight under par.Tiger Woods finished just three strokes back at -5.American Phil Mickelson and Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland just made the cut with even par,eight strokes back.
Snoopy 1,the famous MetLife blimp,provided views of the eccentric bunkers,which reach an extreme at the eighteenth hole,flanking it with their surreal menace.Garcia was coming off last week's victory at the Wyndham Championship with a lot of momentum,while Watney had been having a nondescript season so far.
Down in Florida,tropical storm conditions are expected for Monday and Tuesday.Coastal bay flooding may be a threat on Tuesday and Wednesday,with hurricane conditions possible.A Tropical Storm Warning and a Hurricane Watch have been posted for South Florida.It was already raining heavily in Miami at an NFL preseason game between the Miami Dolphins and Atlanta Falcons.The Falcons beat the Dolphins 23-6.
TS Isaac is currently blowing at 70 mph,moving NW at 14 mph and will soon cross Haiti,then go back over open water before crossing Cuba.It could be a category 1 hurricane by Monday evening.Heavily affected areas could range from Mississippi to Georgia.Category 1 is the weakest hurricane.On the twentieth anniversary of mighty Hurricane Andrew,TS Isaac bears scant resemblance to the devastating hurricane.
Barclays(BCS),MetLife(MET)
Update:At Bethpage Black,Sergio Garcia took sole possession of the lead of The Barclays,finishing round 3 at ten under par.Nick Watney was in second place on the leader board at -8,while Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson were in 10th place with their four under par.Mickelson had improved from his even par second round by shooting a fine 67 on Saturday.
Tropical Storm Isaac ravaged Haitian refugee camps,killing at least seven people,and shifted a bit westward.About 10,000 people in the Dominican Republic were dispaced when 724 homes were damaged.At last check,it was a 60 mph storm,moving NW at 17mph.It is expected to cross close to Key West,so the Key West High School shelter is filling up. By Sunday evening,it will be a category 1 hurricane,with at least 75 mph winds,as it traverses the Gulf of Mexico.Landfall will be Tuesday evening at a minimum of category 2,with at least 105 mph winds,somewhere between Mississippi and Alabama on the Gulf Coast,according to the latest forecast model.

Tiger Woods Electrifies British Crowd

He may not be dominant again,but Tiger Woods has definitively rediscovered his old competitive fire,taking the British Open crowd along with him.On his final hole of the second round,Woods pinpointed a superb birdie from a bunker,igniting the British fans and impressing the gaggle of photographers huddled nearby,eager to snag an image of greatness reborn.He modestly downplayed the shot afterward,saying it wasn't that hard as it was from a slope in the bunker.British bunkers are like lunar craters,however.There's really nothing easy about getting out of them,let alone holing from one.
Woods shot his second consecutive 67 in the tournament,placing him in third position with his six under par behind fellow American Brandt Snedeker at -10 and Australian Adam Scott at -9.The venerable Tom Watson, 62,another favorite of the British fans,rallied at the end of his round,ensuring himself another weekend at the oldest major tournament in professional golf.The Open Championship,as it is formally known,is being held at the Royal Lytham &St.Annes Golf Club.
Leader Brandt Snedeker,31,who is from Nashville,Tennessee,said I love playing golf over here.I've been putting great all year.I knew if I got on the greens,I'd have a good chance.The soft-spoken Snedeker,a graduate of Vanderbilt University,equaled an Open Championship record low score of 130 for the first two rounds after his six under par 64 on Friday.
ESPN is carrying the tournament,which is being underwritten by luxury watchmaker Rolex.
Update:On Saturday,Adam Scott seized the lead from Brandt Snedeker with three straight birdies,ending the day with a two under par 68,-11 for the tournament.Snedeker was tied for second  at -7 with Northern Ireland's Graeme McDowell,his close friend from their college golfing days.Tiger Woods was in fourth,distinguished by his 30 foot putt at the sixth hole,and goes into the final round still in contention,five strokes back of the lead in his quest for the claret jug.
The golf club adjoins the town of Lytham St.Annes,Lancashire.It is the 11th time the Open Championship has been played there in the tournament's 141-year history.

Mickelson Moves Up;Market Slips

Stocks suffered their worst fall of the year this week,with the S&P 500 Index dropping 0.74% on fears about Spain's debt problem and the Federal Reserve's reluctance to provide further aid to the market.For the year,however,the S&P is still up an impressive 11.17%.
The CBOE VIX Volatility Index rose 7.74% on the week.
At The Masters golf tournament in Augusta,Georgia,Phil Mickelson,41,continued to progress,shooting a second round two under par 68 after Thursday's initial struggles had yielded only a 74.Mickelson's round was second only to 52 year-old Fred Couples' 67.Couples and Jason Dufner shared the top of the leaderboard at five under heading into Easter weekend.
Tiger Woods cursed as he shot a poor second round 75 at the majestic Augusta National course famous for its pine trees.It is the first of the year's four major tournaments.
The S&P futures fell a modest 3.48 on Friday in response to the Labor Department's disappointing employment report showing a March jobs gain well below expectations.Bond index futures rose in price.
Next week,earnings season gets underway with Alcoa reporting its Q1 results.
Alcoa(AA)

Market Settles Down;Tiger Doesn't

The stock market enjoyed its second straight rally Friday,allowing the S&P 500 Index to post a modest loss of 1.7 for the week,while the Dow dropped 1.5 and the NASDAQ 1.0,respectively.For the year,however,the S&P has lost a more serious 6.27,and the CBOE VIX Volatility Index is up an astonishing 104.85.
Indeed,2 trillion dollars of wealth has been lost so far this month.All the same,Friday's trading volume was considerably more normal at about 1.2 billion shares versus around 3 billion shares earlier in the week.Some portfolios were able to return to the black after the two good days in a row.
The S&P futures gained 8.30 Friday evening,hinting at a positive Monday opening.Oil futures were down 0.34 to 85.38 a barrel,while gold futures dropped 8.90 to 1742.60 an ounce.Bond index futures were mostly higher.
At the PGA Championship at the Atlanta Athletic Club,Tiger Woods failed to make the cut for that event for the first time in his career,along with Graeme McDowell,Martin Kaymer and Darren Clarke,among other notable golfers who couldn't handle the course.His weekend,and indeed his season,is over.The PGA Tour Playoffs will begin in a few weeks' time for those who do qualify.

Tiger's Good Round,Western Weather

Tiger Woods is showing consistency at The Masters,a tradition-steeped tournament at Augusta National Golf Club in Georgia.Woods played intently on Friday,finishing with a strong 2nd round seven under par 66.He was tied for 3rd place with South Korean K.J. Choi.Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy was dominant at -10,while Australian Jason Day tied a tournament record for the lowest 2nd round score for a first-timer at Augusta,shooting an eight under 64.Also of note,Fred Couples,51,is in contention with his 2nd round five under 68.
Weather conditions will be hot and humid for the remainder of the tournament.To the west,storms are taking many forms,from apple-sized hail in Butler County,Kansas to a heavy snow forecast in Flagstaff,Arizona.There may be wind gusts up to 75 mph in the Southern Plains,and a 50,000 acre brush fire raged in North Texas.
Stocks did not rage this week,with the S&P down slightly for the week,pressured by soaring oil prices.Gold closed at a record high 1474.10 an ounce Friday.The S&P futures were down a modest 4.70 Friday evening,and bond interest rate futures also dropped.Shaping trading next week will be the start of earnings season as Alcoa reports on Monday,JP Morgan Chase on Wednesday,Google on Thursday and Bank of America on Friday.
Alcoa(AA),JP Morgan Chase(JPM),Google(GOOG),Bank of America(BAC)
Update:Rory McIlroy continues to decisively top the leader board with a four stroke lead heading into Sunday's final round.Tiger Woods and Fred Couples are still in contention,along with Jason Day and former Masters champion Angel Cabrera of Argentina.Phil Mickelson is a mathematical long shot for his fourth green jacket at the tournament.

Market Still Strong,Tiger's Good Round

The stock market logged another good week,with the S&P notching its highest close since June 2008 on Friday,up 1.4 for the week and 0.55 for the day.Relief at the resignation of Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak helped ensure the bull market's continuation.Next week the market will have a raft of data to respond to,from manufacturing figures to retail sales,but the current momentum trade may be strong enough to overcome even a disappointing set.
In the United Arab Emirates,Tiger Woods shot an excellent 66 at the second round of the Omega Dubai Desert Classic,putting him in a tie for fifth place with four others.Northern Ireland's young star Rory McIlroy led with a -11 for the two rounds.
The Cleveland Cavaliers ended their record 26-game losing streak with a 126-119 win over the Los Angeles Clippers.
Following a bitterly cold few mornings,the Mid-Atlantic region will enter a stretch of springlike conditions,with temperatures expected to reach above 50 Fahrenheit.
The S&P futures signaled more smooth sailing for equities on Monday,rising 8.50 Friday evening,and the ten year Treasury futures prices also rose.

Cairo Chaos,Torrey Pines Brilliance

While a day of rage gripped the streets of Cairo,Egypt,flattening Wall Street,the PGA Tour was serenely underway Friday on the sunlit bluffs of Torrey Pines near La Jolla,California.American Bill Haas,winner of last year's Bob Hope Classic,topped the leaderboard with his -11,and Anthony Kim was second with a -9.Seven players shared the third spot at -8,including Phil Mickelson,who lives 20 minutes from the course,the longest on the tour.Tiger Woods was tied for twelfth with four others at -6.
The Mid-Atlantic region was far from that sunshine,still recovering from Wednesday's heavy rush hour snowfall,with many residents still without power under more gray skies and snow showers.A wintry mix is in the forecast for Tuesday into Wednesday.
The news from Egypt,together with disappointing earnings from Amazon,Microsoft and Ford,and generally overbought conditions,clipped the market's wings.They were slightly down on the week,with the S&P losing 0.6%.The Commodity Research Bureau Index was up 4.05,however.Next week will feature reports on employment,factory orders and auto sales.
The S&P futures were flat Friday evening,and bond futures prices rose.
Ford(F),Microsoft(MSFT),Amazon(AMZN)

Hurricane Earl Leaves Off

Hurricane Earl was moving Northeast at 23 mph tonight,not impressing many people very much.It's really little more than a few inches of rain and some gales-at worst.Unfortunately,a number of other tropical systems are forming off West Africa,so the next few weeks could be replete with worries for the East and Gulf coasts.The Labor Day weekend is proceeding pretty normally,although Amtrak train service was cancelled between New York and Boston and the White Sox/Red Sox baseball matchup was canceled in Boston.
The second leg of the PGA Tour Playoffs,the Deutcshe Bank Championship,began in Norton,Massachusetts as scheduled,though Hurricane Earl poured on the afternoon starters.Australian Jason Day and American Zach Johnson shared the first round lead,shooting -8 63s.Eight players were tied for second at -7 64.Tiger Woods was well back with his +1 72.Phil Mickelson did slightly better with his two under par.
The market was substantially up this week,with the Dow gaining 2.9,the S&P 3.8 and the NASDAQ 3.7%.There will be little economic data next week for the market to react to,but a lot of traders will be back from vacation,perhaps lending more volume to any reactions to developments that may occur in mergers and acquisitions,politics or other news.Stock futures continued the optimism this evening,all rising between one and two percent.Bond futures also gained.

Mickelson Out,Woods Survives

Phil Mickelson,the number two golfer in the world,missed the cut Friday at The Barclays,the first leg of the PGA Tour Playoffs,at Ridgewood Country Club in Paramus,New Jersey.Mickelson shot a poor 74 for a +4,his second missed cut of the season.Tiger Woods,ranked number one,shot a slightly better 73,but relied on Thursday's score of 65 to make the cut with a -4.Australian Jason Day,22,leads the tournament at -8,while Americans Vaughn Taylor and Kevin Streelman are second at -7.At the LPGA'S Canadian Open in Winnipeg,Manitoba,American Michelle Wie tops the leaderboard,shooting a 69 for a -10.
In baseball,the St.Louis Cardinals handed the Washington Nationals a 4-2 loss at Nationals Park,with Albert Pujols launching a solo home run,his 401st career homer.The market staged a ridiculous rally,based on thin air such as a GDP revision for Q2 of 1.6 instead of the 1.3 estimated revision-as if 0.3 is going to help the economy significantly.Such an irrational move is very suspect,to say the least.Stocks were still down modestly for the week,with the Dow and S&P stepping back 0.6,and the NASDAQ falling 1.2.Stock futures continued the surge this evening,and bond futures gained altitude as well-another reason for caution.