LIV Golf Invitational Chicago | Final Round | September 18

PGA European Tour Golf:BMW South African Open Leaders,Round 2 (suspended by lightning threat)

BMW SA Open hosted by the City of Ekurhuleni
Glendower Golf Club
The following players have completed the two rounds and currently top the leaderboard.Some other players need to complete the round,as it was suspended by a lightning threat,and will do so early Saturday morning.
1 STORM,Graeme ENG -12
2 UIHLEIN,Peter USA -10
KRUGER,Jbe SA -10
FISHER Jnr,Trevor SA -10
Update:Englishman Graeme Storm,38,went on to win the BMW SA Open,beating Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy in a playoff when both carded a -18 for the tournament.Jordan L. Smith of England was third at -17,while American Peter Uihlein finished tied for seventh at -13.It was Storm's second European Tour win in his long career.*
In the overall PGA European Tour Race to Dubai standings,Australian Sam Brazel is in first place,while American Harold Varner III is in sixth.

Grateful Dead to Reunite;Kaymer Tops Abu Dhabi Golf

The Grateful Dead will reunite for a 50th anniversary concert series in Chicago July 3-5,Billboard magazine reported.The iconic 60s rock band,known for its endless touring and improvisational style,will share the stage with guitarist Trey Anastasio of Phish.The concerts will take place nearly 20 years to the day after frontman Jerry Garcia last performed with the band on 9 July,1995,shortly before his death from complications of diabetes.The four surviving members of the Dead are Bob Weir;Phil Lesh;Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzmann.The shows will be held at Soldiers Field,the home of the NFL's Chicago Bears and site of Garcia's last performance with his bandmates.
The three concerts could draw an estimated 50 million dollars of business into Chicagoland.Bob Weir,74,said the four surviving members will likely never play as a group again following the windy city shows.*
At the European Tour's Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship in the UAE,German Martin Kaymer topped the leaderboard Friday with his second round 13 under par 67.Thomas Pieters of Belgium was second with a 12 under par 67;while Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy,the World Number One,came in third with an eleven under par 66.Australian Richard Green,American Peter Uihlein and France's Alexander Levy were tied for fifth at -8.McIlroy made the first hole in one of his professional career at the fifteenth.The tournament is taking place at the Abu Dhabi Golf Club.

Stenson Tops in Dubai,Adam Scott in Melbourne;Knicks Off

The Super Swede,Henrik Stenson,holds the lead at the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai,United Arab Emirates after two rounds.Swede,who earlier won the FedEx Cup on the PGA Tour,is now vying for an unprecedented double by also leading in the European Tour's Race To Dubai,its overall season championship.In Round 2 at Dubai,Stenson birdied the eighteenth hole to take sole possession of the lead with his twelve under par 64,one stroke ahead of Spaniard Alejandro Canizares.
The tournament is being played on the Earth Course,one of two courses at Jumeirah Golf Estates,a luxury resort community in the desert just outside Dubai,the city with the world's tallest building.The top three players on the Race To Dubai leaderboard have a chance to take its gold scepter trophy by winning the DP World Tour Championship tournament.Besides Swenson,they are Justin Rose and Graeme McDowell.
1.Henrik Stenson SWE -12
2.Alejandro Canizares ESP -11
3.Marcus Fraser AUS -8
3.Victor Dubuisson FRA -8
5.Kiradech Aphibarnrat THA -7
5.Ian Poulter ENG -7
5.Justin Rose ENG -7
5.Jonas Blixt SWE -7
9.Peter Hanson SWE -8
9.Francesco Molinari ITA -8
9.Rory McIlroy NIR -8
21.Graeme McDowell NIR -4
47.Peter Uihlein USA +2
Meanwhile,on the PGA Tour of Australasia,Australian sport hero Adam Scott leads the Talisker Australian Masters at Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Victoria after three rounds with his -14.American star Matt Kuchar is in sixth place at -9.*
The New York Knicks were off Friday after losing to the Houston Rockets 106-103 at Madison Square Garden on Thursday,their eigth staright loss to the Rockets.This was despite Carmelo Anthony's amazing 45 points and 10 rebounds.The Rockets were led by James Harden with his 36 points.Chandler Parsons conributed 22 points,and Jeremy Lin 21,to the Houston victory.
The Knicks are near the bottom of the table with their 3-5 record,but the season is just getting started.

Scottish Open Golf;Popocatepetl Volcano

The Scottish Open is underway at Castle Stuart Golf Links,Inverness.The tournament is on Scotland's Northeast coast along the Moray Firth,looking across to Black Isle and the town of Fortrose.It is an important practice session for next weekend's Open Championship at Muirfield. Phil Mickelson shot a second round eight under par 70 at Castle Stuart Friday,tying for 13th place on the leader board and staying in contention.Fellow American Peter Uihlein did even better with his eleven under par 66 for second place.Uihlein won earlier in the season on the European Tour,and his chances for a second victory certainly looked excellent as of Friday's round. Mickelson got himself out of trouble several times with his much-admired bunker skills.A classic flop shot out of a hazard or rough is pure Mickelson.He seems to be at his best in such difficult situations,excelling at the most challenging moments. It is Mickelson's 11th Scottish Open.His best finish to date was second place at Loch Lomond in 2007. The top ten on Friday were as follows: Christopher Doak(SCO) -12 Peter Uihlein(USA) -11 Matthew Southgate(ENG) -11 Ross Fisher(ENG) -11 Joachim B Hansen(DEN) -11 Henrik Stenson(SWE) -10 Simon Khan(ENG) -10 Lorenzo Gagli(ITA) -10 James Morrison(ENG) -10 Victor Dubuisson(FRA) -10 Mexico's snowy Popocatepetl volcano,about forty miles from the capital,Mexico City, continued to send up a four mile high cloud of ash and steam Friday,coating nearby communities with ash and closing Puebla International Airport,about 20 miles from the eruption. Several airlines have been canceling flights to the area as a precaution.In communities near the mountain,water may not be used for drinking or bathing,since it comes from snowmelt on the mountain,which is 17,930 feet high,or 5465 meters. Update:Phil Mickelson fired off six birdies in the third round of the Scottish Open on Saturday,his excellent 14 under par 66 lifting him from 19th to a tie for 2nd place,two shots behind leader Henrik Stenson at -16.It was vintage Phil,momentum taking hold once he started to roll.At one point,he made four birdies in an hour.