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."

PGA Playoffs Just Ahead

The Wyndham Championship in Greensboro,North Carolina is the last chance for many golfers to qualify for the PGA Playoffs for the FedEx Cup,which begin next Thursday in Paramus,New Jersey.India's Arjun Atwal cannot qualify because a lack of sufficient earnings caused him to lose his PGA card,but he nonetheless shares the lead at the Wyndham with American Brandt Snedeker at -12.Lucus Glover,John Rollins and Kevin Streelman are next at -11.To qualify for the Playoffs,they must rank 125 or better in points from designated tournaments and be PGA members.
The Phiadelphia Phillies bested the Washington Nationals at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia tonight,winning a pitcher's duel 1-0.It was the 101st consecutive sellout crowd at Citizens.Despite a season pockmarked with injuries,the Phillies persist in contention for a playoff spot,especially as a wild card candidate.
The market fell short this week,ending up in the red for the year so far.Poor manufacturing data from the Mid-Atlantic region and a surprise uptick in jobless claims discouraged stock investors and pumped up the bond trade.Results were mixed in the futures market this evening,with the S&P futures down 1.00 and the Dow futures at -33.0,while the NASDAQ futures scored 5.50 and bonds also rose.