The Washington Post - USA (2022-05-23)

D2 EZ M2 THE WASHINGTON POST.MONDAY, MAY 23 , 2022

AUTO RACING

Verstappen benefits

from teammate’s assist

N othing w as going right for
Max Verstappen a t the S panish
Grand Prix: The wind had blown
his car o ff c ourse, his Red B ull
was s truggling, and t op rival
Charles Leclerc seemed headed
for a sure victory in Montmelo.
His fortunes turned w hen
Leclerc l ost power a nd h is Ferrari
suddenly sputtered to a near s top.
Then Verstappen’s o wn Red
Bull team i ntervened by o rdering
Sergio Pérez to g et o ut of
Verstappen’s way. T he reigning
Formula One champion went
from minimizing damage S unday
to winning the race and
reclaiming t he points l ead.
“Not an easy start to the race,
but w e turned i t around,”
Verstappen said after his fourth
win o f the season, third
consecutive.
Then the Dutchman thanked
Pérez, w ho might have won
himself b ut settled for second
when Red B ull issued team
orders.
“He is a g reat t eammate,”
Verstappen said.
Pérez took o ver the lead after
Leclerc, who started from the

pole and led t he f irst 27 laps, lost power. But with 17 l aps remaining, Red B ull t old h im to get out of Verstappen’s way. “It’s unfair b ut okay,” said Pérez, w ho was denied the chance to race for his third career F1 victory. The stakes were too high f or Red B ull and Verstappen, who trailed Leclerc by 19 p oints a head of the r ace but now h olds a six- point advantage in defense of h is first world championship. Pérez, who registered the fastest lap i n Sunday’s race, i s third in t he standings and 1 9 points b ehind Leclerc. “I am happy for t he t eam, b ut we need to speak later,” Pérez told his team by radio after the 1-2 Red Bull finish.... Scott Dixon used a breathtaking run of more than 234 mph to post t he f astest Indianapolis 500 pole run in history. T he New Zealander w ill lead the f ield to green in “ The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” for the f ifth time i n his career.

PRO FOOTBALL Jadeveon Clowney i s running it back w ith Myles Garrett a nd the B rowns. The free agent defensive end, who revived h is career last season

with Cleveland, agreed to r e-sign with the t eam for 2022, a person familiar with the deal told t he Associated P ress. Clowney, w ho had nine sacks while p laying o pposite Garrett, will sign a one-year contract worth up to $11 million, according to the person, who spoke o n the c ondition of anonymity because the team has not announced t he agreement. The Browns had remained optimistic — and cautiously confident — a bout bringing back Clowney. The 29-year-old and 20 14 N o. 1 overall p ick h ad h is most sacks since 2 018 with Houston while playing in 14 g ames last season for C leveland. He signed a one- year, $10 million deal with incentives l ast April with the Browns.

HOCKEY Sweden p icked up i ts f ifth win in six games at t he world championship by beating Norway, 7-1, in group play as Switzerland s tayed unbeaten and Germany extended its winning run in Tampere, F inland. Dallas Stars f orward Jacob Peterson l ed the w ay f or Sweden with two goals and o ne assist, while Rasmus Asplund of t he

Buffalo Sabres also scored t wo goals. D etroit Red Wings goaltender Magnus Hellberg stopped 19 o f 20 s hots as Sweden returned t o winning ways a day after a 3 -2 o vertime loss t o the United S tates. Germany is o n a five-game winning streak a fter beating Kazakhstan, 5-4, but i t was t he fourth one-goal game in that run. Yasin Ehliz scored i n the third period t o restore Germany’s l ead after K azakhstan had r ecovered from 4-2 down. Germany is w ithout Tim Stutzle a fter t he Ottawa Senators forward w as scratched for t he rest of the t ournament Sunday with what the team c alled a minor knee injury he picked up against France on Monday.

HORSE RACING Twelve h ours before Early Voting won t he Preakness, Kentucky Derby champion Rich Strike was b ack o n the track a t Churchill Downs to begin preparations for the June 11 Belmont Stakes. After impressing with a strong workout, R ich S trike remains o n track f or the third leg of the Triple Crown. Tr ainer Eric Reed confirmed to t he Associated Press the p lan is “ absolutely” still to run

DIGEST

Rich Strike in t he B elmont. But t here won’t b e a showdown between the surprise Derby champion a nd the Preakness winner. Early Voting’s o wner and trainer confirmed the colt w ill bypass the Belmont; they plan to run him t his summer w ith t he ultimate goal of getting him r eady for the $ 1.25 million Tr avers Stakes at S aratoga Race Course in Upstate New York o n Aug. 27. Owner Seth Klarman and trainer Chad Brown cast d oubt on the B elmont minutes a fter Early Voting held off favorite Epicenter to win t he 1 3/ 16 -mile

Preakness, citing the mile-and-a- half distance as an obstacle.

COLLEGES No. 7 Virginia beat No. 8 Kentucky, 4 -0, in t he N CAA men’s tennis team championship in Champaign, Ill., to capture its fifth title. The Cavaliers (28-5) finished the s eason o n a 23-match winning streak. Virginia’s other championships came in 20 13, 20 15, 20 16 and 2017. — From news services and staff reports

TELEVISION AND RADIO MLB 7 p.m. Los Angeles Dodgers at Washington » MASN2, WJFK (106.7 FM) 7 p.m. Baltimore at New York Yankees » MASN, WIYY (97.9 FM) 7:20 p.m. Philadelphia at Atlanta » MLB Network NBA PLAYOFFS 8:30 p.m. Eastern Conference finals, Game 4: Miami at Boston » WJLA (Ch. 7), WMAR (Ch. 2) STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS 7 p.m. Eastern Conference semifinal, Game 4: Florida at Tampa Bay » TNT 9:30 p.m. Western Conference semifinal, Game 4: Colorado at St. Louis » TNT TENNIS 5 a.m. ATP/WTA: French Open, first round » Tennis Channel HOCKEY 9:20 a.m. IIHF World Championship, Group B: United States vs. Czech Republic » NHL Network 1:20 p.m. IIHF World Championship, Group A: Canada vs. Denmark » NHL Network WOMEN’S COLLEGE GOLF 5 p.m. NCAA individual championship » Golf Channel

nothing like the long-locomotive style of Thomas, who won the 20 17 PGA at Quail Hollow in Charlotte via a more convention- al comeback, that from an open- ing 73 on Thursday to three rounds in the 60 s. “I was very calm today,” Thom- as said. “I was very calm in the playoff. I w as calm the last couple [of regulation] holes. I felt like I could do what I wanted to do, which is really all I could ask for.” Certain shots gave him “a full- body-chills type of feeling,” such as his 8-iron to the green on the harsh No. 18 in regulation that gave him a birdie chance he couldn’t quite convert. He h ad begun going boisterous from way back mid-round when he played as a disappointing af- terthought, following the bum- mer of a 74 o n Saturday that led to a helpful pep talk from caddie Jim “Bones” Mackay. He birdied No. 9 with an 11-footer with no- body really looking. His chip from 64 feet on No. 11 went slamming into the hole, bringing him to 3 under. His 17-footer on No. 12 took a merry little trip around the lip before complying. He birdied No. 17 to boot and got to 5 under without any holes left for catching Pereira. Then the ghouls of golf did speak — memorably.

his way toward No. 18, toward 75 and toward unforgettable. Young, the New Yorker whose ranking has blossomed from 1,510th two years ago to 264 th one year ago to 38 th by Sunday, looked conten- tious until his three-putt from 30 feet on No. 16 wreaked a double bogey. He finished in a tie for third at 4 under and said, “We had a good time for the most part.” Fitzpatrick, by far the most experienced in his 28 th major with one top-10, faded off even- tually with a 73 built on three back-nine bogeys. He finished in a tie for fifth at 3 under and said, “It’s tough obviously to take.” Zalatoris, already a budding presence with four major top- 10 s in eight tries and a second-place finish at his first Masters in 2021, took the nutty a dventure route. “I fought like crazy all day,” he said. He spent ample time at a cart path in front of a thick, handsome bush on No. 6 and down by a creek in tall grass on No. 12. He looked in, and then he looked out, and then he looked in when he made two steely putts, a birdie of just under eight feet on No. 17 a nd a par of just over eight feet on No. 18. With that, he was at 5 under, and then with Pereira’s falter, he had a playoff berth and momentum. Yet his momentum was

have enough memories to howl from the corner of his brain. Then he had his march to No. 18, an unlikely leader from an unlikely golfing country seeking a par at the toughest hole on the course through four days. Then he had something only a psychopath could cheer. “I mean, I wish I could do it again,” he said thereafter. For so long, they had been up ahead: Mito and Will and Camer- on and Matt. Their ages were 27, 25, 25 and 27, deepening a recent PGA Tour theme of youth grow- ing up fast and ready to behave like the seasoned. Two of them (Zalatoris and Cameron Young) went to Wake Forest together. At around 3 in the afternoon, they had not so much broken away as others had broken beneath them, and there figured to be a winner coming from Pereira at 9 under, Zalatoris at 7 under or Young and Englishman Matt Fitzpatrick at 6 under. Occasional golf observ- ers and other channel-flippers might have been getting to know them. Hail to the lads. Well, how absurd that the eventual t op score would turn out to be 5 under. Pereira, in a lofty spot for just his second major, bogeyed Nos. 3, 7, 8, 12 and 14 but birdied Nos. 5 and 13 as he made

not pinpoint that Thomas’s clam-
ber from seven shots down at
dawn tied him for the PGA Cham-
pionship record alongside John
Mahaffey in 1978 at Oakmont.
What they absolutely will re-
member, human nature being
human nature, is how the
1 00th-ranked player in the world
(Pereira) reached the 72 nd hole
(No. 18) with a one-shot lead (at
6 under) and an absence of fear
(driver in hands). They will re-
member how Pereira’s drive did
look sick as it strayed to the right,
hopped up over an embankment
beside the creek and plunged
right in.
They will remember Pereira’s
score from there — a REM night-
mare of a double bogey that
featured a chip from off one side
of the green to off another side —
and how that dropped him from
6 under to 4 under, left Thomas
and Zalatoris to square off from
5 under and put Pereira among
golf ’s rich volumes of horror sto-
ries.
The man led by three at 9 un-
der at the outset and held on
gamely, if shakily and with some
par saves. He would see a 12-foot
putt for birdie o n No. 17 s top right
at the door of the cup and a
two-shot lead, as if he would not

PGA FROM D1

Thomas beats Zalatoris in a playoff to win the PGA

Spirit at Pride Fr iday, 7 p.m., CBS Sports Network

BY STEVEN GOFF

From opposite ends of the continent, the Washington Spirit and OL Reign have become quite familiar with one another of late, irritatingly so. They already have clashed a disproportionate num- ber of times — three in the National Women’s Soccer League regular season, once in the playoffs and in a preseason tourna- ment. After a 0-0 draw Sunday in Seattle, though, they might not cross paths again this year. Only a postseason meeting this fall would reunite them. “For both of our sakes, we’re good to have a break until Octo- ber or so,” Washington Coach Kris Ward said with a laugh. Despite being outplayed at Lumen Field, the Spirit will claim bragging rights after three regulation victories, one triumph in a shootout and this draw. “I’m not even going to lie: I don’t want to see them again,” left back Camryn Biegalski said. “I even have people texting me, ‘I feel like you g uys play every other week.’ ” The Spirit will undoubtedly have a hard t ime f orgetting a bout Rose Lavelle and Megan Rapi- noe, among others. “I was thinking the other day: When do we play Louisville?” Ward said. “When do we play Kansas City? Houston was in the hotel with us in Portland [this past week]. When do we even play Houston? I’m not even sure.” Sunday’s draw also completed a stretch of six matches in 23 days and a Pacific Northwest swing that began with a 1-1 draw against the Portland Thorns on Wednesday. OL Reign (0-1-3) failed to capitalize on big advan- tages in shots (20-7 ), shots on goal (8-2) and corner kicks (7-3) as its winless streak against the Spirit in all competitions grew to 10 games. Given their heavy early schedule, the reigning champions were relieved to catch their breath. “We got a really good boost from everyone who came off the bench,” Ward said. “It was defi- nitely needed. I was hoping we had a little more in us, but it was just a struggle.” The Spirit welcomed back two of its most important players, right back Kelley O’Hara and defensive midfielder Andi Sulli- van. O’Hara had been sidelined since the Challenge Cup final May 7 with a hamstring ailment, while Sullivan (calf) hadn’t played since U. S. national team duty in early April. “It’s been really hard to watch from the stands, especially when we’ve been in tough stretches of games,” Sullivan said. “So many players are putting in 90 [minutes] after 90 and battle after battle, and it’s been so awesome to watch. At the same time, I’m like, ‘Man, I wish I were out t here having their back and helping them push through.’ ” With Lavelle orchestrating in the heart of the attack and Sofia Huerta serving dangerous balls from the right flank, OL Reign controlled most of the match. Aside from Veronica Latsko’s 1 8-yard bid off the c rossbar in the first half, though, genuine scor-

ing opportunities were limited. The Spirit labored to build possession, relying almost exclu- sively on transition. The hosts neutralized Washington’s three impact players, Trinity Rodman, Ashley Sanchez and Ashley Hatch. With the addition of Rapinoe at the start of the second half, OL Reign’s pressure intensified. Washington looked ready to crack. “We started the second half horrendously,” Ward said, “and that put us underwater much longer than we needed to be.” OL Reign, though, was off-tar- get, and Spirit goalkeeper Au- brey Kingsbury held her ground, most notably in the 68th minute with a kick save on Ally Watt’s bid. “We just had to put our heads down and grind,” Biegalski said. “We haven’t had the easiest schedule, but we’re making it work t o the best of our ability and taking care of our bodies.” Notes: Washington will r eturn east but remain in road mode, traveling to Orlando for Friday’s match.... Hatch left the game in the second half because she did not feel well, Ward said. She was a little under the weather the past few days, he added, then took a blow to the head in the first half. She passed a concussion test and was scheduled to undergo addi- tional evaluation.... Midfielders Jordan Baggett (concussion) and Dorian Bailey (cheekbone) remain sidelined. l WAVE 1, COURAGE 0: Alex Morgan scored in the 41st minute — her s ixth goal of the season — as expansion San Diego (4-1-0) remained atop the standings by defeating host North Carolina, which is winless in three matches since it won the Challenge Cup. l RED STARS 4, PRIDE 2: Mallory Pugh had two goals and an assist, Sarah Griffith and Bi- anca St-Georges also scored and Alyssa Naeher saved a penalty kick for Chicago (2-1-0) in Orlan- do (2-2-1). l RACING LOUISVILLE 1, GOTHAM FC 0: Lauren Milliet scored in the 13th minute and Katie Lund made four saves to lift Louisville (2-1-2) over Gotham FC (1-2-0) in Harrison, N.J.

In yet another rematch,

Spirit fights for a draw

SPIRIT 0, OL REIGN 0

TED S. WARREN/ASSOCIATED PRESS Spirit goalkeeper Aubrey Kingsbury held her ground when challenged by OL Reign.

BY CHUCK CULPEPPER

tulsa — When considering the
horrors of 72 nd holes at major
tournaments that reveal golf ’s
limitless capacity for cruelty, Mito
Pereira won’t rank among the
most graphic. He did not roll up
his trousers and wade into the
water like Jean Van de Velde at
the 1999 British Open. He did not
send one caroming grotesquely
off a tent like Phil Mickelson at
the 2006 U. S. Open. He did not
three-putt from 12 feet like Dustin
Johnson at the 2015 U. S. Open.
He merely went to the 18 th tee
with a one-shot lead in his sec-
ond-ever major and hit a drive he
cannot understand toward a dou-
ble bogey he must overcome.
“Yeah, low and straight,” he
said. “I’m really confident with
that one. I don’t know what hap-
pened.”
As it left the club and took its
dastardly route, Pereira had not
even considered the creek over
yonder off the right of the fairway
because, well, why should he? He
had thought himself about to win
because, well, why should he not?
Then the shot went awry, all
wretched and confusing, until it
sat smack amid the sliver of water
like some unruly little puppy.
“You want to win a golf tourna-
ment,” fresh champion Justin
Thomas said in the early evening
of Sunday as everyone tried to
process what they thought they
had seen. “You don’t want some-
one to lose it. And I think, I mean,
I had many, not exactly like that,
but I have had times in my career
when I feel like I’ve let a tourna-
ment get away. And, I mean, it’s
brutal.”
The hard, kind words tucked in

that would be “not exactly like that.” Up to then, the 27-year-old Chilean ranked 100 th in the world had held on to a lead all bumpy day long, be it by three (at the outset), in a tie (at times) or by one (at No. 18), which came just after a near-birdie on the lip at No. 17 t hat could keep a person up nights. This fearless lover of mo- torcycles and fishing had sur- prised all but maybe himself, and he had introduced himself to many. A steady riser who got his tour card in June 2021 by winning thrice on the minor league Korn Ferry Tour, Pereira had stayed in a house with his wife, Antonia, and others including chum and fellow Chilean Joaquin Niemann, a 2 3-year-old ranked 17 th in the world who won on tour this year at mighty Riviera in Los Angeles. Appearing on CBS as Pereira played his back nine, Niemann

told reporter Amanda Renner that around the house, “I try to act like this is not even happen- ing.” Even the 3 over for the round Pereira carried to No. 18 should have impressed, for this reason: “I mean, I thought I was nervous the first day. Then I thought I was nervous the second day. Then I thought I was nervous the third day, but the fourth day was terri- ble. I mean, this morning was tough. I don’t k now; I mean, I just played it through and actually had a one-shot lead on 18 and that was pretty good — and sad to hit it in the water.” Now it had joined the stream bed in the shallow water, only the fourth ball to venture there all day on the course’s toughest hole for the week. “The 18 th is one of the toughest finishing holes in all golf,” runner-up Will Zalatoris said. Now Pereira played it in a

harrowing way, with a drop and a third shot needed from 190 yards. That o ne went over the green and onto the back fringe. A fourth shot went across the wicked-fast green and just over that ledge. A fifth shot, putted, pulled up four feet short. A sixth shot plunked down as Pereira plunked down from 6 under to 4 under, from first place to tied for third. To Renner on CBS he said, “Maybe you have so much pressure on you that you don’t even know what you’re doing” — and he laughed somewhat. Then a player down seven shots at dawn and eight at one point would win and would reveal the two had never crossed paths this week. “He played unbe- lievable golf this week,” Thomas said. “There’s no reason to hang his head. Yeah, I never saw him this week. I don’t r eally know him that well. I never got to talk to him or anything. But he played great.”

Pereira joins the hall of 72nd-hole major horrors

MATT YORK/ASSOCIATED PRESS Mito Pereira had a one-shot lead on the final hole, but a double bogey followed after he found water.

Chilean had PGA crown in his grasp. Then he stepped to the final tee.

The Washington Post - USA (2022-05-23)

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