Colts' O-line could be without starters Saturday, Johnson
9/10/2010 7:03:46 PM
Saturday had knee surgery August 10 to remove a loose body with a likely recovery time set at 2-to-6 weeks, although, the four-time Pro Bowl selection hoped to be ready for the opener in Houston.
Johnson, meanwhile, is dealing with a foot injury while wide receiver Anthony Gonzalez is also questionable with a balky back.
Tennessee disciplines Pearl amid NCAA probe
9/10/2010 5:23:24 PM
The university announced Friday a reduction in pay and suspension of off- campus recruiting duties for Pearl and his coaching staff in light of admissions by Pearl less than 24 hours after the Knoxville News Sentinel reported of the investigation.
The paper went on to indicate that impermissible phone calls to recruits were at the center of the probe, and the university announced Friday a quick decision of its own along with an emotional apology from Pearl himself at a hastily-called press conference.
"I've made some serious mistakes, and for that I'm truly sorry. I provided incorrect and misleading information to the NCAA," Pearl said. "I've learned some invaluable lessons...after I provided the false and misleading information, subsequently I went back and corrected the record. I learned that it's not okay to tell the truth most of the time, but that you have to tell the truth all of the time.
"I have no tolerable answer for why I didn't tell the truth the first time. I take full responsibility for my actions and those of my coaching staff. I apologize from the bottom of my heart that I let everybody down."
The Sentinel went on to detail the penalties against Pearl, including a reduction of $1.5 million from his contract that runs through June of 2015. It also said a retention bonus of $500,000, due in November 2012, will be delayed until the end of his contract.
In addition, Pearl will be suspended from all off-campus recruiting for one year beginning on September 24.
Similar sanctions were handed down for the rest of the coaching staff.
Coyotes re-sign Hanzal
9/10/2010 7:09:07 PM
Last season with Phoenix he appeared in 81 games and posted 11 goals and 22 assists.
Over three season in the NHL, all with Phoenix, the 23-year-old has totaled 30 goals and 69 assists in 227 games.
"We are happy to have re-signed Marty and have him in Phoenix for the start of training camp next week," said Phoenix general manager Don Maloney. "He is an important player for us who plays critical minutes against the best opposing forwards."
Hanzal was Phoenix's first-round pick, 17th overall, in the 2005 draft.
Tigers' Guillen to undergo knee surgery
9/10/2010 5:50:41 PM
In a statement, the club said Guillen was examined by Dr. Russ Warren at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York on Thursday after continued left knee soreness that has kept him out of the lineup since August 17.
Dr. Warren recommended a diagnostic surgical procedure on the knee that's tentatively scheduled for September 17. The team said Guillen is expected to make a full recovery for the 2011 campaign.
Guillen was activated off the 15-day disabled on August 9 after being sidelined for just over two weeks with a strained right calf before experiencing the knee problems.
In 68 games this season, Guillen batted .273 with six homers and 34 runs batted in.
Wi joins Kuchar in lead at BMW Championship
9/10/2010 7:10:44 PM
Still battling an illness that left him almost without a voice the day before, Kuchar rebounded from four early bogeys to shoot a one-over 72.
It took Kuchar eight more strokes to get around Cog Hill's Dubsdread course than it did Thursday, when the FedEx Cup leader took the first-round lead with a 64.
But Kuchar was just good enough to keep a piece of first place with the South Korean Wi at six-under 136.
Australia's Marc Leishman had the best score of the day on a course that has been giving the field fits, shooting a 65 to climb within one shot of the lead at five-under 137.
English stars Ian Poulter (72), Paul Casey (69) and Luke Donald (70) led a five-way tie at four-under 138 that also included Retief Goosen (71) and Dustin Johnson (70).
Tiger Woods remained out of the mix after shooting a 72 that left him nine shots back at three-over 145 -- and looking at a possible ouster from the playoffs.
In the midst of a swing change, Woods blamed Friday's 72 on poor putting. He had three birdies, but also two bogeys and a double-bogey at No. 5, where he drove into the rough and knocked his approach shot into a greenside bunker.
He had a 10-foot putt for bogey, but missed it.
"I made nothing today. That pretty much sums it up. I hit the ball a hell of a lot better than my score indicates," said Woods, the defending champion.
Phil Mickelson, meanwhile, said he hit more good shots Friday than in any other round this year. But Lefty was derailed by three errant tee shots that cost him four strokes on the way to a 71.
Mickelson, who was seven back at one-over par, mixed five birdies with three bogeys and a double-bogey, which he took on the 18th hole after hooking his drive out of bounds.
He also hit a tee shot into the water at No. 7 and another one out of bounds at No. 15. Mickelson took a bogey on both holes.
"I played really good golf the first two days, and I'm over par," Mickelson said. And then he joked: "I just don't think I'm good enough to play this course."
He hasn't been good enough to take the No. 1 ranking from Woods and it remains an uphill battle for him this week.
Wi took the early lead in the morning wave of tee times despite making a triple-bogey at the par-four 16th, where he knocked his drive into the hazard left of the fairway.
He bounced back with a birdie at the 17th, his sixth birdie of the round, and was trying not to look too far ahead as he chases a spot in the Tour Championship in two weeks.
The playoff finale, which begins Sept. 23 after a rare one-week break in the schedule, is reserved for only the top 30 players in the FedEx Cup standings at the end of this week.
Wi entered the week 37th in the playoff standings, one of the many players on the bubble. Because there is no cut this week -- the field is only 70 players -- he has two more rounds to play to secure his spot.
"I've been in tournaments where you play 72 holes and there's no cut, and I've caught myself being really impatient," said Wi. "So this week I know I was close to top 30, and for me to play well ... I knew that I had to stay present and just play one hole at a time. Actually I wrote that down on my pin sheet every day so I look at it if I were to get ahead of myself."
Chasing Wi's clubhouse number, Kuchar got off to a wretched start with four bogeys in his first six holes. The last one came courtesy of a rare three-putt at No. 6 from one of the tour's steadiest putters.
Still, Kuchar climbed all the way back. He pulled within one shot of Wi with a 20-foot birdie putt at the 13th, his second birdie in a row. He reached the green in two shots at the par-five 15th and two-putted from 42 feet for a birdie, then took a one-shot lead on Wi with a seven-foot birdie putt at the 16th that got him to seven-under -- the score he ended the first round with.
But Kuchar made a bogey from the rough at the 17th, falling into a tie with Wi heading into the weekend.
Kuchar saw a doctor for an illness that has left him feeling "terrible" through 36 holes, saying he was prescribed antibiotics for what was either a viral or bacterial malady.
"It's probably the worst feeling I've had out here," Kuchar said. "It was a struggle, but I learned young you never quit. Fortunately I had a few putts go in and made a respectable round out of it."
Woods is the defending FedEx Cup champion after winning it last year for the second time in three seasons. But he entered the week 51st in the FedEx Cup standings and will likely need a top-five finish to make the 30-player field for the Tour Championship.
"I'm just trying to post good numbers, hit good shots, place the ball accordingly on the correct side of the fairways, correct side of the greens, and go from there," said Woods.
The five-time BMW winner has now carded back-to-back rounds above par after entering the tournament with 11 consecutive scores of 69 or better at Cog Hill.
In fact, until he started this week with scores of 73 and 72, only six of Woods' previous 44 professional rounds at the BMW Championship were over par.
NOTES: Kuchar won the playoff opener two weeks ago at The Barclays and has held the FedEx Cup points lead ever since...Wi is seeking his first PGA Tour win.
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