GOLF

Falmouth Country Club professional Shawn Warren shot 5-under on the back nine to rally for one-shot win the title Wednesday at the New England PGA Section Championship in Bedford, New Hampshire.

Warren, a 34-year-old Portland resident, trailed second-round leader David Bennett of Vermont, by four strokes after both players birdied the par-3 13th hole at Manchester Country Club. Warren closed his round with three more birdies. He tied Bennett with a birdie at No. 17 and won the tournament with a birdie on the 18th hole, finishing the three-round tournament at 8 under.

Warren also won the NEPGA Section Championship in 2013.

By finishing in the top 12, Warren is assured a berth in the 2020 PGA Professional Championship in Austin, Texas, April 26-29, where the top 20 finishers qualify for the 2020 PGA Championship, one of golf’s four majors. Warren played in the 2018 event, but did not make the cut.

BASEBALL

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OLYMPICS: Four-time World Series champion Joe Girardi will manage Team USA at an Olympic qualifying tournament in November, hoping to guide the squad to a spot at the 2020 Summer Games in Tokyo.

USA Baseball said the rest of the coaching staff for the Premier12 competition in Mexico will be announced later.

Girardi steered the New York Yankees to the 2009 title and also played for them when they won three championships.

The former catcher started as a major league manager with the Marlins in 2006 and led the Yankees from 2008-17.

TENNIS

ROGERS CUP: Serena Williams won her first match since losing the Wimbledon final, beating Elise Mertens of Belgium 6-3, 6-3 in the second round in Toronto.

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The 37-year-old Williams has won the event three times, all in Toronto. She will next face Russia’s Ekaterina Alexandrova – a 6-4, 6-3 winner over Zhang Shuai of China.

Wimbledon champion Simona Halep of Romania beat American qualifier Jennifer Brady 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 (5).

Top-seeded Rafael Nadal opened his title defense in the men’s event at Montreal by beating England’s Daniel Evans 7-6 (6), 6-4 in a second-round match delayed by rain three times.

COLLEGES

FOOTBALL: Standardized injury reports will not be implemented this season after the NCAA explored the possibility in response to the rise of legalized sports betting.

The NCAA’s Board of Governors said it still supports the association’s rules prohibiting athletes and school administrators from wagering on sports or providing information to people associated with gambling.

But the board concluded an injury or availability report across college football is not viable.

Clemson’s national championship football program was flagged for eight secondary NCAA violations during a yearlong period from July 2018 through this past June.

None of the violations were considered major and all issues about the penalties have been resolved, according to the school.


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