GOLF

PGA: Rickie Fowler returned to the spotlight in the foothills above Las Vegas with his best round in three years, a 9-under 63 that gave him a two-shot lead over Rory McIlroy going into the final round of the CJ Cup at Summit.

Fowler hasn’t had an opportunity this good since his last victory on the PGA Tour in the 2019 Waste Management Phoenix Open, and it doesn’t figure to be easy at The Summit Club with all the low scores it has been yielding.

McIlroy started the day nine shots out of the lead, but ran off five straight birdies on the front nine and then took care of the scoring holes, closing with a 7-iron into 20 feet for eagle on the par-5 18th hole for a 62.

Fowler, who has plunged to No. 128 in the world rankings, birdied three of his last five holes and was at 21-under 195.

• Casey Martin, who successfully sued the PGA Tour for the right to use a cart because of a rare circulatory disease, had his right leg amputated in what he told Golf Digest was always going to be “my destiny.”

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The magazine, which has been in touch with Martin over the last few weeks, reported on its website that he had surgery Friday and was recovering at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. His brother said doctors feel it went well enough that Martin has a good shot at an effective prosthesis.

Martin, 49, suffered from Klippel-Trenaunay-Weber syndrome, which restricted circulation in the lower portion of his right leg and made it virtually impossible for him to walk 18 holes. He still managed to practice and play well enough to earn a PGA Tour card for the 2000 season. His lawsuit citing the Americans with Disabilities Act made it all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, which voted 7-2 in his favor in a 2001 decision.

Martin, a teammate of Tiger Woods on Stanford’s national championship team, has been the head golf coach at Oregon since 2006. He qualified for the U.S. Open in 2012.

EUROPEAN TOUR: Laurie Canter is in line for his first European Tour win, taking a three-shot lead at the Andalucía Masters heading into the final round in Sotogrande, Spain.

Canter carded 4-under 67, making eight birdies and four bogeys. That left him 7 under after three days at the Real Club Valderrama. The closest Canter has come to a tour win were his three second-place finishes in the past two years, most recently at the PGA Championship in England last month.

Countryman Matt Fitzpatrick is three shots back, followed by American David Lipsky another stroke behind.

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At 7-under 64 for the day, Lipsky tied the lowest round in the history of the event. Sergio Garcia in 2018 and Daniel Brooks in 2017 also hit that mark. Lipsky bogeyed the first hole then reeled off eight birdies without a flaw.

CHAMPIONS TOUR: Miguel Angel Jimenez eagled the par-5 17th in a 4-under 68 for a share of the second-round lead with Alex Cejka in the SAS Championship at Cary, North Carolina.

Cejka shot a 67 in a round delayed 90 minutes late in the afternoon because of rain to match Jimenez at 9-under 135.

Bernhard Langer (66) was a stroke back along with Scott Dunlap (68) and first-round leader Scott Parel (71).

TENNIS

BNP PARIBAS OPEN: Nikoloz Basilashvili beat American Taylor Fritz 7-6 (5), 6-3 to set up a final against Cameron Norrie, ensuring that the tournament in Indian Wells, California, will crown its first men’s winner ranked outside the top 25 since 2010.

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Norrie defeated Grigor Dimitrov 6-2, 6-2 in the first semifinal. Basilashvili needed 1 hour, 41 minutes to get by Fritz, who grew up in the San Diego area and was the clear favorite of the fans.

Former world No. 1 Victoria Azarenka plays 21st-seeded Paula Badosa of Spain in the women’s final Sunday.

SOCCER

MLS: Ignacio Aliseda scored in the 88th minute as the Chicago Fire tied the MLS-leading New England Revolution, 2-2, in Foxborough, Massachusetts.

New England (20-4-6) took a 2-1 lead in the 76th minute on a goal by Gustavo Bou. Wilfrid Kaptoum, a 25-year-old who signed with the Revolution last December, scored his first MLS goal in the 47th minute.

ENGLAND: Leicester consigned Manchester United to a first away loss in the Premier League in nearly two years, thanks to late goals by Jamie Vardy and Patson Daka in a wild 4-2 victory.

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• Roberto Firmino scores a hat trick and Mohamed Salah produced another goal-of-the-season contender to headline Liverpool’s 5-0 win at Watford.

• Bernardo Silva and Kevin De Bruyne scored as Manchester City claimed a hard-fought 2-0 win over Burnley.

SPAIN: Real Sociedad moved into first place in La Liga, as substitute Julen Lobete scored a 90th-minute winner to edge Mallorca 1-0 despite playing the entire second half with 10 men.

The victory moved Sociedad three points clear of Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid, who had their games this weekend postponed to give more rest time to players returning from international duty in South America.

Sociedad has lost only once this season, falling to Barcelona in its opener in August.

GERMANY: Erling Haaland scored twice as Borussia Dortmund beat Mainz 3-1 to move to the top of the Bundesliga.

Haaland blasted a penalty straight down the middle in the 54th minute and sealed the result in injury time. Dortmund is two points ahead of Bayern Munich and Bayer Leverkusen, who play Sunday.


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