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The San Jose Sharks re-signed restricted free-agent forward Kevin Labanc to a one-year deal, general manager Doug Wilson announced Monday. Terms were not disclosed.
Labanc, 23, made his case for a new deal with the Sharks last season by registering career highs in goals (17), assists (39), power-play points (20) and game-winning goals (4).
"Kevin took a big step forward in his production last season and has grown into an important part of our team here in San Jose," Wilson said "He's always had a dangerous shot but really stepped into a playmaking role for us last season and improved his 200-foot game as well. We think he still has even more potential to tap into and we're excited to see what he can do with an elevated role with this talented group."
Playing mostly third-line minutes, with Joe Thornton, the 23-year-old Labanc improved his goals and assists over last season in just about the same ice time. His Corsi percentage also stayed solid at 55.8 after a 54.5 campaign in 2017-18.
Labanc's 56 points were good for sixth on the team - tied with 27-year-old Evander Kane, whom the Sharks signed to a seven-year, $49 million deal in May 2018. Labanc added nine points in 20 playoff games.
In his three seasons with the Sharks, Labanc has appeared in 214 NHL games and recorded 116 points with a plus-two rating.
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Feng avoids leaderboards, birdies 72nd hole to break drought
Published in
Golf
Sunday, 07 July 2019 14:55
Shanshan Feng ended her victory drought in style Sunday at the Thornberry Creek Classic.
She beat Ariya Jutanugarn in a final-round duel to remind us all that she isn’t just a former world No. 1 and major champion. She’s still one of the world’s best ball-strikers.
Feng stuck a 7-iron to 3 feet at the last and made birdie to beat Jutanugarn by a shot.
She did this moments after Jutanugarn made birdie at the last in the pairing in front of her, but she didn’t realize she needed to make the putt to win until she looked at a leaderboard at the 18th green.
“Made me a little nervous,” Feng said.
Feng said she religiously avoids looking at leaderboards. She said it creates some awkward but amusing moments.
“I didn't know I was leading the tournament after three days,” she cracked. “My habit is I don't check the scores during the tournament, the whole tournament. Even after the first day, second day, third day, I don't check anything.”
In fact, Feng said, she has holed out her last putt at tournaments before not knowing that she had won.
“A few times, I’ve looked pretty confused,” she said. “That’s happened quite a few times.”
Feng, known for her good humor, said she had a pretty good idea she had a chance to win this week when she saw Sunday’s tee times.
“I was like, `Oh, looks like I'm in the last group, so maybe I’m leading,” she said.
Tied with five players early in the round, including Rolex world No. 1 Sung Hyun Park, Feng pulled away with her trademark iron play, firing at flagsticks in a bogey-free round of 9-under 63. She hit all 18 greens in regulation, leaving herself putts of 3 feet or less on three of the final five holes.
“My ball-striking is always my strength,” said Feng, 29. “But, actually, starting from last year, I kind of lost it a little bit.
“I tried to get more distance off the tees and then, maybe, just messed up the feeling, about controlling the ball. I got that back, so I'm really happy about that.”
The victory was Feng’s 10th LPGA title, but her first in 20 months. She reigned as the world No. 1 for 23 weeks, at the end of 2017 and early into 2018, but she was steadily sliding in the rankings. She missed the cut in all three of the majors this year and was down to No. 26 in the world coming into this week.
“I was kind of a little lost,” she said. “This week, I think I kind of got everything together.”
Feng finished at 29-under overall, the second lowest 72-hole score in relation to par in LPGA history, just two behind the record Sei Young Kim set winning the Thornberry Creek Classic last year.
Tiffany Joh (67) and Amy Yang (65) tied for third, three shots back.
Hyo Joo Kim (64) finished fifth, her eighth top-10 finish in her last 10 starts.
Yealimi Noh, the 17-year-old making her LPGA debut as a pro, closed with a 68 to tie for sixth with the world No. 1 Park (69). Noh, who made it into the field as a Monday qualifier, will get another LPGA start next week. The Marathon Classic announced on the weekend that it extended her a sponsor’s exemption.
Jutanugarn, who swept all the LPGA’s major awards and honors a year ago, looked as if she was going to end her own winless spell and claim her first victory since winning the Ladies Scottish Open 49 weeks ago. She had a one-shot lead on Feng until making bogey at the 15th, where she hooked her tee shot into the edge of a hazard, pitched out, and then failing to get up and down for par after hooking her 6-iron approach into the rough left of the green.
“I didn’t feel comfortable hitting the 3-wood, but I just kept trying,” Jutanugarn said. “
Still, Feng wrestled the lead back from Jutanugarn after carving an 8-iron to 2 feet at the last to make birdie. She was gracious in the end, applauding as she sat aside the 18th green and watched Feng close with her birdie.
“It's a great win, because I think I got my game back, my confidence back,” Feng said. “And I believe that I can win more in the future.”
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After capping a recent run of good results with a convincing win at the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open, Jon Rahm is back inside the top 10 in the latest installment of the Official World Golf Ranking.
Rahm finished T-3 at Pebble Beach and T-2 at Valderrama, but he saved his best for Lahinch where he went 64-62 over the weekend to win by three shots. It's his second win of the year along with the team victory alongside Ryan Palmer at the Zurich Classic, and it lifted the Spaniard from 11th to eighth in the world. After starting the year at No. 6 and falling as far as 13th in recent weeks, he's back in the top 10 for the first time since the Masters.
Rahm wasn't the only player to make a move inside the top 10, as Bryson DeChambeau jumped from eighth to sixth with his T-2 finish at the 3M Open. The biggest jump from that event belonged to winner Matthew Wolff, who rose more than 1,000 spots to No. 135 with a victory in just his third start as a pro.
Collin Morikawa, who joined DeChambeau in a tie for second, went from No. 631 to No. 213 while securing temporary PGA Tour status. Adam Hadwin went from 74th to 63rd after finishing fourth in Minnesota, while Bernd Wiesberger jumped from 134th to 83rd after a T-2 finish in Ireland that also qualified him for The Open.
Brooks Koepka remained world No. 1 for another week after finishing 65th in Minnesota, followed by Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose and Tiger Woods. DeChambeau now sits at sixth, with Francesco Molinari, Rahm, Justin Thomas and Patrick Cantlay rounding out the top 10. Xander Schauffele fell one spot to 11th with Rahm's entry into the top 10.
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With The Open officially on the horizon, a pair of names remain at the top of the betting board for Royal Portrush.
Major magician Brooks Koepka opened as a 6/1 favorite at the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook when odds were released after the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, with Rory McIlroy next in line at 10/1. But the market has drawn them together in recent weeks, with Koepka and McIlroy both now listed as 8/1 co-favorites with the season's final major just a week away. Dustin Johnson, who opened at 12/1, remains at the same odds behind only the co-favorites.
McIlroy famously set the Portrush course record with a 61 at age 16, while Koepka has finished first or second in each of the first three majors this year.
Jon Rahm's win at the Irish Open drew some attention from bettors, as Rahm's odds fell from 20/1 to 16/1 over the weekend. That puts him alongside Tiger Woods, who opened at 12/1 after Pebble Beach and has since drifted slightly from the top spot.
Here's a look at the betting odds on some of the pre-tournament favorites, with the spotlight shifting to Northern Ireland in a matter of days:
8/1: Brooks Koepka, Rory McIlroy
12/1: Dustin Johnson
16/1: Tiger Woods, Jon Rahm
20/1: Francesco Molinari, Justin Rose
25/1: Rickie Fowler, Xander Schauffele, Patrick Cantlay, Tommy Fleetwood
30/1: Justin Thomas, Jason Day, Jordan Spieth, Hideki Matsuyama, Bryson DeChambeau, Adam Scott, Louis Oosthuizen
40/1: Matt Kuchar
50/1: Henrik Stenson, Paul Casey, Graeme McDowell, Gary Woodland, Matt Wallace
60/1: Sergio Garcia, Tony Finau, Shane Lowry, Marc Leishman, Patrick Reed
80/1: Phil Mickelson, Ian Poulter, Webb Simpson, Matthew Fitzpatrick, Rafa Cabrera-Bello
100/1: Danny Willett, Eddie Pepperell, Tyrrell Hatton
125/1: Chez Reavie, Zach Johnson, Kevin Kisner, Brandt Snedeker, Lee Westwood, Martin Kaymer
150/1: Scott Piercy, Abraham Ancer, Bernd Wiesberger, Daniel Berger, Sungjae Im, Russell Knox, Keegan Bradley, Thorbjorn Olesen, Alex Noren, Haotong Li, Branden Grace, Bubba Watson
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R&A announces nearly 40-percent boost to Women's British purse
Published in
Golf
Monday, 08 July 2019 03:22
The R&A announced on Monday that it will increase the purse for next month’s AIG Women’s British Open to $4.5 million, a nearly 40 percent boost.
“This is an important first step, and we know it will take time to move closer to achieving parity with the men’s game,” R&A chief executive Martin Slumbers said. “We will continue to work toward the long-term goal of a sustainable business model, but we can’t do it alone and the support of fans, sponsors and media are all key to achieving that success.”
The Open Championship’s purse this year is $10.75 million.
The AIG Women’s British Open purse is now the second largest in women’s golf, behind the U.S. Women’s Open ($5.5 million).
“We recognized that more needed to be done to elevate the prize fund for this great championship and are pleased that we have been able to make a significant increase this year as part of The R&A’s commitment to women’s golf,” Slumbers said.
The winner of this year’s Women’s British Open will take home $675,000. The event is scheduled for Aug. 1-4 at Woburn Golf Club north of London. Georgia Hall took home $490,000 as last year’s winner.
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Noh, 17, playing Marathon on sponsor's invite after going from Mon. qualifier to T-6
Published in
Golf
Monday, 08 July 2019 06:21
American teenager Yealimi Noh will get another chance to build on her promising LPGA debut as a professional.
With Noh, 17, making a stirring run into contention at the Thornberry Classic last week, the Marathon Classic announced Saturday that she had accepted a sponsor’s exemption to play in its event this week. Noh ended up tying for sixth on Sunday.
“I'm just overall really happy with how I played and how I finished, too,” No said. “It was my goal to be inside the top 10.”
Noh made it into the Thornberry Creek field as a Monday qualifier. As an LPGA non-member, she wasn’t eligible for the top-10 berth into the Marathon Classic that was available to members not already in the Marathon field. The sponsor’s exemption spared Noh having to go through yet another Monday qualifier.
“I missed like five in a row [before making it into Thornberry Creek], even when there weren’t that many people,” Noh said. “So, I was really disappointed, but I knew my game could do better.”
Noh made a bogey at the last Sunday that cost her about $10,000, but she still took home $63,170 in earnings, which would rank her 104th on the LPGA money list, if she were a member. It’s important because she can earn LPGA status if she finishes the year with tour earnings that are equal or greater to the player who finishes the year 40th in money winnings.
Last year, Chella Choi finished 40th in money winnings with $253,217 in earnings.
Noh, from Concord, Calif., won the U.S. Girls’ Junior, the Junior PGA Championship and Canadian Women’s Amateur in consecutive weeks last year. She turned pro back in January and had been playing mostly mini-tour events while trying to Monday qualify for LPGA and Symetra Tour events.
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Liverpool have edged out Europe's elite in their bid to sign Fulham's record-breaking midfielder Harvey Elliott, sources have told ESPN FC.
Paris Saint Germain, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig all had designs on securing the services of the 16-year-old, who became the youngest-ever Premier League player in May.
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Manchester City and Chelsea were among the English clubs to scout the teenage sensation, who opted against remaining at Craven Cottage with sources close to the player having said he has decided his future is best served developing with the European champions.
Elliott will not turn professional until his 17th birthday, which is in April, and the maximum length of contract he can sign with Liverpool will be three years.
His schoolboy association with Fulham ended in June and the Cottagers can expect a weighty compensation fee from Liverpool for the England youth international. Elliott became Fulham's youngest player when he made his debut at Millwall in the Carabao Cup last September at 15 years and 174 days old.
He then broke the Premier League record in May 2019 against Wolves, aged 16 years and 30 days -- the first player born in 2003 to feature in the division.
Fulham captain Tom Cairney said at the time: "He doesn't look out of place and does some bits of magic that everyone says 'wow.'
"His attitude and his belief in himself at such a young age is frightening. He's a tricky winger who plays in the hole. He's got a great football brain, an eye for goal and is a very entertaining player."
Elliott represents an extension of Liverpool's commitment to recruiting hugely talented youngsters domestically and from the continent as seen with their signing of Sepp van den Berg.
The Reds will focus on a policy of retention rather than reconstruction this summer, while snapping up young talents for the future.
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Paris Saint-Germain have issued an official statement condemning Neymar for missing the first day of preseason training amid strong links with a return to Barcelona.
The likes of Kylian Mbappe, Marco Verratti and new signing Ander Herrera were all present on Monday for a number of tests ahead of preparation for the 2019-20 campaign, but the French champions say that Neymar did not report for duty as agreed.
"On Monday 8 July, Neymar was due to return to preseason activities with the PSG senior squad," read the club statement. "PSG notes that Neymar was not in attendance at the agreed time and place."
PSG went on to clarify that Neymar did not have permission to be absent and stated that the Brazil international will be punished.
"This was without the club's prior authorisation," the Ligue 1 giants added. "The club regrets this situation and will therefore take appropriate action."
Neymar's father, who serves as his agent, told Fox Sports Brasil that the club knew that the player would not be able to return to Paris until July 15 due to prior commitments.
Neymar, who has been warned about his commitment by PSG chairman and CEO Nasser Al-Khelaifi, missed Brazil's Copa America success on home soil this summer through injury and was expected to be present in Paris so that his latest fitness issues could be assessed.
Sources have told ESPN FC already this summer that Les Parisiens are open to selling the €222 million man after two incomplete seasons at Parc des Princes, while Barca president Josep Bartomeu has claimed that the La Liga outfit know that Neymar wants to return to Camp Nou.
Also, according to ESPN FC sources, Philippe Coutinho is likely to be added to any potential deal with PSG to take his compatriot back to Spain and Antoine Griezmann's impending arrival would not be an obstacle to Neymar's return.
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Atletico Madrid have opened disciplinary proceedings against Antoine Griezmann for breach of contract, after the France international refused a request to attend preseason training on Sunday, a source has told ESPN FC.
At the end of last season Griezmann announced he was leaving Wanda Metropolitano and Barcelona were expected to immediately pay the clause when it dropped from €200 million to €120m on July 1.
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However, nobody has visited the La Liga offices to deposit the money, and on Friday Atletico rejected a request from Barcelona to pay the transfer fee in instalments instead.
Atletico publicly called on Griezmann to join up with his teammates on Sunday to travel to their Los Angeles de San Rafael preseason base in the mountains above the Spanish capital. But the 28-year-old did not appear and upset club officials at Wanda Metropolitano are now set to fine the player the maximum allowed under his contract, which is around €200,000.
"Logically a disciplinary process will be opened as Griezmann did not present himself for an official call-up with the club where he is under contract," the Atletico source told ESPN FC on Monday.
Griezmann is not legally obliged to join at this time, given he is allowed 30 days off in the summer and his last competitive match was on June 11 for France.
Camp Nou sources have told ESPN FC they remain sure the transfer will go through this week. However, the Atletico source said their side were holding firm and not planning on entering into any negotiations with Barcelona over payment terms.
Atletico's anger at Barcelona and Griezmann entering into talks over a move as far back as last July could also bring further complications -- with Rojiblancos president Enrique Cerezo having said last week there would be "consequences" should be it come to light the player had signed an agreement with Barca in March.
Atletico have already given Griezmann's No. 7 shirt to their new €126m signing Joao Felix, with the Portugal international due to be presented at the Wanda Metropolitano on Monday.
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On a day filled with soccer heroics, U.S. women made biggest statement
Published in
Soccer
Sunday, 07 July 2019 23:05
Sunday brought a glorious menagerie of top-tier international soccer to fans around the world, and it was fitting that the victory by the United States in the Women's World Cup final -- the most significant, most meaningful, most important of the day's matches -- came first.
The day later featured a cathartic Copa America triumph for the Brazilian men and a Mexico-U.S. showdown at the Gold Cup, but those two matches failed to reach the impeccable standard that was witnessed at the women's final in Lyon, France.
To what end? For the women, of course, that notion crosses many levels. It is impossible to think of another set of athletes who carry the burden of responsibility that the Americans do, as a group that plays -- every day -- with a social load hanging quite so heavy across their shoulders. They are vocal advocates for the LGBTQ community, for equal pay and for equal treatment.
They played this entire World Cup while suing their own federation for alleged gender bias and -- in a glorious dismissal of the tedious trope that athletes need to avoid distractions to be successful -- dominated the tournament while dealing with questions about the lawsuit, overwrought (and gender-tinged) dissections of their celebrations and a public back-and-forth with the president of the United States along the way.
Their 2-0 victory over the Netherlands in the final was thorough. Megan Rapinoe, whose candor and poise made her the face and voice of the tournament, scored one goal, and Rose Lavelle, the most intriguing young player at the event, scored the other.
Before the game, the Dutch team posted a video to their social media accounts acknowledging that the U.S. team's excellence and ambition the past two decades showed their players that "dreams are possible." Several hours later, the game ended with fans in the stadium chanting "Equal pay!" in the same style as "U-S-A!"
"I feel like this team is in the midst of changing the world around us, as we live," Rapinoe told reporters afterward.
The rise of women's soccer is happening feverishly. The United States was in the quarterfinals with seven European countries (including the Netherlands, who were playing in just their second Women's World Cup); they faced the hungry teams they often inspire. Then they won their second straight World Cup and fourth overall, demonstrating that there is still a significant gap in talent.
In truth, it should have been the only game on the day. There would never be anything even close to a match as big as a Copa America or Gold Cup final scheduled on the same day as the men's World Cup title decider, so it was the height of hypocrisy that FIFA and CONCACAF and CONMEBOL scheduled the women's final to share the stage with anyone. That it was, at least in the case of the Gold Cup, an (admitted) oversight as opposed to willful disregard is, frankly, just as bad.
1:50
Foudy: This is the best team to wear a USWNT uniform
ESPN FC's Julie Foudy and Kate Markgraf explain why this group of World Cup champions is the best to ever step on the field for the United States.
Nonetheless, the men's tournaments -- especially the Copa America -- provided plenty of familiar ingredients: refereeing controversies, hand-wringing over the failures of Lionel Messi and Argentina, and the surge of Peru through the bracket, pushing its way to the final in a quest for its first title since 1975. As upstarts go, the Peruvians and Paolo Guerrero were excellent. But in the end, the tournament was about Brazil, the hosts who -- like the American women -- compete against history every time they step on the field. In this instance, under the embattled coach Tite and without injured star Neymar, they restored order to South American soccer with a 3-1 win.
It was not beautiful. It was not, certainly, the almost-mythical jogo bonito that some Brazilians wax poetic about to the point of delusion. But it was defining and definitive, a reminder of one of those things we always think should be true (even if it isn't always the case): Brazil is one of the best. Now, for the first time since 2007, they are champions of their part of the world.
Mexico can say the same. Yes, the Gold Cup had its version of the Netherlands and Peru -- Haiti's run to the semifinal might be the most staggering thing we see all year -- but, as with the others on Sunday, the story here was affirmation. No team other than Mexico or the United States has won a Gold Cup since 2000, and after halting Haiti, the Mexicans outlasted the U.S. team 1-0 on Sunday in Chicago to make it clear, again, that they are the dominant presence in CONCACAF.
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Brazil crowned Copa America champions for 9th time
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Again, it wasn't nearly as aesthetically pleasing as the American women's team performance. The pace was frantic but sloppy, and the hateful, vile, anti-gay chant so often shouted by Mexican fans rang out loudly and frequently from the stands at Soldier Field.
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There was plenty of ugliness on the field, too, as Mexico's captain, Andres Guardado, should have been (but wasn't) sent off for grabbing his counterpart, Weston McKennie, by the throat. In the end, the U.S. was incredibly wasteful, and Jonathan dos Santos' goal -- which was, in fact, the cap to a gorgeous move -- was the difference. Mexico celebrated a Gold Cup trophy for the eighth time, meaning the team has won more than half of the tournaments played, a reality that felt particularly relevant at the end of this unusual day.
Would it have been a lovely bookend if the United States had won? Yes. But it wouldn't have kept with the weekend's theme of dominance and power. The proof is right in front of us: In soccer, Mexico has it. Brazil too.
And no one has it more than the American women.
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