Lana began in WWE as a manager and started wrestling in the latter half of her run. However, she is no longer involved in the Stamford-based promotion and is focused on other paths. One of them is exploring her time on the stage doing stand-up comedy.
Lana, aka CJ Perry, will be performing stand-up for the first time on Thursday, March 26, at The Comedy Chateau in North Hollywood, CA, with an open mic lineup at 7 PM. The show is free, but fans need to RSVP where CJ will be trying out her comic material.
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“Tomorrow will be my first ever Stand up Comedy show in LA !!!! Please rsvp and come out and have fun with me.” wrote CJ Perry
Perry is currently under a WWE Legends contract, though. Her husband, Rusev, is still in the company wrestling on RAW. However, CJ has confirmed to have retired from wrestling since 2021. It will be exciting to see how Perry’s future in stand-up comedy shapes up after her first show in LA.
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We at Sportskeeda congratulate CJ Perry and wish her the best for her first stand-up show.
WWE star Sami Zayn also performed a comedy show
Sami Zayn hosted a comedy show in 2024. However, it wasn’t a typical stand-up comedy event but was an extensive one with cameos. It was billed as a comedy and variety show with his monologues and chats with guests. The show, Sami Zayn & Friends, debuted at the Netflix Is a Joke festival in 2025.
Zayn then picked it up from there and did two more shows of it on his own. First around the Money in the Bank 2024 weekend in Toronto and then at the SummerSlam 2024 weekend in Cleveland.
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Dec 21, 2025; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
Atlanta United FC owner Arthur Blank has named longtime Mexican Football Federation executive Mauricio Culebro to be president of the United of MLS as well as Blank’s NWSL franchise which debuts in 2028.
“This is an exciting day as we welcome Mauricio to Atlanta and our family of businesses,” Blank said in a statement released through his AMB Sports and Entertainment, which includes among its properties the Atlanta Falcons, Atlanta United, Atlanta Drive of the TGL indoor golf league, and Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
“As we progressed through the search process, Mauricio’s impressive experience and clear vision to elevate our clubs made him an outstanding fit to lead Atlanta United and NWSL Atlanta 2028.”
Culebro has spent five years as president of Tigres UANL and has also been chief operating officer of the Mexican Football Federation.
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Blank said that though Culebro is new to MLS, he is no stranger to “building and operating successful global soccer clubs,” adding that he is “fully confident in his ability to help return Atlanta United to the level our fans deserve, while leading the launch of our NWSL club.”
Culebro also led Mexico’s planning for its role in hosting the upcoming World Cup this summer.
“It is an honor to join AMBSE’s highly successful leadership team and become part of an organization with such a strong culture and foundation already in place,” Culebro said. “I am excited to put my experience, passion and commitment at the service of Atlanta United and NWSL Atlanta 2028, working alongside a great team to build long-term projects our fans can feel proud of — teams that truly represent the passion, energy and ambition of this city.”
Northampton Saints will treat playing Saracens at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as if it was a cup final, according to prop Manny Iyogun.
Saturday’s Prem fixture will be the second part of a women and men’s double header, titled Showdown VI, at the 62,850-capacity stadium.
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Last week Saracens reported that 40,000 tickets had already been sold for an event which will also see Dizzee Rascal perform live between the two games.
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“It’s got a bit of a finals vibe to it and games like this prep you for finals in knockout rugby and that’s exactly how we’re approaching it,” Iyogun told BBC Radio Northampton’s Saints Show.
Saints are two points clear at the top of the Prem table following their narrow, below-their-best win over Newcastle Red Bulls – and have already beaten Saracens twice this season in league and cup.
Sarries, meanwhile, returned to Prem action last Friday with a heavy 62-point defeat at Bath, leaving them in sixth place, eight points outside the play-off spots.
Tottenham Hotspur Stadium was opened in 2019 [Getty Images]
Iyogun’s team-mate Tom Lockett believes they will be playing at the “best new stadium in the UK”.
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“To get a chance to play in it is pretty cool, something we’re all pretty excited for but ultimately we’ve still got to perform as if it’s the Gardens or any stadium,” second row Lockett said.
“We’ll go down on Friday and get a feel for the stadium and then hopefully put that to the back of our mind and go and do the job.
“We’ve got better at that over the years, playing in big environments and finding out what works and what doesn’t work and how we get back on script when things aren’t going to plan.
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“Obviously we want to be involved in as many big games as possible so it can only be a good thing [to play there].”
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England lock Alex Coles could again be absent because of injury suffered on Six Nations duty so 23-year-old Lockett may again inherit the key role as line-out routines caller.
“Colesy is huge for us not only in terms of how he plays but also how he leads that line-out area,” Lockett added.
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“I’ve taken so much from him over the past five or six years. I like to think I’m in a good position now where I’ve got enough experience to take that mantle from him.”
Asked how many different routines Saints have, he replied: “It’s basically a language and you have to be fluent in that language to know all the different moves you could run.
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“If you put a number on it, it would be well into the thousands. Colesy’s coming up with new stuff all the time.”
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So, are there any Tottenham supporters in the Saints dressing room? Not according to Iyogun.
“It’s a very tough time [to be a Spurs fan] and playing at Tottenham probably wouldn’t be the best experience [if you were],” he said.
“I’m Chelsea fan so me and [strength and conditioning coach] Tommy Buller – he’s a Man City fan – have a bit of a natter about it. There’s a lot of football fans, Colesy’s an Arsenal fan, so there’s a bit of rivalry.”
Indian all-rounder Shivam Dube said on Thursday that his train journey back home after winning the T20 World Cup 2026 with his family was exciting but also quite tough, as he had to take extra precautions to avoid being recognised. Dube had to take an unusual route to get back home from Ahmedabad after the historic win. Unlike most Indian cricketers who travel by chartered or private flights, he couldn’t find any available flights from Ahmedabad to Mumbai, as they were fully booked. So, he decided to travel by train in a 3rd AC coach. Even though there was a risk of being recognised by fans, he felt it was the quickest option. In a video shared by Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on X, Dube explained how he managed to avoid attention.
“It was quite tough. We took the train around 5 a.m., and there were many people. But since it was right after the World Cup, no one expected me to be there. I went to the top berth and slept for some time. We slept around 5:30 and woke up at 10:30,” he said.
Dube also shared that he had travelled by train in a similar way last year during a BPCL tournament in Baroda.
“I had done this before as well, wearing a mask. Last year, before the IPL, I travelled by train from a BPCL tournament in Baroda because I wanted to reach home early. I was sleeping on my berth, and there were a few friends with me,” he added.
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Sanju Samson, who was also part of the World Cup-winning team, will join Dube at Chennai Super Kings for the first time. Dube said Samson had asked him about the atmosphere in Chennai, and he replied, “You’ll love it. It will feel like home. There’s no pressure—you can just focus on your practice and training.”
Dube is expected to play an important role for CSK in IPL 2026. The five-time champions will begin their campaign on March 30 against the Rajasthan Royals at Barsapara Stadium in Guwahati.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
YMCA member Austin Manengu works the keyboard as he plays a game of Fortnite during the unveiling of the new gaming lab at the Maplewood Family YMCA in Rochester Thursday, June 20, 2024. YMCA of Greater Rochester in partnership with Metro Sports & Entertainment Group will open two gaming labs for youth and teens this year.
PARIVISION and Xtreme Gaming pulled off clutch wins on the final day of group-stage competition on Wednesday to advance into the playoffs of the ESL One Birmingham event in England.
The teams entered the day in sixth and eighth place, respectively, in Group A and Group B. PARIVISION secured its second win over Yakult Brothers and then won a pair of one-off tiebreakers over GamerLegion and BetBoom to clinch the fourth spot.
In other Group A action before the tiebreakers, BetBoom beat GamerLegion while Team Yandex and Tundra Esports locked down the top two spots in the group with wins over MOUZ and REKONIX. MOUZ still finished in third place and advanced despite the loss.
Xtreme Gaming used a win over OG — its first of the competition — and losses by three other teams ahead of them to jump up four spots into fourth place in Group B. The losses they needed were Aurora Gaming beating paiN Gaming, Team Spirit beating Nigma Galaxy and Team Falcons beating Virtus.pro. Aurora Gaming and Team Spirit claimed the top two spots in Group B with Team Falcons claiming third.
The $1 million Dota 2 tournament, featuring 16 teams, will award $750,000 in prize money and $250,000 in club rewards as well as 35,460 ESL Pro Tour points spread among all participants.
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The top two teams from each group advanced to the upper bracket of the playoffs. The third- and fourth-place teams were delegated to the lower-bracket playoffs, with the remaining eight teams eliminated after Wednesday’s competition.
The playoffs will be contested Thursday through Sunday with a double-elimination bracket. All matches are best-of-three except for the grand final, which is best-of-five.
In Wednesday action, PARIVISION completed its win of Yakult Brothers with a 32-minute win on green followed by a 42-minute victory on red. Alan “Satanic” Gallyamov of Russia led the win with a 21-2-20 kill-death-assist ratio. Malaysia’s Daniel “Ghost” Chan led Yakult Brothers with a 7-8-6 K-D-A.
Yandex clinched the top spot with its 2-0 win over MOUZ, winning in 32 minutes and 31 minutes on green. Kazakhstan’s Alimzhan “watson” Islambekov led the win with an impressive 22-1-13 K-D-A, while Dutch competitor Remco “Crystallis” Arets led MOUZ with a 10-12-6 ratio.
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Tundra locked up the second spot with a pair of 29-minute victories on red followed by on green. Bozhidar “bzm” Bogdanov led the win with a 19-3-27 ratio, and Saieful “Fbz” Ilham of Indonesia led REKONIX with a 4-11-8 K-D-A.
BetBoom Team’s 2-0 win over GamerLegion in 45 minutes and 58 minutes on green made the Group A tiebreaker a necessity. Ilya “Kiritych” Ulyanov of Russia posted a 21-6-35 K-D-A for BetBoom, beating out Edmond Dantes’ 11-16-24 ratio for GamerLegion.
PARIVISION won the first tiebreaker over GamerLegion in 45 minutes on green and followed with a 51-minute triumph on red over BetBoom. Gallyamov led the team with an 8-8-19 ratio in the two tiebreakers.
In Group B action, Xtreme Gaming did its part to advance with 41-minute and 39-minute wins on green to beat OG. Wang “Ame” Chunyu of China led the effort by totaling 11-2-30 against a 5-12-9 ratio for OG’s John “Natsumi-” Vargas from the Philippines.
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Team Spirit beat Nigma Galaxy in 35 minutes on green and 49 minutes on red. Russia’s Denis “Larl” Sigitov led the win with a 17-2-27 K-D-A, while Tony “No!ob” Assaf of Lebanon led Nigma with a 14-11-13 ratio.
Team Falcons closed out the group stage with a 46-minute win on green followed by a 45-minute win on red over Virtus.pro. A 22-6-21 showing from Jordan’s Ammar “ATF” Al-Assaf led the way for Falcons against Abed “Abed” Yusop’s 18-6-18 ratio for Virtus.
Aurora Gaming finished atop the group with a 50-minute red victory followed by a 30-minute green beatdown of paiN. Egor “Nightfall” Grigorenko of Russia put up a 19-3-20 K-D-A to lead Aurora. Maximo “Wits” Orozco Alza led the Peruvian paiN squad with a 8-9-10 ratio.
Thursday schedule
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Upper-bracket semifinals
Team Yandex vs. Team Spirit
Aurora Gaming vs. Tundra Esports
ESL One Birmingham standings
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Position, Team, Match W-L (Maps W-L)
Group A
1. Team Yandex, 5-0-2 (12-2)
2. Tundra Esports, 4-0-3 (11-3)
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3. MOUZ, 4-3-0 (8-6)
4. PARIVISION, 2-3-2 (6-8)
5. GamerLegion, 2-3-2 (6-8)
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6. BetBoom, 2-3-2 (6-8)
7. Yakult Brothers, 1-3-3 (5-9)
8. REKONIX, 0-5-2 (2-12)
Group B
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1. Aurora Gaming, 6-0-1 (13-1)
2. Team Spirit, 5-1-1 (11-3)
3. Team Falcons, 3-1-3 (9-5)
4. Xtreme Gaming, 1-2-4 (6-8)
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5. Virtus.pro, 1-3-3 (5-9)
6. paiN Gaming, 0-3-4 (4-10)
7. OG, 0-3-4 (4-10)
8. Nigma Galaxy, 0-3-4 (4-10)
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ESL One Birmingham prize pool (prize money, club reward)
Harry Maguire was stepping onto a late afternoon flight to Bournemouth with his Manchester United teammates when a WhatsApp message pinged his phone. It was the England manager, Thomas Tuchel, asking if they could talk that evening.
Butterflies fluttered. Maguire hadn’t played for England for nearly two years, since he appeared in a Nations League game against Ireland in 2024. He had never played for Tuchel and there had been very little contact from the manager since he took the job last January. “I knew if I missed this camp, I don’t think I would have been back in the England setup,” Maguire admitted.
The defender has endured a mixed season. He struggled for form and fitness under Ruben Amorim and felt inhibited by the manager’s beloved back-three formation. But a run of games in Michael Carrick’s transformed United side have kindled faint hopes of playing in a third World Cup, at the age of 33.
Sitting on the plane, Maguire turned to fellow England prospect Kobbie Mainoo. “I asked Kobbie if he’d got a text as well and he said, ‘yeah’,” Maguire smiles. That offered some reassurance and, two hours later, Tuchel rang to confirm he was finally back in the England squad for World Cup warm-up games against Uruguay and Japan at Wembley.
Maguire rang round his family to share the news. His mum cried, though she was on holiday in Spain at the time and he suggests the tears may have been helped along by a few Sangrias. “It felt a bit like my first call-up,” he says. “I’ve played 60-odd games for England and been to three major tournaments, but when you’re playing every game, you don’t want to take it for granted, but you get comfortable with the setup. And then when it’s taken away from you all of a sudden, it hurts.”
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Harry Maguire in training for England at St George’s Park (The FA via Getty Images)
Maguire is speaking in a quiet room at England’s second home, St George’s Park, in Burton-upon-Trent, back where he feels he belongs. He spent seven years as a mainstay under Gareth Southgate, first on the left side of a back three and later in a pairing with John Stones. Over the past two years he had to get used to watching England as a fan again, taking his career full circle, back to when he was a Hull City player travelling around France with friends watching Euro 2016 from the stands.
“It did hurt [to watch England] but I still wanted them to win,” he says. “I have a lot of friends here. There are times when you feel like you should be in the squad and then that probably hurts a little bit more, but the last three camps I wasn’t fit, I wasn’t playing every game for Manchester United, I was in and out, I was playing three games and getting injured. When you don’t build up that rhythm, you don’t really have an excuse.
“It hurt more when I watched them in the final against Spain, losing that game [Euro 2024 final].”
Away from England, Maguire focused on performing for his club. He enjoyed working with Amorim but felt the central role in a back three limited his best attributes, consigned to be a sweeper when he wanted to roam and charge and challenge opponents physically. His freedom to carry the ball upfield was clipped, and it all added to the narrative that he was a fading force.
“When you’re playing in a back five and you’re playing that middle one, automatically people think you’re a little bit older and can’t move as much. I’ve always said I much prefer playing in a back four. I feel like I can play more aggressive, play more on the front foot and I feel like that’s a big part of my game.”
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Harry Maguire’s club form has put him back in the picture for England (Owen Humphreys/PA)
Amorim will be a great manager, Maguire insists. It just didn’t click. “I really like Ruben, I think he’s got great ideas. Those ideas just didn’t work at Manchester United. I do believe he’ll go on and have an amazing career. At his next club he’ll probably go and win many, many football matches.”
Carrick’s reign has been transformational. Maguire has enjoyed the freedom of a back four as United have climbed the table to third, in a strong position to qualify for next season’s Champions League with seven games to go. Surely the players want him to stay beyond the summer?
“Listen, Carrick coming in, he’s been amazing. He speaks really, really well. He’s tactically very, very good. He’s brought in some amazing staff, [such as] Steve Holland. [But] it’s not up to us. I think we’ve got to finish the season strong, and then I think he should go right into the mix with the other candidates.
“It’s going to be a big summer. We know that for Manchester United. We need bodies in to help the squad. It’s going to be a big recruitment in the management department, and I’m sure the hierarchy will get it right.”
Maguire has stayed fit and found form in recent weeks, ironically right up until Tuchel’s phone call. The next night he scored a goal at Bournemouth, but was sent off as United settled for a draw – “a harsh” red card, he says.
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Maguire is competing for a place on the plane to North America (The FA via Getty Images)
A one-game suspension means he won’t play for United again until 18 April at the earliest, when they travel to Chelsea. That time off will at least offer a window to speak to the club about his future, with his contract expiring at the end of the season. Maguire wants to stay, and the way he talks suggests that something might almost be agreed.
“What that agreement is, I’m sure you’ll find out over the next few weeks,” he says. “I think it’ll get sorted sooner rather than later, whether I stay or leave. I love this club, but it’s got to be right for myself, it’s got to be right for the club as well. I don’t want to be staying on a sentimental value. I want to be staying because I want to be there and the club want me to drive the club forward still, and they feel like I’ve got a big part to play in it.
“[I want to be] playing games and helping the team on and off the pitch. I want to be important to the club. So we need to sit down and speak – and I’ve got a long time off now with the red card.”
Only three months ago, Maguire’s international and club careers appeared to be in their winter days. Suddenly they are in full bloom again. He never gave up hope of travelling to North America to experience one more World Cup as a player, rather than a fan, when summer comes around. “I kept it free, just in case.”
Mar 25, 2026; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Pistons center Jalen Duren (0) reacts after the game against the Atlanta Hawks at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images
The Detroit Pistons had their four-game winning streak snapped by the red-hot Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday. They’ll look to start a new one when they host the lowly New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday.
Detroit dropped a 130-129 overtime thriller at home to the Hawks. Tobias Harris and Jalen Duren both missed shots in the final three seconds that would have extended the streak.
It was their first loss since star guard Cade Cunningham was diagnosed with a collapsed lung. Cunningham will miss his fifth straight contest on Thursday.
Detroit trailed by as many as 21 points in the first half, then climbed back by scoring the first 16 points of the second half.
“Didn’t like the way that we dug a hole in the first half, but to be able to have the conversation at halftime and come out and play the way that we did in the third quarter, fourth quarter, again, is a credit to the guys,” coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “Obviously, we came up a point short, a bucket short. But most teams don’t even get themselves in that position. Most guys, most teams don’t even have the fortitude to dig down, collect themselves, pick themselves up off the mat, so to speak, and go out there and do what our guys did. So, no moral victories, but (I’m) proud of our guys’ effort.”
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Duren, the team’s other All-Star along with Cunningham, led the way on Wednesday with 26 points and 14 rebounds.
“He’s just everywhere,” forward Ausar Thompson said. “He’s blocking shots, he’s rebounding and then he’s sprinting the floor on the offensive end and getting us easy buckets, easy steals. So, he does a lot.”
Detroit is wrapping up a four-game homestand vs. New Orleans. The Pistons (52-20), who are looking to protect their four-game lead over the Boston Celtics and lock up the top seed in the Eastern Conference, play six of their remaining nine regular-season games on the road after Thursday’s contest.
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The Pelicans (25-48) have lost their last two games while putting up a good fight against two other Eastern Conference contenders. They lost at home to Cleveland 111-106 on Saturday, then began a three-game road trip with a 121-116 loss to the New York Knicks on Tuesday.
Zion Williamson led them in scoring both contests, including a 22-point outing on Tuesday. Williamson is shooting 67.7% from the field this month.
“He kept us in the game,” Pelicans’ interim head coach James Borrego said of the game against the Knicks. “You felt his physicality from the first moment. He does that for us. He gives us our paint pressure, our physicality, our energy. I thought he was phenomenal.”
Dejounte Murray was held to seven points — his lowest output since returning late last month from an Achilles tear — but he recorded a season-high 12 assists.
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New Orleans had won five of six games prior to the last two losses.
“We’re moving in the right direction,” Borrego said. “This group is playing at a high level.”
The Pelicans haven’t had much success on the road, going 9-26.
“Our defense has to travel with us,” Borrego said. “To be a good road team, you have to take your defense on the road.”
Former Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko will captain Bosnia-Herzegovina against Wales in their World Cup play-off semi-final
As Wales prepare to face Bosnia and Herzegovina in their World Cup play-off semi-final, the visitors’ captain Edin Dzeko is set to fight for what is likely his last opportunity to compete in a major tournament. The veteran’s life hasn’t been without incident since he left Manchester City – and a run-in with Andre Onana is just part of the picture.
Dzeko, 40, will lead his nation at Cardiff City Stadium on Thursday evening as he returns to the UK. However, earlier in the qualifying campaign, he risked upsetting his country’s FA with strong remarks about fan access.
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Ahead of a November double-header against Romania and Austria, Bosnia were aware that two victories could secure direct qualification, whilst a solid performance would guarantee a play-off position. But controversy arose prior to the home match against Romania due to two fan groups being unable to buy tickets for the game in Zenica.
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BHFanaticos and Ljuti Krajišnica were both prevented from purchasing tickets by the country’s FA, prompting Dzeko to intervene and demand the decision be overturned. “On behalf of my teammates and on my own behalf, I DEMAND the Federation to reconsider its decision and, as before, to provide tickets for fan groups that have been cheering on the BiH national team for years!” he posted on social media.
“With loyal fan support from the stands, which we really need at this important moment for the national team, the players will do their best on the field to achieve a favourable result! We are all going to defend the colours of our homeland on our front.”
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When the match against Romania kicked off, over 11,000 fans were present at the 15,000-capacity Bilino Polje Stadium. However, by half-time, a goal from Daniel Birligea had put the visitors ahead, leaving Dzeko and his colleagues with a task on their hands.
The captain led from the front, equalising less than five minutes into the second half. Esmir Bajraktarevic then put Bosnia-Herzegovina ahead with just 11 minutes left, but the points weren’t secured until Haris Tabakovic added a clincher at the death.
Tabakovic scored again in the final group match in Vienna, putting Sergej Barbarez’s team on the brink of a World Cup spot. However, a second-half equaliser from Michael Gregoritsch meant Austria progressed as group winners and left Bosnia-Herzegovina needing to come through a match against Wales and a potential play-off final against Italy or Northern Ireland.
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Dzeko was part of the squad in 2014, the only previous occasion the country have qualified for a World Cup. Sead Kolasinac is the only other member of that group who is in the squad to face Wales on Thursday.
The striker, who was a Premier League champion with City in 2012 and 2014, spent ten years in Italy and Turkey after departing the Etihad Stadium. He transferred to his current club Schalke in January and has netted six goals in eight matches for the 2. Bundesliga leaders.
A stint at Inter Milan was among the highlights of his post-City club career. He was part of the team which reached the Champions League final in 2023 but had a much-publicised falling out with team-mate Andre Onana along the way.
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Onana, who would later leave Inter for Manchester United, was seen screaming at Dzeko and telling him to shut up during a round of 16 victory over Porto. Colleague Hakan Calhanoglu felt compelled to step in but the goalkeeper played down the incident after the 1-0 win.
“These things happen in the game, everyone has a right to think what they want,” Onana told Sky Sport Italia. “If the adrenaline that makes us angry also helps us to win games the way we did tonight, then it’s welcome!”
England’s 2026 World Cup kits
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England and Nike have launched the new home, away and goalkeeper kits to be worn at this summer’s FIFA World Cup. You can get free delivery on all orders with the code: ENGFREEDEL
Brooks Koepka returned to the PGA Tour with a quiet T56 at the Farmers Insurance Open, but there was more to that performance under the surface. If you looked past the fanfare of his triumphant return, you could see it.
That week at Torrey Pines, Koepka lost over seven shots on the greens while finishing positive in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee, Approach and Around the Greens. He made a putter switch after the missed cut at the WM Phoenix Open, and his game has started to round into form ever since, with Koepka going T9-T13-T18 through the Florida Swing. He ranked third in the field in Strokes Gained: Approach last week at the Valspar and is ranked first in that category on the PGA Tour on the season, gaining 1.089 strokes on approach per round.
Koepka said he diagnosed a problem with his driver ahead of this week’s Texas Children’s Houston Open that likely “cost him six or seven shots” last week. (He finished seven shots behind eventual winner Matt Fitzpatrick.)
That subtle I could’ve won reference is reminiscent of the Brooks Koepka who once said he believed majors are easier to win than normal PGA Tour events. (He won that week.)
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Koepka arrives at Memorial Park Golf Course this week with the look and feel of the Koepka of old, the one who crushed major fields with exacting, boring golf. That Koepka is starting to show with the Masters on the horizon because the game that won him five majors, the one that has been missing since his 2023 PGA Championship win, well, Koepka feels it has finally returned.
“I do feel like it is ready,” Koepka said Wednesday when asked if his game was in condition for Augusta National. “Everything’s trending in a nice direction. Ball-striking feels really, really good. Pete [Cowen’s] done a phenomenal job just getting everything where it needs to be. Yeah, the putting was a huge thing. I feel like it’s been so different because I was putting so terribly, I felt like I had to birdie the hole almost from the fairway or from the tee box.
“Where now I can sit back and kind of play golf how I used to play in ’17, ’19, kind of in that run when I was playing very good where I can be very patient and just kind of wait my time. … I used to just kind of — it felt very boring, just hit the center of the greens and occasionally you push and pull one kind of right on the flag. I always think — I said it was like conservatively aggressive.”
The arrow has been trending up for Koepka ever since he made his return to the PGA Tour from LIV Golf at the end of January, but there’s one thing that’s missing as he looks to peak at Augusta National in two weeks: Koepka hasn’t been in the cauldron on the weekend yet during his PGA Tour rebirth.
He believes his game is back to the level that saw him suffocate major championship fields with ease, but he won’t know that for sure until he tests it under pressure. That’s the goal this week in Houston as Koepka starts to fully shift his focus to the Masters and his hunt for major No. 6.
“The only thing is I really haven’t put myself in contention with nine holes to go,” Koepka said. “That’s really the last missing piece that I feel like I need to accomplish here before Augusta. I just need to get the juices flowing of having a chance to win a golf tournament. It’s been a while. Didn’t win last year. I just need to be able to put myself and get those feelings again. And especially out here, competing against unbelievable players on a difficult golf course would be what I need to do for the final prep for Augusta.”
A few weeks ago at the Players Championship, Koepka acknowledged that TPC Sawgrass serves as a barometer for where your game is at heading into the start of the major season. It’s a difficult test on a course where carnage lurks around every bend. Solve it, and you head toward the Masters feeling confident in your prospects. But fail the PGA Tour’s flagship test, and you have very little time to find answers before you drive down Magnolia Lane.
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“This is kind of right where I feel like you needed to know where your game was at,” Koepka said at TPC Sawgrass. “Every time you come to the Players, you get a good idea of, hey, you’ve got a couple more weeks right before Augusta; if you’ve got to make any changes, this is where it needs to happen. This is kind of, in my eyes, the kickoff of the real heat of the golf season. And it’s a lot of fun, it’s exciting, and just need to be on top of things.”
He finished in a tie for 13th, picked up almost seven shots on approach, which ranked fourth in the field and would have been a real weekend factor if not for a three-hole blowup during Friday’s second round. Koepka followed that with another solid week at the Valspar that an overly spinny driver apparently derailed, and now arrives at his final Masters tune-up finally sounding like the swaggering, major-beating Koepka of old.
“I love the way I’m playing,” Koepka said. “Just want to put myself in contention here for the first time before Augusta. My game is rounding into form. I can see it. I don’t know if maybe results-wise, it probably hasn’t looked that way, but I can see it as a whole, it’s really all starting to come together.”
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That’s something no one hoping to add a green jacket to their closet in two weeks wants to hear.
Wednesday night, the New York Yankees and San Francisco Giantsopened the 2026 MLB season at Oracle Park. It’s the only game on Wednesday’s schedule. The other 28 teams are enjoying one last off-day before they begin their seasons Thursday and Friday.
The Yankees and Giants battled on the field Wednesday night, and three decades ago they battled in free agency for the game’s best player. Both clubs pursued Barry Bonds as a free agent during the 1992 offseason, and, of course, Bonds ultimately went home to the Bay Area, signing a six-year deal worth just under $44 million with the Giants. It made him the game’s highest-paid player.
During a visit to the Netflix broadcast booth on Wednesday, Bonds said late Yankees owner George Steinbrenner was willing to make him baseball’s highest-paid player, but he put a deadline on the offer. That pushed Bonds to San Francisco. Here’s the story:
“George isn’t here anymore, so I can tell the truth, right?” Bonds started. “I would’ve been with the Yankees, but Steinbrenner got on the phone and called us and told me, ‘Barry, we’re going to give you the money — the highest-paid player at that time — but you got to sign the contract by 2 o’clock this afternoon. And I said, ‘Excuse me?!’ And I just hung the phone up.
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“And I went to go get lunch, and Dennis Gilbert, my agent, they were like, ‘Do you know what you just did?!’ I’m like, ‘Did you know what he just said?!’” Bonds continued. “I just said, ‘Forget it.’ By the time I walked down the street to go get lunch, I said, ‘Let me just think about this.’ The Giants called me, and I said, ‘I’m going home.’”
Back in 1992, the New York Times reported the Yankees gave Bonds two days to accept the offer, not until 2 p.m. Also, a sixth year was said to be the sticking point, not the deadline. The Yankees held firm at five years. The Giants put a sixth year on the table and that pushed it across the finish line.
Bonds enjoyed 15 very successful seasons with the Giants, winning four MVPs and eventually becoming the all-time home run king. The Yankees did just fine without him. They won the World Series in 1996, four years after losing out on Bonds, then won three more titles in 1998, 1999, and 2000.
;)
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