Connect with us
DAPA Banner

Sports

J.J. Spaun breaks slump, wins Valero Texas Open ahead of Masters

Published

on

J.J. Spaun had a dream season in 2025. But for the first few months of his follow-up campaign, things looked more like a nightmare.

Through seven starts entering this week, Spaun had made just three cuts, with a T24 finish standing as his high-water mark. His strokes-gained metrics had declined across the board, and his putting was so poor that he ranked among the 10 worst on Tour.

At TPC San Antonio, none of that mattered.

Spaun, playing this week as a final tune-up before the Masters, fired a final-round 67 to win the Valero Texas Open by one shot over Matt Wallace, Michael Kim and Robert MacIntyre. The victory marked Spaun’s second at the Texas Open (he also won in 2022) and the third of his PGA Tour career.

Advertisement

“I haven’t been in the form I wanted based on last season,” Spaun said. “It means a lot to come back and win here at a place that’s been so good to me.”

Returning to a course filled with positive memories proved to be the spark he needed. At the Players, Spaun recorded his best finish of the season to that point with a T24. He missed the cut the following week at the Valspar, but a return to the familiar setting of the Texas Hill Country seemed to bring something out of him.

After opening with back-to-back rounds of 69, Spaun surged over the weekend in soggy conditions. With play suspended midway through his third round on Saturday, he returned early Sunday morning to complete a six-under 66, putting himself firmly in contention. When the final round began, he kept the momentum rolling, carding four birdies and an eagle en route to a five-under 67 to claim the clubhouse lead. When none of the contenders on the course could track him down, the burden of his nightmare start had finally been lifted.

“I put a lot of pressure on myself at the start of the year, and a lot of expectations,” Spaun said. “It’s the complete opposite of the mantra I had all year last year that really helped me, so I tried to get back to that. Went into the last few weeks starting at The Players just trying to be freed up and put less pressure on myself. It’s been trying, but sticking to that mantra has really helped me.”

Advertisement

With the win, Spaun earns a custom pair of cowboy boots and a $1.76 million paycheck. More importantly, he heads to Augusta for the Masters in his best form of the season — and you can’t put a price tag on that.

Source link

Continue Reading
Click to comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

Leave a Reply

Sports

Ex-Phillie Mickey Moniak cracks 2 long HRs to lead Rockies

Published

on

MLB: Philadelphia Phillies at Colorado RockiesApr 5, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Colorado Rockies right fielder Mickey Moniak (22) hits a solo home run in the first inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

Former Philadelphia first-round pick Mickey Moniak hit two home runs and TJ Rumfield also went deep as the Colorado Rockies beat the Phillies 4-1 on Sunday in Denver.

Hunter Goodman had two hits and Tomoyuki Sugano pitched six strong innings to earn his first win for Colorado. Victor Vodnik got the last three outs to earn his first save as the Rockies salvaged the finale of the three-game series.

Adolis Garcia homered and singled for the Phillies.

Colorado did not homer in its first two home games and had just five in its first eight games overall. Moniak, who began his major league career with the Phillies in 2020, changed that in the first inning with his two-out solo clout to the second deck in right.

It marked the first time the Rockies led in the series.

Advertisement

Goodman followed with a single to center and Rumfield lined the first pitch he saw from Taijuan Walker into the stands in right to give the Rockies a 3-0 lead.

Walker (0-2) struggled in his second start of the season, allowing four runs on seven hits in five innings.

Garcia cut into the lead with his second homer of the season, a solo shot into the Colorado bullpen in the second. Brandon Marsh followed with a double, but Sugano got the next two batters to keep it 3-1.

Advertisement

Philadelphia threatened in the fifth when Justin Crawford singled with two outs and went to third on Trea Turner’s double, but Kyle Schwarber flew out to center field.

Moniak added to the lead in the fifth with his second homer of the day and the season, a 437-foot shot off the facing of the second deck.

Sugano retired the Phillies in order in the sixth to finish his quality outing. Sugano (1-0) allowed just one run on four hits, walked one and struck out five.

Philadelphia got something going in the ninth. Alec Bohm and Garcia singled to put runners on first and second with one out to bring the tying run to the plate, but Vodnik struck out Marsh and Rafael Marchan to end the game.

Advertisement

–Field Level Media

Source link

Continue Reading

Sports

“The atmosphere can be intimidating” – Kahn warns Bayern ahead of Bernabéu clash with Real Madrid

Published

on

Oliver Kahn has sent a warning to Bayern Munich over the difficulty of playing at Santiago Bernabéu ahead of their Champions League quarter-final first-leg clash against Real Madrid on Tuesday.

The former FC Bayern Munich and Germany goalkeeper has experienced a lot over his career, including playing at the iconic stadium in Madrid – so he’s well aware what awaits his former club.

Advertisement

“Ninety minutes at the Bernabéu are as exhausting as nowhere else,” Kahn told Süddeutsche Zeitung.

Advertisement

“The crowd in Madrid is far more intense than in Barcelona; it feels like everything is pressing down on you. The atmosphere can be intimidating. And now, with the roof, it’s even stronger.”

According to Kahn, Real Madrid’s challenging season could actually work in their favour, driving them to end on a high.

“Real come from a period where they had to overcome many obstacles – there was criticism, unrest, a coaching change. And then, suddenly, success against Manchester City, and they feel: Now we can turn the season around. That is exactly what makes Real so dangerous,” the 56-year-old argued.

Bayern have historically struggled at Santiago Bernabéu, with their last away win against Real dating back to 2001, when they won 1-0 in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final tie.

Advertisement

Source link

Continue Reading

Sports

Manchester United have a surprise package to unleash in pre-season – ‘Lovely player’

Published

on

Man Utd midfielder Jack Moorhouse was around the first team last season and is set to feature in pre-season.

Manchester United youngster Jack Moorhouse is in contention to feature for the first team in pre-season this summer. Moorhouse was recalled from his Leyton Orient loan in January and has occasionally trained with the senior team since his return.

Moorhouse signed for Orient on a season-long loan in August, but it was announced late on deadline day in the winter window that his time at Brisbane Road had been cut short.

Advertisement

With Leyton Orient fighting relegation, manager Richie Wellens believed that Moorhouse’s game time could become limited. An agreement was reached with United to send Moorhouse back to his parent club earlier than expected, which has made him available for Under-21 fixtures again.

Get MEN Premium now for just £1 HERE – or get involved in our United WhatsApp group by clicking HERE. You can also join our United Facebook page by clicking HERE and don’t miss out on our brilliant selection of newsletters HERE.

Moorhouse showed glimmers of quality in the first half of the season, making 24 appearances. Leyton Orient were happy with him, but they felt a recall was the best choice for his development.

Ruben Amorim named Moorhouse in a handful of first-team squads last season and Michael Carrick named him on the bench in recent Premier League games against Everton and Crystal Palace.

Advertisement

U21 interim manager Adam Lawrence was recently asked about what will happen next with Moorhouse. “I think for someone like Jack again, it would be his progress between now and the end of the season to then look at what his next step is or the next senior opportunity that he gets,” he said.

Moorhouse is expected to feature on tour this summer with many senior players representing their nations at the World Cup, but he is slightly behind a few of his academy teammates.

“He’s not been as consistent as Shea Lacey [who trains with the first team each day], to be honest,” Lawrence said. “It’s fairly often that the players will go across with the first team anyway. He’s not a staple, like a Jack Fletcher, Shea Lacy, but he’s over there often enough.

“I think between his level of performances in U21s games up until then [the summer], again, there’s always got to be a bit of room to say to the player, go and perform there. Get your loan, get you in the first team.

Advertisement

GRAND NATIONAL 2026: Get your 48-page guide for just £3.99

“The club’s part is to create the pathway. The player’s job is to force the pathway and make that final part. And that’s where Jack sits at the moment. Again, there’s no bigger fan of Jack than me in terms of his qualities. He’s a lovely player. He receives the ball on the back foot, the way that he can travel and glide with the ball.

“What we’re looking for him to do is now, between now and the end of the season, in those U21s games, like a Madrid, U21s playoffs, can you perform at the elite level and make the difference? Because we feel that he can. And that’s the bit of pressure that we would put on those types of players in those games as well.”

Lawrence continued: “I think in our system, he would be an 8 or a 10, so he’s more comfortable centrally. But as you’ve alluded to, we’ve got a lot of midfield players in the squad at the moment.

Advertisement

“And what Jack is, he can be quite versatile and he can play off the sides in terms of he can start in a wide position and drift into the middle as opposed to start in the middle.

“We’ve been quite flexible around how we try to use him. But longer term, obviously, it’s just my thoughts. I would say like an 8 or a 10 would be his longer-term position.”

Up to 70% off Man United kits and merch

This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more
Content Image

Various Prices

Fanatics

Advertisement

Buy Now on Fanatics

Fanatics has slashed the price of Man United kits and merch with up to 70% off select items.

Source link

Continue Reading

Sports

Cooper Flagg scores 45 points as Dallas Mavericks beat Los Angeles Lakers

Published

on

Teenage rookie Cooper Flagg continued his superb run of form by scoring 45 points as the Dallas Mavericks beat the Los Angeles Lakers 134-128 on Sunday.

The 19-year-old had made history on Saturday when he became the first teenager to score 50 points in an NBA game – finishing with 51 points, including 24 in the fourth quarter, in a defeat by the Orlando Magic.

He followed up with a 45-point haul in the win over the injury-hit Lakers, adding nine assists and eight rebounds.

Flagg is the first rookie with back-to-back 40-point games since Allen Iverson in 1997, and is among the favourites to be named this season’s rookie of the year.

Advertisement

The Mavericks started quickly against the Lakers, who were missing both the NBA’s leading scorer Luka Doncic and rising star Austin Reaves, and were 41-30 up at the end of the first quarter.

LeBron James, 41, led the Lakers with 30 points, 15 assists and nine rebounds, while Luke Kennard had 15 points, 16 rebounds and 11 assists.

PJ Washington scored 15 points for the Mavericks, Naji Marshall and Brandon Williams added 13 points, and Klay Thompson scored three three-pointers in his 11-point haul.

Lakers coach JJ Redick it was a “just a poor defensive night” for his side, adding: “We didn’t start the game the right way and just played catch-up the rest of the game.”

Advertisement

The Lakers are third in the Western Conference, with the 12th-placed Mavericks already out of play-off contention.

Source link

Continue Reading

Sports

Are we cursed?”;”Season is up in flames already

Published

on

The Toronto Blue Jays have been troubled by injuries to several key players at the start of the 2026 season. The list of injuries grew on Sunday night after outfielder Addison Barger’s exit from the series finale against the Chicago White Sox.

During the third inning of the game, Barger landed awkwardly as he ran through the first base for a close play. Barger stayed in the game for another at-bat in the sixth inning but was replaced in right field by Jesús Sánchez after the inning.

Fans reacted to the Blue Jays facing another injury concern.

“Jeez this season is up in flames already.”

Jeez this season is up in flames already

“Are we cursed?”

“Uncomfortable because he’s playing on a terrible team with a ridiculous payroll.”

Uncomfortable because he’s playing on a terrible team with a ridiculous payroll.

“Right now the way they’re playing they should remove everyone from the field. 🤨”

Right now the way they’re playing they should remove everyone from the field. 🤨

“I think the whole team has discomfort.”

@BlueJays I think the whole team has discomfort!

Advertisement

Barger left the game due to discomfort in both ankles. He went 0-for-3 at the plate before his exit and the Blue Jays suffered a 3-0 defeat leading to a sweep by Chicago.

Blue Jays manager John Schneider updated on the outfielder’s injury after the series finale.

“He stepped a bit weird with both of them, one on the bag and one before,” Schneider said. “We taped him up and he tried to go. We’ll see how he is tomorrow. He’s about as tough as they come. Hopefully, he’s all right and it’s just a day or two, or maybe not even a day.”

Bargers is just 1-for-19 (.053) this season despite a strong showing in Spring Training last month. He hit 21 homers with a .756 OPS in 135 games last season.

Blue Jays manager fired warning shot ahead of Dodgers showdown

The Blue Jays have lost four consecutive games and are 4-5 for the season. They face the Los Angeles Dodgers next in a rematch of last year’s World Series. Blue Jays manager John Schneider warned his players ahead of the series opener against the defending champions.

Advertisement

“We’ve got to get back to playing our baseball,” Schneider said. “It doesn’t matter who you’re playing, where you’re playing or what time you’re playing them, if you don’t play your baseball, good things don’t happen.”

The Dodgers have made a strong start to the season and are headed into the series after sweeping the Washington Nationals.