Golf
HONOLULU – Fresh off his victory on Maui, Justin Thomas joined the “59 Club” on the PGA Tour by making a 15-foot eagle on his last hole at the Sony Open for an 11-under 59.
Thomas holed a 10-foot par putt on the eighth hole to keep his hopes alive for a 59 at Waialae Country Club. From a deep fairway bunker on the par-5 ninth, Thomas hit a 5-iron to 15 feet and wasted no time making the putt.
Jim Furyk was the last player with a sub-60 round when he closed with a record 58 at the Travelers Championship last summer. Furyk also has a 59, along with Al Geiberger, Chip Beck, David Duval, Paul Goydos and Stuart Appleby.
Thomas made two eagles, along with a bogey.
JOHANNESBURG – Rory McIlroy made an impressive start to 2017 with a new set of clubs, shooting a 5-under 67 in the first round at the SA Open on Thursday.
Making his first appearance at the tournament since 2008, McIlroy rolled in seven birdies – including four in a row from Nos. 14-17 after starting at the 10th – to put himself a shot off the lead shared by keith Horne and Trevor Fisher Jr..
With Nike announcing last year it would no longer be making golf clubs and balls, the second-ranked McIlroy has been testing out new woods, irons and a putter from other manufacturers and said his new bag “is working pretty well.”
The Northern Irishman is the standout player in Johannesburg this week, making an earlier-than-usual start to his golfing year as a favor to Ernie Els, the South African great and the host of the SA Open.
NFL
LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Rams made Sean McVay the youngest head coach in NFL history.
The Rams on Thursday hired McVay, who turns 31 years old on Jan. 24.
McVay spent the past three seasons as the Washington Redskins’ offensive coordinator. He has been an assistant in Washington since 2010.
He replaces Jeff Fisher, who was fired 13 games into the Rams’ homecoming season in Los Angeles, and interim head coach John Fassel.
McVay wowed the Rams’ top brass during two recent interviews. He takes charge of a franchise rebuilding from a 4-12 season, its 13th consecutive non-winning campaign. The Rams have a 12-year playoff drought.
Lane Kiffin was 31 years old when the Oakland Raiders hired him in January 2007.
NHL
DENVER – John Gibson made 33 saves two days after he recorded a shutout, and Jakob Silfverberg scored for a second straight game as the Anaheim Ducks climbed into sole possession of the Pacific Division lead with a 4-1 win over the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday night.
Ryan Kesler and Rickard Rakell each added their team-leading 17th goals of the season, and Corey Perry also scored to help the Ducks win for the fifth time in six games.
Anaheim surpassed San Jose in the standings with 54 points. The Sharks, with 52 points, were idle Thursday.
Nathan MacKinnon scored for Colorado, and Semyon Varlamov returned from his latest groin muscle injury to stop 28 shots. The Russian netminder dropped to 6-15 in his first start since Dec. 22.
The Avalanche looked fresh off their five-day break in the opening minutes and had the first five shots of the game. After that, it was more of the same for the NHL’s worst team.
Associated Press
