Auto Racing
Hamilton edges Rosberg to win Bahrain Grand Prix
SAKHIR, Bahrain – Lewis Hamilton beat Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg after an intense race-long battle to take victory at the Bahrain Grand Prix on Sunday.
The two Mercedes cars were predictably in a different league to their rivals and recorded their second one-two finish in eight days after victory last weekend in Malaysia.
Rain postpones NASCAR race at Texas Motor Speedway
FORT WORTH, Texas – The Sprint Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway has been postponed by rain.
It will be run Monday at 9 a.m., nine hours before the start of the NCAA national championship game in nearby Arlington.
Golf
Lexi Thompson wins the first women’s major of the year
RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. – Lexi Thompson left Michelle Wie behind – off the tee and on the leaderboard in the Kraft Nabisco Championship on Sunday.
The 19-year-old Thompson closed with a bogey-free 4-under 68 at Mission Hills for a three-stroke victory over Wie. Thompson birdied four of the first nine holes to open a five-stroke lead and parred the final nine.
Jones chips his way to the Masters with a win in Houston
HUMBLE, Texas – Matt Jones earned his first trip to the Masters with a remarkable 42-yard chip-in on the first playoff hole, outdueling Matt Kuchar on his way to winning the Houston Open.
The win is the first on the PGA Tour for the Australian, who made a 46-foot birdie putt on the 72nd hole to reach the playoff. He ended it one hole later, chipping over the right front bunker on the 18th and watching it roll in.
Italy’s Marco Crespi wins the Collection for his first title
CADIZ, Spain – Unheralded Marco Crespi of Italy won his first European Tour title after carding a 3-under 69 in the final round to claim the inaugural edition of the NH Collection Open on Sunday.
Playing in his 25th European Tour event, the 35-year-old Crespi had five birdies to overcome a pair of bogeys on the final day to end two strokes ahead of nearest rivals Richie Ramsay of Scotland and Spaniard Jordi Garcia.
Soccer
US soccer fires women’s coach Sermanni after a win
CHICAGO – U.S. Soccer fired coach Tom Sermanni hours after he was on the sideline for a 2-0 win against China on Sunday afternoon.
Sermanni took over the women’s program in January 2013. He previously spent eight years coaching Australia’s women’s team.
He helped the U.S. to a 13-0-3 record last season, but the Americans struggled at the Algarve Cup last month. They went 1-2-1 to finish an uncharacteristic seventh.
Tennis
Germany’s Andrea Petkovic wins Family Circle Cup
CHARLESTON, S.C. – Andrea Petkovic ended a surprising week at the Family Circle Cup by winning her first WTA tournament in three years, outlasting Jana Cepelova for a 7-5, 6-2 victory Sunday.
Petkovic came in seeded 14th and ranked 40th in the world. But she ousted three straight top 10 seeds on the way to the finals and took control of the championship by winning eight consecutive games.
Petkovic dropped to the ground when Cepelova’s final shot landed out of play. She hugged her opponent, waved to the crowd and did a celebration dance as fans applauded.
Petkovic earned $120,000 for her third career WTA victory, which was her first since winning in Strasbourg in 2011.
Cepelova led 5-4 in the opening set of her first career final before Petkovic won the next eight games.
Associated Press
