GREAT EXUMA, Bahamas (AP) Sungjae Im closed with a 7-under 65 to win the season-opening Great Exuma Classic on the Web.com Tour.

Im became the 16th player in the history of PGA Tour’s developmental tour to win in his first start.

The 19-year-old from South Korea played bogey-free in windy conditions Tuesday at Sandals Emerald Bay. He finished at 13-under 275 for a four-shot victory over Carlos Ortiz of Mexico. Ortiz birdied the final hole for a 69 and broke out a five-way tie for second. That was worth an additional $25,200 for Ortiz.

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Rafael Campos, Brett Drewitt, Rhein Gibson and Jose de Jesus Rodriguez tied for third.

The Web.com Tour stays in the Bahamas one more week with the tournament starting Sunday.

HONOLULU (AP) Ryan Palmer couldn’t wait for 2018 to arrive.

It began with an up-and-down week at the Sony Open – a 64 sandwiched between a pair of 71s, and a tie for 58th – though his mood was decidedly steadier. Palmer was in good spirits when he arrived and nothing on the scorecard was going to change that.

It’s nice to have last year behind him.

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He had surgery on his shoulder in October, and that’s now healed. A new home being built on seven acres in the Dallas area is almost finished. Above all that, his wife, Jennifer, is getting nothing but favorable scans in her recovery from breast cancer.

”I couldn’t have been any more calm when I got here Monday – on the range, practice rounds, the pro-am, everything,” Palmer said.

A year ago when he arrived on Oahu, his wife was still undergoing chemotherapy for the cancer. Palmer missed four straight cuts to start the year and didn’t crack the top 35 until April. He had only three top-10 finishes, one ..

HONOLULU (AP) All it took was one week back on the bag to remind Jim ”Bones” Mackay what he always loved about being a caddie.

It just wasn’t enough for this to be the ultimate mic drop.

Mackay traded in his TV microphone at the Sony Open for the 40-pound bag belonging to Justin Thomas.

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It was his first time caddying since he split with Phil Mickelson six months ago. Mackay was only a temporary replacement at Waialae for Jimmy Johnson, a good friend and Thomas’ regular caddie who has a nasty case of plantar fasciitis that will keep him in a walking boot for the next month.

”The toughest thing about not caddying is missing the competition, not having a dog in the fight,” Mackay said before the final round. ”There’s nothing more rewarding as a caddie, in general terms, when you say, `I don’t like 6-iron, I like 7,’ and being right. I miss that part of it.”

The reward now?

”Not stumbling over my words,” he said. ”And being better than I was the pre..

HONOLULU (AP) All it took was one week back on the bag to remind Jim ”Bones” Mackay what he always loved about being a caddie.

It just wasn’t enough for this to be the ultimate mic drop.

Mackay traded in his TV microphone at the Sony Open for the 40-pound bag belonging to Justin Thomas.

Article continues below …

It was his first time caddying since he split with Phil Mickelson six months ago. Mackay was only a temporary replacement at Waialae for Jimmy Johnson, a good friend and Thomas’ regular caddie who has a nasty case of plantar fasciitis that will keep him in a walking boot for the next month.

”The toughest thing about not caddying is missing the competition, not having a dog in the fight,” Mackay said before the final round. ”There’s nothing more rewarding as a caddie, in general terms, when you say, `I don’t like 6-iron, I like 7,’ and being right. I miss that part of it.”

The reward now?

”Not stumbling over my words,” he said. ”And being better than I was the pre..

On Monday, tensions were noticeably high in the NBA, and on Martin Luther King Day no less. For some reason, no one could get along.
In Oklahoma City, Russell Westbrook was ejected after being hit with two technicals, prompting Carmelo Anthony to say he's “done” with referees. In Philly, Sixers guard Ben Simmons and Raptors guard Kyle Lowry were ejected after a mini-dustup that reportedly bled over into the tunnel. Then, there was the odd situation in the Los Angeles Clippers-Houston Rockets game, Chris Paul's first at the Staples Center since being traded to Houston.
Late in the fourth quarter of the Clippers 113-102 win, Paul and former teammate Blake Griffin had a heated exchange, which led to other heated exchanges followed by more heated exchanges with multiple parties involved, including Rockets forward Trevor Ariza, Clippers guards Patrick Beverly and Austin Rivers, and even Rockets coach Mike D'Antoni. Similar to the Lowry-Simmons situation, this one also bled ov..

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates (AP) After a long layoff from golf, Rory McIlroy has some newfound sympathy for Tiger Woods.

The 28-year-old Northern Irishman is making a comeback at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship after ending his season early last year. He has not played a round since the final day of the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship on Oct. 8.

McIlroy, a four-time major champion who has slipped to No. 11 in the world rankings, last won the Tour Championship on the PGA Tour in September 2016. He injured a rib in his first outing of 2017 – at the South African Open – and felt its after-effects throughout the year.

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McIlroy, who has seven top-five finishes in his last eight starts in Abu Dhabi, said Tuesday he felt mentally low because of his physical issues.

”Honestly, I was excited to be done. I could have shut it down after the PGA Championship very easily and taken the rest of the year off, but I didn’t. I played six events after that, playe..

Angelina Ye, a 16-year-old high school, shoots a closing 71 to win the AJGA's Annika Invitational … while playing in front of Annika Sorentam

All due respect to my friend Shane Ryan, Justin Thomas is NOT the baddest man in golf. That mantle belongs to Henrik Stenson.
This is a guy who was upset that his house was burglarized, not because items were stolen, but that he wasn't there to deliver an ass-whoopin' to the intruder. Amidst the flowery veneration of Augusta National, he rolled down Magnolia Lane to “Ice Ice Baby.” Most importantly, in one of the greatest duels in major championship history, the Swede stared down Phil Mickelson at Troon in 2016, coming out as Open champion with a final-round 63. There's a reason they call him “Iceman,” after all.
And then there's this. Despite suffering an injury at the WGC-HSBC's infamous photo ops, Stenson decided to spit in death's face by hopping on a camel for another pre-tourney shoot, this time in Abu Dhabi.
https://twitter.com/EuropeanTour/status/953159466983284736
Did he risk his career for this ridiculous stunt? Maybe. But it's better to die..

15 tips to get ready for your best year: Tour pros such as Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas, and top instructors including David Leadbetter and Stan Utley are going to teach you how to winterize your game while you wait for the big thaw.

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