SPORTS - Mexico, Honduras reach Gold Cup semis (AFP)

SPORTS - Mexico, Honduras reach Gold Cup semis (AFP)

AFP – Mexico's Aldo De Nigris celebrates scoring during their 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup quarter-final match …

• Play Video Cuba Video:Mark Cuban, Mavs Maniacs & Mavs Dancers CBS 11 Dallas

– 6 mins ago

EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey (AFP) – Second-half goals from Aldo De Nigris and Javier "Chicharito" Hernandez lifted Mexico to a 2-1 victory over Guatemala and into the semi-finals of the CONCACAF Gold Cup.

Second-half substitute De Nigris on Saturday grabbed an equalizer for defending champions Mexico in the 48th minute after Carlos Ruiz's fifth-minute strike put Guatemala ahead.

Hernandez scored the match-winner in the 65th minute as Mexico advanced to a semi-final clash against Honduras, who won 4-2 on penalties against Costa Rica after they played out a 1-1 draw after extra time.

Honduras advanced in the first game of a doubleheader at New Meadowlands Stadium that drew a largely pro-Mexican sellout crowd of 78,807.

Mexico and Honduras will play on Wednesday in Houston.

"Our team is very strong at the core," coach Jose Manuel de la Torre said. "They know they should win versus any adversity.

"We knew it was a difficult match and a difficult opponent. The early goal was because the field was a little complicated and heavy but we knew that we would come back, and we did."

Mexico stayed on course for a title repeat despite a squad depleted when the national federation withdrew five players who tested positive for banned clenbuterol at a pre-tournament training camp in May.

Guatemala came out focused on pulling off an upset, and Ruiz's quick strike shocked the pro-Mexico crowd.

Elias Enoc Vasquez's long ball started the move. After Mexican defender Hector Moreno failed to clear the ball, Guatemalan captain Ruiz floated it over Mexico keeper Alfredo Talavera.

Mexico had not previously trailed in the tournament.

Ruiz came close again in the 73rd minute, with Talavera saving his 25-yard shot to keep Mexico ahead.

Mexico, whose 14 first-round goals were seven more than any other team in group play, made one substitution at halftime as De Nigris replaced Israel Castro and made an immediate impact.

Hernandez scored the winner after a pass from Pablo Edson Barrera as Mexico enjoyed the bulk of the scoring chances in the second period.

"This time it was different than the other games when we scored first," said Hernandez, the Manchester United star who leads the scoring table with six goals. "We went in and worked hard in the second half to get chances."

Guatemala coach Ever Hugo Almeida said he was proud of his team.

"I think we have to be sincere, we're not at the same level as the national team of Mexico," Almeida said.

In the night's opening match, Honduran goalkeeper Noel Valladares saved a penalty for the second time in as many matches as Honduras and Costa Rica ended extra time level at 1-1.

Costa Rica's Celso Borges and Alvaro Saborio both hit the crossbar in the penalty shootout.

Jerry Bengtson had given Honduras the lead in the 49th minute, with Dennis Marshall equalizing in the 56th.

Valladares made sure the match stayed level in the 76th minute with a diving stop of Saborio's penalty attempt.

"I've felt the emotions of scoring a goal for my country, but you can't compare it to stopping a PK (penalty kick)," Valladares said. "I've lived (stopping PKs) more, and I've felt it more."

Carlo Costly, Victor Bernardez, Wilson Palacios and Bengtson all converted in the penalty shoot-out for Honduras.

Bryan Ruiz and Joel Campbell converted in the shoot-out for Costa Rica.

The remaining two quarter-finals are slated for Sunday in Washington, where the United States will face Jamaica and Panama take on El Salvador in the regional championship for North and Central America and the Caribbean.

The winners of the tournament will book a berth in the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup.

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SPORTS - Danks shrugs off shot to head in 6-2 White Sox win (AP)

SPORTS - Danks shrugs off shot to head in 6-2 White Sox win (AP)

AP – U.S.'s Serena Williams plays a return to Russia's Vera Zvonareva during their second round single tennis …

• Slideshow:Roger Federer

By HOWARD FENDRICH, AP Tennis Writer Howard Fendrich, Ap Tennis Writer – Sat Jun 18, 1:12 pm ET

WIMBLEDON, England – Two simple words at the end of a June 7 tweet said it all: "Serena's back!"

And Venus is, too.

Yes, as Serena Williams announced to the world less than two weeks ago, the most successful tennis-playing siblings in history are returning from lengthy layoffs right on time for Wimbledon, where they just so happen to have won nine of the past 11 singles championships.

For Serena, it will be her first Grand Slam tournament — and only second event — since she took home a second consecutive title from the All England Club in July 2010. Her nearly yearlong absence resulted from a series of health issues, including two foot operations and blood clots in her lungs, that she said left her depressed and "on my deathbed." Venus, meanwhile, was sidelined by a hip injury from January until June.

All eyes will be on them when the grass-court Grand Slam tournament begins Monday.

"I feel like we've been on a similar road together. Her road hasn't been as arduous or as long as mine, but I know what she's been through coming back," Serena said when she made her 2011 debut at a tuneup tournament this week in Eastbourne, England. "We've been really enjoying our time just getting back together and practicing next to her and looking over and seeing her play so well. I'm like, 'OK, I've got to do better.'"

There are, to be sure, other plot lines worth tracking during the fortnight.

Among them: Can Roger Federer make a real run at a seventh Wimbledon title? Can Rafael Nadal extend his recent excellence to five titles in a span of six Grand Slam tournaments? Can Novak Djokovic recover from the end of his 43-match winning streak to win a major title other than the Australian Open? Can Andy Murray finally — and mercifully — put an end to the locals' 75-year wait for a British male champion at the All England Club? Might No. 1-ranked Caroline Wozniacki win her first Grand Slam title? Could China's Li Na win her second in a row? Will Maria Sharapova end her 3 1/2-year major drought?

But the biggest curiosity, at least at the outset, is: How will the Williams sisters do?

"It will be interesting to see how they come back. I think it's interesting for the tour. It's a good story," Federer said Saturday. "It's been an up-and-down, bumpy road for the women's tour as of late. But we'll see now how it goes here with the sisters back in the game."

Part of the interest stems from wondering how much longer they'll be around. Venus turned 31 on Friday; Serena will be 30 in September.

"Whenever they enter a Grand Slam tournament, it's double the excitement and double the intrigue, I think, that they bring to the sport. They just bring a different level of tennis also, as far as the power and the emotional content," said ESPN2 analyst Chris Evert, who won 18 Grand Slam titles.

"It would be monumental in my mind if Serena pulled off a win," Evert added. "I personally don't know how it's humanly possible for someone to take a year off like that and have gone through what she's been through physically with her ailments and ... it would almost shock me if she did. But knowing Serena and the way she's come back before, you can never count her out."

Evert — who said she never was away from the tour longer than four months — is one of only five women in tennis history who have won more major championships than Serena's 13. The others are Margaret Court (24), Steffi Graf (22), Helen Wills Moody (19) and Martina Navratilova (18). Among active players, of course, Serena ranks No. 1, followed by Venus with seven.

No one else in this year's Wimbledon women's field has more than three Grand Slam titles (Kim Clijsters has four, but she pulled out with a foot injury).

Indeed, it's remarkable to examine the measurable ways in which Serena and Venus have dominated women's tennis, in general — and the All England Club, in particular — across the years. That's why Serena is seeded No. 7 at Wimbledon, despite being ranked 26th; Venus is seeded 23rd, despite being ranked 33rd.

"You know," Sharapova said, "they're obviously the ones to beat on grass."

Not only has Venus won five titles at Wimbledon, and Serena four, since 2000, but they've also produced four all-in-the-family finals there in that span. They've played in a total of eight all-Williams Grand Slam championship matches, with Serena holding a 6-2 edge.

At Wimbledon, Venus is 68-9, Serena 57-7. No one else in the 2011 draw has more than 27 match wins there.

"Obviously," Wozniacki said, "no one wants to play them."

Overall, Serena has been to 16 major finals, Venus 14. No one else in the draw has reached more than four.

As seven-time major champion John McEnroe put it: "I wouldn't minimize their chances."

Hey, at least one British bookmaker installed Serena as a 3-1 favorite to win Wimbledon.

The interest generated by the sisters' rise to the top of their sport is widely pointed to as the reason for the U.S. Open's decision to move its women's final to prime time in 2001. Venus beat Serena that year for the title, and nearly 23 million viewers tuned in to the CBS broadcast, giving their match the largest TV audience of any program that night, including a game between traditional college football powers Notre Dame and Nebraska.

The last major tournament, the French Open, was the first Grand Slam since 2003 without Serena or Venus — and chaos reigned. It's the only French Open in history where none of the top three seeded women reached the quarterfinals, and it left some looking forward to when the sisters would pick up their rackets again.

"I'm sure when they come back, they'll come back ready. That's how they do it. Tennis has been pretty spoiled by their success and they're pretty special, two special sisters," top-10 U.S. man Mardy Fish said in Paris. "And when they're not around, you can feel it. You can feel at a Grand Slam when they're not here, and so I think everyone's hoping that they'll be back, better than ever, soon."

Serena lost in the second round at Eastbourne, a three-set struggle against the woman she beat in last year's Wimbledon final, Vera Zvonareva. Venus lasted one round longer.

They're not merely happy to be back, though.

They want to contend for more titles.

"I always believe in myself when I go on the court," Venus said. "And I'm not just here to look good on the court; I'm here to win every match I'm in."

___

AP Sports Writers Caroline Cheese in Eastbourne, England, and Rachel Cohen in New York contributed to this report.

___

Follow Howard Fendrich at http://twitter.com/HowardFendrich

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SPORTS - Wimbledon would be biggest win, says Sharapova (AFP)

SPORTS - Wimbledon would be biggest win, says Sharapova (AFP)

AP – Junior Dos Santos, right, of Brazil, hits Shane Carwin, of Greeley, Colo., during their main event heavyweight …

– Sun Jun 12, 12:32 am ET

VANCOUVER, British Columbia – Junior Dos Santos bloodied Shane Carwin to win a dominant decision at UFC 131 on Saturday night, earning a shot at heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez.

Twenty-two of their 26 combined fights had ended in the first round so no one was expecting a marathon. And Dos Santos (13-1) almost finished Carwin in the first, with a barrage of unanswered blows.

But Carwin (12-2) stayed up and the Brazilian made him pay, using his superior striking to batter Carwin's face.

The judges scored it 30-27, 30-27, 30-26 for Dos Santos, who already is looking forward to his next fight.

"Cain, I'm coming for you," he said.

"I'm excited," said Velasquez, who entered the cage after the fight.

Kenny Florian won his debut at featherweight with a 29-28, 29-28, 30-27 decision over highly touted Brazilian Diego Nunes in the co-main event at Rogers Arena. Florian fought a smart fight, using his size and versatility to frustrate the flashy Nunes.

The Boston native was clearly the villain of the night, stemming from his Bruins jersey at the weigh-in. Vancouver faces Boston in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup finals on Monday night, and the crowd chanted "Go Canucks Go" and jeered Florian during the fight.

"Despite the boos, I love you Vancouver," said Florian (16-5), who became the first UFC fighter to compete in four weight classes.

Carwin had not fought since last July, sidelined by neck surgery. Dos Santos' last bout was in August. He had served as a coach on the UFC's reality show.

Dos Santos had been set to meet Brock Lesnar but the former title-holder was sidelined by diverticulitis.

Dos Santos stuffed two Carwin takedown attempts in the first and began to find his striking range as the round neared a close. He put Carwin down with a right-left-right combo, then threw more than 40 punches at his downed opponent. But Carwin continued.

Dos Santos used kicks in the second round, looking to set up his crisp punches. Carwin caught him with a left but Dos Santos ignored it, moving away to set up his next attack.

Carwin managed an early takedown in the third, but Dos Santos got right back up and started punching again.

Canadians went 3-1 on the undercard, including lightweight Sam Stout's knockout against veteran Yves Edwards.

Stout connected with a left hook in the first round and Edwards toppled backward. Stout (15-4-1) went to follow up, but held back when he saw Edwards was motionless.

Edwards (40-17-1) eventually got up on a stool to the applause of the crowd but needed a helping hand as he was led away.

"That is one of the nastiest KO's I have EVER seen!!!!" UFC president Dana White posted on his Twitter account.

The 27-year-old Stout, who is from London, Ontario, celebrated the victory with a backflip in the cage.

The card started less than 24 hours after the Canucks beat Boston 1-0 at Rogers Arena to move within one victory of their first Stanley Cup title.

Also on the undercard, Mark Munoz had to work hard for a 29-28, 29-28, 30-27 decision over Demian Maia in a back-and-forth middleweight fight. Krzysztof Soszynski earned a 30-27, 30-26, 30-27 decision against Mike Massenzio, and Calgary middleweight Nick Ring stopped James Head in the third round.

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SPORTS - Rodriguez pitches six strong for Astros (AP)

SPORTS - Rodriguez pitches six strong for Astros (AP)

AP – Florida's Brian Johnson motions from second base that his RBI two-run double in the seventh inning against …

By ERIC OLSON, AP Sports Writer Eric Olson, Ap Sports Writer – 1 hr 59 mins ago

OMAHA, Neb. – Texas hasn't done anything the easy way so far in the NCAA baseball tournament, and it will be no different in the College World Series.

The Longhorns face elimination after losing 8-4 to Florida in their first game at the new TD Ameritrade Park on Saturday night.

Hudson Randall and two other Florida pitchers limited the Longhorns to five hits, and Brian Johnson broke open the game with a two-out, two-run double in the seventh inning.

Now the Longhorns, in the CWS for a record 34th time, must beat North Carolina in a win-or-go-home game Monday afternoon.

"We've been pretty good in elimination games," Texas coach Augie Garrido said, "and here we are again."

Texas (49-18) won three straight after losing their second game in regionals, and they beat Arizona State twice after dropping the first game of their super regional.

"We all know we played a below-average game, and they capitalized on it," Garrido said. "But it doesn't mean we have to lose our spirit or our confidence in each other and it doesn't have to mean we give up. We've been here before. We know we can win. This championship's been won out of the losers' bracket before. So we know it can be done."

Taylor Jungmann (13-3), the Milwaukee Brewers' first-round draft pick, had another rough postseason outing for the Longhorns. He went 4 1-3 innings for his shortest start of the season, and four of the five runs against him were earned.

Jungmann, who started the season 13-0, had come into the CWS off losses in his previous two starts. He allowed two doubles and a single, walked four, hit a batter and threw two wild pitches.

"I felt for the first three innings I had decent command, but after that I fell out of rhythm," Jungmann said. "I walked more guys than I usually do. They took advantage of it, and that was about it."

Florida's Johnson came up with his big hit, off Nathan Thornhill, in his first game back since suffering a freak concussion.

"Sully talked to me before the at-bat," Johnson said, referring to coach Kevin O'Sullivan. "He said it's going to be a big at-bat for the game. So I just went up there really looking for one pitch I could drive. And I ended up getting that pitch.

"I was really excited to get back out there after three weeks not being able to play."

Johnson, the Gators' designated hitter and No. 2 starter, was knocked out by a throw from catcher Mike Zunino while pitching in the Southeastern Conference tournament May 28. Zunino, Johnson's roommate, tripped trying to throw out a runner at second base and hit Johnson in the back of the head.

It turned out Johnson's big hit in the seventh inning should have been ruled a home run. Replays showed that the ball bounced back into play after striking the railing above the yellow line atop the right-center wall. NCAA umpire coordinator Gene McArtor said in a statement after the game that the umpires' decision to hold Johnson at second base was wrong. Umpires aren't allowed to use video review.

The No. 2 national-seeded Gators (51-17), who play Vanderbilt on Monday night, are off to a winning start in the CWS after going two games and out last year.

"We came here last year and we were very disappointed to go two and done," Daniel Pigott said. "So to start out this way — having a great game, good pitching, solid hitting — I think it was very, very big for us. Definitely going to give us a lot of confidence going through the rest of the tournament."

Randall (11-3) followed up a terrific eight-inning outing in the super regionals against Mississippi State with another 6 2-3 strong innings against the Longhorns.

Randall scattered five hits, walked none and struck out five. Only one of the four runs against him was earned.

Randall, Greg Larson and Maronde limited Texas to five hits, with Maronde earning his third save with two innings of no-hit relief.

Randall retired 13 straight starting in the third inning. Jacob Felts broke through with a two-out single in the seventh, and Jordan Etier followed with a run-scoring double to cut Florida's lead to 5-4 and bring on Larson.

The 6-foot-8, 225-pound right-hander caught Tant Shepherd looking at strike three to end the threat.

The game drew an overflow crowd of 25,521 at the new TD Ameritrade Park, which replaced Rosenblatt Stadium as the CWS host.

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SPORTS - Two thirds of Olympics ticket hopefuls miss out (AP)

SPORTS - Two thirds of Olympics ticket hopefuls miss out (AP)

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SPORTS - Franchitti wins IndyCar pole at Milwaukee (AP)

SPORTS - Franchitti wins IndyCar pole at Milwaukee (AP)

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SPORTS - Lawyer: Mayweather didn't show up for deposition (AP)

SPORTS - Lawyer: Mayweather didn't show up for deposition (AP)

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SPORTS - Dos Santos batters Carwin at UFC 131 (AP)

SPORTS - Dos Santos batters Carwin at UFC 131 (AP)

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SPORTS - Jason has another good Day at a major (AP)

SPORTS - Jason has another good Day at a major (AP)

AP – Lord Coe, right, speaks to British soccer player David Beckham as he holds the Olympic torch at a Torchbearer …

• Play Video Olympics Video:Alpha and omega as Olympic diving trials approach KING5 Seattle
• Play Video Olympics Video:A walk in London's new Olympic Park AFP
• Play Video Olympics Video:Kim Rhode shooting at Olympic history in London AP

By ROB HARRIS, AP Sports Writer Rob Harris, Ap Sports Writer – Fri Jun 17, 3:10 pm ET

LONDON – Two thirds of those who applied for tickets for the 2012 London Olympics missed out in the first round of sales.

Organizers announced Friday that 1.2 million of the 1.9 million people who applied for tickets ended up with nothing. Just 700,000 individuals — mostly Britons — split 3 million tickets between them after a six-week sales window.

However, those missing out will be given the first opportunity to buy tickets when another 2.3 million go on sale on June 24.

"We certainly understand people's disappointment," organizing committee chief executive Paul Deighton told The Associated Press. "But we think we allocated tickets as fairly as we could."

Tickets were not put on sale on a first-come, first-served basis and events that were oversubscribed were allocated through a lottery system. A third of the tickets have been sold to London residents, while the average successful application for four tickets cost $283.

While tickets remain for sports such as track and field, others like track cycling, rhythmic gymnastics, triathlon, modern pentathlon and the cross-country equestrian competition are sold out.

The opportunity on June 24 will include 1.7 million tickets for soccer matches across Britain on top of the 500,000 already sold. Hockey and volleyball tickets are among the other 600,000 tickets available starting next Friday.

By next month, organizers expect to have raised $647 million from ticket sales, with another $162 million anticipated by the time the Olympics start on July 27, 2012. In total, 6.6 million tickets will be available to the public.

The expectation of seeing Usain Bolt in the 100 meters final attracted 1.3 million applications, but only 30,000 of the 80,000 seats at the Olympic Stadium will have gone on general sale. So far 21,000 tickets have been sold and the remaining 9,000 will be made available next year.

Tickets that go on sale to the British public can be bought by anyone living in the European Union.

But only 3 percent of sales through the official site have come from outside Britain. People also can buy tickets in their own country through a designated company or the national Olympic committee.

"If you benchmark that (demand) against other games, it's a massive domestic interest," organizing committee chairman Sebastian Coe said. "I would be hard pushed to give you such a demand for any other sporting event in my lifetime."

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SPORTS - Texas faces elimination after loss to Florida (AP)

SPORTS - Texas faces elimination after loss to Florida (AP)

AP – Boston Bruins fans cheer during a rally in celebration of the team's NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoff victory …

By HOWARD ULMAN, AP Sports Writer Howard Ulman, Ap Sports Writer – Sat Jun 18, 5:42 pm ET

BOSTON – Screaming fans dressed in the black and gold of the Boston Bruins smiled, waved and stood on trees and bus shelters as they watched the NHL champions — and the Stanley Cup, of course — roll through city streets on a balmy, breezy day.

And the players they adore gave it right back.

Tim Thomas beamed. Zdeno Chara pumped his fists. Patrice Bergeron signaled to the massive crowd to shout even louder.

Then, as the nearly two-hour "rolling rally" celebration of the Bruins' first title in 39 years neared its end early Saturday afternoon, Andrew Ference raised one finger, then two, then three, orchestrating a familiar chant.

"Let's Go Bruins!" the fans responded. "Let's Go Bruins!"

But there's no need for the Bruins to go any further.

They've already arrived.

The long journey began in Vermont in late September with two days of training camp and ended in Vancouver with a 4-0 victory Wednesday night in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals.

In between, the Bruins started the season with two games in Prague against the Phoenix Coyotes — losing then winning on a shutout by Thomas — and grew into a team determined enough to win three of its four postseason series in seven games and good enough to knock off the Canucks, the NHL's best team in the regular season.

The Bruins' trip to their sixth championship got a big boost from their fans, who stuck by them all the way to Saturday's celebration on a sunny day with temperatures reaching the low 80s. Crowds were so deep on the sidewalks that many fans might not have been able to see the players.

Police announced nine arrests of people "charged with, among other things, Public Drinking and Disorderly Conduct." Police commissioner Edward Davis said, "exemplary fan behavior was on full display throughout the day and all along the parade route."

In a 15-minute program outside the TD Garden before the rally, Boston mayor Thomas Menino thanked the Bruins for "a fabulous season."

Team president Cam Neely, one of the greatest forwards in club history but never a champion, said, "It's finally our time. How amazing is this?"

Chara, the captain, then told the fans, "We couldn't have done it without you," and shared a conversation he had with Neely.

"I promised him when we win a Cup I will hand it to him. So here we go. Come on, Cam," he said as Neely stepped forward, smiled broadly and took the trophy.

At one point, Bergeron and rookie Brad Marchand, who each scored two goals in Game 7, did a poor imitation of the rap song, "Black And Yellow."

Playoff MVP Thomas spoke briefly to the crowd, holding the Cup aloft the whole time.

"You guys wanted it. We got it and we want to share it with you today," said the goalie, one of the few Bruins still sporting a playoff beard. "Let's have some fun."

Then players — wearing white hats and black T-shirts proclaiming them Stanley Cup champions — and team officials boarded 18 colorful duck boats, tourist vehicles designed to travel on land and water. This day, they carried passengers who excelled on ice.

"We all love each other," said first-line forward Nathan Horton, sidelined for the series with a severe concussion early in Game 3. "We all care about each other. We all play for each other. That's the way it's been all year and that's why we won the Cup."

Playmaking center Marc Savard, limited to 25 games this season by the effects of a career-threatening concussion, rode in the same duck boat as Horton.

The possibility of playing again after missing the playoffs "is really the furthest thing from my mind right now," Savard said. "I just want to enjoy it here and let the boys take the spotlight here because they earned it."

About 20 minutes into the trip to Copley Square, a route of about three miles from the arena where the Bruins were 3-0 against the Canucks in the finals, Thomas said, "It's awesome to be sharing it with everybody. This is the day you really look forward to."

While Boston police no longer provide estimates, the size of the crowd appeared to be larger than all but the one that turned out to celebrate the Red Sox first championship in 86 years in 2004.

___

AP freelancer Ken Powtak contributed to this report.

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SPORTS - Bruins delight fans at 'rolling rally' celebration (AP)

SPORTS - Bruins delight fans at 'rolling rally' celebration (AP)

AP – Jason Day, of Australia, reacts to his round as he walks off of the 18th green during the third round …

By EDDIE PELLS, AP National Writer Eddie Pells, Ap National Writer – Sat Jun 18, 9:43 pm ET

BETHESDA, Md. – The fresh-faced kid from the island keeps putting his name on leaderboards at the majors. Eventually, he's bound to figure out a way to win one of these.

Were it not for Rory McIlroy, that story line would belong to Jason Day, the player from Down Under who has been doing a very good job playing under the radar at the majors this year.

Day, who was climbing to a second-place finish at Augusta while McIlroy was melting down, was in a tie for third after Saturday's third round at the U.S. Open.

His round of 6-under 65 began before McIlroy got to the course. It left the Aussie nine shots out of the lead, but still, he'll have the second-to-last tee time in the final round, paired with the world's second-ranked player, Lee Westwood.

Not a bad way to spend a Sunday.

"The more times I put myself in this position, the better chance I have of winning a tournament," Day said.

Odds are he'll get there. He has six top-10 finishes this year, including The Players, the Byron Nelson and the Masters.

He's on a steady climb from 224th in the world in 2008 to 18th this year. He's 23 and off to a good start in the quest to join Greg Norman, Geoff Ogilvy, Adam Scott and all the others on the long list of Australia's favorite golfers.

Day came into the weekend at 1-over par, 12 shots behind McIlroy, but not willing to give in to the sense of the inevitable that's slowly smothering Congressional.

"Playing for second place, I guess you're playing for first loser," Day said. "I went out there and I just said, `Look, I've got to put up at least a decent score today to actually have a shot."

On a day in which birdies and red numbers covered the course, Day fit right in. He made six birdies, not a single bogey and his name kept shooting up the leaderboard. He knew it was possible when he was walking to the first tee box and saw Webb Simpson, who started the day tied for last, making the turn at 4-under par en route to a 66.

"I saw that. I knew the front nine. If you could play well, you could go out and shoot a low score.," Day said.

So, he did.

And while McIlroy has plenty of mistakes to learn from his Masters finish, Day went through a much different experience at Augusta.

He was playing under the radar — everyone was that day — and suddenly found himself in the middle of one of the wildest endings in the history of the tournament. He birdied four of the last seven holes, making clutch putts at 17 and 18 that put him in position to win. Charl Schwartzel overtook him but the second-place finish looked pretty good on a resume that also includes a 10th-place finish at the 2010 PGA.

Not that either was a stopping point.

"The way I finished at the Masters, obviously gave me a confidence boost coming into this event," Day said. "But you don't want to come into this event thinking you're going to finish great just because of the Masters. Once you do that, you're going to fall asleep and probably miss the cut. I didn't want to take it for granted and I wanted to come out here and give every shot 100 percent."

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SPORTS - Sagan strikes again as tempers fray on Swiss Tour (AFP)

SPORTS - Sagan strikes again as tempers fray on Swiss Tour (AFP)

AFP/File – Maria Sharapova, pictured here in action in February 2011, will consider a second Wimbledon title as …

– Sat Jun 18, 6:31 pm ET

LONDON (AFP) – Maria Sharapova will consider a second Wimbledon title as her biggest achievement as the Russian superstar hunts a fourth Grand Slam crown.

Sharapova made her breakthrough with a Wimbledon triumph in 2004, a victory which catapulted her on the road to a multi-million dollar fortune, the world number one spot as well as further Grand Slam titles at the US Open (2006) and the Australian Open (2008).

But her career suffered a major setback with a shoulder injury which kept her off the tour from August 2008 to May 2009.

A run to the French Open semi-finals earlier this month, which had been preceded by a trophy in Rome, has convinced her that she is as strong as ever.

"I said that if I could win another Grand Slam, it would mean more than the previous ones that I have just because before the injury everything was kind of moving up," said Sharapova.

"You naturally woke up, you went to practice, and then all of a sudden one day it was kind of taken away from you.

"When you get back, you basically start from zero. It's a long process. If I do achieve that, if it's here, if it's somewhere else, I think it would be my biggest achievement in my career."

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SPORTS - NBA players worry how fans would react to lockout (AP)

SPORTS - NBA players worry how fans would react to lockout (AP)

AFP/Getty Images/File – Slovakian Peter Sagan of Liquigas, pictured in action in May 2011, won the eighth and penultimate stage …

by Justin Davis Justin Davis – Sat Jun 18, 1:33 pm ET

SCHAFFHAUSEN, Switzerland (AFP) – Slovakian Peter Sagan claimed his second victory of the Tour of Switzerland as tempers frayed on the finish line of the eighth and penultimate stage over 167.3 km Saturday.

Versatile Liquigas rider Sagan had already shown his class in the mountains when he won stage three to Grindelwald ahead of Italian all-rounder Damiano Cunego.

After a frantic last 25km in which several top sprinters, including Britain's Mark Cavendish, were left behind by a split in the peloton a powerful sprint to the finish by the Slovakian left Australian Matt Goss in second with Britain's Ben Swift in third place.

"It was a really hard finale but thankfully in the final kilometre I had (teammate) Daniel Oss leading me out," said Sagan, who also secured the race's blue jersey for the points competition.

"I'm very satisfied with this second win and the points jersey. It's been a huge success for me this week."

Lampre rider Cunego meanwhile retained the race leader's yellow jersey with a 1min 36sec lead on Dutchman Steven Kruijswijk ahead of the race-closing time trial here on Sunday.

Cunego had stayed at the front of the main chasing peloton as it pursued an earlier breakaway, an intelligent move given what was to happen in the final, hilly kilometres.

After Cavendish's team had spent energy driving the chasing peloton, the American outfit were outfoxed when Movistar upped the pace on the category three Hallauerberg climb whose summit was 22km from the finish.

"We wanted to try and eliminate as many sprinters as possible" explained the Spanish team's sporting director Jose Luis Arrieta, whose main hope Jose Joaquin Rojas would eventually finished sixth.

The Garmin team of Norwegian sprinter Thor Hushovd soon joined in, and the Leopard team put German powerhouse Jens Voigt on the front to do further damage.

Despite Goss making the cut for HTC-Highroad, their efforts ultimately left Cavendish and overall contender Mollema -- second overall at 1:23 overnight -- fighting a vain battle to close the gap.

It also pushed Leopard's defending champion Frank Schleck up to third place, still 1:41 behind Cunego, however emotions ran high at the finish line where it transpired that Mollema had suffered a puncture 15km from home.

Mollema, who dropped to fifth overall at 2:11, accused Leopard of double standards and said their tactics will not be forgotten at next month's Tour de France.

"It's unbelievable they (Leopard) hit full gas when they heard I wasn't in the group any more," said the Dutchman.

"Last year in the Tour de France the Leopard guys (then riding for Saxo Bank) neutralised the race when some of their guys had crashed.

"We won't forget this when it comes to the Tour de France."

Leopard sporting director Torsten Schmidt defended the team's tactics.

"The team pulled with 15 kilometres to go.

"We were on the front from there all the way to the finish. They fought to gain as many seconds as possible for the overall."

American Levi Leipheimer of RadioShack is still 1:59 behind the Italian race leader, and the biggest threat on Sunday when a hilly 32.1 km race against the clock will decide the race.

Cunego, however, remained defiant.

"I've got quite a good lead and I'm in great form at the moment so it's up to the guys behind me to catch me," said the Italian.

Schleck's younger brother Andy, who has shown mixed form this week as he primes his condition for an assault on the Tour de France yellow jersey, secured the king of the mountains' green jersey.

Frenchman Lloyd Mondory of AG2R secured the blue jersey for the sprint competition.

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SPORTS - Westwood in no hurry to join parade for McIlroy (AP)

SPORTS - Westwood in no hurry to join parade for McIlroy (AP)

AP – Lee Westwood, of England, watches his drive from the 16th tee during the third round of the U.S. Open …

By JIM LITKE, AP Sports Columnist Jim Litke, Ap Sports Columnist – Sat Jun 18, 8:43 pm ET

BETHESDA, Md. – There's at least one notable absence from the players lining up to throw a ticker-tape parade for Rory McIlroy.

"They don't give trophies away," Lee Westwood said brusquely, "on Fridays and Saturdays."

It's too bad the 38-year-old Englishman and 22-year-old Northern Irishman won't be paired together for the final lap of the U.S. Open at Congressional Country Club. Golf etiquette would have required that they behave like chums, or at least do their best to make it look that way — exchanging plenty of "well played," "nice shot," great putt" and all that.

They were Ryder Cup teammates just last October, after all, they're practically countrymen and they share an agent. But they're more rivals than they're ever likely to be friends.

The praise for McIlroy has been nonstop this week, and with good reason. More than a few competitors had already conceded they were playing for second, and after McIlroy strolled off the course Saturday evening with an eight-shot lead over his closest pursuer, Y.E. Yang, that sentiment was all but etched on the U.S. Open trophy.

Yang, who played with McIlroy in the last group Saturday, will get a second shot at him Sunday. But judging by his first go-round — when McIlroy missed almost as many fairways and greens as he had in the first two rounds combined and still beat Yang by two strokes, 68-70 — he's not likely to make the kid sweat.

Westwood, on the other hand, still might. He'll go off alongside Jason Day, who's also 5-under, in the next-to-last group and almost no one has been hotter lately. Westwood has two wins and a loss in a playoff in his last four tournaments and after a slow- starting 75 here, shot 68 and 65 in his last two rounds.

"I set a target on Friday night. That's all you can do when you're chasing a big lead," he said.

"I said maybe if I can get to 10 under at the weekend, but you don't know how Rory is going to do. You don't know how he's going to deal with the big lead. He had a big lead in a major and didn't deal with it well before. There's pressure on him with regards to that.

"So," he said finally, "we'll see."

That may not sound harsh, but Westwood has launched golf's version of a beanball war. The references about McIlroy not dealing well with a big lead go back two months to the kid's spitting the bit at the Masters. There, he left the clubhouse Sunday afternoon with a four-stroke lead, wound up shooting a shaky 80 and looking for a place to hide.

Westwood wasn't particularly sympathetic that day, which should have surprised exactly no one. The two have been sniping at one another on Twitter and in interview rooms as far-flung as Dubai. In fact, Westwood was asked to compare McIlroy's performance Friday to Tiger Woods' destruction of Pebble Beach in the 2000 U.S. Open and said, "We'll see what Rory does. He's had leads before."

Given yet one more chance to laud the youngster in that same interview — "What advice would you give to Rory going in with two rounds to go?" Westwood replied:

"I'm supposed to beat him over the next two days. I'm hardly going to give him advice, am I?"

Like McIlroy, the Englishman made a splashy arrival in the game, but his career arc has been uneven since. He's had his shot to win a few majors and never sealed the deal, then was a middling player for nearly a decade before emerging the last few years as a force on the European Tour again.

It's easy to make an argument that he's currently the best player never to win a major, but whether McIlroy's likelihood of becoming the latest player to leapfrog him has anything to do with Westwood's reluctance to give the kid his due is pure speculation. To be sure, McIlroy has given back as good as he's got.

And either way, Chubby Chandler, the agent for both men, went out of his way Saturday to make it sound as though all the golfers in his stable get along famously. He regaled reporters with stories of dinners this week, noting that both he and Westwood have already picked up tabs and that Saturday night's bill is going to wind up in front of McIlroy.

Even so, Westwood refused to commit to being at the table.

"I don't know," he said when asked whether he planned to dine with McIlroy. "Depends what time he gets finished."

___

Jim Litke is a national sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at jlitke(at)ap.org

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SPORTS - Barber battled depression, says he needs football (AP)

SPORTS - Barber battled depression, says he needs football (AP)

AP – New York Knicks' Carmelo Anthony is surrounded by reporters as he leaves a midtown Manhattan hotel, Friday, …

By HANK KURZ Jr., AP Sports Writer Hank Kurz Jr., Ap Sports Writer – Sat Jun 18, 2:41 pm ET

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – NBA players who just finished a season capped by the highest rated championship series in more than a decade are concerned about how their labor dispute and a potential work stoppage before next season will affect their surging fan base.

Luke Walton said the packed road arenas the Los Angeles Lakers played in this season suggest the league's popularity is at a high point, and he's most concerned about how fans would respond if the labor issues aren't resolved and cause a delay to the start of the next season.

"The idea of the lockout and losing fans is probably the scariest thing of all," the eight-year veteran said. "Even moreso than missing games or losing out on your salary for however long you lose those games, it's losing the fan support because it's at an all-time high right now."

The numbers bear it out.

All three networks that televise NBA games reported a huge increase in viewers, led by a 42 percent increase for TNT. ABC had 38 percent more viewers, and ESPN had 28 percent more.

Arena capacity was 90.3 percent, its seventh straight year of 90 or better, and the 17,306 average was up 1 percent from last year and is the fifth highest in the league's history.

With the emergence of Derrick Rose as the league MVP, young teams in Oklahoma City and Memphis rising up to challenge traditional powers such as the Lakers and NBA champion Dallas Mavericks, and even the New York Knicks on the rise with the addition of Carmelo Anthony, the league seems to have as many viable contenders as in recent memory, which adds to its allure.

To stop the momentum with a lockout that fans might perceive as a selfish battle between already rich greedy owners and greedy players, Walton said, would be taking a huge risk.

"We know how dangerous it can be. We've seen it happen before. We've seen it happen in our sport with the last lockout. We saw it happen in baseball, hockey, and it's damaging," he said at the NBPA's annual Top 100 camp for elite high school players. Walton was taking part in a coach program for players at the camp, which wraps up Sunday at the University of Virginia.

"The popularity is at the top," he said. "It's high, and the ratings were record-breaking the last few years, and from the fans' perspective, the owners make a ton of money and are very wealthy, and the players make a ton of money and are very wealthy, so its kind of hard for them to sympathize with either side when these guys are hard-working people trying to make it and they're spending their hard-earned money on tickets and merchandise and all that stuff."

Walton isn't the only one.

"We would probably lose fans if we have a work stoppage," said Royal Ivey of the Oklahoma City Thunder, who said he came to the camp "to get my feet wet" in the coaching program.

The Grizzlies' Tony Allen also was taking part in the coaching program, and while he said a work stoppage would "put a needle in the balloon" of momentum, he sees a rather simple solution.

Financial restraint by management.

"If you're a GM, you've got to be smarter with your money," he said, echoing a thought career scoring leader Kareem Abdul-Jabbar voiced Friday. "If you don't want to give a guy $197 million and you believe he's only worth 60 percent of that, sign him for just 60 percent of it."

Abdul-Jabbar, who highlighted the importance of education in his chat with the campers, said he understands why fans won't be sympathetic to arguments over enormous amounts of money.

"There's a lot of guys that are overpaid, and that's another issue that the owners need to deal with because certain people are overpaid and that's ballooning the salaries to the point where the owners can't recoup their investment," the Lakers' assistant coach said.

"Everybody should be able to feel satisfied. The players should feel satisfied that they are getting paid adequately and the owners should feel satisfied that they are getting a good return on their investment," he continued. "In a perfect world, that's how it will end up."

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SPORTS - WIMBLEDON '11: The return of the Williams sisters (AP)

SPORTS - WIMBLEDON '11: The return of the Williams sisters (AP)

AP – Houston Astros' Chris Johnson breaks his bat as he hits and RBI double during the eighth inning of their …

– 36 mins ago

LOS ANGELES – Wandy Rodriguez pitched six gritty innings in his second straight scoreless outing since coming off the disabled list, Jason Bourgeois drove in a run and threw out a runner at home plate in place of injured right fielder Hunter Pence and the Houston Astros beat the fading Los Angeles Dodgers 7-0 on Saturday night.

Rodriguez (5-3) struck out six and was lifted after 103 pitches. The left-hander is 4-0 with a 1.29 ERA over his last seven starts. Last Monday, he gave up just two hits over six scoreless innings after missing 19 games due to elbow problems.

The Astros, coming off Brett Myers' complete-game, 7-3 win on Friday night, have won consecutive games for the first time since winning four in a row May 30-June 2 after entering this three-game series in a 2-11 skid with the worst record in the majors.

The Dodgers have lost five straight and are 10 games under .500 for the first time since 2005, when the team finished 71-91. Their six-game home losing streak is their longest since a six-game stretch in August 2007.

Rubby De La Rosa (3-1) was charged with five runs, six hits and three walks over 4 2-3 innings and struck out six in his third major league start. The 22-year-old right-hander, inserted into the rotation because of Jon Garland's inflamed right shoulder, won his previous two outings on the road against Philadelphia and Colorado and pitched five innings each time.

Pence was scratched from manager Brad Mills' original lineup because of a hyperextended left elbow. The injury occurred in Friday's game, when he hit a grounder to first base and dived into the bag trying to avoid James Loney's tag.

Pence, who came in with the NL's fourth-highest batting average (.321), is scheduled to fly back to Houston Sunday morning for an MRI and then rejoin the club for a road series against the Texas Rangers. He leads the Astros with nine homers and 51 RBIs, has played in all but two of Houston's first 72 games. Pence had a 23-game hitting streak that ended on Tuesday.

De La Rosa held the Astros to just two hits over the first four innings, striking out the side on 14 pitches in the second. But the Astros broke through for five runs in the fifth to break a scoreless tie after loading the bases with none out.

De La Rosa fanned Carlos Corporan and Rodriguez before walking Michael Bourn to force in a run. Bourgeois, starting in right field for the first time this season, singled off the glove of first baseman Casey Blake to drive in another run and Jeff Keppinger added a two-run single.

De La Rosa then walked Carlos Lee and was replaced by Mike MacDougal, whose wild pitch to Brett Wallace allowed Bourgeois to score the fifth run. Catcher Rod Barajas scrambled after the ball and sprained his right ankle popping back up to his feet. He limped back to the dugout and was replaced by Dioner Navarro.

Houston tacked on two more runs in the eighth against Ramon Troncoso, an RBI double by Chris Johnson and an RBI single by Corporan.

NOTES: Pence does not want to miss the Astros' next series, because Arlington, Texas is where he played his high school and college ball. In 11 big league games there, Pence is 15 for 46 with six RBIs and three home runs — all solo shots. ... Andre Ethier, who homered in the ninth inning of the Dodgers' 7-3 loss Friday night, doubled his first time up against Rodriguez. It's only the second time all season that he had extra-base hits in consecutive at-bats. The other time was April 16 against St. Louis, when he doubled in the sixth and eighth innings. ... Rodriguez fanned Ethier in the fifth for his 900th career strikeout. ... The Dodgers reinstated RHP Kenley Jansen from the 15-day disabled list and optioned RHP Josh Lindblom to Double-A Chattanooga. ... Blake was in the starting lineup for the first time since June 10 and was 1 for 4 with two strikeouts. He had five at-bats between then and Saturday with one hit, a go-ahead three-run double against Colorado's Matt Reynolds. ... De La Rosa made his big league debut against the Astros on May 24 at Houston with a perfect inning of relief in which he struck out Pence and Wallace. ... The six saves by the Dodgers' bullpen since May 11 have been by six different pitchers — none of them Jonathan Broxton, who is scheduled to make a pair of rehab assignments Monday and Wednesday with Triple-A Albuquerque. Broxton has been sidelined since May 4 because of a bruised right elbow.

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SPORTS - Seeing red with record 26 subpar rounds at US Open (AP)

SPORTS - Seeing red with record 26 subpar rounds at US Open (AP)

AP – Chicago White Sox first baseman Paul Konerko, left, gets congratulations from third base coach Jeff Cox …

By BOB BAUM, AP Sports Writer Bob Baum, Ap Sports Writer – 1 hr 44 mins ago

PHOENIX – John Danks took a line drive to the head and came up smiling.

The Chicago White Sox left-hander was still grinning in the clubhouse after his seven-inning performance earned the admiration of teammates and foes alike in his team's 6-2 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Saturday night.

"I'm OK, really," he said.

After talking briefly to reporters, Danks left with an ice pack applied to the large knot on the left side of his head for a precautionary CT scan at a hospital.

"That guy's pretty gutsy," Arizona manager Kirk Gibson said. "It looked like it hit him in the back of the head and one-hopped into the stands. He pitched well. He wanted to stay in the game. He was actually smiling about getting hit, so he's certainly a gamer in my book."

Danks pitched three innings after taking the shot in the fourth.

Stephen Drew's line drive careened off the side of Danks' head and bounced into the photographer's well adjacent to the Diamondbacks' dugout for a ground-rule double. The White Sox pitcher bounced to his feet smiling and assured everyone he was all right. He took a few practice pitches, then stayed in the game to the cheers of the crowd.

"I like to have a good time," he said. "I didn't think I was hurt by all means. They came out and checked me out. I passed all the tests during the game, was able to say in the game. I was trying to stay in the game and fortunately they let me do that. You know what, it's a laugh. There were some people that were scared. (Catcher Ramon) Castro told me a couple of times `Hey, you all right?' but I'm good."

He said he had "a hundred text messages" from his worried mother. There were others who contacted him with a bit less concern.

"I'm getting text messages now, `Way to use your head,'" Danks said.

He won his third straight after starting the season 0-8.

Danks (3-8), who has allowed two earned runs in 22 innings in his last three starts, gave up two runs, one earned, on seven hits through seven innings. He struck out seven with no walks.

"I knew he was fine because he never lost any consciousness. He was talking. He was bouncing around very well. He was looking for the ball," White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said, laughing. "But your heart stops for a couple of seconds. When we walked out there he said he was fine. The umpire did a tremendous job of talking to him, making sure he was OK, making sure we did the right thing."

Paul Konerko went 3 for 4 with a home run, two RBIs and two runs scored as the White Sox squared the three-game interleague series at one apiece. Alex Rios, who had four RBIs, blew open a close game with a three-run homer off reliever Micah Owings in the eighth inning.

Konerko homered for the second game in a row and is batting .446 (29 for 65) in the last 17 games. His home run Saturday moved him ahead of Carlos Delgado for third-most in interleague play with 51.

Alexei Ramirez also had three hits, including a double, for the White Sox, who had scored two runs in their previous three games, all losses.

Konerko broke a 2-all tie with one out in the sixth, sending Duke's 0-1 pitch into the left field seats for his 54th RBI to make it 3-2.

Drew's double off Danks' head put runners on second and third with no outs, the only serious trouble the Chicago left-hander experienced. Willie Bloomquist, who singled ahead of Drew, came home on Danks' wild pitch. Drew scored on Justin Upton's sacrifice fly to tie it at 2-2,

Chicago got one in the second and another in the third.

Konerko led off the second with a single, then moved to third on Ramirez's double. Konerko came home on Rios' groundout. In the third, Brent Morel doubled and took third when Carlos Quentin flied out. Konerko followed with an RBI single and the White Sox led 2-0.

The Diamondbacks had runners on second and third with one in the seventh out after Xavier Nady beat out an infield single and Melvin Mora doubled off the glove of a leaping Brent Lillibridge at the left field wall. But Danks got Henry Blanco to pop out and struck out Owings on three pitches.

Duke allowed three runs on five hits in 5 1-3 innings.

NOTES: A line drive foul by Lillibridge hit Konerko's father and brother in the stands. Dad was fine and the brother had a slight thumb injury. "My mother was talking the whole time and didn't see any of it," Konerko said. ... After Sunday's series finale, the Diamondbacks play 16 of 19 on the road leading up to the All-Star Game, to be played Aug. 12 at Chase Field. ... Konerko (54) and Quentin (47) account for 101 of Chicago's 283 RBIs. ... SS Drew's 11 assists in Friday night's 4-1 Arizona victory were the most in the majors since Pittsburgh 2B Ramon Vazquez had 11 against Houston on July 7, 2009. ... The White Sox have won 14 of their last 17 interleague games. ... Konerko is 17 home runs shy of 400.

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SPORTS - Road to greatness only 18 holes away for McIlroy (AP)

SPORTS - Road to greatness only 18 holes away for McIlroy (AP)

AP – Rory McIlroy, of Northern Ireland, reacts to missing a birdie putt on the 12th hole during the third …

By TIM DAHLBERG, AP Sports Columnist Tim Dahlberg, Ap Sports Columnist – Sat Jun 18, 9:09 pm ET

BETHESDA, Md. – He hasn't won one major yet, though that will surely change on Sunday unless Rory McIlroy has a meltdown of monumental proportion. One day the record will reflect that his march to greatness began with a U.S. Open title won in such a romp that by the final round his fellow pros had dropped any pretense of having a chance to beat him.

That he gave one away at the Masters will someday be little more than the answer to a trivia question. Give the kid a break on that one, because sometimes you have to learn how to lose before you can figure out how to win.

When most of the world last saw him at Augusta National, the enduring image was McIlroy with his face buried in the crook of his elbow after a tee shot on 13 sealed his fate. Soon that image will be replaced by one of him finishing a victory lap, all smiles as he walks up the 18th fairway with what could be the most dominating performance in Open history.

Don't expect him to shoot 80 in the final round the way he did at the Masters, not that it matters. McIlroy's lead is so big he could show up Sunday with just a 7-iron and a putter and still win this Open by three shots.

More than that, though, he's finally ready.

"The time is right," McIlroy said, "to go ahead and get my first one."

If he does, the 22-year-old from Northern Ireland with the exquisite swing will have answered the biggest question any golfer faces. He'll have one major in his pocket with a lifetime of golf still to be played.

The next question then becomes, just how good will McIlroy be?

"He's potentially the next Tiger Woods," said defending Open champion Graeme McDowell. "He's that good.'

Forgive McDowell if he got a little carried away with himself. He's spent three days playing the kind of golf that won him the title at Pebble Beach last year only to find himself 14 shots out of the lead with little hope of doing anything but cashing a paycheck here.

But Woods may not be the target. He's injured, stuck on 14 majors, and in such a big slump that you wonder if he will ever win another.

Would anyone dare say Jack Nicklaus? The greatest player ever who won 18 majors and won his first in the U.S. Open also at the age of 22?

Of course someone would.

"If you are going to talk about someone challenging Jack's record, there's your man," Padraig Harrington said. "Winning majors at 22 with his talent — he would have 20 more years so probably 100 more majors in him where he could be competitive. It would give him a great chance."

Quite a stretch, of course, even for someone with the prodigious talent of a player who drives it so straight and far he is nicknamed "BMW" by his fellow pros because he is the ultimate driving machine. McIlroy — as composed and likable as anyone his age could be — could only shake his head and laugh when told about Harrington's comments.

"Paddy, Paddy, Paddy," he said. "I'm still looking for my first one. That's all I can say."

Even if McIlroy never comes close to Nicklaus, though, the odds are he's going to win enough major titles to at least be in the conversation about the best players of his time. So far this year alone he's led in six out of seven rounds of the two majors, and last year he shot a 63 in the opening round of the British Open.

So far in this Open he's already set the record for lowest score after three rounds and, at 14-under, is further under par than any player has ever been.

"The more I put myself in this position the more comfortable I'm becoming," McIlroy said.

Some of the credit for that may go to Nicklaus himself. He took a liking to McIlroy when the two had lunch last year in Florida, and offered him some advice after the collapse that cost him the green jacket at the Masters.

The conversation was short, if only because McIlroy didn't take long to understand the message.

"He said you have to put pressure on yourself," McIlroy said. "There's going to be pressure from everyone else, so you've got to make sure that you really want it and you've got to go out there and expect to play well and put pressure on yourself to play well. And that's what he did. I took a lot from it."

There will be pressure Sunday even though McIlroy will tee off eight shots in front of Y.E. Yang. But McIlroy seems to finally be comfortable with it, and confident enough in his game that he will be able to handle it.

His father — who wasn't at the Masters — assured him of that over breakfast before Saturday's third round, and they will chat once again before he goes out to play the round that will almost surely change his life.

"From the experience that I had at Augusta I know now how to approach tomorrow, and I think that's the most important thing," McIlroy said. "I know what I need to do tomorrow."

Expect the victory lap to begin early for McIlroy.

The road to greatness is only 18 holes away.

____

Tim Dahlberg is a national sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at tdahlberg(at)ap.org or http://twitter.com/timdahlberg

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SPORTS - McIlroy sets another US Open mark for 8-shot lead (AP)

SPORTS - McIlroy sets another US Open mark for 8-shot lead (AP)

AP – CORRECTS PHOTOGRAPHER FROM SLOCUM TO GAY Rory McIlroy, of Northern Ireland, reacts after making his birdie …

By DOUG FERGUSON, AP Golf Writer Doug Ferguson, Ap Golf Writer – Sat Jun 18, 10:20 pm ET

BETHESDA, Md. – With each remarkable round, with each record-setting performance, Rory McIlroy is making that Masters debacle seem like a distant memory.

A U.S. Open title could erase it altogether.

McIlroy moved closer to his first major Saturday at Congressional by stretching his lead for the third straight day with a 3-under 68 to set the 54-hole record at the U.S. Open — a mind-boggling 14-under 199 — and build an eight-shot lead going into the final round.

That's twice the size of his lead going into the last day at Augusta National.

And this time, the 22-year-old Northern Irishman says he has learned from his mistakes.

"At Augusta, it was all a little bit new to me, going into the final round with the lead," he said. "I didn't know whether to be defensive, aggressive, go for it, not go for it. But now, I know what I need to do, which is a great thing to have. I have a clear mind going out there tomorrow, and I just need to stick to my game plan."

This time, history is on his side.

No one has ever blown more than a five-shot lead at the U.S. Open. No has ever lost any major when leading by more than six shots going into the final round. And over three days on a rain-softened course, no one looks to be close to McIlroy.

"It's just phenomenal," defending champion Graeme McDowell said. "You run out of superlatives to describe what he's doing this week. He's decimating a field."

For those curious whether he would crumble, as McIlroy did in the final round at the Masters when he lost a four-stroke lead and shot 80, he answered with a combination of smart play early and aggressive shots when he found his rhythm.

His only bogey came from a shot that was about 5 feet too long and tumbled into a back bunker on the par-3 10th. On the next hole, facing one of the most daunting shots on the course from deep rough, he hit a 7-iron that covered the flag and settled 18 feet away. McIlroy pumped his fist when he made the birdie putt. It was a knockout punch to everyone else.

When he walked off the 18th green with a par, he was eight shots clear of Y.E. Yang and one round away from his first major.

"I wanted to catch up a little bit," Yang said. "But at the same time, the player with the better shot, with the better putt, with the better composure is leading right now. So I have no regrets. Right now, the better player is leading.

"I think it's actually a race for second place right now."

His performance has been so inspiring that comparisons to Tiger Woods' record-setting romp at Pebble Beach in 2000 gave way to questions whether McIlroy ultimately would be the one to challenge Jack Nicklaus and his 18 majors.

"What is he, 22 years old? If you are going to talk about someone challenging Jack's record, there's your man," fellow Irishman Padraig Harrington said. "Winning majors at 22 with his talent, he would have 20 more years ... where he could be competitive. It would give him a great chance."

McIlroy, perhaps still wary of what happened at Augusta, is not ready to celebrate.

"Paddy, Paddy, Paddy," he said quietly as he shook his head and smiled. "I'm still looking for my first one. I've put myself in a great position to do that tomorrow, and then we'll see what happens from there. It's nice to have all these complimentary things said about you, but until you actually do these things, they don't mean anything."

With more rain overnight and cloud cover through the third round, scores resembled a regular PGA Tour event instead of a major championship designed to be the toughest exam golf has to offer.

There were 26 rounds under par, the most ever for the third round of a U.S. Open.

Lee Westwood and Jason Day provided the early challenge — if it could even be called that — with rounds of 65. Webb Simpson, who narrowly made the cut, was among the first out and shot 66.

"It's not a true U.S. Open test out there, to be honest," McDowell said. "There were some tough pins out there, no doubt. I'd like to see it tougher than it was. That's the weather — you can't control that. Take nothing away from him. Rory is doing a phenomenal job out there."

Woods was the only player under par when he built his 10-shot lead at Pebble Beach. There were 20 players under par through three rounds at Congressional. But soft conditions tend to make it easier on everyone, and McIlroy has been the best all week in any condition.

The USGA made no apologies for the low scores, attributing that to the weather — and to McIlroy, the star of this U.S. Open.

"If he wasn't in the field, we'd be talking about a pretty tight U.S. Open," said Jeff Hall, part of the team setting up the golf course. "Rory is just obviously playing at a level that's a bit above everybody else this week. There certainly are a number of birdies being made, but some folks are not finding it quite as easy as others."

About the only drama Saturday, even after McIlroy reached 14-under par, was whether he also would break Woods' record 10-shot lead through 54 holes at a U.S. Open. McIlroy had a nine-shot lead, but failed to birdie the par-5 16th and Yang added two late birdies.

Yang wound up with 70 and will be in the last group with McIlroy again. Westwood, Day and Robert Garrigus (68) were at 5-under 208.

"It definitely wasn't as easy as it was the first couple of days," McIlroy said. "I knew that I was going to feel a little bit of pressure and a little bit of nerves, and it took me a few holes to get into the round."

If there was a turning point, it might have come on the third hole.

McIlroy pushed his tee shot into the rough, and a tree blocked a clear shot at the green. Studying his options with caddie J.P. Fitzgerald, McIlroy pointed to a gap, then backed off and reached for a wedge to pitch back into the fairway. His third shot stopped 3 feet from the cup for a par, and he was on his way.

"That gave me a little bit of momentum," McIlroy said. "I sort of found my rhythm quite quickly after that."

Day played the opening three rounds with McIlroy at the Masters, and knew what he was capable of doing. The Australian still gave it his best shot, shooting a 32 on the tougher back nine, finishing with a rare birdie on the 18th.

All that, and he was still nine shots behind.

"The way he's playing out there, it's almost Tigeresque," Day said. "It's unbelievable how good he's playing. Obviously, to have the lead that he has in the U.S. Open is pretty ridiculous, and at such a young age. The next generation is starting to kick up now, and he's the guy that's leading it."

Westwood, considered the best player without a major, wasn't ready to concede even as McIlroy was passing his first big test.

"He had a big lead in a major and didn't deal with it before," Westwood said. "There's pressure on him with regards to that. So we'll see. All I can do is control my game and try and shoot as low a score as possible for me."

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