Lexi Thompson to Las Vegas for PGA Tour as LPGA Tour goes to Shanghai

NCAA President Charlie Baker is expected to testify in front of a Senate committee next week during the 10th hearing on Capitol Hill over the last three years on college sports. The Senate Judiciary Committee has scheduled a hearing on Name, Image and Likeness, and the Future of College Sports for next Tuesday. Baker is the former governor of Massachusetts. He took over as NCAA president in March. He and other college sports leaders have been lobbying lawmakers for a federal law to help regulate the way college athletes can be compensated for their fame.

Struggling Spanish club Sevilla has hired former Uruguay coach Diego Alonso. Alonso replaces Jose Luis Mendilibar, who was fired on Sunday after the team’s poor start to the season. Sevilla is 14th in the Spanish league with eight points from eight matches. It next hosts league leader Real Madrid on Saturday. The 48-year-old Alonso helped Uruguay qualify for the World Cup in Qatar, but couldn’t lead the team past the group stage. The former Valencia and Atletico Madrid player also coached Major League Soccer team Inter Miami and Mexican clubs Monterrey and Pachuca.

The Minnesota Vikings will place wide receiver Justin Jefferson on injured reserve according to a person with knowledge of the decision speaking to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the move had not been finalized. The 2022 NFL Offensive Player of the Year will miss at least the next four games because of a hamstring injury. Jefferson slipped while trying to make a cut on his route in the fourth quarter of Minnesota's loss to Kansas City. Jefferson has 36 catches for 571 yards and three touchdowns and has never missed a game in his career until now.

The NHL sent a memo to teams last week clarifying what players can and cannot do as part of theme celebrations this season, including a ban on the use of rainbow-colored stick tape for Pride nights. The updated guidance reaffirms on-ice player uniforms and gear for warmups and official team practices cannot be altered to reflect theme nights, including Pride, Hockey Fights Cancer or military appreciation. Players can voluntarily participate in themed celebrations off the ice. Previously the NHL had decided not to allow teams to wear any theme jerseys for warmups after a handful of players opted out last season.

First-choice flyhalf Dan Biggar has recovered from a pectoral strain to be available for Wales’ Rugby World Cup quarterfinal against Argentina on Saturday in Marseille. Biggar was hurt early against Australia more than two weeks ago. He was a just-in-case reserve last Saturday and unused as Wales defeated Georgia 43-19 in Nantes to sweep all four of its pool games. When asked on Tuesday if Biggar is fit to play the Pumas this weekend, assistant coach Jonathan Thomas says, “Yes.” Wales’ other two injury concerns are easing. Flyhalf Gareth Anscombe and fullback Liam Williams have restarted running in training. Argentina has summoned lock Lucas Paulos to replace injured back-rower Pablo Matera. Paulos has 12 caps since 2020, his last against South Africa in July at Ellis Park.

Dolphins rookie running back De’Von Achane reportedly will miss multiple weeks after suffering a knee injury in Miami’s win over the New York Giants. Coach Mike McDaniel said Monday that the team is still gathering information on the severity of Achane’s injury and didn’t have details on exactly when it occurred, or a timeline for return. NFL Network reported that Achane’s injury isn't expected to sideline him for the rest of the season. The Dolphins selected Achane in the third round of the NFL draft. He leads the league with 12.1 yards per carry.

Max Verstappen made it official with five races to spare. Verstappen clinched his third consecutive Formula One championship even before the Qatar Grand Prix, then won the race for good measure. He's won 14 of 17 races this season. Road course specialist A.J. Almendinger's third career NASCAR Cup Series victory came at the expense of playoff hopes for former champions Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski. They were among the four drivers knocked from the playoffs at The Roval in Charlotte. And Sam Mayer used a dominant effort in the Xfinity Series to win his way into the round of eight in that series.

Ben Shelton advanced to his first Masters quarterfinal by beating fourth-ranked Jannik Sinner 2-6, 6-3, 7-6 (5). The 21-year-old American had 15 aces as his serve improved throughout the match. The U.S. Open semifinalist says “I had a lot of belief in my ability to serve and hang tough and to make it deep in sets.” The 19th-seeded Shelton will next play Sebastian Korda. He advanced to his second Masters quarterfinal with a 7-5, 7-6 (6) victory over Francisco Cerundolo. Eighth-seeded Casper Ruud lost to Fabian Marozsan 7-6 (3), 3-6, 6-4.

The PGA Tour returns to Las Vegas with a new twist. The tournament has given a sponsor's exemption to Lexi Thompson. She'll be the seventh woman to play on the PGA Tour and the first in five years. The field has six of the top 50 players. That includes defending champion Tom Kim. The LPGA Tour returns to China for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic. Danielle Kang is defending a title she won in 2019. Jon Rahm is back in action at the Spanish Open. He's won three of the last four times. LIV Golf plays in Saudi Arabia.

This Date in Baseball, October 11 - Brooks Robinson sets World Series record by reaching base 5 straight times

Today in Sports, October 11 - Brett Favre becomes the 1st NFL player to throw 500 TD passes and for 70,000 yards

Former baseball MVP Steve Garvey is joining the race to succeed the late California Sen. Dianne Feinstein. The Republican Garvey gives his party a splash of star quality on the ballot in a heavily Democratic state where the GOP hasn’t won a U.S. Senate race in 35 years. Garvey signaled in a video that he would lean toward the political center, saying: "I never played for Democrats or Republicans or independents. I played for all of you.” As a Republican, he starts as a longshot. Democrats hold every statewide office. Leading candidates include Democratic U.S. Reps. Barbara Lee, Katie Porter and Adam Schiff.

The hottest forward in the Bundesliga right now is Stuttgart’s Serhou Guirassy. The Guinea forward scored a hat trick in Stuttgart’s 3-1 win at Wolfsburg on Saturday. It took his tally to 13 goals in only seven league matches. It also erased any concerns of a barren patch after he failed to score in his previous game. No other player has ever so scored so many goals at this stage in the league. Guirassy’s form has helped Stuttgart make a strong start to the season with only one loss and six wins from its opening seven games.

Second-seeded Jelena Ostapenko has been dumped out of the Korea Open in the first round by local wild card Back Da-yeon 3-6, 6-1, 7-6 (4). The 569th-ranked South Korean player had never previously advanced past the first round. It looked that trend was set to continue but Back rallied from 5-2 down in the third set. She saved one match point and then claimed the deciding tiebreaker for the biggest win of her career. Fifth-seeded Sofia Kenin was also beaten by a home favorite with 162nd-ranked Jang Su-jeong winning 6-1, 6-4.  Fourth-ranked Jessica Pegula won her opening round match beating No. 74 Viktoria Hruncakova 6-2, 6-4.

Teenage sensation Lamine Yamal has been removed from Spain’s squad for upcoming European Championship qualifying games. The Spanish soccer federation said Tuesday that tests have determined that the 16-year-old Yamal won’t be able to play in Spain’s matches against Scotland on Thursday and Norway on Sunday. It did not give details. Yamal was replaced in the second half of Barcelona’s 2-2 draw at Granada in the Spanish league on Sunday. The Catalan club said he had a hip flexor injury. Yamal was returning to Spain’s squad after becoming the youngest player to appear for La Roja last month. He also was the youngest scorer in a European Championship qualifier for any national team.

Eden Hazard is putting an end to a 16-year injury-hit career marked by great success at club level and unfulfilled promise with the Belgium national team’s “Golden Generation.” The 32-year-old Hazard announced his retirement from all soccer on Tuesday after more than 700 matches and two Premier League titles during his time with Chelsea. Before injuries slowed him down, Hazard was often unstoppable on the field with his quick pace, creativity and super dribbling skills. The widely admired player had already retired from international soccer after his country’s aging generation of players was eliminated from the World Cup in the group stage last year.

Russian teams will not be allowed to play in Under-17 European Championship qualifying games this month. European soccer governing body UEFA decided on Tuesday it could not insert Russia into its men’s and women’s youth competitions. Two weeks ago UEFA surprisingly eased its policy that all Russia's national and club teams be excluded from international competitions because of the invasion of Ukraine. The policy provoked a split in UEFA’s executive committee. At least 12 of the 55 European member federations said their teams would continue to refuse to play games against Russia. UEFA says "no technical solution to allow Russian teams to play could be found.”

UEFA has decided the future of soccer’s European Championship for the next decade. The United Kingdom and Ireland will host in 2028 and an unusual Italy-Turkey co-hosting plan was picked for 2032. The double hosting award was inevitable after former bid rivals Italy and Turkey united under one flag of convenience in July. That deal took Turkey out of the Euro 2028 contest. The five neighboring UEFA member federations of England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales and Ireland were long favored to win. Euro 2024 in Germany is an increasingly rare example in modern soccer of a single host nation. The executive committee of the European soccer governing body finally approved the 2028 and 2032 decisions on Tuesday.

More free agents took short contracts, teams handed out bonuses and the entire NHL is looking forward to the summer of 2024. That's when the salary cap is expected to get its first big jump since before the pandemic. New U.S. media rights contracts, digital dasher board advertisements, jersey and helmet ads and other developments have paved the way for the cap to go up roughly $4 million. There are more increases coming once players’ pandemic debt to owners is paid off as the league continues to set revenue records.

NHL players open their season this week. With that will come goals, penalties and plenty of trash-talking. Players say it's part of the game. Calgary forward Nazem Kadri says he appreciates the witty criticism. Montreal winger Cole Caufield says it’s “scary” how some players will go down an internet rabbit hole to gather dirt. New Jersey Devils center Jack Hughes says the hockey world is a small one, which adds to potential material.

Matthew Phillips making the Washington Capitals season-opening roster is one of the biggest surprises around the NHL. The 25-year-old is 140 pounds and generously listed at 5-foot-7. He and fellow longtime minor leaguer Lucas Johansen each beat the odds to make the Capitals. Two other Eastern Conference contenders also had players come out of nowhere in training camp to earn a spot. Matthew Poitras went from the 54th pick in the 2022 draft to the 2023-24 Boston lineup that lost Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci. Toronto also kept a 19-year-old in Fraser Minten. The season begins Tuesday night.

The 2023-24 NHL season arrives with a handful of new teams ready to take the leap toward contending status. There are also plenty of others trying to hang on to playoff spots. The next several months could represent a changing of the guard in hockey as the likes of Buffalo, Ottawa and maybe Detroit and Arizona show significant improvement. Can Boston, Tampa Bay and some other old guard winners hold on? And will Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers finally lift the Stanley Cup. Those questions will soon be answered. The season starts Oct. 10.

Las Vegas Aces guard Jackie Young has made tremendous strides in five years as a pro. As a rookie out of Notre Dame, she was a shy, dynamic drive-to-the-right, mid-range specialist. She averaged 9.7 points per game over her first three seasons, improving progressively each year under then-coach Bill Laimbeer. But when Becky Hammon arrived, and Tyler Marsh was added to the coaching staff, Young’s game was about to take a long-range turn. She went from being a 28.6 percent shooter from 3-point territory, to a 44.3 percent menace the past two seasons.

There was a World Series and other postseason games played at Globe Life Field even before Texas Rangers fans got to see their own team do anything in the stadium with a retractable roof. Playoff games are now back there three years after MLB’s neutral-site World Series won by the Los Angeles Dodgers during the COVID-19 pandemic. The stadium was brand new then. The hometown Rangers will now play their first postseason games there before a full house. Game 3 of the AL Division Series is Tuesday night, when Texas has an opportunity to complete a sweep of the Baltimore Orioles.

Kansas City Chiefs star tight end Travis Kelce slipped free from both Aaron Rodgers' COVID-19 insult and a seemingly serious ankle injury in Week 5. Taylor Swift may have the “Shake it Off” song but it's Kelce who's living the lyrics. First, he handled the dig from the Jets' anti-vax quarterback with humor and humilty. Then, he returned to the field Sunday at Minnesota and helped the Chiefs to a 27-20 victory after heading inside for treatment late in the second quarter 48 hours after turning Rodgers' dig into a badge of honor in a public relations master class delivery.

For a few moments against the Eagles on Sunday, for a few precious plays, Cooper Kupp was his old self again, and it was a sight to see.

This was perhaps the first Saturday in North Carolina that really felt like fall. Crisp temperatures in the morning. A cool breeze even as the day warmed. And, at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh, and Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill, those long autumn shadows covering the field in the afternoon…

When we last saw the Chicago Blackhawks play a real game at the end of the 2022-23 season, management let everyone know the team was moving on from Jonathan Toews.

ATHENS, Ga. – It’s still early. Real early. But Georgia’s offense in the first year of ‘Beck-Bobo-Bowers’ is starting to look pretty special.

MINNEAPOLIS — Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce crumpled into the treacherous slit film turf on Sunday at U.S. Bank Stadium, hobbled off the field and radiated pain and distress as he was being attended to on the sideline.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Inside the visitors’ locker room here Sunday at SoFi Stadium, Haason Reddick was pleased to greet a SiriusXM NFL Radio producer who sought some of his time for a postgame interview.

Bundesliga club Augsburg has fired coach Enrico Maaßen after just one win from its opening seven games in the league. Augsburg says Maaßen is leaving “with immediate effect” to be replaced by under-23 coach Tobias Strobl on an interim basis until a new head coach is appointed. Maaßen’s last game in charge was a 2-1 loss at home to Darmstadt on Saturday, its second straight defeat after a 2-0 loss at Freiburg the weekend before. Maaßen took over as coach last year after joining from Bundesliga rival Borussia Dortmund’s under-23s before the season started. Maaßen’s team survived in the Bundesliga last season despite losing its last three games.

Beating five-time champion Australia in its opening match has given India extra confidence for the rest of the group stage at the Cricket World Cup. The tournament hosts take on Afghanistan on Wednesday in the second of their nine group games, preparing to be the most-traveled team in the six-week tournament. The 48,000-seater Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi will be the second of nine match venues for Rohit Sharma’s squad. India beat Australia by six wickets on Sunday in a thrilling, low-scoring game at Chennai. Ninth-ranked Afghanistan is coming off an opening loss to Bangladesh.

PARIS (AP) — The Rugby World Cup quarterfinal lineups are decided after a month of pool-stage games drew to a close with top-ranked Ireland and host France powering into the last eight with convincing victories.

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (AP) — Miami coach Mario Cristobal reiterated Monday that he takes full responsibility for the Hurricanes not taking a knee in the final seconds of their loss to Georgia Tech. That came even as offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson revealed that he actually called the play …