Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images Justin Thomas holds the first-round lead at Hilton Head, but there is more work to be done. Justin Thomas fired off a 61 to start his RBC Heritage and unsurprisingly holds the first-round lead. For what it’s worth it was tied for the best 18-hole scoring record at the RBC, but it is the lowest opening-round score ever (Cam Smith had a 62 in 2021). It is never easy to go wire-to-wire in a sport where you are tasked with doing so, and we are deep enough in the PGA Tour season that we have a legitimate sample size to work with on some things... including this very one. Through 16 starts on Tour this season no player has successfully won after holding the opening round lead and JT himself has failed to do so since the 2019 BMW Championship. Overall Thomas is 4 for 11 on converting this type of lead into an eventual victory. While the last one that he cashed in on was in 2019 his last opening round lead period was the 2024 Genesis Scottish Open. He ultimately finished tied for 62nd. If Thomas is going to go on to win this weekend then he is going to have to make it through some stiff competition to do so. Russell Henley, winner of another signature event this season in the API, and Scottie Scheffler, who is still seeking his first win of the season, are both three strokes back. Wyndham Clark, who finished T3 in the event last year, is one more behind them. Justin Rose is just two strokes back of there as he is still playing well following his playoff loss to Rory McIlroy in last week’s Masters. The point is... the golf is pretty good, folks.

Photo by Steven Tee/LAT Images Lando Norris sounded philosophical when speaking to the media Thursday at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix It was a case of the glass being half-full, or half-empty, for Lando Norris at the Bahrain Grand Prix a week ago. On the one hand, Norris managed to recover from a difficult qualifying session to finish on the podium, making it four-for-for in podium finishes in Grands Prix this season. That is the kind of recovery drive that keeps you in contention for a Drivers’ Championship. On the other hand, McLaren’s MCL39 was again the dominant package last week — as evidenced by Norris topping the timing sheets during practice and teammate Oscar Piastri taking both pole position and the win — yet Norris stumbled in Q3 to qualify sixth. While he did manage a strong recovery it could have been better, had he not been penalized for a false start for being outside his grid box before the lights went out. That forced McLaren to bring him into the pits on the earlier side of his first stint to serve the penalty. “Every time I did something good I did two bad,” conceded Norris after the race. Speaking with the media in Jeddah ahead of this weekend’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Norris admitted that he needed a “reset” after Bahrain. “I needed a couple of days off and needed a reset, I probably would have liked a few more days off, but I made the most of them,” Norris told media in Saudi Arabia. “I think with every athlete, as much as you try to get away, you’re still thinking about a lot of things, and for a lot of the time, I was still thinking about the difficulties that I’ve been struggling with.” In fact, Norris himself admitted that there are two sides to his 2025 story. Yes, there have been mistakes, and areas where he could have done better. But he enters the fifth race weekend of the season leading in the Drivers’ Championship, won in the season opener, and has perhaps the fastest car on the grid. “I’ve tried to force myself to think of what a success the start of the season has been, yes, I know it could have been better. “I have to get reminded that I’m leading the championship, won the first race, and been on the podium every race, so I have to be reminded of them rather than being able to remind myself. “I want to achieve my potential, and at the moment, I am not achieving my potential, and there is no reason for me to be happy with that.” Regarding the MCL39, Norris also conceded that he has made some adjustments to his driving style, and he is “having to adapt” to McLaren’s 2025 challenger. “There are things I’m going to try to do differently and learn about. I have a different approach to things in order to perform better,” said the McLaren driver. “I’m being forced to drive in a different way and a different manner that I’m not used to and that is not normal for me at all. Nothing’s a guarantee.” Norris did not outline what he needs to improve — or where the MCL39 needs to improve — but noted that the need to adapt is easing the pressure in his mind. “I’m not going to be able to drive like I did last year and like I know I’m good at, which is weird to say in my seventh season of F1,” said Norris. “But I’m still learning things. The car is definitely different to how it’s been. I’m having to adapt a lot in uncomfortable ways, but I come in with probably less pressure because I probably understand a bit better some of these reasons. “I think I’m more accepting of the struggles and the challenges that I have at the minute.” Piastri’s win in Bahrain made him the first repeat winner of the 2025 season, and vaulted the third-year driver to favorite status in the minds of many observers. Now we get to see how Norris, who entered the year as the favorite in the Drivers’ Championship race, responds.

Photo by Katelyn Mulcahy/Getty Images The first ace of the LPGA season belongs to Madelene Sagstrom. Major Championship season officially began last week as The Masters unfolded and in epic fashion. The next major taking place across the world of golf will be the the Chevron Championship in Houston. LPGA players have a chance to get into proper form the week ahead of it though as this week they are in Los Angeles for the JM Eagle LA Championship. Hannah Green is the event’s defending champion and carded a 3-under 69 to get things going; however, it was Madelene Sagstrom who stole the show. Sagstrom has already won on Tour this season as she was victorious at the T-Mobile Match Play in Las Vegas. She finished in solo second after the first round, but it was what she did on her final hole that was memorable as she recorded an age on the par-3 9th hole. Madelene Sagstrom records the first hole in one of the 2025 LPGA Tour season at the par 3, 9th hole en route to a bogey-free, -7, 65 @JMEagleLAChamp. pic.twitter.com/WDrikUURex— Amy Rogers (@TheAmyRogers) April 17, 2025 That is quite the way to start a tournament, but more notably it is quite the way to end a round. Given that it took place on Thursday it was hardly a walk-off homer, but it was about as close as you can get in the world of golf. For what it’s worth, while it was the first ace of the LPGA season at large, Madelene noted post-round that it was his first one in tournament play ever. She also said she calls the shot that she played a “2-2-2.” First ace of the season and the first of @msagstrom's professional career! pic.twitter.com/3bN47IFcBv— LPGA (@LPGA) April 17, 2025 As noted Madelene finished the first round in solo second. She trails Ashleigh Buhai by, ironically, two.

Photo by Justin Ford/Getty Images The latest shocking addition to the transfer portal is men’s college basketball’s leading returning scorer. PJ Haggerty was the third leading scorer in men’s college basketball this past season in a breakout sophomore year for the Memphis Tigers. Haggerty averaged 21.7 points per game by splashing shots from all three levels and consistently getting to the free throw line. Only Villanova’s Eric Dixon and Northern Arizona’s Trenton McLaughlin averaged more points during the 2024-2025 season, and both of them are out of eligibility for next year. Haggerty is the latest shocking addition to the transfer portal, entering his name on Thursday afternoon just ahead of the April 22 deadline. He immediately becomes one of the top available players in the portal, and he might be the best name on the list in terms of players with multiple years of eligibility remaining. This is a devastating blow for Memphis head coach Penny Hardaway, who is coming off his best season yet at 29-6 overall, yet failed to win a game in the 2025 NCAA tournament. There’s going to be a long list of suitors for a player with this type of production. He went into the transfer portal with a “do not contact” tag, which means he could have his next destination already picked out. Haggerty averaged 21.7 points, 5.8 boards and 3.7 assists and went into the portal with a “do not contact” tag. https://t.co/Y8gMF0Z1mw— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) April 17, 2025 We ranked Haggerty at No. 9 on our list of the 50 best players entering March Madness. The eight players ranked above him are all either returning to their original school or entering the 2025 NBA Draft. The NBA doesn’t have much interest in Haggerty because he’s a little small for a scoring guard (6’3, 191 pounds) and doesn’t have much athletic explosion — he finished the season with zero dunks. Still, this is exactly the type of guard that great college teams need in March as an instant-offense ingredient who can create off the dribble. Haggerty was an absolute workhorse for Memphis this past year, finishing No. 9 in total minutes played across DI while ranking No. 2 in both free throws made and free throw attempts. He’s not a high volume three-point shooter, attempting only three shots from deep per game, but he’s still an efficient scorer because of his ability to get to the foul line. His 58.3 percent true shooting was above-average, and is even more impressive when mixed with his 20 percent assist rate and 28 percent usage rate. Haggerty likely stands to cash in big time in the portal. Name a college team that needs a starting guard: Haggerty should be their top option. North Carolina figures to a be serious suitor for Haggerty. St. John’s still needs a guard as it targets former UNC freshman Ian Jackson. Will an SEC school like Alabama or Kentucky try to get into the mix? A school like Indiana could really use him in the backcourt to compete in the Big Ten. Haggerty could be a Preseason First-Team All-American when he reports to campus for the 2025-2026 season. Players with this level of production, experience, and two years of remaining eligibility don’t come around often. Memphis’ loss will be a blueblood’s gain most likely.

Photo by Mark Sutton - Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images Mercedes F1 driver George Russell is not worried about his contract status with the team George Russell entered the 2025 Formula 1 season in a fascinating position. With Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari, Russell had inherited the veteran role at Mercedes, with young phenom Kimi Antonelli securing the second seat with the Silver Arrows. Like Antonelli, however, Russell also entered the year on an expiring contract. Thanks to a tremendous start to the 2025 season — Russell has three podium finishes over four race weekends to enter this week’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix fourth in the Drivers’ Championship standings — there are reports that the driver is close to a new deal with Mercedes. Speaking with the media in Jeddah, Russell stressed that he was not ... stressed about his contract status with the team. “From my side, there’s literally no stress, no worries whatsoever,” began Russell when speaking with Sky Sports F1. “When it comes to contracts, everyone gets so excited about it, and the fact is, drivers have had contracts, and if they don’t perform, they’ll get booted out. “For drivers, performance is our currency. That’s what we’ve got. And if you perform, everything’s good. So, I’m just excited to go racing this weekend, focus on performance, and the future sorts itself out.” Russell was also asked about a report from Autosport that he was closing in on a new deal with the team, that would see him sign for two more seasons with an option for a third, as well as rumors about Mercedes remaining interested in securing Max Verstappen’s services if possible. “Rumors are never that truthful are they,” responded Russell. “When you said rumors, I didn’t really listen so much. A few of them are reasonably close, I guess, but at the end of the day, we’ve never discussed a contract prior to May or June in a season.” Russell then described the “ruthless” nature of Formula 1, where “drive to survive” is more than just the name of a documentary series, but a way of life. “I’d say the more abnormal point is how many drivers have these, sort of, long-term deals. “But everyone’s got exit clauses, they’ve all got performance clauses. A driver that’s on a three-year contract, it doesn’t really mean anything if they’ve got an exit clause, or the team has an exit clause if the driver doesn’t perform. It doesn’t really mean a lot. “If you’ve got a contract with a team but the team wants you gone, the team finds a way to get you gone. “That’s how this sport works, and that’s how it should work because we’re 20 of the best in the world and it’s ruthless. There’s no time to mess around. All you can do is focus on driving fast.” Russell will turn his attention to driving fast on Friday, in the first of three practice sessions at the tricky Jeddah Corniche Circuit.