WEBCOM TOUR
3 tied for lead in BMW Charity Pro-Am
GREER, S.C. (AP) — Matt Davidson shot a 5-under 67 on Saturday for a share of the third-round lead with Blayne Barber and Ryan Blaum in the Web.com Tour’s BMW Charity Pro-Am.
Davidson had seven birdies and two bogeys at The Reserve at Lake Keowee to match Barber and Blaum at 14-under 201. Barber, coming off a victory two weeks ago in the South Georgia Classic, had a 68 at The Reserve. Blaum shot a 68 at Thornblade Club, the site of the final round.
Jon Curran and Kyle Reifers were a stroke back. Curran had a 66 at Thornblade Club, and Reifers shot 70 — also at Thornblade.
STATE TRACK CHAMPIONSHIPS
NFL star’s sister big winner at SC track meet
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Athletic talent certainly runs in NFL star Robert Quinn’s family.
Jasmine Quinn, the younger sister of the St. Louis’ Rams defensive lineman, won four state titles for the second straight year at the South Carolina High School League track and field championships on Saturday.
The Fort Dorchester High School athlete got things started Friday night when she won the long jump with a distance of 20 feet, 2¼ inches — bettering the mark of 19-11½ that stood since 1982. Quinn picked up where she left off in the two-day meet by winning the 100-meter hurdles in a record time of 13.54 seconds, topping her record-setting run of a year ago in this meet.
Quinn also won the 100 and 200 meter titles for the second straight season.
BILLS-WATKINS
Rookie WR Watkins quickly catching on with Bills
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Sammy Watkins has one rule when it comes to playing receiver.
It’s on him to catch anything within his reach.
If that’s the case, then Buffalo Bills’ rookie first-round draft pick was perfect in Saturday when the team opened a three-day minicamp
Watkins opened by catching a side-armed wobbler delivered by former Ohio State backup Kenny Guiton on the first play from scrimmage. Watkins then made an arms out-stretched catch over the middle that sent him tumbling to the turf.
It was a performance that came to the delight and relief of coach Doug Marrone.
Marrone saw glimpses of the dynamic ability Watkins displayed at Clemson, which led to the Bills trading up five spots to select him with the fourth pick.
JETS-BOYD BACK TO BASICS
Jets’ Tajh Boyd ‘a small fish in a big pond again’
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — After a record-setting career at Clemson, Tajh Boyd realizes he has to get back to basics after being a sixth-round draft pick of the New York Jets.
Boyd set 57 school and Atlantic Coast Conference records, finishing with 11,904 yards passing and 107 touchdowns. He also ran for 26 scores as one of college football’s most dynamic players.
But with the Jets, he’ll compete for the No. 3 job with Matt Simms, while Geno Smith and Michael Vick battle to be the starter.
Boyd says Saturday after his second practice at rookie minicamp that it’s kind of strange being “a small fish in a big pond again,” but adds that the goal is to keep getting better so that he’ll one day “emerge again as one of the bigger fish.”
NASCAR-NATIONWIDE
Blaney earns Nationwide pole in Iowa
NEWTON, Iowa (AP) — Ryan Blaney will start from the pole Sunday in the NASCAR Nationwide race at Iowa Speedway after winning qualifying Saturday.
Blaney, who won a NASCAR Truck Series race in Iowa in 2012, took the pole for the first time in the Nationwide Series.
Sam Hornish Jr. will join Blaney on the front row, followed by Michael McDowell, Regan Smith and Dylan Kwasniewski.
Series points leader Chase Elliott will start sixth in the Nationwide’s first stand-alone race of the season.
INDYCAR-BUSCH-INDY 500
Busch narrowly misses Indy 500 pole contention
CONCORD, N.C. (AP) — Kurt Busch’s run at driving 1,100 miles over two races in one day won’t start from the Indy 500 pole.
Busch narrowly missed a chance to compete for the pole when he posted the 10th-fastest qualifying time Saturday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The top nine spots are eligible for the pole on Sunday.
Ed Carpenter’s four-lap average of 230.661 mph was just ahead of Carolos Munoz for the top spot.
Busch made two attempts at Indianapolis to crack the top nine. He briefly posted one of the fastest speeds on his second run and had a grip on contention for a front row spot in the No. 26 Suretone Honda for Andretti Autosport. Not for long. He lost his spot and was on his way to North Carolina to race in NASCAR’s All-Star race.
CHARLOTTE GRAND PRIX
Hosszu doubles up again at Charlotte Grand Prix
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Katina Hosszu of Hungary doubled up again at the Charlotte Grand Prix, winning the 200-meter butterfly and the 100 backstroke Saturday night.
Hosszu cruised to a nearly 2-second victory in the fly, touching in 2 minutes, 9.66 seconds. She dominated the back in 59.64, with no one else going faster than 1:01.39.
On Friday, Hosszu won the 200 freestyle and 400 individual medley.
Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace of the host team, SwimMAC Carolina, also had a pair of wins in the 50 free (24.65) and 50 fly (26.28). Josh Schenider took the men’s 50 free in 22.17, while Olympians Anthony Ervin and Cullen Jones finished fourth (22.49) and fifth (22.81), respectively.
Olympic star Allison Schmitt won the 400 free in 4:08.65, continuing her comeback from a disappointing 2013 season.
NASCAR-JOHNSON TRIATHLON
Johnson completes triathlon before All-Star race
CONCORD, N.C. (AP) — Jimmie Johnson proved he can do more than win NASCAR races.
The six-time Sprint Cup champion won the 35-39 age group at the Over The Mountain Triathlon in Kings Mountain on Saturday hours before heading to Charlotte Motor Speedway to compete in the NASCAR All-Star race.
Johnson finished 11th overall out of 119 male participants with a time of 2 hours, 30 minutes, 7 seconds.
Johnson says “I’m so stoked, so stoked.”
Johnson expected to get some rest when he returned home, but wife Chandra had other ideas.
He says: “I walked into (my wife) saying ‘It’s been a frustrating morning, here ya go.’ So I got the two kids and got in the pool. I took a shower in my swimming pool.”
Johnson’s bib number? Well, No. 48, of course.
PANTHERS-GAFFNEY
Panthers sign 6th-round draft pick RB Gaffney
The Carolina Panthers have signed running back Tyler Gaffney, their sixth-round draft pick.
Terms of the deal were not released Saturday.
The 5-foot-11, 220-pound Gaffney is a potential long-term replacement for DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart.
The Panthers like his athleticism and general manager Dave Gettleman has praised his ability to pick up the blitz.
Gaffney left Stanford in 2012 to play in the Pittsburgh Pirates minor league system. He hit .297 in 38 games, but said he missed football and decided to return to Stanford for his senior season.
In 2013, he won the starting job and ran for 1,709 yards with 21 touchdowns.
PHELPS FUTURE
Phelps’ comeback plans starting to come into focus
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Michael Phelps always has a plan. Now, it’s becoming a bit more apparent what he has in mind for his comeback.
In the short term, there will be a month of intense training in the high altitude of Colorado, followed by a couple of minor meets in California and Georgia, before he competes in the two biggest events of 2014: the national championships and Pan Pacific Championships.
Looking farther down the road, it’s becoming clear that Phelps hopes to swim in all three relays at the 2016 Olympics, and perhaps two individual events. The 100-meter butterfly would certainly be part of the mix, but it’s still up in the air what else he might swim. The 200 individual medley is a possibility. So is the 200 freestyle.
NASCAR-ELLIOTT’S FUTURE
Earnhardt won’t push teen Chase Elliott along
CONCORD, N.C. (AP) — Chase Elliott’s early success hasn’t forced Hendrick Motorsports to speed up its long-term plan for the driver.
Elliott has two Nationwide Series wins this year for JR Motorsports and heads into Sunday’s race at Iowa Speedway leading the points standings. He also graduated high school in Georgia on Saturday.
The 18-year-old is in the Hendrick driver development program, and JR Motorsports co-owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. says that’s where he’ll stay for now.
NASCAR-EARNHARDT VS BARKLEY
Dale Earnhardt Jr. races Charles Barkley for fun
CONCORD, N.C. (AP) — NASCAR’s most popular driver has certified that Charles Barkley is “not turrible” behind the wheel.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. squared off against the Hall of Fame basketball player in a head-to-head race that will be aired on NASCAR on TNT’s Summer Series before the June 8 race at Pocono. Earnhardt was pleased with the meeting but wouldn’t reveal details of Friday’s race.
The idea for the race began on social media when Earnhardt landed in one of TNT’s “Gone Fishing” tweets after the Charlotte Bobcats were eliminated from the NBA playoffs. Barkley mentioned he wanted to meet the driver, and Earnhardt replied on Twitter, “Heck, I wanna meet Charles!”
