Tournament host Tiger Woods announced Sahith Theegala as the recipient of the Charlie Sifford Memorial Exemption into the Genesis Invitational.

Theegala, 28, will compete in the tournament from Feb. 19-22 at The Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles.

The Charlie Sifford Memorial Exemption is awarded annually to “a deserving golfer from a minority background,” according to the Genesis Invitational.

“During Charlie’s playing days, all he wanted was an opportunity to compete with the best players in the world so he could showcase his game, and Sahith shares those same characteristics,” Woods said. “I am proud to welcome Sahith to the field for the Genesis Invitational, a tournament that shares a lot of meaning for us both.”

Born to parents who immigrated from India, Theegala was raised in Chino Hills, Calif. He became one of the sport’s top amateurs while attending Pepperdine, and he made his PGA Tour as a sophomore in college at The Riviera Country Club in 2017 via exemption by virtue of his Collegiate Showcase victory.

“Receiving this special invitation from Tiger is an honor,” Theegala said. “The Genesis Invitational has played an important role in my journey to the PGA Tour, and I truly appreciate the opportunity to compete in Charlie’s memory.”

Theegala won the 2023 Fortinet Championship for his lone victory on the PGA Tour. He is 92nd in the current Official World Golf Ranking.

–Field Level Media

Twelve-time All-Star guard Chris Paul on Friday announced his retirement from the NBA after 21 seasons.

Paul, who previously said he’s retiring at the end of the season, publicly made his decision to hang up his sneakers over Instagram.

“This is it! After over 21 years I’m stepping away from basketball,” Paul, 40, wrote on social media.

“As I write this, it’s hard to really know what to feel, but for once — most people would be surprised — I don’t have the answer lol. But, mostly I’m filled with so much joy and gratitude!

“While this chapter of being an ‘NBA player’ is done, the game of basketball will forever be engrained in the DNA of my life.”

The Toronto Raptors waived Paul earlier on Friday.

That move was expected after Toronto acquired Paul from the Los Angeles Clippers as part of a three-team deal with the Brooklyn Nets at last week’s trade deadline. The trade for Paul, in the eyes of the Raptors, was done for financial reasons.

Signed to a one-year, $3.6 million contract last offseason, Paul rejoined a Clippers franchise with which he spent six seasons from 2011-17. This season, he averaged 2.9 points, 3.3 assists and 1.8 rebounds in 16 games off the bench. He has not played in a game since Dec. 1.

Paul ranks second in NBA history in assists with 12,552 and second in steals with 2,728, trailing only Basketball Hall of Famer John Stockton in both categories.

Paul, then with New Orleans, was named Rookie of the Year in 2006. He is a four-time All-NBA first-team selection, five-time NBA assists champion and six-time steals champion. A member of seven first-team All-Defensive teams, he also was the MVP of the 2013 All-Star Game.

Paul won Olympic gold medals with the United States in Beijing in 2008 and London in 2012 and was named to the NBA’s 75th anniversary team in 2021.

He played with New Orleans for six seasons, then was traded to the Clippers in 2011. He later played for the Houston Rockets (2017-19), Oklahoma City Thunder (2019-20), Phoenix Suns (2020-23), Golden State Warriors (2023-24) and San Antonio Spurs (2024-25).

Paul has career averages of 16.8 points, 9.2 assists, 4.4 rebounds and 2.0 steals in 1,370 games (1,314 starts). He has not won an NBA title, getting to the Finals only once when his Suns lost to the Milwaukee Bucks in 2021.

–Field Level Media

The Big Ten didn’t get its wish of a 24-team College Football Playoff field starting in 2026, but that isn’t deterring the conference from pushing for its goal.

The Big Ten reportedly shared an internal document detailing how it sees a 24-team CFP playing out with the conference’s athletic directors and head coaches. ESPN also received a copy of the document, reporting on the details.

The document, which the conference is referring to as the “24 team CFP Format Compromise,” wants to see the CFP expand to 16 teams for 2027 and 2028 and to 24 teams no later than the 2029 season.

The Southeastern Conference reportedly was willing to grow the field to 16 teams for the upcoming season, but the Big Ten would only agree if the SEC agreed to a future 24-team playoff in the near future — which the SEC refused to do.

In the proposed 16-team format, there would be five automatic bids and 11 at-large spots. The bottom four teams would play the second weekend of December, No. 13 vs. No. 16 and No. 14 vs. No. 15.

There would then be six on-campus games in the next round, with the top-two seeds earning byes to the quarterfinals held at traditional New Year’s Six bowl locations on Dec. 31 and Jan. 1.

That would align with a mid-January national title game, much like it has the last few seasons. It would maintain conference championship games the first weekend of December.

Those would not remain in the proposed 24-team format, which would not have any automatic bids, according to the Big Ten’s vision.

Instead of conference title games, the top eight teams would receive byes while the remaining 16 would play on-campus games, ideally the second weekend of December.

That would be followed by eight more on-campus second-round games, hosted by the eight teams who earned first-round byes.

Like the current format, quarterfinals would be played around New Year’s, semifinals the following week and a mid-January national championship would follow.

The Big Ten also believes that regular-season rematches should be avoided in this 24-team format, although conference opponents who didn’t face off that season could be paired up for opening-round games.

Much of the Big Ten’s desire for a larger playoff stems from its belief that a larger field would allow for more room for error.

“In today’s transfer portal/player movement era, teams may lose a game or two early and gel together later in the season — more playoff opportunities late provides an appropriate safety net,” the Big Ten’s document said.

The debate about expansion will rage without a likely resolution in the coming months. ESPN has mandated a Dec. 1 deadline in order for the 2027 CFP format to be finalized.

–Field Level Media