Sports
Russell Henley leads, Rory McIlroy hits ace at Pebble Beach Pro-Am
January 11, 2025; Honolulu, Hawaii, USA; Russell Henley hits his tee shot on the second hole during the third round of the Sony Open golf tournament at Waialae Country Club. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images Rory McIlroy made a hole-in-one in his PGA Tour season debut, but Russell Henley sat alone atop the leaderboard after a low-scoring first day at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am on Thursday in Pebble Beach, Calif.
Henley fired an 8-under-par 64 with nine birdies at Spyglass Hill Golf Course. That included back-to-back birdies at Nos. 17 and 18 to tie the lead and then eke in front of the pack.
“I had a nice wedge shot on 17 to 8 or 10 feet and feel like I hit my line on my putt and went in the middle,” Henley said. “Then 18 kind of did the same thing, good tee shot, good iron shot to 15, 16 feet and read it right.
“So nice way to finish and definitely excited about how I’m playing.”
The 80-man field at the second signature event of the season is playing one round apiece at Pebble Beach Golf Links and Spyglass Hill before spending Saturday and Sunday at Pebble Beach.
Six players are tied at 7-under 65: Viktor Hovland of Norway, Justin Rose of England, Cam Davis of Australia and Jake Knapp, who played Pebble Beach on Thursday, and Austria’s Sepp Straka and Denmark’s Rasmus Hojgaard, who began the tournament at Spyglass.
Hovland made a push late in the day with four birdies on each nine. He missed birdie putts at Nos. 17 and 18 that would have tied him for the lead.
Though a top-10 player in the world rankings, Hovland was transparent entering the tournament that he wasn’t confident with where his game stood.
“I’m still not happy with my game, how it looks, but that doesn’t mean that I can have great individual days or great individual tournaments,” Hovland said. “So I’m still really pumped to shoot 65, but I know that I’m not going to just let that overlook the problems or the issues that I have in my game.”
McIlroy also opened the week at Spyglass and turned in a bogey-free, 6-under 66, buoyed by his ace at the par-3 15th hole. Playing downhill and just 119 yards, the four-time major champ from Northern Ireland flew a wedge shot into the green and his ball could be heard hitting the flagstick before disappearing into the hole without a bounce.
“Honestly, it was lucky. I don’t see many balls nowadays go straight in the hole and stay in the hole,” McIlroy said. “Pretty fortunate because it could have come out and went back in the water or do anything.”
It was McIlroy’s second career hole-in-one on the PGA Tour. He added birdies on three of his final four holes to get to 6 under.
Also carding a hole-in-one Thursday: Ireland’s Shane Lowry, who aced the famed seventh hole at Pebble Beach. His tee shot took two hops on the green before rolling directly in the cup.
“Hopefully Rory’s (at the clubhouse), as well, I get to split the bill with him,” Lowry said of his friend.
Lowry joined McIlroy at 6 under, part of a seven-way tie that also featured Justin Thomas (Spyglass) and Patrick Cantlay (Pebble).
World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler opened his 2025 season with a 5-under 67 at Spyglass Hill. He was sidelined for about four weeks after injuring his hand while cooking over the holidays.
“I liked what I saw (Thursday,” Scheffler said. “I hit a few errant shots out there, but overall kept the course in front of me for the most part, so I was able to make a decent amount of birdies.”
Last year’s champion, Wyndham Clark, opened with a 2-over 74 at Pebble Beach. Sweden’s Ludvig Aberg, last year’s runner-up, is in dead last at 5-over 77 (Spyglass).
–Field Level Media
Sports
Cards extend manager Oliver Marmol through '28 season
Feb 22, 2026; West Palm Beach, Florida, USA; St. Louis Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol (37) looks on from inside the dugout against the Houston Astros during the fifth inning at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images St. Louis Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol received a two-year contract extension through the 2028 season, the team announced Sunday.
Financial terms were not disclosed by the team, which holds an option for the 2029 season.
“As I’ve gotten to know Oli, I’ve seen someone who cares about this organization and knows what has made the Cardinals special over time — and who understands that for us to get where we need to go, we must compete relentlessly to set new standards in everything that we do,” president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom said.
“He is invested in the progress of our young core and is unafraid to challenge himself and to help those around him grow. I am energized to continue working with him towards the on-field success that we expect and that our fans deserve.”
Marmol, 39, has guided the Cardinals to a 325-323 record during his four seasons as the skipper. He led St. Louis to the National League Central title in 2022 before the team fell in the wild-card series to the Philadelphia Phillies.
Last season, the Cardinals posted a 78-84 record to finish in fourth place in the NL Central.
Marmol was a coach with St. Louis from 2017-21 under previous managers Mike Shildt and Mike Matheny.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Tyler Reif treated for heat exhaustion after Trucks race
Oct 31, 2025; Avondale, Arizona, USA; NASCAR Truck Series driver Tyler Reif (41) during the NASCAR Truck Series Championship race at Phoenix Raceway. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series rookie Tyler Reif was treated for heat exhaustion after Saturday night’s street race in St. Petersburg, Fla.
Reif, 18, was transported to an area medical facility after finishing 16th in the race in the No. 42 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet. He was later released.
“Tyler and his family would like to express their gratitude to the NASCAR officials, track medical workers and the local medical facility staff for their care,” Niece Motorsports said in a release.
Reif made his debut in the NASCAR Craftsman Trucks Series in 2025. Saturday’s race was just his third on the circuit, including a 17th-place finish at Atlanta on Feb. 21.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Report: RB David Montgomery 'wants out' of Detroit
Dec 25, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Detroit Lions running back David Montgomery (5) looks on before the game against the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images Lions running back David Montgomery “wants out” of Detroit after three seasons, ESPN reported on Sunday.
Montgomery, however, immediately appeared to refute the report on X, posting: “Damn, Dmo told you that?”
The ESPN report claims the Lions would want “a decent Day 3 pick (possibly a fifth-rounder)” in the 2026 NFL Draft in return for Montgomery, who turns 29 in June and is owed $6 million next season.
The report follows general manager Brad Holmes’ remarks after the season about Montgomery being unhappy with his playing time in 2025. Sharing a backfield with Jahmyr Gibbs, Montgomery rushed for a career-low 716 yards and eight touchdowns in 17 games (no starts).
“Those are conversations that we’re going to have to have because I’ve got a lot of respect for that player,” Holmes said of Montgomery in January. “He deserves to be in a situation where his skillset can be utilized, and so yeah would love for it to be here, but if it can’t be here then you’d just love to see where could work out best for him.”
At the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis on Tuesday, Holmes said the situation with Montgomery is “fluid.” He signed a two-year extension during the 2024 season that runs through the end of the 2027 campaign.
“Yeah, I have been in touch with David’s agent, and his representation,” Holmes revealed. “Obviously, we love David, he’s a great player, we love to have him, you know, kind of want to put last year in the rear view, and just move forward. But, obviously, a player has to want to be at a certain place as well. The conversations are still fluid, but we’ll see how it goes.”
Montgomery has rushed for 2,506 yards and 33 touchdowns in 45 games (28 starts) in three seasons with Detroit (2023-25). He has 76 catches for 650 yards in that span.
He began his career with the NFC North rival Chicago Bears, who drafted him in the third round in 2019. Montgomery rushed for 3,609 yards and 26 scores in 60 games (51 starts) with the Bears (2019-22).
–Field Level Media
Cards extend manager Oliver Marmol through '28 season
Tyler Reif treated for heat exhaustion after Trucks race
