Sinner does not expect easy road on return from doping ban

THE WOODLANDS, Texas: Yan Liu had an albatross to offset three front-nine bogeys and rebounded from a late bogey for an even-par 72 and a one-stroke lead over four players Friday in the Chevron Championship, the first women’s major tournament of the year.

Top-ranked Nelly Korda rallied late in the afternoon to make the cut in her title defense, following an opening 77 with a 68. She won last year at The Club at Carlton Woods for the last of her record-tying five straight victories.

She used a different putter Friday.

“I putted for an hour and a half after the round yesterday, so just needed something different,” Korda said. “Sometimes that’s all you need.”

Fog delayed the start of play, with nine players unable to finish the round because of darkness.

Liu, the 27-year-old Chinese player who shared the first-round lead with Haeran Ryu after a 65, admitted she would feel some pressure Saturday.

“I think, definitely, I will feel a little bit, because, well, this is major,” Liu said. “I know the course is going to be harder, harder, so I think I just stay patient, calm because I’m very emotional person.”

Hyo Joo Kim (71) was a stroke back with Lindy Duncan (66), Sarah Schmelzel (68) and Mao Saigo (68). Kim won the Ford Championship a month ago in Arizona for her seventh LPGA Tour title, while the other four players at the top of the leaderboard are winless.

Liu holed her 175-yard second shot on the 505-yard, downwind par-5 eighth with a 7-iron for the albatross.

“I saw the ball how to go in, so that’s really cool thing,” Liu said. “But I think they don’t have video for that hole. Little sad.”

Liu then bogeyed No. 9 and opened the back nine with seven pars. She dropped into a six-way tied for the lead with a bogey on the par-3 17th. Her tee shot hopped left into fluffy Bermuda rough, she chunked her second to the fringe and missed a 15-foot par try.

She got the stroke back with a 15-foot birdie putt on the par-5 18th, finishing about an hour before sunset.

“Last hole, is my first birdie today,” Liu said. “I’m glad I made it.

Ryu had a 74 to fall two strokes back in a group with Angel Yin (70) , Manon De Roey (71) and Hye-Jin Choi (71). Weiwei Zhang also was 5 under with three holes left when play was suspended.

Lexi Thompson was 4 under, following an opening 73 with a 67. The 30-year-old Florida player retired from full-time play at the end of last season.

“I’m still practicing and training,” Thompson said. “I love working out. I’m still striving to be better for when I do tee it up because every time I tee it up I still want to win. It’s not like I’m just going out here to show face. I’m still very competitive, but just trying to enjoy the few times I will play.”

She won the 2014 event — then the Kraft Nabisco Championship — at Mission Hills in Rancho Mirage, California.

PARIS: Paris St. Germain’s hopes of becoming the first side to complete a Ligue 1 season unbeaten came crashing down at the Parc des Princes on Friday when Nice handed them their first defeat of the league campaign, winning 3-1 to boost their own Champions League ambitions.

Having already secured the title earlier this month, PSG still top the Ligue 1 standings on 78 points, while Nice move up to fourth on 54.

The home side dominated the opening half-hour and created chance after chance but it was the visitors who took the lead through Morgan Sanson as he marked his first start of the season by applying a clinical first-time finish to Badredine Bouanani’s through-ball in the 35th minute.

The lead lasted just six minutes as Fabian Ruiz scored with a sumptuous half-volley to level but any thoughts the PSG fans might have had of their side going on to dominate were extinguished 22 seconds into the second half when Sanson scored his second, volleying the ball into the net from close range.

Having scored from their only two shots on target up to that point, the visitors went 3-1 up when Youssouf Ndayishimiye headed home a free kick in the 70th minute

PSG, who face Premier League side Arsenal away in the first leg of their Champions League semifinal on Tuesday, enjoyed 75 percent of possession and managed to create twice as many goal-scoring opportunities but they were left frustrated by their own wayward finishing and some inspired goalkeeping from Marcin Bulka.

With the clock ticking past 90 minutes and seven minutes added on for stoppages, Bulka pulled off a superb reflex save to deny Goncalo Ramos and he followed up with another top-drawer stop of Vitinha’s shot from the edge of the box, celebrating each save loudly.

The Parisians continued to pour forward but Nice defended doggedly and held on to give their hopes of qualifying for next season’s Champions League a considerable lift.

PSG coach Luis Enrique said before the game that he would be content to lose to Nice if it meant making the Champions League final, and he was sanguine after his side’s 30-game unbeaten run in the league came to an end.

“We attacked in many different ways, they defended incredibly well... we would love to play the same kind of match against Arsenal and have 30 chances but we have to congratulate Nice and we will do our best to support each other,” he told broadcaster DAZN.