NEW JERSEY (REUTERS) - South Korea's Ko Jin-young wrote her name in the LPGA Tour record book not once but twice Sunday (Oct 10) as she authored a wire-to-wire victory at the Cognizant Founders Cup in West Caldwell, New Jersey. Ko's 5-under 66 lifted her to 18 under for a four-shot victory over Germany's Caroline Masson. It was Ko's 14th straight round in the 60s, tying Annika Sorenstam's LPGA record. What's more, Ko went 114 straight holes without making a bogey or worse until she bogeyed No. 17 Sunday. It's the longest such streak on record for either the LPGA or PGA Tour, breaking Tiger Woods' mark of 110 bogey-free holes. Ko said a bogey-free round was her goal Sunday morning, but she wasn't necessarily thinking about the records in play and the names attached to them. "I just focus, despite the others like Tiger Woods or Annika Sorenstam," Ko said. "I just play by myself ... I don't know what happened to me. I don't know. I just have fun. I'm just trying to have fun on the course with my caddie and the other players." Ko, 26, defended her title at the Founders Cup, which she won in 2019 at Wildfire Golf Club in Phoenix. The World No. 2 has won three tournaments in her last seven starts. It marked Ko's 10th career win on tour, making her the fifth Korean player to post double-digit victories. Masson posted the low round of the day, a spotless 64 with seven birdies, to move into second. "I can't tell you how big this is," Masson said. "It's been a little bit rough this summer. Honestly, like mentally it was really, really tough stretch, probably the toughest in my career. "So to come back out and have a good week last week and feel like I'm getting really close - you know, I know I'm pretty far away from winning this week score-wise, but it was pretty close. Pretty amazing. Just got to thank everybody on my team for being there for me." Elizabeth Szokol (69) overcame a double bogey-bogey stretch on the fourth and fifth holes to secure third place at 11 under. Jeongeun Lee6 of South Korea (67) and Yuka Saso of the Philippines (70) tied for fourth at 10 under.
BARCELONA • Lionel Messi has yet to make up his mind if he will terminate his two-decade long relationship with Barcelona at the end of this season, hinting that he could see out his playing days in Major League Soccer. The Argentinian's future has been a hot topic ever since his aborted attempt to leave in August. He had to put those plans on hold till after this season as the club insisted on enforcing a €700 million (S$1.14 billion) exit clause. But with the Catalans languishing in fifth place in La Liga, eight points behind leaders Atletico Madrid, Messi has labelled the club's plight as "really bad". From next week, the Barca captain will be free to negotiate his next move as he enters the final six months of his contract, with Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain known pursuers. "I don't know what I'm going to do yet, I'm going to wait until the season ends," Messi said in an interview with Spanish television channel La Sexta on Sunday. "I'd love to experience living in the United States, playing in that league and living that life but I don't know whether it'll happen. "Right now the most important thing is to focus on the team and finish the season well, to focus on trying to win trophies and not get distracted by other things." The Argentina skipper did not hide his pessimism about his club, who have made their worst start to a season in 33 years and are in a financial crisis because of the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. "It's a difficult moment for the club, for everyone, but those inside the club know that it's in a really bad situation, things are very bad and it's going to be difficult to return the club to where it used to be," he added. Following Barca's 3-0 La Liga victory over Valladolid last Tuesday, coach Ronald Koeman allowed Messi to return to his home town of Rosario in Argentina. While the club confirmed he will miss today's home game against Eibar as he "completes the treatment for his right ankle", Spanish daily AS said Messi has been given an extended Christmas break to spend more time with his family. FAR CRY FROM GLORY DAYS It's a difficult moment for the club, for everyone, but those inside the club know that... things are very bad and it's going to be difficult to return the club to where it used to be. BARCELONA STAR LIONEL MESSI Messi is, however, expected to return to Barca in time for their next La Liga meeting at bottom side Huesca on Sunday. REUTERS BARCELONA V EIBAR Singtel TV Ch109 & StarHub Ch213, tomorrow, 2.10am
LONDON • Tottenham manager Jose Mourinho belittled Leicester's sterling display in a 2-0 win over his side on Sunday, three days after claiming "the best team lost" in a 2-1 defeat at Liverpool. "I didn't think either team played very, very well," Mourinho told the BBC after Jamie Vardy's penalty and Toby Alderweireld's own goal put his side to the sword. "It's a game where your goalkeeper doesn't make a single save, but it's a game that we didn't play very well. "We deserved to win the game at Liverpool and that would have made it an amazing week because nobody has done that for a long time - the team was phenomenal at Liverpool. Now if you look at the table, everybody is there." Having picked up one point in their last three games, Spurs are now six points behind champions and leaders Liverpool. But Mourinho argued the hosts missed the best chances on Sunday, even though Leicester always looked more dangerous in possession as their counter-attacking strategy paid dividends. Claiming their second straight league defeat was largely self-inflicted - Leicester's opener was the result of a reckless foul by Serge Aurier on Wesley Fofana in the box - Mourinho added: "I would describe it as a mistake. "You have to know where you are, and know that you are inside the box and the player is going away from your goal without any kind of danger. "Serge was phenomenal against Liverpool, probably our best player but today, he made this mistake. Did this mistake cost us the three points? I think it is unfair to say that. "If I have to talk about individuals, I could go in other directions where the attitude was not the attitude that I like." Leicester manager Brendan Rodgers brushed off his opposite number's sour grapes, expressing his delight after his side bounced back from their 2-0 home defeat by Everton last Wednesday to move up to second, four points behind Liverpool. Like last season when they ended fifth, the Foxes are firmly in the top-four hunt but this time, Rodgers is confident they can sustain their challenge after failing to qualify for the Champions League last season. "The players have done great. A European campaign, lots of injuries but they have kept the enthusiasm, spirit and quality, so it is a very pleasing opening third of the season," he said. "The ambition is to continue improving. We won't get carried away, there is a lot of development to take place in our young players. "We will see. It has been a really good start, I am satisfied with where we are at, knowing there are improvements to make. The group is learning all the time and that's why we're nowhere near the finished product." REUTERS