Chester routs South Hills

NEW MANCHESTER, W.Va. — Eric Sampson hit a double and two singles and Dave Smith had two singles in leading the Chester Oldtimers past Pittsburgh South Hills, 8-1, Sunday at Oak Glen High School.

Smith also picked up the win on the mound as Chester improved to 6-1.

Chester will play Poland at 3 p.m. July 13 at Oak Glen High School.

Parent/Child scramble set

COLUMBIANA — The annual Parent/Child Father/Son nine-hole scramble will be held July 12 at Valley Golf Club.

Cost is $45 per two-person team, all inclusive. To enter or for more infomation, call the pro shop at (330) 482-9464.

Cavs are on the Ball

CLEVELAND (AP) — The Cleveland Cavaliers have agreed to acquire guard Lonzo Ball from the Chicago Bulls for forward Isaac Okoro according to a person with knowledge of the agreement.

The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Saturday because the trade can not be finalized until the start of the new league year on July 6.

Ball averaged 7.6 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.3 assists in 35 games this past season after missing the 2022-23 and 2023-24 campaigns because of a left knee injury. The 27-year old Ball underwent a meniscus and cartilage transplant in his left knee in March 2023 after two surgeries failed to fix an injury he suffered during his first season in Chicago in 2021-22.

Ball, the second overall pick by the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2017 draft, missed the last two months of the season because of a sprained right wrist. He has one year remaining on his contract with a team option for the 2026-27 season.

Cleveland has a need at point guard with Ty Jerome becoming an unrestricted free agent and Darius Garland likely to miss the start of the regular season after undergoing surgery on his left big toe earlier this month.

The Cavaliers had the second-best record in the NBA at 64-18 but were eliminated in the Eastern Conference semifinals by the Indiana Pacers in five games.

Okoro averaged 6.1 points and 2.4 rebounds this past season and is a strong defender who can also shoot well from the perimeter. However, he found his playing time begin to decrease over the season. He averaged 14.2 minutes in the playoffs after logging 19.1 minutes per game in the regular season.

Okoro has two years remaining on his contract.

Lukas set a horse racing standard

(AP) — D. Wayne Lukas, the Hall of Famer who became one of the most accomplished trainers in the history of horse racing and a face of the sport for decades, has died. He was 89.

His family said Sunday that Lukas died Saturday night at his Louisville, Kentucky, home. Lukas had been hospitalized with a severe MRSA blood infection that caused significant damage to his heart and digestive system and worsened pre-existing chronic conditions.

“Wayne devoted his life not only to horses but to the industry — developing generations of horsemen and horsewomen and growing the game by inviting unsuspecting fans into the winner’s circle,” his family said in a statement. “Whether he was boasting about a maiden 2-year-old as the next Kentucky Derby winner or offering quiet words of advice before a big race, Wayne brought heart, grace, and grit to every corner of the sport. His final days were spent at home in Kentucky, where he chose peace, family, and faith.”

Lukas won 15 Triple Crown races, including the Kentucky Derby four times. Only good friend Bob Baffert has more Triple Crown victories, and Lukas owns a record-tying 20 in the Breeders’ Cup World Championships.

“The whole secret of this game, I think, is being able to read the horse: Read what he needs, what he doesn’t need, what he can’t do, what he can do,” Lukas said in May before his 34th and final Preakness Stakes. “That’s the whole key. Everybody’s got the blacksmith, everybody’s got to the same bed available, the feed man. We all can hire a good jockey. We all can hire a pretty good exercise rider if we’ve got the means, so what the hell is the difference? The horse is the difference and what we do with him in reading him.”

Lukas was affectionately known around the barns and the racetrack as “Coach” because he coached high school basketball before his professional career with horses began. Even with months to go before his 90th birthday, he would get up on his pony in the early morning hours and go out to the track himself, rather than letting his assistants do the day-to-day work.

Lukas has 4,967 documented victories in thoroughbred racing, with his horses earning more than $310 million from more than 30,600 starts.

Winning is Harrington’s only option

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — Padraig Harrington’s decision when he walked down the 18th fairway Sunday was whether to play a safe approach and take a chance with the Broadmoor’s curling, curving greens, or be aggressive and not leave the putting to chance.

He picked the second option, knocked his shot to 8 feet, and the only big decision over the next few minutes was whether he should wait for the man he beat by one, Stewart Cink, to putt out before he tapped in to claim his second U.S. Senior Open title.

Harrington came out on top in a major that felt more like match play, parlaying the approach into an easy two-putt par to seal his second title over the last four years in senior golf’s most prestigous event.

Harrington shot 3-under 67 to finish at 11-under 209, edging Cink, who shot 68, on their fourth straight round in the same group.

“Sometimes playing it safe is not the right option,” said Harrington, who recalled advice Hale Irwin gave him years back when Irwin suggested that, when in doubt, it’s always better to play the shot you’d play if you were losing by a stroke.

PGA’s youngest player prevails in playoff

DETROIT (AP) — Aldrich Potgieter ended the protracted Rocket Classic, making an 18-foot birdie putt on the fifth playoff hole to outlast Max Greyserman for his first PGA Tour title on Sunday.

“I finally got one to the hole,” Potgieter said after missed opportunities on the green by three players led to the longest playoff of the season on the tour.

He celebrated by embracing his caddie and shaking hands with Greyserman and his caddie before giving his father, Heinrich, a hug.

The 20-year-old Potgieter is the youngest player on the tour and its biggest hitter, averaging 326-plus yards off the tee. He became the ninth player to win for the first time this season.

Potgieter was born in South Africa, moved to Australia when he was 8 and returned to South Africa at age 17 because the COVID-19 pandemic limited his opportunities to compete.

“We had to give up a lot, moving to Australia, moving back,” he said. “Emigrating is definitely not the easiest thing. Coming alone at the start of my career to the States and giving it a grind, and having my dad here has helped so much.”

Potgieter won the British Amateur at the age of 17 and became the youngest Korn Ferry Tour winner last year, paving the way for him to become the second-youngest player to earn a PGA Tour card through the minor league just after his 20th birthday. The youngest was Jason Day, who was 19 in 2007.

Chris Kirk was eliminated after missing a 4-foot putt on the second playoff hole — that after pushing a 9-foot putt past the cup on the first extra hole with a chance to win.

Greyserman and Potgieter each had opportunities to win end it on the 72nd hole at Detroit Golf Club, but couldn’t convert on birdie opportunities to break a tie at 22 under with Kirk.

“This one’s going to sting for a little bit,” Greyserman said.

Potgieter, two strokes ahead entering the round, closed with a 3-under 69, and Greyserman and Kirk each shot 67.

“Just wasn’t my time,” said Greyserman, who finished second for the fourth time after coming up short for his first PGA Tour victory.