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How fans can prepare for this years masters

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We are getting closer and closer to the beginning of this years Masters tournament, due to get underway on April 6. First beginning in 1934, this will be the 87th edition of the tournament. Played on the incredible Augusta National Park, it is commonly seen as the biggest major championship in golf and therefore the most important date on the golfing calendar.

Last year it was Scottie Scheffler who emerged victorious and the American will be bidding to go back-to-back, continuing his good form in the tour so far.

Many fans will be preparing for the Masters already but maybe you are not quite sure how, especially if you are new to the sport. You may be wondering where or if you can watch the tournament on TV, who will be taking place and maybe even what the format of The Masters is. If that is the case then fear not, let us help best prepare you for the most exciting tournament in golf.

 

How does the tournament work?

Every round of The Masters is made up of 18 holes with four rounds all together. Each hole has a ‘par’, which is the number of shots or ‘strokes’ that the player has made to get the ball in the hole. Of course, the aim is to get it there with the least number of strokes. After the first two rounds are completed, only the top 50 scores go through to the next round. This includes tied scores. The winner is decided when the player with the best score on the final day (Sunday 9 April) is crowned champion.

 

How to watch

The Masters will be broadcast live on TSN and CTV in Canada or alternatively you can stream it on the Paramount Plus app.

 

Who is taking part?

Let’s take a look at the players who will be taking part in the tournament this year. As of writing, 83 players have qualified, but we shan’t go through each and every one of them. Let’s instead look at the main players.

Scottie Scheffler

Reigning champion Scottie Scheffler will head into the tournament on the back of a win in the Players Championship. He took home $4.5 million for that success and in turn became just the third player in history to hold The Players and The Masters at the same time He won the PGA Tour Player of The Year last year and has played strongly so far, with Masters odds having him as the current favorite for the tournament. however, in the entire history of The Masters only three other men have won it back-to-back in the form of Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods. Woods last achieved the feat in 2001 and 2002 making it over 20 years without anyone having repeated it. Superstition aside however, Scheffler is more than good enough to match it.

 

Rory McIlroy

Although he has been one of the best golfers of the last 20 years, McIlroy has always been the bridesmaid never the bride when it comes to The Masters. It is the only major that has eluded him throughout his career, and he is still gunning for his first green jacket. He has finished in the top 10 plenty of times and came second last year to boot. For all he has accomplished, there is no doubt that this is still an itch that needs scratching for the former world number one and maybe 2023 is the year he finally does.

 

Jon Rahm

Jon Rahm has earnt himself three wins so far in 2023 in the Sentry, American Express and Genesis invitational. His most impressive performance came when he shot a 10-under 63 in the final round of the Sentry Tournament of Champions to beat out Colin Morikawa. He had not played too strongly leading up to the final day but proved his further his impressive ability to bounce back. He had a disappointing year last year, capped off by a T27 finish at this tournament. However, he is entering this one on a good streak and will be hoping to carry that over to get his hands on his second major and first ever masters.

Whilst Scheffler, McIlroy and Rahm round out the favorites to win this tournament, there are still plenty in with a shout. Cameron Smith and Jordan Spieth are both in with a chance as is Patrick Cantlay, who is currently the highest ranked player to have never won a major (T4).

The Masters is consistently the most thrilling tournament in the PGA tour and it looks like this year will be no different. The PGA season so far has been incredible and the excitement is sure to reach a fever pitch by the time April 6 rolls round.

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DeMar DeRozan scores 27 points to lead the Kings past the Raptors 122-107

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SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — DeMar DeRozan scored 27 points in a record-setting performance and the Sacramento Kings beat the Toronto Raptors 122-107 on Wednesday night.

Domantas Sabonis added 17 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds for his third triple-double of the season for Sacramento. He shot 6 for 6 from the field and 5 for 5 at the free-throw line.

Keegan Murray chipped in with 22 points and 12 rebounds, and De’Aaron Fox scored 21.

The 35-year-old DeRozan has scored at least 20 points in each of his first eight games with the Kings, breaking a franchise mark established by Chris Webber when he reached 20 in his first seven games with Sacramento in 1999.

DeRozan spent the past three seasons with the Chicago Bulls. The six-time All-Star also has played for Toronto and San Antonio during his 16-year NBA career.

RJ Barrett had 23 points to lead the Raptors. Davion Mitchell scored 20 in his first game in Sacramento since being traded to Toronto last summer.

Takeaways

Raptors: Toronto led for most of the first three quarters before wilting in the fourth. The Raptors were outscored 33-14 in the final period.

Kings: Fox played strong defense but struggled again shooting from the floor as he is dealing with a finger injury. Fox went 5 for 17 and just 2 of 8 on 3-pointers. He is 5 for 25 from beyond the arc in his last three games.

Key moment

The Kings trailed 95-89 early in the fourth before going on a 9-0 run that gave them the lead for good. DeRozan started the spurt with a jumper, and Malik Monk scored the final seven points.

Key stat

Sabonis had the eighth game in the NBA since at least 1982-83 with a triple-double while missing no shots from the field or foul line. The previous player to do it was Josh Giddey for Oklahoma City against Portland on Jan. 11.

Up next

Raptors: At the Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday night, the third stop on a five-game trip.

Kings: Host the Clippers on Friday night.

___

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Whitecaps take confidence, humility into decisive playoff matchup vs. LAFC

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VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Whitecaps are one win away from moving on to the next round of the Major League Soccer playoffs.

To get there, however, the Whitecaps will need to pull off the improbable by defeating the powerhouse Los Angeles FC for a second straight game.

Vancouver blanked the visitors 3-0 on Sunday to level their best-of-three first-round playoff series at a game apiece. As the matchup shifts back to California for a decisive Game 3 on Friday, the Whitecaps are looking for a repeat performance, said striker Brian White.

“We take the good and the bad from last game, learn from what we could have done better and go to LAFC with confidence and, obviously, with a whole lot of respect,” he said.

“We know that we can go there and give them a very good fight and hopefully come away with a win.”

The winner of Friday’s game will face the No. 4-seed Seattle Sounders in a one-game Western Conference semifinal on Nov. 23 or 24.

The ‘Caps finished the regular season eighth in the west with a 13-13-8 record and have since surprised many with their post-season play.

First, Vancouver trounced its regional rivals, the Portland Timbers, 5-0 in a wild-card game. Then, the squad dropped a tightly contested 2-1 decision to the top-seeded L.A. before posting a decisive home victory on Sunday.

Vancouver has scored seven goals this post-season, second only to the L.A. Galaxy (nine). Vancouver also leads the league in expected goals (6.84) through the playoffs.

No one outside of the club expected the Whitecaps to win when the Vancouver-L. A. series began, said defender Ranko Veselinovic.

“We’ve shown to ourselves that we can compete with them,” he said.

Now in his fifth season with the ‘Caps, Veselinovic said Friday’s game will be the biggest he’s played for the team.

“We haven’t had much success in the playoffs so, definitely, this is the one that can put our season on another level,” he said.

This is the second year in a row the Whitecaps have faced LAFC in the first round of the playoffs and last year, Vancouver was ousted in two straight games.

The team isn’t thinking about revenge as it prepares for Game 3, White said.

“More importantly than (beating LAFC), we want to get to the next round,” he said. “LAFC’s a very good team. We’ve come up against them a number of times in different competitions and they always seem to get the better of us. So it’d be huge for us to get the better of them this time.”

Earning a win last weekend required slowing L.A.’s transition game and limiting offensive opportunities for the team’s big stars, including Denis Bouanga.

Those factors will be important again on Friday, said Whitecaps head coach Vanni Sartini, who warned that his team could face a different style of game.

“I think the most important thing is going to be to match their intensity at the beginning of the game,” he said. “Because I think they’re going to come at us a million miles per hour.”

The ‘Caps will once again look to captain Ryan Gauld for some offensive firepower. The Scottish attacking midfielder leads MLS in playoff goals with five and has scored in all three of Vancouver’s post-season appearances this year.

Gearing up for another do-or-die matchup is exciting, Gauld said.

“Knowing it’s a winner-takes-all kind of game, being in that kind of environment is nice,” he said. “It’s when you see the best in players.”

LAFC faces the bulk of the pressure heading into the matchup, Sartini said, given the club’s appearances in the last two MLS Cup finals and its 2022 championship title.

“They’re supposed to win and we are not,” the coach said. “But it’s beautiful to have a little bit of pressure on us, too.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.

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PWHL unveils game jerseys with new team names, logos

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TORONTO – The Professional Women’s Hockey League has revealed the jersey designs for its six newly named teams.

Each PWHL team operated under its city name, with players wearing jerseys featuring the league’s logo in its inaugural season before names and logos were announced last month.

The Toronto Sceptres, Montreal Victoire, Ottawa Charge, Boston Fleet, Minnesota Frost and New York Sirens will start the PWHL’s second season on Nov. 30 with jerseys designed to reflect each team’s identity and to be sold to the public as replicas.

Led by PWHL vice-president of brand and marketing Kanan Bhatt-Shah, the league consulted Creative Agency Flower Shop to design the jerseys manufactured by Bauer, the PWHL said Thursday in a statement.

“Players and fans alike have been waiting for this moment and we couldn’t be happier with the six unique looks each team will don moving forward,” said PWHL senior vice president of business operations Amy Scheer.

“These jerseys mark the latest evolution in our league’s history, and we can’t wait to see them showcased both on the ice and in the stands.”

Training camps open Tuesday with teams allowed to carry 32 players.

Each team’s 23-player roster, plus three reserves, will be announced Nov. 27.

Each team will play 30 regular-season games, which is six more than the first season.

Minnesota won the first Walter Cup on May 29 by beating Boston three games to two in the championship series.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.

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