GOLD COAST, Australia -- Harold Varner III set his alarm for 2:45 a.
Andrew Chafin Jersey .m. For a more seasoned
pro such as Ian Poulter, it was a relatively more leisurely wakeup call for
3:30.There was a serious recalibration on Friday at the Australian PGA
Championship, the morning after lightning and rain prevented any play late on
the first day. Varner and Poulter were among the players who didnt finish their
first rounds before the postponement, and had to be back at Royal Pines Resort
to tee off at 5:30 a.m. on FridayI cant just get up and feel good. Ive got to
stretch, said Varner, who was runner-up here last year after losing a three-way
playoff. I dont like to just get up and go. I like to chill.Varner had a share
of second spot at 5 under after 14 holes when his first round was interrupted on
Thursday. He finished off with a couple of birdies for an opening 65, and a
share of the lead at 7 under. His second round followed quickly, and he had a
birdie on the 12th -- the third hole of his second round -- to move to 8
under.Double bogeys on the 15th and 16th were setbacks. He had a birdie at the
18th, then a bogey at the 2nd, before finishing with three birdies in his last
five holes to card an even second round and remain at 7 under, good enough to
keep him up near the top of the leaderboard.The 15th, 16th ... happened real
fast, he said. It was just a bad combination. I hit some bad shots and I
compounded those with my attitude.Then I also used that attitude to get out of
there. I made enough birdies ... it was nice to rebound, finish really
strong.Varner had planned to watch a round of Tiger Woods comeback at the Hero
World Challenge in the Bahamas on TV, so there was one benefit to leaving his
hotel at 3:45 a.m.When I got here he was leading. Then when I finished my first
round, he was 1 under and he had one hole left, Varner said. Its exciting to see
him back. Its crazy -- 18-man field, people are so in-tuned to. It just goes to
show how much he moves the needle and how much we still need him.At least the
26-year-old Varner had some recent experience of the early bird starts,
recalling the times before he emerged on the PGA Tour when he had to get up
around 3 a.m. to drive for a Monday qualifier.He was planning a sleep and maybe
a trip to the casino Friday afternoon.Poulter had plans for a long afternoon
snooze after finishing off his first round, an even-par 72, and then carding a
68 to move to 4 under -- all before lunch.The 40-year-old Englishman, who was
sidelined for four months because of an arthritic joint in his right foot before
returning to competition in October, said he went to bed before 7 p.m. in order
to wake up at 3:30.That was a little strange morning call, I think 3.30 alarm to
come out and play golf is a touch on the early side, he said. I dont ever
remember an alarm going off at anything in the threes for any tee off time in
the last 17 years.I didnt manage to get any jetlag at all flying from America,
but a tee times managed to give me jetlag!Poulter said hes happy with his form
over the last five tournaments after changing back to an old putter.A little
frustrated not to finish the round off strong once I made five birdies on my
outward 9 this morning, so it could have been a few better, but Im in position.
Luis Gonzalez Jersey . At a news conference
Tuesday where it was thought that the fiery Schallibaum may be shown the door
after a dismal finish to the Major League Soccer season, team president Joey
Saputo said no decision has been made on whether the Swiss Volcano will be back
in 2014.
Alex Avila Jersey . - Oakland Raiders running
back Rashad Jennings was speaking to a group of local high school students
earlier this week when the conversation turned to the importance of being
prepared when opportunities in life arise.
http:///...ge-de-la-rosa-jersey
. "It doesnt get any better than that," Giambi said. "Im speechless." The
Indians are roaring toward October. Giambi belted a two-run, pinch-hit homer
with two outs in the ninth inning to give Cleveland a shocking 5-4 win over the
Chicago White Sox on Tuesday night, keeping the Indians up with the lead pack in
the AL wild-card race. A letter drafted by U.S. and Canadian anti-doping leaders
urging Russias removal from the upcoming Olympics is circulating days before the
public release of a report expected to detail a state-sponsored doping system
that corrupted the countrys entire sports program.The letter, drafted last week
and obtained by The Associated Press, is being prepared to be sent to the
International Olympic Committees president and executive board after the Monday
release of a report by investigator Richard McLaren.The letter calls for the IOC
to act by July 26 to ensure that Russias Olympic Committee and sports
federations will not be allowed in Rio de Janeiro, where the Games are set to
start Aug. 5. The letter encourages exceptions for Russia-born athletes who can
prove they were subject to strong anti-doping systems in other countries.A
statement from Pat Hickey, the president of the European Olympic Committee, said
the letter undermined the integrity and therefore the credibility of this
important report.My concern is that there seems to have been an attempt to agree
(on) an outcome before any evidence has been presented, Hickey said.USADA CEO
Travis Tygart said the letter, which has backing from anti-doping agencies in a
number of countries and athlete groups from around the world, was drafted with
no intent for it to become public unless the McLaren report contains evidence of
a major state-sponsored doping program.Of course, we want and hope for universal
inclusion, but were not blind to the evidence already out there, Tygart said.
And if were not preparing for all potential outcomes, then we are not fulfilling
our promise to clean athletes.The McLaren report was sparked by a New York Times
story that accused the Russian government of helping to manipulate tests at the
Sochi Games so cheaters wouldnt get caught.Preliminary findings from the report,
released last month, found mandatory state-directed manipulation of laboratory
analytical results operating within the Moscow anti-doping lab from at least
2011 through the summer of 2013. Those findings also said Russias Ministry of
Sport adviised the laboratory which of its adverse findings it could report to
WADA, and which it had to cover up.
Clay Buchholz Jersey. Based in part on that
information, the letter to the IOC anticipates that the McLaren report will show
the Russian government helped organize a systematic undermining of the drug
testing of Russian athletes for many years in a successful effort to cheat to
win.The AP also obtained a letter written by Beckie Scott, head of the athlete
committee of the World Anti-Doping Agency, urging athletes to sign on to the
U.S.-Canada letter. Scott informs athletes that, in addition to support from
U.S. and Canadian anti-doping leaders Tygart and Paul Melia, the letter also has
backing from anti-doping agencies in Germany, New Zealand, Japan, France,
Denmark and Norway.Last week, IOC President Thomas Bach said it was important to
strike the right balance between collective responsibility and individual
justice in dealing with results from the McLaren report.It is obvious that you
cannot sanction or punish a badminton player for infringement of rules or
manipulation by an official or lab director in the Winter Games, Bach
said.Already, tracks governing body, the IAAF, has suspended Russias track team
from the Olympics after a separate investigation turned up evidence of a
state-sponsored doping system used to benefit that team. The Court of
Arbitration for Sport is expected to rule July 21 on the eligibility of 68
Russian athletes who have appealed to compete in Rio.McLaren was given
permission to look into all Russian sports, and the letter being drafted for the
IOC is written as if they all have been corrupted.We agree and believe a full
suspension is the only available and appropriate result having regard to the
findings and conclusions set out in the report, it said.In an interview on
Tuesday, Tygart urged a full Russian ban, but said he had not seen the report in
its entirety. He did not immediately respond to messages left by the AP on
Saturday. ' ' '