Tiger Woods walked away from the lucrative Players Championship in Florida on Thursday, citing knee injury. Attempting to play after injuring his left knee and Achilles at the Masters, Woods said he was having difficulty walking by the end of the nine and that he first felt it on the first tee, where he hit his drive left. Woods shot a 42 on the front nine, walking some 20 yards behind his playing partners and with a limp that became more noticeable with each hole he played. Sub-par performance After bogeying the first hole, Woods found water twice at the par-four fourth where he ended with a triple bogey. Further bogeys came on the fifth and ninth holes for the former world number one. He handed his card to PGA champion Martin Kaymer, then walked back to inform Matt Kuchar that he was leaving early for the second straight year. "I'm having a hard time walking,'' Woods said. It was his first competition since the Masters, where Woods hurt his left knee and Achilles while hitting from pine straw in the third round. He skipped the tournament last week to give his leg time to heal, and said on Tuesday that it was better. But from the opening tee shot at the TPC Sawgrass, he looked as bad as he ever has. "The knee acted up and then the Achilles followed after that, and then the calf started cramping up,'' Woods said. "Everything started getting tight, so it's just a whole chain reaction.'' Woods had looked in good form when he played nine holes of practice on Tuesday and Wednesday, and said after the second day of practice that he had only "minimal'' swelling. This is the second straight year Woods has withdrawn in the middle of the round at the Players Championship. He stopped on the seventh hole of the final round last year with what turned out to be a neck injury. Woods already has had four operations on his left knee. |
Source: Agencies |
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Tiger Woods withdraws from Players
'If they want it, they will have it'
Exclusive footage as FIFA President Sepp Blatter tells Al Jazeera's sports correspondent that he thinks goalline technology will be introduced by the next World Cup in Brazil.
The International Football Association Board (IFAB) will meet after the 2011/12 European football season to decide on the implementation of technology.
Blatter says he is confident such technology will be available to help avoid the "blatant injustice" of disallowed goals like Frank Lampard's World Cup effort for England against Germany in South Africa last year.
United: Champions once more
A late Rooney penalty gave Manchester United the point that sealed their 19th title win and put the team ahead of Liverpool in the history books.
Manchester United only needed a point and got just that with their 1-1 draw at Blackburn on Saturday.
The title is now out of reach of reigning champions Chelsea and United can focus on their Champions League final clash with Barcelona on May 28.
Fergie's final word
Ferguson looked like the winner of his first title – not 12th – as he joyously chased members of his championship winning team around the pitch.
Despite coming under fire from the FA this season for his comments about referees, Ferguson proved that when it comes to winning titles he is the best manager in the Premier League.
"It was a fantastic performance by the lads and the supporters and for everybody connected with the club it's a great day," Ferguson told Sky Sports.
"It wasn't an easy game, we went 1-0 down having given them a bad goal but we kept on and we don't give in."
While it was Javier Hernandez’ first title win with United, the Duracell-charged Ryan Giggs now has a remarkable 12 title wins under his belt with the club.
"Twenty years ago we were nowhere near Liverpool," Giggs said.
"It's great credit to the club, the manager and the players and it's a good feeling to be ahead of our greatest rivals."
Midfielder Paul Scholes was also on the pitch to collect his tenth title. Both players are nearing the end of their professional careers and will be near impossible for Ferguson to replace.
Coming from behind, again
It was a nervy start for the Manchester side who were playing a fired up Blackburn team still fighting for Premier League survival. Their push for a point was not helped by Tomasz Kuszczak in goal who made a number of shaky stops to give Blackburn the confidence to get forward.
It looked like United might have to put the champagne on ice when Australian Brett Emerton scored for Rovers after 20 minutes.
However, Paul Robinson gave United the chance to claim that priceless point when he failed to get his hands out of the way of Hernandez who raced into the penalty spot.
It was fitting that the Mexican played a part in United’s equaliser after scoring over 20 goals in his debut season and being an invaluable source of inspiration for his teammates.
After conferring with the linesman Phil Dowd awarded the penalty and when Wayne Rooney stepped up to take it the writing was on the wall.
Rooney finished his tumultuous season on a high when he confidently stroked the ball past a helpless Paul Robinson.
"I was terrified, the ref took a long time to give it," Rooney said.
"I had to compose myself. I'd been practicing all week."
All that was left to do was for United to hold the ball up for the remaining 15 minutes. Blackburn were happy for them to do so with a crucial point giving them a strong chance of avoiding relegation going into their last match of the season against Wolves.
Relegation rivalry
At the bottom of the table, Wolves climbed a point clear of the drop zone with an emphatic 3-1 away victory at Sunderland.
Blackpool kept the pressure on Wolves and continued their dogged fight for survival with a 4-3 win against Bolton in a thrilling encounter at Bloomfield Road.
Blackpool who remain in the bottom three travel to Old Trafford for their final game of the season.
Saturday's other match saw West Brom beat Everton 1-0, Youssouf Mulumbu scoring the only goal of the game at The Hawthorns in the 10th minute before the Toffees' Russian substitute, Diniyar Bilyaletdinov, was sent-off.
Drama till the end
After wins for Blackpool and Wolves, the pressure firmly remains on relegation contenders Birmingham, Wigan and West Ham. Birmingham find themselves perched just on top of the relegation zone with 39 points, ahead of Blackpool on goal difference. They can move clear of the drop by gaining a point against Fulham on Sunday.
The future remains very bleak for West Ham who now lie six points from safety. The Hammers must record a win in their match with Wigan on Sunday to have any hope of survival. However, Wigan will not be easy opponents as they also need a point to cling on to their survival hopes.
Liverpool and Tottenham battle for fifth position and qualification for European football on Sunday in their match at Anfield. However, whatever the result, Liverpool fans are unlikely to be in jubilant mood this weekend after United’s most recent title win overhauls Liverpool’s legacy as the most successful team in English league history.
Despite the historic achievement, Manchester United have been criticised by many as a team lacking the quality of Ferguson’s previous title winning sides.
"We're champions and in the Champions League - we're rubbish aren't we?'' said Giggs.
If they can beat Barcelona, they will be anything but.
