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Horse Racing News, Rich Strike has written history as the outsider who just won this year’s 148th Kentucky Derby

by Sports Benches

We are so speechless after what just happened in this year’s 148th edition of the Kentucky Derby, and it’s an outsider from entry No.21 in Rich Strike with jockey Sonny Leon & owner Eric Reed.

He even mentioned during the post-race ceremony that it took him last minute to compete in this Triple Crown opener at Churchill Downs, because of Ethereal Road who was scratched from the running yesterday.

He was running at the back behind everyone earlier on before he waited patiently through the turns they go, and eventually struck his sweet spot on the homestretch where Rich Strike just shocked the entire race field, including race favourite Epicenter, who had to settle for the runner-up spot.

It’s also a great day for some punters out there where they will walk away with $254 because of Rich Strike’s shock victory, as per NSW TAB. The 2nd and 3rd placed horses in Epicenter and Zandon were even valued at around $2, having been placed within the first ten entries up front.

What a story it has been from someone out of nowhere as a last-minute replacement to a breakthrough star that wrote history in the world of Triple Crown horse racing and the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs.

The next Triple Crown race will head off to Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland, for the 147th Preakness Stakes running in two weeks time.

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Scottie Scheffler holds on to Masters lead to secure his first Major championship

by Admin

Scottie Scheffler holds on to Masters lead to secure his first Major championship

Scottie Scheffler showed ice cold consistency on the final day of The Masters to win his first green jacket – proving just why he’s world No.1.

The American started the day on 10- under, three shots ahead of Australia’s Cameron Smith. It was the Queenslander who got off to a promising start with a pair of birdies on the first two holes. But after sinking a spectacular chip on the third, Scheffler never really looked back.

There was a hint of a rally when Smith birdied the 11th. But a score of six on the par three 12th effectively ended his chances. In the end he was overtaken by Rory McIlroy, himself chasing a Grand Slam of Major victories. The Northern Irishman hit an astonishing round of 64, his magical bunker shot on the 18th one of the day’s highlights.

The day, though, belonged to Scheffler, whose final round of 71 – including four birdies – was pure class.

Smith finished third on 5- under, tied with Ireland’s Shane Lowry. America’s Colin Morikawa finished fourth on 4- under.

Elsewhere, Australia’s Min Woo Lee ended the weekend 14th; Marc Leishman finished 31; Cameron Davis 46th. Adam Scott, the 2013 Masters champion, tied 48th.

Tiger Woods, who dominated so many of this week’s headlines, finished on 13- over. Not quite the fairytale comeback fans hoped for, but the fact the five-time champion completed 72 holes was remarkable; just 14 months ago he underwent extensive emergency surgery to save his right leg following a car accident.

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Golf News, Cameron Smith closing on leader Scottie Scheffler ahead of the final round tomorrow after Day 3 of the 2022 US Masters

by Sports Benches

Scottie Scheffler is still your leader after Round 3 (-9) when he may have been a bit off the pace today at -1, 71 shots. However, his improved 1st half spell from Thursday & Friday shows that Scheffler’s got it all to stay consistent & pull off in a bid to wear the green jacket tomorrow. His best finish here in Augusta was tied 18th last year, but he did improve in the other majors (8th in 2021 & 4th in 2020 at the PGA Championship, 8th in 2021 at the British Open & 7th at the 2021 US Open) as this could be Scheffler’s first major title.

When it comes to competitors who are also chasing the green jacket for the first time, it’s good to see Australia’s Cameron Smith rebound today like it was from Round 1 on Thursday with five birdies at -4, 68 shots. He’s only three shots behind Scheffler now in 2nd at -6, as all Smith can pray now is for the leader to be inconsistent before he can potentially be the 2nd Aussie after Adam Scott to win The Masters.

The same goes with South Korean Sungjae-Im in 3rd, who isn’t far behind Smith and Scheffler. Now he still needs to work on the first nine holes that would help him bridge the gap between 3rd and the Top 2. However, Im still has that strong edge when it comes to the back nine holes after he finished his Round 3 spell with five birdies at -1, 71 shots.

Ireland’s Shane Lowry is still in a position at tied 4th despite only collecting two birdies during the 1st half. South African Charl Schwartzel also endured the same consistency as Lowry, but we can’t forget his terrific brace with the eagle in the 10th hole. Both players credited Round 2 yesterday with the improved leaderboard positions as their turning point, as they hope to split Smith & Im before it’s a race against time to catch Scheffler.

Will we see another first-time winner tomorrow from either Scheffler or someone else like Smith, Im, or Lowry? Otherwise, can Schwartzel secure a fairytale 11-year reunion with the green jacket?

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Scottie Scheffler leads after Day 2 of the 2022 Masters Golf at Augusta National Golf Course

by Sports Benches

There’s so much to reflect on the second day of this year’s Masters Golf Tournament at Augusta, GA. Aussie Cam Smith couldn’t kick on his opening day spell when he languished a lot of pars and a few bogeys in a total of +2, 74 shots, although he finished Day 2 well with two birdies at holes 15 & 18. There’s still two days left going into the weekend & make up some lost time, as he’s Tied 6th at a total of -2.

The same say for South Korea’s Sungjae Im, who lost the lead to Scottie Scheffler, following three birdies, five bogeys & a majority of pars at +2 (74 shots). But again, he’s still in the mix at Tied 2nd going into Day 3 tomorrow & hopefully be the first South Korean to wear the green jacket.

We also saw some of the improved competitors today alongside Im in the shared 2nd spot; Ireland’s Shane Lowry, Reigning champion Hideki Matsuyama from Japan & 2011 Masters winner South Africa’s Charl Schwartzel. Meanwhile, Harold Varner III & Kevin Na continued their impressive start with the same score as yesterday at -2 (71 shots), where they will look to break into the Top 5 zone & have an outside crack for the lead if things work out after Day 3.

Dustin Johnson’s struggles continue that was miles away from the promised start he produced in Round 1, with only one birdie collected in the 4th hole at +1, 73 shots. It will be interesting to see if he can regroup in the weekend spells of Rounds 3 & 4, as he currently sits in Tied 6th, total -2. Danny Willett & Joaquin Niemann also endured some inconsistencies that saw them fall down the leaderboard in Tied 10th. And Patrick Cantlay slipped outside the Top 10 from 7th to 19th alongside Tiger Woods, who did enough to make the cut at +2 today (74 shots).

Two rounds down, two to go with Scottie Schaeffler as your leader from Tied 3rd yesterday at -3 to -8. Whoever is leading after Day 3, we will see an exciting finish that will change everything on Sunday at the Augusta National Golf Club.

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2022 The Masters Day 1 Review, Aussie Cam Smith not far in 2nd behind leader Sunjae Im of South Korea

by Sports Benches

It’s good to see an Australian in Cameron Smith doing so well, who is currently in 2nd after the 1st Day of the 2022 Masters in Augusta, GA. He may fired off poorly when Smith shot six in the first hole through Par 4, but he gradually improved as it goes where he racked up three eagles & four birdies at -4 (68 shots).

At the end of the day, the leader you’re looking at is Sunjae Im from South Korea; he was very consistent with plenty of 3s & 4s that earned him a whopping six birdies apart from the three bogeys at -5 (67 shots).

Then there are also a lot of 3rd place runners catching right up to Smith and Im’s radar, with Dustin Johnson, Scottie Scheffler, Danny Willett & Joaquin Niemann all tied at -3 (69 shots).

Johnson fired off well where he sniffed around Smith & Im earlier on for the lead. Although his form may have dipped going into the 2nd half spell that began to slip away from joint 1st with Smith & Im, there’s still room for improvement to catch up tomorrow if he wants to regain the lead & try to snatch that green jacket for the second time. Meanwhile, Willett, Scheffler & Niemann always kept their eye within the Top 3, having never been out of shape throughout the opening day as they look to hold back Johnson & split this front-row battle of Smith & Im on Day 2 tomorrow.

Jason Kokrak & Corey Conners sat comfortably outside the Top 6 throughout the opening day alongside Patrick Cantlay, who improved lately with four birdies in the 2nd half spell. And we also can’t forget the return of Tiger Woods after a freak accident earlier last year; he shot a lot of pars alongside three birdies in joint 10th at -1 (71 shots).

It will be interesting to see which two runner-ups from the 2020 Masters Tournaments will be up in front by the end of Day 2 tomorrow at Augusta National Golf Course.

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The next best Australian Tennis stars to watch following the retirement from Ash Barty

by Admin

Ashleigh Barty, a three-time Grand Slam champion, has announced her retirement from tennis. Barty, the No. 1 ranked women’s player got her country most of its major tournament, made it known publicly on Wednesday that she was leaving tennis for other pursuits. This will be the third time that Barty has stepped away from professional tennis but this is her first time of announcing her retirement. But her sudden retirement announcement coming after her triumph Melbourne, is a decision she has considered a lot. She has spent 113 weeks altogether at No. 1 putting her seventh on the career list. Barty happen to be the first women’s player to retire while on top of the single rankings since the Belgian star Justine Henin suddenly announced her retirement in May 2008.

Presently, and probably for eternity, Barty has ended her career $23.8 million prize money plus 15 career singles titles, including three at Grand Slam tournaments. In 2019, she won the French Open, in 2021 she won Wimbledon, and Australia Open this year, which means that she has won major singles titles on all three of tennis’ primary surfaces (clay, grass and hard court). Her triumph in the Australia Open gave her a great ending. She withdrew from the BNP Paribas Open making her Melbourne triumph her last match.

To conclude with, her unexpected retirement is obviously a blow to the sport. Barty is extremely popular in Australia with her humble personality. She is also a very important figure of Indigenous Austrailan descent.

After Barty’s retirement, there are few Aussie women’s players to watch: There are just two Australian women sitting in the world’s top 100 and they are Ajla Tomljanovic and Astra Sharma.

Ajla Tomljanovic has recorded eight singles wins in her career best Grand Slam season. She reached the Wimbledon quarter finals and US open third round. Ajla played a major role in the Fed Cup final in November 2019, making her first win for the country.

Astra Sharma won her first WTA singles title in April. She won her second WTA doubles title in Guadalajara. She was named twice in the Fed Cup team in 2019.

A 19 year old Olivier Gadecki. She is one of the fastest risers on the WTA the previous year. She moved from no ranking to mid-200s.

Charlotte Kempenaers and Tayla Preston are the two highest ranked juniors at the moment. They are both ranked in the top 40 – 50 in the world. Both of them will be competing at the upcoming junior grand slams.

THE NEXT BEST AUSTRAILIAN TENNIS STAR (MEN)

At 23, Alex de Minaur is one of Australia’s brilliant tennis prospect. He has continued to arise heads and he is still a player to keep close eye on moving forward.

De Minaur will be in action at the Miami Open on the 29th of March to face Stefanos Tsitsipas in the round of 32. Alex De Minaur has kept Australia’s hopes alive with a victory in the Davis Cup qualifier over Marton Fucsovics. In a relentless display, De Manaur defeated Fusovic, who is is ranked No. 35 in the world and 5 places below De Minaur.

James Duckworth is an Australia professional tennis player. He has a high rank in Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) singles ranking of the world No. 47 who he achieved on November 8 2021 and No. 185 doubles achieved on February 10 2020. Duckworth has won three titles and reached the semifinals of the 2010 French Open.

Thanasi Kokkinakis has made another chapter in his stunning 2022 comeback story with a victory over Hungary in the Davis Cup qualifier. It was his first match win in the world team event since 2015. That was the last time he represented Australia against Great Britain in the World Group semifinals.

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2022 ASBK Round 2 Support Categories review in the Oceania Junior Cup, Michelin SuperSport & Dunlop SuperSport 300 at Queensland Raceway

by Sports Benches

Aside from premier class, we saw a fantastic six laps in the Blu Cru Oceania Junior Cup category in Race 3 earlier this afternoon at Queensland Raceway. There was plenty of competition amongst the up-and-coming juniors upfront, with greater honours to achieve through the ranks someday. In the end, Harrison Watts came out of nowhere from 4th before he usurped No.48 of Ryan Larkin & No.40 Hudson Thompson with the Race 3 victory in the No.14 Yamaha.

Then we move onto the Michelin Supersport category in Race 2, where Tom Edwards was outstanding from start to finish in the same 1st place position in the No.26 Yamaha. And while John Lytras and Olly Simpson finished in 2nd and 3rd respectively, hats off to Scott Nicholson in the No.38, who improved some track position in the last few laps from 6th to 4th.

And now this Dunlop SuperSport 300 Race 3 portion oversaw a lot of competition especially during the last lap. We love the 1st place battle between polesitter Glenn Nelson and Cameron Dunker, but Nelson held off Dunker towards the finish line by 0.043 seconds in the No.39 Yamaha. Then there’s a four-way battle for the final podium spot between two Kawasakis (Johathan Nahlous & James Jacobs) and two Yamahas (Henry Snell & Sam Pezzetta). The Yamahas eventually split the Kawasakis with Nahlous being denied a podium spot in 4th & Jacobs in 6th, while Snell finished 3rd & Pezzetta rounds off the Top 5.

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Tennis News, Thanasi Kokkinakis has just helped Australia clinch a 2022 Davis Cup finals berth after he defeated Zsombor Piros in straight sets

by Sports Benches

Thanasi Kokkinakis has done it for Australia having just defeated Zsombor Piros in straight sets, Australia just wrapped up a 3-2 series win following the best of five match-ups v Hungary in the 2022 Davis Cup Qualifiers at Ken Rosewall Arena. That means Australia has now punched their ticket for the Finals later this year, where they join 17 other qualified teams to battle it out for the Davis Cup title.

Kokkinakis was relieved to come out unscathed following a close battle with Piros for the whole time that determined the series result for his country, Australia. He fired off well with the early lead, then he was tested on occasions where Piros fought back as this deciding tie goes on. However, it’s all about persistence, having taken his time wisely thanks to the first set lead advantage, that helped Kokkinakis play a huge part in Australia’s series decider win v Hungary.

Meanwhile, Piros would be disappointed with the loss even though he has been a great opponent to face. We love how he made up some lost time during the second-half run in each spell, having almost brought in the tiebreaker that can give him an extended shot to try & stay in this game. He left it too late when Piros lacked the first-half momentum & fell behind along the way, in which he was let down in this area while trying to hold back Kokkinakis.

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Tennis News, Alex De Minaur levels 2-2 for Australia with one deciding tie to spare after he overcame a competitive singles duel v Marton Fucsovics

by Sports Benches

Wow! How good is Alex De Minaur! He just defeated Marton Fucsovics in such terrific fashion after a tight encounter with a straight-sets win at Ken Rosewall Arena, as Australia level 2-2 v Hungary with the 5th and deciding singles tie left to go.

Both players played so well when they were neck in neck for that opening set lead, but De Minaur got there first via the tiebreaker before he overcame another tough duel & held off Fucsovics that wowed the home crowd supporters by his side.

Final Score: 7-6 via 7-4 tiebreaker, 6-4

Fucsovics didn’t get the win he deserves through two hours of play on the court today v De Minaur. He got the build-up base going where the Hungarian was on the same page as the Aussie for the whole time, which helped him stay on top of his game. He just couldn’t group himself when Fucsovics was under immense pressure while trying to overtake & hold off De Minaur, and De Minaur spotted his one huge weakness that saw the Australian escape in both sets.

And going back to De Minaur, it’s incredible to see him save Australia’s hopes alive in their 2022 Davis Qualifier v Hungary on home soil after four ties out of five. He never gave up with so much fight under his belly, having been on the same page as Fucsovics. It gave him some time to get on top of his opponent before De Minaur re-setted the momentum via the tiebreak, got himself past the opening set & persisted in that fight, as Australian No.1 was able to maintain his path towards victory.

Australia is turning their attention to Thanasi Kokkinakis for the 5th and deciding tie v Zsombor Piros right now, with the Davis Cup Finals place up for grabs later this year if Kokkinakis can wrap up a 3-2 series win.

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Hungary lead Australia 2-1 in the 2022 Davis Cup Qualifiers after Fabian Marozsan & Mate Valkusz just defeated John Peers & Luke Saville in straight sets

by Sports Benches

W ow! We just saw Fabian Marozsan & Mate Valkusz upset Australia’s John Peers and Luke Saville in this solitary doubles match-up, as Hungary now leads 2-1 in the 2022 Davis Cup Qualifiers with two singles games left at Ken Rosewall Arena.

It was a tight game though when both countries were side by side for the opening set lead, but it’s Hungary who got ahead and held back Australia going into the second set before they kept the momentum, found the homestretch & wrapped it up in straight sets (4-6, 4-6).

Commiserations for Peers and Saville when they fought back a few games in a bid to stay in contention. However, a poor start saw them fall behind where they just couldn’t find a way past Hungary, while leaving out to hold back Marozsan/Valkusz until the last minute in both sets.

And hats off to Marozsan and Valkusz for their persistence against these two experienced opponents. They simply focused on one thing at a time that reflected Hungary’s 1st set lead earlier on v Peers/Saville. It gave them some time and patience to hold the Aussies off defensively, as it puts them on a confidence booster going into the second set where Marozsan/Valkusz wrapped up this game with the win.

Next up is Alex De Minaur v Marton Fucsovics in this 4th of 5th match-up between Australia v Hungary. De Minaur desperately needs a win if Australia was to level 2-2 going into the fifth and final singles match today (Thanasi Kokkinakis v Zsombor Piros) in the 2022 Davis Cup Qualifiers.

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