Latest from Perth Now
Perth Now
14 minutes ago
- Sport
- Perth Now
Knapp breaks record, Aussie Endycott in the PGA mix
Jake Knapp has pulled off a feat no one else has in PGA Tour history. Knapp shot an 11-under 61 on Friday to break a Rocket Classic record that stood for less than a day and became the first on the tour to break 60 and shoot a 61 or lower in the same season. But that still wasn't enough to put him in the top six, entering the weekend at Detroit Golf Club. Chris Kirk (65), Philip Knowles (64) and Andrew Putnam (66) share the second-round lead at 14 under. Jackson Suber (65) was another shot back. Aldrich Potgieter, who had a 70 after sharing the 18-hole lead with Kevin Roy after a record-setting 62, was two strokes back with Michael Thorbjornsen (67) and Mark Hubbard (69). Knapp was in a large pack of players, including Australian Harrison Endycott (66), Collin Morikawa (64), Hideki Matsuyama (66) and Roy (71), three shots off the lead going into the third round. Endycott followed his opening 67 with a bogey-free six-under 66. The 29-year-old Sydneysider made three birdies on each nine, including going back-to-back on 13 and 14. The 31-year-old Knapp, who won the Mexico Open last year as a rookie, started the second round 130th in the 156-player field after opening with a 72. He surged into contention with nine birdies and an eagle in a bogey-free round. "I was just probably upset all night and this morning, so I think that maybe helped a little bit," he said. Knapp, ranked No.99 in the world, is the only player on the tour to shoot 61 or better in two rounds this season. He shot a 59 - one off the tour scoring record of 58 set by Jim Furyk in 2016 - at the Cognizant Classic four months ago, when he broke the tournament scoring record before cooling off and tying for sixth. Knapp broke the 18-hole record at Detroit Golf Club that was set Thursday in the first round when Potgieter and Roy both shot a 62. "I feel like when I start making birdies, I want to make more," Knapp said. "I was even kind of thinking about 59 when I stuck it close on my third to last hole." The 28-year-old Knowles, shooting for his first PGA Tour win, made the cut for just the third time in 11 events after failing to make it to the weekend at five straight tournaments. "It's not been my best year thus far by any stretch of the imagination, but golf is funny," he said. "When you're playing bad, you never feel like you're going to play good again. And when you have days like today, you just don't understand how you could ever shoot a bad round of golf." Min Woo Lee, the first to break the course record with a 63 on Thursday, made 73 on Friday to tumble down the field to tied 36th. He made the six-under cut by two, but Aaron Baddeley (71,73), Cam Davis (74, 70) and Karl Vilips (71,74) will all miss the weekend action.
Perth Now
an hour ago
- Entertainment
- Perth Now
Neil Young bans BBC from broadcasting Glastonbury set
Neil Young has banned the BBC from broadcasting his headline set at Glastonbury. The 79-year-old rocker will take to the Pyramid Stage with his band The Chrome Hearts on Saturday but those watching on TV will see Charli XCX's performance on The Other Stage which takes place at the same time. A spokesperson for the BBC said: "On Saturday on BBC iPlayer, our Glastonbury Channel and five streams for the main stages will bring a range of live performances to audiences. "At the artist's request, we won't be livestreaming Neil Young's set. Our plans, including those for our TV highlights shows and on-demand coverage, continue to be finalised right up to and during the festival." The announcement comes after Young threatened to pull out of Glastonbury earlier this year due to BBC's involvement as he bemoaned how the UK festival had fallen "under corporate control". The veteran rocker wrote in an open letter on his website in January: "The Chrome Hearts and I were looking forward to playing Glastonbury, one of my all time favourite outdoor gigs. We were told that the BBC was now a partner in Glastonbury and wanted us to do a lot of things in a way we were not interested in. "It seems Glastonbury is now under corporate control and is not the way I remember it being. We will not be playing Glastonbury on this tour because it is a corporate turn-off, and not for me like it used to be." However, Young made a U-turn on his Glastonbury boycott two days later after suggesting that he had received false information about the festival. "Due to an error in the information received, I had decided to not play Glastonbury Festival, which I always have loved. "Happily, the festival is now back on our itinerary and we look forward to playing!" Young was opposed to the BBC broadcasting his set when he previously headlined the festival in 2009 as his management wanted to limit the number of songs shown on TV in order to preserve the "mystery" of the performance.
Perth Now
an hour ago
- Business
- Perth Now
Lower energy use just the beginning for retail giant
Major Australian and New Zealand retailers are primed for an energy switch following millions of dollars in federal funding to decarbonise their services. Wesfarmers, who own shops like Officeworks, Bunnings, Kmart and Coles will finance rooftop solar, battery storage, a vehicle smart charging pilot and other efficiency initiatives across stores. This comes from a $100 million commitment from government-backed Clean Energy Finance Corporation, labelled Australia's specialist climate investor. It means Wesfarmers will be able to manage energy consumption across its retail sites and make them more efficient through storage. These installed or upgraded facility changes are expected to be in effect by the end of 2025. "We have long managed our businesses with climate and carbon awareness and we are committed to continuing to take action to reduce our impact on the environment," Wesfarmers CFO Anthony Gianotti said. A study to accelerate decarbonisation across stores will also be undertaken under the funding envelope. Adopting these initiatives is a "practical and speedy" way to cut the organisations carbon footprint, the climate investor's CEO Ian Learmonth said. "Many Australians would have enjoyed a Bunnings Saturday sausage sizzle or taken the path to Officeworks for those back-to-school necessities," he said. "At selected sites they will soon be able to add vehicle charging to their store visits while enjoying solar-powered air conditioning." Australia's retail sector accounts for 50 per cent of energy use in the commercial property sector and five per cent of the nation's greenhouse gas emissions. Batteries, virtual power plants and electric vehicles can reduce grid demand through co-ordination of their charging and discharging, the Australian Energy Market Operator said. Federal energy minister Chris Bowen said the partnership will drive down emissions and lower energy costs, while providing knock-on benefits to households. "This boost in finance by the Clean Energy Finance Corporation will accelerate Wesfarmers' efforts to reduce its carbon footprint, make the shift to cleaner and cheaper energy and better manage energy use," he said.
Perth Now
an hour ago
- Sport
- Perth Now
Solheim Cup rivals grab lead in Dow Championship
Jennifer Kupcho and Leona Maguire shot a 10-under 60 in better-ball play to take the second-round lead in the Dow Championship. The Solheim Cup rivals posted a 13-under 127 total at Midland Country Club after opening with an alternate-shot 67 on Thursday, in the LPGA Tour's only team event. "The plan today was just to give ourselves as many chances as we could, try to get two chances on every hole," said Irishwoman Maguire. "For the most part, we did that. It was nice to start off with a birdie and sort of an eagle very early on to get the ball rolling." They hold a one-stroke lead over Australian Cassie Porter and Gemma Dryburgh, the first-round leaders who parred the final six holes in a 62. The teams will play another alternate-shot round Saturday, and close with a better-ball round Sunday. "Lots of golf to go," said Kupcho, the 2022 winner with fellow American Lizette Salas. "I think just kind of staying where we're at and continuing what we're doing the best we can." The teams of Sarah Schmelzel-Albane Valenzuela (61), Manon De Roey-Pauline Roussin-Bouchard (61) and and Yan Liu-Yahui Zhang (62) are at 11 under. "It was a great round," Valenzuela said, "I feel like I definitely feed off Sarah's energy. She makes it really easy for me on the course." Lexi Thompson and Meghan Kang, tied for second after an opening 67, had a 65 to drop into a tie for ninth at eight under. "Fairways and greens, hole a few more putts," Thompson said. "That's the goal." Defending champions Ruoning Yin and Jeeno Thitikul, both among the top five in the women's world ranking, are at six under after a 66.
Perth Now
an hour ago
- Sport
- Perth Now
Patrick Reed, Harold Varner III lead LIV Golf Dallas
Patrick Reed and Harold Varner III each shot five-under 67 at Maridoe Golf Club to lead after the opening round of LIV Golf Dallas. Reed eagled the 655-yard, par-5 second hole and had four birdies and a bogey. Varner, Reed's 4Aces teammate, had six birdies and a closing bogey. "For sure. I want to beat him, even though he's a teammate," Varner said. "It's a lot of fun. It got awkward when he chipped in on the par-5 and I made par. That's when I knew it was going to be fun. Yeah, that's what you want, and I guess we get to do it again tomorrow." Together, they lifted 4Aces to a score of nine under for the day and a six-shot lead over Crushers GC. "I mean, I felt like I was behind him all day and really just kind of trying to feed off of him," Reed said about his teammate. "Harold is out there playing some solid golf, hitting some quality golf shots. It's always nice when you're seeing that because you can feed off of it." Jon Rahm was a stroke back. Abraham Ancer shot 69, and Dustin Johnson was at 70 with Graeme McDowell, Anirban Lahiri, Richard Bland and David Puig. Ancer's play was a little erratic as he made seven birdies, two bogeys and a double bogey on the par-3 third, which was his final hole of the day. "Yeah, very solid round, very happy the way I hit it off the tee," Ancer said. "I think I only missed two fairways that led to two bogeys. "The rough is no joke out there. But I love golf courses like that that you have to be in the fairway. Definitely hurts to finish the way I finished with a double bogey, obviously. Just felt like I just lost a little bit of concentration on that par-3." Bryson DeChambeau opened with a 72. He lives in Dallas and played his college golf at SMU. Points leader Joaquin Niemann, coming off a victory at LIV Golf Virginia, shot 78. He had a 10 on the par-5 seventh. Brooks Koepka withdrew during the round because of illness. He smashed a tee marker with his driver on the ninth hole. The Australians have made a dreadful start and are in the lower half of the field. Lucas Herbert, Marc Leishman and Cameron Smith all shot three-over 76, with Matt Jones a further stroke back. with Reuters
