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PGA sending two execs to Senate probe on golf merger

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 05:00:00 GMT

WASHINGTON — Two leading figures for the PGA Tour have agreed to testify next week before a Senate panel reviewing the tour’s surprise agreement with the Saudi backers of LIV Golf.The panel will have to wait to hear from LIV CEO Greg Norman and Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the governor of the Saudi Arabian national wealth fund behind the rival circuit.The Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations said Ron Price, the PGA Tour’s chief operating officer, and board member Jimmy Dunne have agreed to appear July 11.Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., who chairs the panel, and ranking member Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., said Norman and Al-Rumayyan cited scheduling conflicts as to why they would not be able to appear.LIV Golf is playing outside London this week. Its next tournament is not until early August.“We appreciate the PGA Tour working with us and look forward to a robust, thoughtful exchange with both Ron Price and Jimmy Dunne on July 11, focusing on the details and backgro...

State rings in another 4th of July with no budget

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 05:00:00 GMT

As is tradition, the state started the fiscal year without a spending plan.For at least the second year running lawmakers on Beacon Hill will celebrate Independence Day with the state operating under a temporary balance sheet which will keep the lights on through July while the fiscal 2024 budget remains overdue and in limbo.The budget was due by the first of the month, however both chambers of the Legislature met informally Monday before sending members home for a midweek holiday break, but only after scheduling further informal sessions for Thursday. All the while, negotiators from both the House and Senate continue to iron out the differences between their proposals for the state’s budget.“I feel confident that we’ll be getting a deal done soon,” Sen. Nick Collins told the State House News Service. “We’re dealing with a lot of meaty issues. We’re dealing with a budget, we’re dealing with a reform of the tax code. So it’s not insignificant.”The House,...

Mike Trout lands on the injured list with broken wrist in huge blow to playoff-hopeful Angels

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 05:00:00 GMT

In their most competitive season in recent years, the Los Angeles Angels suffered a massive blow on Tuesday. All-Star Mike Trout is heading to the injured list with a fractured left hamate bone after fouling off a pitch against the San Diego Padres on Monday night.The 31-year-old is expected to be out for a handful of weeks as the typical timeline for the wrist injury to heal is approximately six-to-eight weeks.“Just took a swing and something felt uncomfortable,” Trout said after Monday’s loss to the Padres. “Just waiting on getting some scans and hoping for the best. I’m praying for the results to come back clean. But it doesn’t feel great. Hopefully, it’s just a sprained wrist.”“I can’t really describe the pain I felt,” Trout added. “I’ve never felt that pain ever. I’ve never had wrist problems or anything. Just a freak thing.”Trout is in the midst of a down season — by his future Hall...

Energy stocks help lift S&P/TSX composite Tuesday as oil tops US$70 a barrel

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 05:00:00 GMT

TORONTO — Gains in energy and battery metals helped lift Canada’s main stock index higher Tuesday as the price of oil also rose above US$70 a barrel.The S&P/TSX composite index was up 49.58 points at 20,204.87, while U.S. stock markets were closed for the Independence Day holiday.Energy stocks, along with other commodities, helped boost the TSX into the green on a low-volume day, said Mike Archibald, vice-president and portfolio manager with AGF Investments Inc.Oil has been trading for weeks in a range between the high 60s and low 70s, he said, and Tuesday was no exception as the price of oil has climbed back above US$70 a barrel. The uptick came after Saudi Arabia and Russia announced Monday they are extending July production cuts into August as they seek to boost the price of oil. “Whether or not Russia and Saudi Arabia follow through on that remains to be seen, but yes, it’s definitely … having a bit of an impact on the energy price today,” said Archibald. Oil is ...

Nearly 2,000 Air Canada flights delayed, cancelled over long weekend

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 05:00:00 GMT

MONTREAL — Air Canada delayed or cancelled nearly 2,000 flights over the Canada Day long weekend in a potential taste of more trouble ahead for passengers.Roughly half of all trips by the country’s biggest airline — including its lower-cost Air Canada Rouge and regional partner Jazz Aviation — were disrupted Saturday through Monday, according to figures from tracking service FlightAware.The 1,965 flight delays and cancellations — over 52 per cent of scheduled flights — stand in contrast to numbers from other Canadian carriers including WestJet, Air Transat and Flair Airlines, which registered lower flight disruption levels.They also mark an uptick from the previous weekend, despite an unexpected shortage of air traffic controllers at Nav Canada that snarled travel during that period.Posts and photos of snaking lines and bulging terminals at airports in Toronto and Montreal popped up on social media over the past few days, as passengers vented their frustrations about late take...

‘Our cultural fabric’: Calgary Stampede gets ready to kick off Friday with parade

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 05:00:00 GMT

CALGARY — After a few years of uncertainty related to the COVID-19 pandemic, officials with the Calgary Stampede say they’re happy the advice they’ll be handing out this year is to simply wear a cowboy hat and stay hydrated.“It’s certainly a nice change to feel like we’re getting back to a little bit normal here and having a full-on Stampede this year. We’re really excited about that,” Kerrie Blizard, the event’s director of public safety, said at a news conference Tuesday.The 10-day celebration of cowboy life, called the Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth, kicks off with a downtown parade Friday morning. The Stampede was cancelled for the first time in its history in 2020. It returned the following year with a scaled-down version that included rapid COVID-19 tests being required to enter some tents, a limit on how many people could be at Stampede Park and physical distancing guidelines. Last year, many who attended wore masks.“The s...

Revelers across the US brave heat and heavy downpours to celebrate Fourth of July

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 05:00:00 GMT

BOSTON (AP) — Revelers across the U.S. braved heat and heavy rain to take part in Fourth of July activities Tuesday — celebrating the nation’s founding with parades, fireworks and hot dog eating contests at a time of lingering political divisions and concerns about the country’s future.In Boston, people dodged raindrops to nab a coveted space on the grassy oval in front of the Hatch Shell along the Charles River ahead of the traditional Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular. Hundreds of thousands of partygoers typically line both sides of the river for the fireworks spectacular that follows a concert.At another longstanding celebration, fans of competitive eating crowded to watch Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July hot dog eating contest held in the Coney Island section of New York City.In many states, weather factored into events. The 10-kilometer Atlanta Journal-Constitution Peachtree Road Race that typically draws thousands of runners in humid summer weather was cut short due ...

Folk singer lends name to program giving healthy food to rural N.S. children

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 05:00:00 GMT

HALIFAX — A Nova Scotia folk singer is lending his name to a program that provides healthy food to students at rural schools in the province, saying he wants to raise awareness about an often invisible problem.Dave Gunning’s music has included tunes such “Coal From the Train” — co-written with artist Bruce Gouthro — with lyrics describing how Gunning’s grandfather would shovel coal from his passing train onto the properties of people struggling to heat their homes in Pictou County.Now, the Pictou County recording artist is becoming the sponsor of a funding drive to set up centres — referred to as School Free Stores — that will stock rural schools in Nova Scotia with food and necessities. He says he intends to push for the cause as he tours folks festivals around the country, adding that the song about his grandfather will give him a chance to mention the fundraising drive. “It ties in perfectly with the cause. If everybody shovels a little bit of coal f...

MLB’s Sarah Langs, who has ALS, honored at Yankees game on anniversary of Lou Gehrig’s famous speech

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 05:00:00 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Sarah Langs tried on Lou Gehrig’s cap, a joyous moment and also a reminder of the link they share.Langs, a beloved member of the baseball community in her role as a reporter and producer at Major League Baseball Advanced Media, revealed last October she had been diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, known as Lou Gehrig’s disease or ALS. She was honored at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday, the 84th anniversary of Gehrig’s famous “luckiest man on the face of the Earth” speech, along with six other women who have the disease. “I don’t think I’ve processed any of this from the day that I pressed send on that tweet to share this with the world and all of the kindness I’ve received even beforehand,” Langs said. “But, I mean, I love baseball so much. I’m so grateful for it. It’s the one thing in my life that absolutely will not change at all.”ALS is a progressive disease that attacks nerve cells that control muscles throughout the body. It became known as Lou Gehrig’...

See how the Brewers honored Highland Park shooting survivor Cooper Roberts this week

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 05:00:00 GMT

MILWAUKEE — Nearly a year to the day of the first anniversary of the Highland Park shooting, one of its survivors got to enjoy a day at the ballpark with his favorite team. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)Cooper Roberts, who was paralyzed in the mass shooting on July 4, 2022, got the opportunity to throw out the first pitch ahead of the Brewers' game against the Cubs on Monday afternoon. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)With members of his family by his side, the nine-year-old tossed the pitch to Milwaukee outfielder Christian Yelich ahead of the start of the contest at American Family Field. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)The crowd gave Roberts a loud ovation as Yelich posed for a few pictures with the family ahead of the start of the first of a four-game series with the Cubs. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)This is not the first gesture by the Milwaukee franchise towards Roberts since he was paralyzed in the shooting in Highland Park. On July 8, 2022, when finding out that h...