The Sportsletter - Early Open Surprise ⛳️

BY JEFF YODER & MARISSA KASCH

JULY 19, 2024 | SUBSCRIBE | WEB VIEW

Happy Friday 🙌

The Open Championship has a longshot atop the leaderboard (World Rank #273), and we’re looking ahead to the MLB’s second half before the WNBA All-Stars and the Tour de France capture the weekend ahead.

It’s our last little stretch before the Olympic takeover. Ready?

Letter Rip!

🏅 Olympics Countdown: 6 Days

Know a sports fan who can’t wait for the Olympics? Share The Sportsletter so they can follow all the best moments, highlights and stories from Paris. We’re launching our Olympics Tracker next week, and it’s sure to be epic.

GOLF

An Early Open Surprise ⛳️

Photo: Tom Shaw / R&A / Getty Images

Daniel Brown — 273rd-Ranked Golfer in the World — Leads The Open Championship After Round 1 (By Marissa Kasch)

⛳️ Open Championship Tracker

*Round 2 in Progress

Round 2 of The Open Championship is underway in Scotland, but a new golfer (you may not know) was on top after Round 1. Englishman Daniel Brown (-6), playing in his first major, secured the solo lead over Shane Lowry (-5). Despite being the world’s No. 273 golfer, Brown carded a bogey-free 65. The Irishman Lowry also carded a bogey-free round, coming in at 66 to sit alone in second place. Despite these near-perfect rounds for Brown and Lowry, many players are within striking distance. Justin Thomas’ early surge landed him in third place (-3), only three strokes off the lead. Russell Henley, Xander Schauffele and Justin Rose are three of seven golfers tied for fourth place at 2-under. Scottie Scheffler, Brooks Koepka and Adam Scott are also tied at 1-under. The scores are tight, the talent is plentiful and all signs point to a game of musical chairs on the leaderboard.

Royal Troon's Round 1 TKOs: The weather (and difficulty) at Royal Troon presented a challenge for some of golf’s best on Thursday. In particular, Bryson DeChambeau (+5) and Rory McIlroy (+7) struggled with the wind. Tiger Woods (+8) also suffered. Those three will be lucky just to make the cut, and the weekend forecast isn’t much better. Round 2 is expected to be just as cold and windy as Round 1 with rain and wind sustaining until Sunday.

The Open Leaderboard (Round 1)

D. Brown (-6)

S. Lowry (-5)

J. Thomas (-3)

A. Noren (-2)

N. Hojgaard (-2)

R. Henley (-2)

J. Rose (-2)

X. Schauffele (-2)

Other Notable Scorecards: A. Scott (-1), B. Koepka (-1), M. Fitzpatrick (-1), S. Scheffler (-1), T. Finau (E), J. Speith (E), J. Niemann (E), C. Conners (E), J. Rahm (+2), P. Mickelson (+2), C. Morikawa (+2), V. Hovland (+4), H. Matsuyama (+4), B. DeChambeau (+5), R. McIlroy (+7), T. Woods (+8) | Full (Updated) Leaderboard

Round 1 Highlights | Round 2 Tee Times

ESPN: Bryson DeChambeau, Rory McIlroy Struggle at Open Championship (ESPN)

MLB

MLB's 2nd Half: The Swing for October

Photo: Rich Schultz / Getty Images

100 Games Tells the Story of the MLB Season So Far, But the 2nd Half is What We'll Remember

The MLB season is almost 100 games old with two-and-a-half months of regular-season baseball left. That's well over half way, but calling it the "final 2/5" isn't as catchy. We checked in on the MLB Power Rankings early last week, but not much changed over the All-Star break. We'll start to see moves that could change the landscape at the trade deadline (July 30), and some teams might looked renewed after a short rest. Before games resume today, let's view the projected playoff picture (if October started tomorrow).

American League

Division Leaders

Central: 1. Guardians (58-37)

East: 2. Orioles (58-38)

West: 3. Mariners (52-46)

AL Wild Cards

WC1: Yankees (58-40)

WC2: Twins (54-42)

WC3: Red Sox (53-42)

In the Hunt: Royals (52-45), Astros (50-46), Rays (48-48), Tigers (47-50), Rangers (46-50)

National League

Division Leaders

East: 1. Phillies (62-34)

West: 2. Dodgers (56-41)

Central: 3. Brewers (55-42)

NL Wild Cards

WC1: Braves (53-42)

WC2: Cardinals (50-46)

WC3: Mets (49-46)

In the Hunt: Diamondbacks (49-48), Padres (50-49), Pirates (48-48), Reds (47-50), Giants (47-50), Cubs (47-51)

CBS Sports: 10 Bold Predictions for MLB’s Second Half: Blockbuster Trades, Tiebreakers & More

WNBA

The 20th WNBA All-Star Game ⭐️

Photo: Jamie Squire / Getty Images

The 20th WNBA All-Star Weekend Sets Up The Olympic Break (Saturday, 8:00 pm ET, ESPN)

We’re roughly 25 games (out of 40) through the WNBA regular season, but this weekend’s 20th anniversary of the WNBA All-Star Game acts as the soft launch to Team USA’s women’s basketball Olympic dreams. The traditional East vs. West format goes out the window in Olympic years. It’s the first time since 2021 (Tokyo Olympics) that the All-Star setup pits Team USA against the remaining WNBA stars. One might think that would make the teams unbalanced, but don’t jump to conclusions. Team WNBA beat Team USA in 2021 (93-85). We’ll get our first glimpse of the women’s national team before they head to Paris, and we’ll also see rookies Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese as teammates for the first time ever.

WNBA All-Star Events

Skills Challenge (Friday, 6:00 pm ET, ESPN) — Participants: Sophie Cunningham (Mercury), Allisha Gray (Dream), Brittney Griner (Mercury), Erica Wheeler (Fever), Marina Mabrey (Sun)
3-Point Contest (Friday, After Skills Challenge, ESPN) — Participants: Stephanie Dolson (Mystics), Allisha Gray (Dream), Jonquel Jones (Liberty), Kayla McBride (Lynx), Marina Mabrey (Sun)

WNBA All-Star Game

Team USA vs. Team WNBA (Sat. 8:30 pm, ESPN)

WNBA All-Star Game Rosters

ESPN: WNBA All-Star Game 2024: Rosters, Schedules, Events & More

HIGHLIGHTS 🎥

🚴 Tour de France

Stage 18: Victor Campenaerts Wins 3-Man Sprint

Tadej Pogacar Leads by 3+ Min. With 3 Stages Left

🏀 NBA Summer League

Bronny James (12 pts) Finally Gets Going

Alondes Williams Produces Dunk of the Summer

STORYLINES

🏅 Olympics Day-by-Day Viewers Guide

With 329 events across 39 sports, there will be plenty to take in over 19 days. Here's what to look out for when the Olympics start next week in Paris. (Sports Illustrated)

💯 ESPN’s Top 100 Athletes Since 2000

The greatest athlete of the 21st century? That's easy. It has to be Tom Brady. Except… it has to be Lionel Messi. Serena Williams? LeBron James? This was fun. (ESPN)

NEWS 📰

🏅 Paris Mayor Swims in Seine River to Prove Water’s Readiness for Olympic Swimming (CBS Sports)

🥊 Boxer Ryan Garcia Charged With Vandalism After June Arrest, Faces 1-Year in Jail (B/R)

🏀 WNBA Gets $200 Million Per Year in New Media Rights Deal, But Execs Concerned (ESPN)

🏈 Randall Cobb Joins SEC Network as Analyst, Still Open to Resuming NFL Career (Yahoo! Sports)

🏀 Caitlin Clark & Sabrina Ionescu Decline WNBA All-Star 3-Point Contest (USA Today)

⚽️ Next USMNT Coach Unlikely to be American Candidate, Sources Say (FOX Sports)

🏀 Russell Westbrook Expected to Sign With Denver Nuggets After Jazz Trade-Buyout (CBS Sports)

🏀 State of New Jersey Hoping to Lure Philadelphia 76ers With New Stadium (Sporting News)