ice started the day two strokes back,

Posted in Wrestling Forums by lavender123456 at 00:56, Jul 14 2014

BARCELONA, Spain -- Top-ranked Rafael Nadal looked more like his confident self on the clay in passing Ivan Dodig of Croatia 6-3, 6-3, to reach the Barcelona Open quarterfinals on Thursday. Nadal was struggling with his game coming into the event and an unconvincing opening victory on Wednesday did little to calm the nerves. But Nadal looked more assured as he ousted the 37th-ranked Dodig in 83 minutes in the third round. Nadal moves on to face fellow Spanish player Nicolas Almagro in an early rematch of last seasons final, which Nadal won for his eight title at the tournament in the Catalan capital. Almagro advanced after beating Fernando Verdasco 6-3, 6-3. Dodigs attempts to come forward were met with passing shots from Nadal, who finally broke for 3-2 after coming to the net to force Dodig into netting a return. Dodig broke right back but Nadal had found his rhythm as he forced Dodig into 15 errors in the first set, when he won the last three games for the lead. Nadal maintained his play to start the second set, when he made fewer errors and seemed to grow in confidence to break Dodig for the fourth time as he sealed the win. "Theres still some work to do but I definitely took a step forward from yesterday. I move on feeling more assured," Nadal said. "I needed this game." Earlier, fourth-seeded Kei Nishikori beat Andrey Golubev of Kazakhstan 6-0, 6-4. Nishikori had been sidelined by a groin injury since beating Roger Federer four weeks ago. Russian player Teymuraz Gabashvili followed up his win over fifth-ranked David Ferrer with a 6-4, 6-2 victory over another Spaniard, Inigo Cervantes, to reach the quarterfinals. Ernests Gulbis of Latvia, Marin Cilic of Croatia, and Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany all won to advance. cheap nfl jerseys china . And, though it was against an overmatched Austrian opponent on Friday evening, there was obvious progression, albeit with a hiccup or two, from the Canadians at the Bolshoy Ice Dome. cheap jerseys from china . -- The Portland Trail Blazers expect guard Brandon Roy to be ready for training camp on Friday. http://www.jerseyrmb.com/.J. -- A good start is what is on the line this time when the New York Giants host the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL season opener. cheap nike nfl jerseys . - Defenceman Nathan Beaulieu and forwards Jonathan Huberdeau, Phillip Danault and Zack Phillips headline the Quebec Major Junior Hockey Leagues roster for the upcoming Subway Super Series versus Russia. cheap jerseys . - The Seattle Mariners have signed right-handed starter Chris Young to a major league deal for the 2014 season in the hopes of solidifying the back end of the rotation.MADISON, Miss. -- After a tap-in putt for a one-stroke victory at the Viking Classic, Chris Kirk picked up his ball, gave a nearly indiscernible fist pump and strode off the course like a man whos done it a hundred times. Not exactly what youd expect from a first-time PGA Tour winner. "I gave a little bit of a fist pump, I think, didnt I?" Kirk said grinning. "I dont know. I made a three-inch putt to win. Thats not exactly an accomplishment. All the other shots I hit were pretty good, though." They certainly were. Kirk, a 26-year-old rookie, shot a 4-under 68 to beat Tom Pernice Jr. and George McNeill by one stroke at Annandale Golf Club. It ended an impressive week for the Georgia graduate, who tied the tournament record with a 22-under performance over four rounds. Kirk had a one-stroke lead going into the final round and rarely flinched. He never trailed, breaking a tie with McNeill on No. 17 by hitting a 140-yard approach over water to within five feet of the hole for an easy birdie putt. The bold shot looked risky. But Kirk calmly surveyed his options and said he never thought twice. "People sometimes make more of it than what it is," Kirk said. "It was 140 yards and it was a 9-iron, so I was aiming right at the pin and nowhere else. That was my only thought." Kirk played his first PGA Tour event at the Viking Classic in 2007, receiving a sponsors exemption just weeks after turning pro. But he missed the cut, and on Sunday marvelled at how much things have changed in four years. "Its pretty amazing to think back to then, how far Ive come from," Kirk said. "My game isnt that much better than it was then, but just the comfort level that I have now to be able to go out for 18 today and feel one hundred per cent comfortable in my own skin." Matt McQuillan was the top Canadian on the leaderboard after shootinng a final-round 67.dddddddddddd The Kingston, Ont., native finished nine shots behind Kirk. Calgarys Stephen Ames (70) finished at 10 shots back, while David Hearn of Brantford, Ont., stumbled with a 73 to end up at 6 under. Annandale received more than 11.3 centimetres of rain over the past week, and the soft fairways and greens led to plentiful birdies throughout the tournament. But the final round proved to be the toughest, with scores rising slightly as the course dried out and wind picked up. Sunghoon Kang, another rookie, and McNeill started the day one stroke behind Kirk, but couldnt keep pace. Pernice fell just short in his bid to become the second-oldest winner in tour history and the first over-50 player to win since Fred Funk in 2007. Sam Snead was 52 when he won the Greater Greensboro Open in 1965. Pernice started the day two strokes back, but fired a 67 for the third straight day to stay in contention. He put his approach shot on No. 18 within 10 feet of the hole, but his birdie putt slid to the left at the last second. McNeill also missed a birdie putt on No. 18. "I just needed to make a good firm stroke, maybe just outside the right edge and all that good stuff," Pernice said. "But it looked like I pulled it." Pernice said Kirks victory wasnt surprising considering his consistency throughout the season. "The young guys are getting bigger and stronger and theyre able to compete right away," Pernice said. Kirk is the fifth rookie to win on the tour this season -- just the second time thats happened since 1970. Hes been consistent all season, ranking 51st on the money list coming into the Viking Classic, and just missed his first career win after finishing second to Phil Mickelson at the Shell Houston Open. The victory earns Kirk US$648,000 of the $3.6 million purse and 250 points in the FedEx Cup. ' ' '