Tiger Woods and 15-year-old son Charlie ran off five straight birdies on the back nine Saturday for a 13-under 59 in the scramble format, giving them a share of the lead in the PNC Championship in Woods’ first competition since back surgery in September.
Woods said he scheduled that surgery — the sixth on his lower back in the last 10 years — to be sure he recovered in time to play with his son for the fifth straight year.
This is the first time they have shared the lead after the opening round, joined by the last two champions — Bernhard Langer and son Jason, and Vijay Singh and son Qass.
Woods hit an array of good shots, including a wedge to inches on the short par-4 seventh, but otherwise downplayed his game by suggesting he still had a lot of rust. This was more about spending 36 holes on a brisk day at the Ritz-Carlton Club Orlando with his son, a sophomore at Benjamin School in North Palm Beach.
His daughter, Sam, caddied for her father for the second straight year. Their mother, Elin, was among those in the gallery in a tournament that is all about family.
It helped playing in the same group with former British Open champion Justin Leonard and his son, Luke, a senior and teammate with Charlie at Benjamin School.
Langer extended his astonishing record on the PGA Tour Champions this year by winning for an 18th consecutive season. He and his son made eight birdies in a nine-hole stretch in the middle of the round, and they had an eagle on the 14th hole.
Singh and his son, who won this event in 2022, shot 28 on the back nine.
The PNC Championship is for players who won a major or The Players Championship and a family member.
MLB
D-backs get Naylor from Guardians >> The Arizona Diamondbacks acquired All-Star first baseman Josh Naylor in a trade that sent right-hander Slade Cecconi to the Cleveland Guardians.
The Guardians, who have remodeled the right side of their infield this winter, also received a competitive balance Round B draft pick in 2025.
Cleveland moved quickly to fill the hole left by Naylor, agreeing with veteran free agent first baseman Carlos Santana on a one-year, $12 million contract, according to a person familiar with the negotiations.
The Naylor trade is the second significant move in weeks by the AL Central champions, who dealt Gold Glove second baseman Andrés Giménez to Toronto in a three-team swap. The Guardians also acquired right-hander Luis Ortiz from the Pirates.
The 27-year-old Naylor made his first All-Star team this season and hit a career-high 31 homers with 108 RBIs. He’s been Cleveland’s starting first baseman in each of the past three seasons and will become a free agent after the 2025 season.
The Diamondbacks were in the market for a first baseman after Christian Walker signed with the Houston Astros on Friday. Arizona general manager Mike Hazen said Naylor’s presence in the middle of the batting order should fit well with Eugenio Suarez, Ketel Marte and Lourdes Gurriel Jr.
The 25-year-old Cecconi has spent parts of the past two seasons in the big leagues. He had a 2-7 record with a 6.66 ERA last season, pitching in 20 games, including 13 starts.
Goldschmidt, Yankees agree to deal >> First baseman Paul Goldschmidt and the New York Yankees agreed to a $12.5 million, one-year contract, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press.
Goldschmidt would become the Yankees’ fourth significant addition since Juan Soto’s departure for the New York Mets after left-hander Max Fried, closer Devin Williams and outfielder/first baseman Cody Bellinger. Goldschmidt’s addition likely means Bellinger will be primarily an outfielder.
A seven-time All-Star, four-time Gold Glove winner and the 2022 NL MVP, the right-handed Goldschmidt joins fellow MVPs Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Bellinger on the Yankees. He spent his first eight seasons with Arizona and his last six with the Cardinals, slumping to a career-low .245 average last season with 22 homers and 65 RBIs.
NHL
Predators beat Kings in OT >> Nick Blankenburg scored at 1:03 of overtime to help the Nashville Predators to a 3-2 home victory over the Los Angeles Kings.
Zachary L’Heureux and Jonathan Marchessault also scored, and Justus Annunen made 22 saves for Nashville, which is 2-0-1 in its last three games.
Quinton Byfield and Alex Laferriere scored, and Darcy Kuemper made 23 saves for the Kings, who are 8-1-2 in their last 11 games.
In overtime, Blankenburg converted the rebound of a shot by Filip Forsberg for his first goal as a member of the Predators.
FLAMES 6, BLACKHAWKS 4 >> Jonathan Huberdeau, Connor Zary, Blake Coleman, and Matt Coronato each had a goal and an assist as Calgary beat Chicago at home.
Nazem Kadri and Mikael Backlund also scored for Flames, who have picked up points in their last four games, going 2-0-2. Dustin Wolf made 24 stops and improved to 10-5-2 in his rookie season.
Boxing
Usyk defends title by beating Fury >> Oleksandr Usyk remained undefeated when he successfully defended his undisputed heavyweight belt with a unanimous decision over Tyson Fury in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Judges Gerardo Martinez, Patrick Morley and Ignacio Robles had identical scorecards in favor of Usyk, 116-112.