NAPA, Calif. – After struggling in the first round of a new season, an optimistic Phil Mickelson expected to bounce back with a round of “6 or 7 under” at the Safeway Open. And through nine holes, he was on track to do just that.

Mickelson got off to a fast start on a chilly morning at Silverado Resort and Spa, rolling in four birdies over his first seven holes. But he made just one more the rest of the way, signing for a 3-under 69 that left him at even par for the week and outside the projected cut line.

Mickelson’s woes largely traced back to a quadruple-bogey 9 on the par-5 fifth hole during the opening round, when he put two straight approach shots out of bounds, and it became a focal point following his fourth missed cut in his last seven starts.

“The way I see it, there were eight par-5s and I’ve got to play those in 4 to 6 under par to have a chance to win. I played them in 4 over, and I’m at even par and I’m going to miss the cut,” Mickelson said. “So there’s eight to 10 shots right there, simply on the par-5s. That identifies and shows me where I need to work. It tells me that some areas are OK, but that’s the area that I’ve got to improve on.”

Mickelson was making his first start since the BMW Championship more than a month ago, and despite speaking early in the week about increased focus and an improved attitude he admitted that his game remained “rusty.”

“I thought that there were some areas that were pretty good, and some areas that I need to work on. I wasn’t sharp, I hadn’t played in six weeks,” Mickelson said. “I need to play more golf, because the more I play, the sharper I’ll get.”

While his time in Napa was cut short, Mickelson has more competitive rounds in his near future. He’ll head to Las Vegas next week for the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open followed by a start two weeks later at the CJ Cup in South Korea, his last expected tournament before U.S. captain Tiger Woods makes his four selections for the upcoming Presidents Cup.

NAPA, Calif. – You wouldn’t have blamed Justin Thomas if, two hours into his new season, his mind drifted to wine tasting opportunities.

After all, it certainly didn’t seem like Thomas would be playing much golf this weekend at the Safeway Open. Stumbling to bogeys on three of his first five holes during Thursday’s opener, Thomas was still 3 over and 10 shots off the lead when he stood on the 12^th tee at Silverado Resort & Spa.

“I mean, you can’t really expect that great of a round when you’re 3 over through 10 on this golf course,” Thomas said.

Yet here we are, one day later, with Thomas’ name tied atop the standings in Napa. Scrap those plans to go sipping through the local vineyards.

The turnaround is just the latest testament to Thomas’ ability to reach an extra gear with amazing frequency. His second-round 64, which took him to 9 under at the halfway point and put him alongside three other co-leaders, included nine birdies. It’s also his 21^st round of 64 or better on Tour since the 2014-15 season – breaking a tie with Dustin Johnson for the most of any player over that span.

The low-scoring credentials were cemented around the time that Thomas torched Waialae for a 59 en route to victory two years ago, but the ease with which he turned a likely missed cut into a title contention so quickly this week helps him stand out among even the best players.

“I know that you can go low out here,” Thomas said. “It’s a course that it’s very short, and the ball goes quite a long way with how firm it is. But because of how firm it is, you have to get it in the fairway and really have the correct angles into the greens, and I felt like I did a pretty good job of that today.”

Just like any other player who struggles out of the gates, Thomas spent yesterday searching for a quick fix. It came in the form of a slight adjustment to his eye line over putts, and in short order the ball started to find the hole. A 19-footer for eagle on No. 18 to close out the day, which at the time appeared to merely salvage an under-par round, proved to be a harbinger of what was to come.

Thomas is making his first start of the new season, having spent little time practicing over the last two weeks following a skin cancer scare that required minor surgery. But he’s also only a few weeks removed from an emphatic victory at the BMW Championship, one that helped him tee off the Tour Championship with a two-shot lead.

So even after coming off a season that he described as a “kind of C-plus to B-minus,” the confidence was not exactly lacking. During a whirlwind turnaround, Thomas showed exactly why he’s the highest-ranked player in this week’s field while giving himself a prime opportunity to turn a likely missed cut into potentially his second trophy in as many months.

“My game’s where it needs to be. I’m playing plenty well enough to win this tournament,” Thomas said. “I just need to go execute.”

NAPA, Calif. – While he may still be in the early stages of his professional career, Collin Morikawa feels right at home at this week’s Safeway Open.

Morikawa made his PGA Tour debut at this event two years ago, missing the cut as an amateur, and he went to college at Cal less than an hour away. His caddie, J.J. Jakovac, is a Napa-area native who went to high school less than five miles from Silverado Resort and Spa.

“My caddie, J.J., pretty much living here, I think more people are rooting for him than anyone else here,” Morikawa said. “But it’s just kind of cool. It feels good to be back in an area that I’ve been the past four-and-a-half, five years.”

Morikawa even got some extra incentive early in the week when tournament officials put him in one of the marquee early-round groups alongside two of the best from the Golden State, Phil Mickelson and Patrick Cantlay. The 22-year-old backed up that standing in a big way Friday, shooting an 8-under 64 to vault into contention and tie Justin Thomas for the low round of the week.

The score was eight shots better than Morikawa’s opener and left him one shot off the lead when he signed his scorecard.

“Today it was just, ‘Let’s get in the fairway and get it from there,’” Morikawa said. “I was able to hit a few more fairways and just able to attack some pins.”

Morikawa burst onto the scene with his victory at the Barracuda Championship in July, a win that brought with it an exemption through 2021. That capped a run of three straight top-5 finishes, and while he cooled after his Reno triumph, he teed off this week well inside the top 100 in the world rankings.

On the heels of a hectic sprint to secure full-time status, Morikawa took two weeks off following the BMW Championship without touching a club. But he admitted that while preparing to make his season debut this week he began to feel “a little itch to get back out.”

“It felt like a short time, but it was also a long time because I played so many weeks in a row in the summer,” Morikawa said. “I was ready to get back out here this week and finally start competing.”

Play at six of the 12 first-stage sites for Korn Ferry Tour Q-School are in the books.

Among the notables to advance to second stage are recent college grads Chandler Phillips (Texas A&M), Bryson Nimmer (Clemson) and Zach Bauchou (Oklahoma State) while big names such as Justin Suh, Steven Fisk, Brad Dalke and Ty Tryon failed to move on.

Here is a quick recap of each site:

Bridges at Firewheel, Garland, Texas, Sept. 24-27

Notable qualifiers: Wisconsin grad and former Illinois state amateur champion Jordan Hahn, competing as an amateur, closed in 65 to advance by three shots at 11 under. … Zach Bauchou, a member of the Oklahoma State team that won the 2017 NCAA title, shot 14 under. … Mikel Martinson led the field at 21 under. … Penn State alum Cole Miller (-15), Oregon product Brandon McIver (-14) and Oklahoma alum Will Kropp (-10) were among the other qualifiers.

Not advancing: Former Oklahoma standout and U.S. Amateur runner-up Brad Dalke shot 73-73 in the final two rounds to miss by a shot at 8 under. … Former Oklahoma State teammates Hayden Wood (-7), Stratton Nolen (+1) and Nick Heinen (WD) all missed. … Former Florida standout Andy Zhang, who spent last season on the KFT, finished at 4 under. … Air Force captain Kyle Westmoreland closed in 69 but finished 7 under. … Andrew Loupe (-2), Kalena Preus (+8) and Austin Connelly (WD) among non-qualifiers.

Ak-Chin Southern Dunes GC, Maricopa, Ariz., Sept. 24-27

Notable qualifiers: K.K. Limbhasut (-17), who was teammates with Collin Morikawa at Cal, benefitted from a second-round 62 to finish first. He was joined by another recent Cal grad, Sebastian Cramption, who qualified at 11 under. … Former long-drive champ Jamie Sadlowski shot 12 under. … San Diego State alum Nahum Mendoza III, Oklahoma State product Brendon Jelley, Arizona State alum Alberto Sanchez and former Oklahoma player Michael Schoolcraft all advance by a shot at 6 under.

Not advancing: Former USC star Justin Suh birdied his final hole but fell a shot shy at 5 under. … Past Stanford standout Andrew Yun (-1) and Arizona State product Jared Du Toit (E) were among the other non-qualifiers.

Magnolia Grove (Crossing), Mobile, Ala., Sept. 24-27

Notable qualifiers: Recent Auburn grad Jacob Solomon closed in 66 to finish atop the leaderboard at 21 under. Other Auburn alums, Michael Johnson (-16), Trace Crowe (-10) and Michael Hebert (-8), all qualified. Hebert made nine birdies in his final round to make it by a shot. … Patrick Sullivan, who missed out on earning exempt status at final stage by one shot last year after putting a ball into the water, shot 18 under to easily advance. … Western Kentucky product Billy Tom Sargent (-12), North Carolina alum Ben Griffin (-10) and Hunter Hamrick (-8) were among the other qualifiers.

Not advancing: Former Vanderbilt standout Patrick Martin didn’t break 70 and finished at 6 under. … Scott Strohmeyer, the fifth man on Alabama’s 2013 NCAA title team, also shot 6 under. His teammate on that team, Cory Whitsett, finished at 10 over. … Baylor product Matthew Perrine (-5), Oklahoma State alum Zach Olsen (-1) and long-hitting Temple product Brandon Matthews (+3) were among the other non-qualifiers.

Soboba Springs GC, San Jacinto, Calif., Sept. 24-27

Notable qualifiers: Vanderbilt alum Theo Humphrey strung together four scores in the 60s to shoot 15 under and easily advance. … UC Riverside product David Gazzolo led the way at 20 under. … Morgan Deneen, a former PGM student who won a conference title for Coastal Carolina, finished at 18 under. …Alex Kang, brother of LPGA player Danielle Kang, used an opening 65 to post 10 under. … Bruce Doucett birdied three of his last four holes to advance by a shot at 8 under.

Not advancing: UCLA alum Manav Shah made a late triple bogey to shoot a closing 75 and miss by a shot at 7 under. … USC alum Andrew Levitt (-2), Pepperdine grad Roy Cootes (+2) and Oregon product Ryan Gronlund (+4) were among those not advancing.

The Landings Club (Oakri), Savannah, Ga., Sept. 24-27

Notable qualifiers: Richmond product Brad Miller finished first at 22 under. … Jimmy Jones, a USF alum and son of late LPGA winner Dawn Coe-Jones, shot 17 under. … Georgia product Dykes Harbin closed in 64 to advance at 13 under while former Bulldogs star Lee McCoy held on to make it by a shot at 11 under. … Clemson grad Bryson Nimmer (-13), Alabama alum Jonathan Hardee (-13) and UNF product Kevin Phelan (-11) were among the other qualifiers.

Not advancing: Georgia Southern grad and recent Walker Cupper Steven Fisk played his final 10 holes in 4 over to miss by one at 10 under. … Ty Tryon’s bid to advance fell way short at 8 over as the former prodigy shot 76 or worse twice. … UCF product Kyle Wilshire (-5), Georgia grad Zach Healy (+1) and Texas alum Taylor Funk (WD), the son of Fred Funk, were among the non-qualifiers.

The Woodlands CC, The Woodlands, Texas, Sept. 24-27

Notable qualifiers: Recent Baylor grad Braden Bailey shot 16 under to lead all qualifiers. Bailey’s former teammate Garrett May (-8) also advanced. … Brandon Pierce and Eric Ricard, members of LSU’s 2015 NCAA title squad, shot 10 under and 7 under, respectively. Another former Tiger, Nathan Jeansonne (-8), also moved on. … Will Grimmer, an Ohio State grad and two-time U.S. Open competitor, shot 9 under. … Former Texas A&M standout Chandler Phillips shot 8 under.

Not advancing: Texas Tech product Ivan Ramirez, playing as an amateur, shot 3 under to miss by two. …Trey Valentine (-1), Hojin Kang (+1), Jack Ireland (+2) and Matt Ceravolo (WD) were among the other non-qualifiers.

Coming up

• The Club at Irish Creek, Kannapolis, N.C., Oct. 1-4
• Grasslands G&CC, Lakeland, Fla., Oct. 1-4
• ArborLinks, Nebraska City, Neb., Oct. 1-4
• The Breakers (Rees Jones), West Palm Beach, Fla., Oct. 1-4
• Dayton Valley GC, Dayton, Nev., Oct. 8-11
• SunRiver CC, St. George, Utah, Oct. 8-11

ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford surprisingly showed up on the injury report Friday with a hip injury and is questionable for Sunday's game against Kansas City.

The 31-year-old Stafford had not been listed on the injury report prior to Friday and has not been sacked since Week 1 against Arizona. He was also spotted in the locker room following practice but did not appear to be limited in any movement.

Stafford has completed 67 of 107 passes for 831 yards, six touchdowns and two interceptions so far this season. He's started 131 straight games for Detroit, dating back to the start of the 2011 season. He has played through injuries before, including a back injury in 2018 and torn ligaments in the middle finger on his right hand in 2016.

All throughout, he has not missed a start.

Stafford's starting streak is the third-longest active streak among quarterbacks, behind Philip Rivers and Matt Ryan. Two weeks ago, when playing Rivers, Stafford explained what has gone into being able to start as many games in row as he and Rivers have.

"I think there's a lot that goes into it," Stafford said. "Some of it is luckily being able to play through some of the stuff that you have. Sometimes you have stuff that the quarterback position can't play through. Other times you can.

"It's not like he's had however many starts and he feels awesome every time he goes out there. But he's been able to battle through that stuff and play."

If Stafford continues his streak and plays for undefeated Detroit on Sunday against the Chiefs, it appears he'll be battling through yet another injury while continuing to play. Stafford is No. 21 all time in passing yards (39,357) and No. 25 in touchdowns (243).

Stafford is one of four players questionable for the Lions, joining cornerback Darius Slay (hamstring), wide receiver Danny Amendola (chest) and defensive lineman Da'Shawn Hand (elbow).

Defensive tackle Mike Daniels has been ruled out after injuring his foot last week against Philadelphia. Slay has been limited in practice all week, while Amendola missed Wednesday and Thursday's practice before working on a limited basis Friday.

Hand has yet to play this season after injuring his elbow in the preseason, but he worked out Friday without a brace on his left arm -- a possible sign of progress.

Anthony Davis, now firmly in the fold with the purple and gold, is keeping sour grapes at arm's length.

The Los Angeles Lakers' superstar addition says he isn't affected by comments the general manager of his former team made that appeared to be critical of the forward's exit from New Orleans.

"That's fine. I don't care," Davis said Friday in an appearance on ESPN's The Jump during Lakers media day. "I mean like, the past is the past, you know? I didn't hear that. But look, I love the city of New Orleans. I've been there seven years, gave my all -- six and a half -- gave my all. And it was fun times, you know. It was fun times."

David Griffin, the Pelicans' executive vice president and GM, said in a promotional event earlier this week that New Orleans was a unique city for which some NBA players aren't suited.

"Not everyone's made to be a part of this, and that's OK. We're comfortable with that," Griffin said. "If sex appeal is your thing and you need a big market, OK. See you later. If doing something meaningful for people who care about supporting their teams every day is important, this is something you're going to want to be a part of."

The Lakers traded Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, Josh Hart and a bevy of draft picks and pick-swap considerations to New Orleans for Davis.

While the expectations have clearly changed for the Lakers, they are preaching a one-day-at-a-time mentality. But the addition of the former No. 1 pick and six-time All-Star in Davis, acquired in a trade with the Pelicans in July, trumpets a potential pivot to prominence.

For their part, the Pelicans acquired a major building block in Zion Williamson with the overall No. 1 pick in this year's draft after adding Griffin, the architect of the Cleveland Cavaliers' 2016 championship team, in April.

But Davis said he isn't looking back.

"Now I'm in a new chapter in my career," Davis told The Jump. "And you know, look forward to doing something special here."

The Boston Red Sox appear poised for a busy offseason.

Owner John Henry told local reporters Friday that the team's goal is to get under the $208 million competitive balance threshold, which would mean significantly cutting payroll so they can avoid paying a luxury tax for a third straight season.

The Red Sox's payroll this season was about $238 million. Some estimates have their payroll set to be in the range of $218 million to $220 million next season.

"That was something we've known for more than a year now," Henry said of getting under the CBT.

WASHINGTON -- The Nationals don't know which team they'll face in the NL wild-card game or where it will be played, but they do know this: Three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer will be their starting pitcher.

Scherzer got the nod over Stephen Strasburg for Tuesday night's win-or-go-home game against either the Milwaukee Brewers or St. Louis Cardinals. Any of the three clubs could host the contest, depending how the rest of the regular season goes.

Washington manager Dave Martinez said Friday that the right-handed Strasburg and the left-handed Patrick Corbin will be on the wild-card roster and available to pitch in relief.

"I talked to both of them," Martinez said. "They'll both be out of the pen that day. So all hands will be on deck."

How did Martinez decide to go with Scherzer, who missed most of July and August because of a back muscle issue and finished with 27 starts, his fewest since his debut season in 2008?

"I based it on the bigger picture. Obviously, he feels good. And he's ready. He's going to have like seven, eight days' rest. I told him, 'You should go on regular routine and get ready for Tuesday,'" Martinez said. "With that being said, Strasburg is going to be on his regular rest and regular routine. So that's kind of nice, to have those two guys, plus Corbin, that will be on three days' rest if we need to put him in for an inning or two. He's available to do that, as well."

If Strasburg does not appear Tuesday and the Nationals win, he would start Game 1 or 2 of the NL Division Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Scherzer probably wouldn't be available until Game 3 of that potential series.

Washington's top trio formed among the best rotation fronts in the majors all season. All three finished in the NL's top 10 in ERA, strikeouts and hits allowed per nine innings.

Scherzer is 11-7 with a 2.92 ERA and 243 strikeouts in 172⅓ innings.

Strasburg is 18-6 with a 3.32 ERA and 251 strikeouts in 209 innings.

Corbin is 14-7 with a 3.05 ERA and 230 strikeouts in 197⅔ innings.

NEW YORK -- Mets slugger Pete Alonso hit his 52nd homer of the season, tying Yankees star Aaron Judge's total from 2017 for most by a rookie.

Alonso lined an 0-1 fastball from Atlanta left-hander Dallas Keuchel narrowly over the wall in left field in the first inning Friday night. He hurried around the bases after the solo homer, did handshakes with teammates outside the dugout and took a curtain call on the top step to big cheers from the crowd at Citi Field.

Alonso has already set franchise records for homers, total bases (343) and extra-base hits (84). He has 119 RBIs and 100 runs, becoming the first Mets rookie to reach triple digits in both categories. No Mets player had reached those totals in any season since David Wright and Carlos Beltran in 2008.

New York trailed the National League East-champion Braves 2-1 after Alonso's homer.

Pole vaulter eases through to final, although GB team-mates Morgan Lake and Ben Williams go out during field events qualification on the first day of IAAF World Championships

British hope Holly Bradshaw, world and Olympic champion Katerina Stefanidi of Greece and world indoor champion Sandi Morris of the United States were among 17 women’s pole vaulters to achieve the 4.60m automatic qualifying mark for Sunday’s final.

“It couldn’t have gone better,” said Bradshaw, who sat out the opening heights before entering the competition at 4.60m, which she cleared first time.

“That was always plan A,” she continued. “We decided to open at the auto qualification height. I’ve done it a couple of times in training and I felt really good for it, so I went for it and it went really well.

“I usually open at a 4.50-4.55m in a qualification anyway so I had to wait maybe an extra 10-15 minutes. It’s always pretty good practice for me as at the British Champs I have to wait quite a while.

“I knew I was going to have to wait 90mins to two hours – that doesn’t really bother me, I have quite a good strategy for that and I’m ready for the final now.”

Interview with @HollyBradshawPV after she qualified for the pole vault final with just one jump. “I’m ready for the final now.” #WorldAthleticsChamps pic.twitter.com/ON5UZIN9l3

— AW (@AthleticsWeekly) September 27, 2019

Katie Nageotte of the United States, Anzhelika Sidorova of Russia, Alysha Newman of Canada and Yarisley Silva of Cuba were also among the qualifiers.

Juan Miguel Echevarria led the men’s long jump qualifiers with an impressive 8.40m (-0.4m/sec) mark in the first round. Last year the 21-year-old from Cuba won the world indoor title and registered the longest jump since 1995 with a slightly wind-assisted 8.83m. He missed the second half of the 2018 season with injury but looked in fine shape in Doha.

Olympic champion Jeff Henderson of the United States was second best in qualifying with a third-round leap of 8.12m into a slight headwind. Also over eight metres were Yuki Hashioka of Japan, Steffin McCarter of the United States, Ruswahl Samaai of South Africa, Eusebio Caceres of Spain and European champion Miltos Tentoglou of Greece, although reigning champion Luvo Manyonga of South Africa only qualified in 10th place with 7.91m (0.5m/sec).

Hammer thrower DeAnna Price threw a mighty 78.24m earlier this season. It was a world lead, North American record and put her No.4 on the world all-time rankings.

The 26-year-old US athlete showed great form in Doha on Friday to lead the qualifiers with 73.77m and looks set for a big improvement on her ninth place at London 2017 in Saturday’s final.

Zalina Petrivskaya of Moldova was next best with 73.40m with Joanna Fiodorow of Poland third best with 73.39m.

If fit, Anita Wlodarczyk would have been going for her fifth successive world title. The Olympic champion and world record-holder was in Doha but working for Polish television after having knee surgery earlier this year.

Mariya Lasitskene led the women’s high jump qualifiers as the Russian, who competes as an authorised neutral athlete, jumped 1.94m along with seven fellow competitors.

Vashti Cunningham of the United States and Mirela Demireva of Bulgaria also cleared 1.94m, whereas Yuliya Levchenko, the Ukrainian who beat Lasitskene at The Match in Minsk recently, also progressed to Monday’s final with a best of 1.92m.

Britain’s Morgan Lake went out, though. After clearing 1.80m and 1.85m first time she failed at 1.89m.

Pedro Pablo Pichardo of Portugal led the men’s triple jump qualifiers with 17.38m (-0.2m/sec) from Hugues Fabrice Zango of Burkino Faso with 17.017 (-0.3m/sec). They were the only athletes over 17 metres but world and Olympic champion Christian Taylor qualified with 16.99 (-0.3m/sec) and US team-mate Will Claye with 16.97m (-0.1m/sec).

For Britain’s Ben Williams his brilliant breakthrough season fizzled out as he failed to make the triple jump final. This season has seen him jump a big PB of 17.27m but he leapt out to 16.77m (0.3m/sec) in Doha for 17the out of 33 athletes. “It just didn’t click today,” he said. “I felt all right going into it. There are no real excuses, I just wasn’t executing right.”

A track events report can be found here.

Check out the dedicated Doha 2019 section on our website here.