OCALA, Fla. – Chris Windom had resigned himself to a runner-up finish on Saturday night at Bubba Raceway Park, but victory fell into his lap with the NOS Energy Drink USAC National Midget Series.

Windom inherited the lead at Bubba Raceway Park when the engine aboard Tanner Thorson’s Hayward Motorsports No. 19 expired, then pulled away from polesitter Tyler Courtney over the final six circuits in the 30-lapper en route to his third-career USAC national midget win and first of the season.

The Canton, Ill., driver admitted afterward that his wasn’t the fastest car, but he had enough underneath him to put himself in position to pounce when Thorson encountered his misfortune.

“Winning is what we come to do every night, especially when I know Chad (Boat) and company have got top notch race cars,” Windom noted in victory lane. “We’re showing that right now. That was a bummer for the (No.) 19 and Tanner, though. They were good again tonight. It was probably going to be tough to beat him without a caution there. But that’s how it goes sometimes.

“It’s pretty cool to get this NOS Energy Drink/Tucker-Boat car to the top spot on the second night, here,” Windom added. “This is a great night for us.”

Windom’s victory marked the first win for Tucker/Boat Motorsports as an organization since the Hangtown 100 preliminary-night feature in November at Placerville (Calif.) Speedway, won by Gio Scelzi.

A relatively issue-free race saw only two caution flags on Saturday night, with Cannon McIntosh ripping around Courtney to lead the first three laps of the main before Friday winner Thorson came calling.

Thorson used a textbook slider in turn one on the fourth round to assume command in his OilFire-backed Spike, powering out to a near-two second lead in just three laps after his pass and looking like a clear favorite to go back to back to open the season.

A caution working lap 11 for the stopped car of Tanner Carrick did nothing to slow Thorson’s roll, and the Minden, Nev., native jetted out to another solid lead on the ensuing restart.

Windom jumped to second just before the halfway point, but Thorson maintained a stable second and a half out in front as the laps wound down, appearing to be well on his way to a second-straight win.

Then a puff of smoke in turn four with six to go, and Thorson’s car came to a heartbreaking stop.

His quest for another trophy was over, and the die was then cast in Windom’s favor for the final laps.

Windom left no doubt over the sprint to the finish, with the NOS Energy Drink No. 89 easily cruising to victory by 1.134 seconds over Courtney, whose pair of poles produced no wins this year in Florida.

“It’s unfortunate (to drop back) when you start on the pole; you want to win because that’s the best place to start,” noted Courtney. “But that wasn’t in the cards this weekend. We came down here and won both races last year, and just weren’t able to get it done this year. We’re still kind of learning a little bit on our cars and stuff like that, but hats off to Chris and the whole Tucker/Boat team.

“They did a great job all weekend and definitely earned that one. Hopefully the next one can go our way.”

Windom’s Tucker/Boat teammate Andrew Layser completed the podium, his best USAC national midget finish in his second season of action. Kevin Thomas Jr. and Cannon McIntosh followed close behind.

Buddy Kofoid crossed sixth, with Zeb Wise, Daison Pursley, Jesse Colwell and Tanner Carrick completing the top 10.

Leaving Florida, Windom carries a six-point margin over Courtney, with Thomas third and Thorson dropping to fifth after his engine issue, 20 points adrift of the top spot.

The NOS Energy Drink USAC National Midget Series resumes March 7 with the Shamrock Classic inside the Southern Illinois Center in DuQuoin, Ill.

To view complete race results, advance to the next page.

GIBSONTON, Fla. – Brandon Sheppard came from the 11th starting position to win Saturday night’s Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Wrisco Industries Winternationals at East Bay Raceway Park.

It was Sheppard’s third win of the week in the annual Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series-sanctioned event. He passed race leader Devin Moran with 12 laps to go before driving on to victory.

Moran, in the Tye Twarog Longhorn, finished second to Sheppard with Tyler Erb, Brian Shirley and Shane Clanton completing the top five.

Polesitter Moran took the lead as the green flag waved, with Clanton hot on his heels. Moran and Clanton ran one-two for the first 12 laps of the race until Clanton passed Moran for the top spot on lap 13. Clanton held the point for six circuits until Moran was able to get back around the Georgia veteran.

Meanwhile, Sheppard was patiently working his way through the field and moved by Clanton for second on the 21st lap. Sheppard started working the top groove off turn two, closing the gap on Moran, but Moran kept his car glued to the bottom of the third mile oval. Moran continued to hold the top spot until Sheppard rapidly cut into Moran’s lead as he rocketed by him on lap 38.

Sheppard expanded his lead in the final 10 laps and went on to record his sixth win at East Bay and his 18th in the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series. Sheppard continued the trend of Saturday night East Bay finale winners, as the 27-year-old Illinois native became the 12th different winner in the last 12 years.

“The track was tricky tonight and got really slow,” said Sheppard. “It was totally unexpected, but it was typical East Bay, where it didn’t give us the same thing twice this week. We had a different surface every night and that’s what makes it so much fun to come here. It’s a shame it’s going to be gone before long. Man, it was a lot of fun out there. I can’t thank my guys enough,” said Sheppard.

Moran concluded a successful week at East Bay with a second-place finish after scoring his first win at the Florida track on Monday night.

“I think this is deja-vu. Brandon’s done this to me here before, just all part of it. I don’t think anyone’s seen the racetrack like this for the feature,” Moran said. “I don’t know what did it or why it did it, that little bit of traction strip made us stick down there (on the bottom). We aren’t the biggest or brightest team, but we had a great Speedweeks, and hopefully we can cap it off tomorrow at All-Tech.”

Erb won twice last year at East Bay, but is still winless in the Georgia-Florida Speedweeks this season. Tonight, Erb did recod a solid point finish as he rounded out the podium.

“The track was a little bit crazy,” Erb said. “You couldn’t get the top going, so just congrats to Sheppard, Devin, and everybody. It’s been a long week here and we got every race in. I really enjoy racing here although, it wasn’t the final night we were all kind of hoping for, but it was a good night for us and we’ll go on to All-Tech.”

The finish:

Brandon Sheppard, Devin Moran, Tyler Erb, Brian Shirley, Shane Clanton, Rick Eckert, Tim McCreadie, Shanon Buckingham, Jonathan Davenport, Billy Moyer Jr., Dennis Erb Jr., Pearson Williams, Chase Junghans, Jimmy Owens, Josh Richards, Tanner English, Charles Powell, Tyler Bruening, Trever Feathers, Boom Briggs, David Breazeale, Billy Moyer, G.R. Smith, Matt Cosner, Kyle Bronson, Dan Stone, Ken Monahan, Mason Zeigler, Mike Marlar, Earl Pearson Jr.

Montreal Canadiens left wing Jonathan Drouin returned to the lineup Saturday night against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Drouin, recovering from wrist surgery, last played Nov. 15 for the Canadiens and returns in time for a pivotal stretch as Montreal clings to contention in the congested Eastern Conference playoff race.

Drouin, 24, played on the third line against Toronto, alongside Max Domi and Artturi Lehkonen. He had seven goals and 15 points prior to the injury.

Montreal began Saturday's game with 59 points, six behind the Carolina Hurricanes for the East's No. 2 wild-card slot.

With rounds of 68-64-67 at Spyglass Hill, Monterey Peninsula, and Pebble Beach, Phil Mickelson will head into the final round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am just one off the lead held by Nick Taylor. Here’s where things stand heading into the final round at Pebble Beach, where Jason Day lurks, three back:

Leaderboard: Taylor (-17), Mickelson (-16), Day (-14), Matt Every (-11), Kevin Streelman (-11)

What it means: The defending champion, Mickelson is in hunting his 45th PGA Tour win and his sixth AT&T Pebble Pro-Am title, following victories in 1998, 2005, 2007, 2012 and 2019. The 49-year-old has been candid about his poor play since last year’s victory; he’s gone a full year without a top-10 finish on the PGA Tour. But after a T-3 finish last week in Saudi Arabia, Mickelson finds himself once again eyeing victory on the West Coast Swing, which has played a significant role in his three-decade PGA Tour career. Standing between Mickelson and No. 45 is Taylor, the 31-year-old Canadian who took the Sanderson Farms Championship for his lone Tour win back in 2014 and who has since managed to qualify for the FedExCup Playoffs in four of the last five years, often by the slimmest of margins. This is Taylor’s first 54-hole lead on Tour. Not to be forgotten, should Taylor or Mickelson falter, is Day, the former world No. 1 who hasn’t tasted victory since the 2018 Wells Fargo Championship. Now 46th in the Official World Golf Ranking, he’s looking stay inside the top 50 and perhaps make a late bid for an Australian Olympic spot this summer in Tokyo.

Biggest disappointments: Selected notables to miss the 3-under-par, 54-hole cut include 2016 champ Vaughn Taylor (-2), Smylie Kaufman (-1), American Express winner Andrew Landry (-1), Saudi International and 2010 U.S. Open winner Graeme McDowell (+3), and 2014 champ Jimmy Walker (+5).

Shots of the day: Four of them – all Phil.

He went birdie-birdie via back-to-back holeouts at Nos. 13 and 14 at Pebble Beach. First up was this splash from the bunker for his 3 at the par 4:

That was followed by a racing chip shot at the par 5 that slammed into the flagstick and dropped for 4.

He closed his Saturday with a flop-and-5-footer combination for birdie at the par-5 18th:

And this earlier up-and-down for par from over the back at No. 7 wasn’t bad either:

Quote of the day: "I don't know what the key is. Just get the ball in the hole somehow." — Mickelson

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – Phil Mickelson reminded his fellow PGA Tour pros Saturday at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am that “hitting bombs” isn’t all he can still do at 49 years old.

He showed the kind of magic around the greens that has long been a staple in his success.

“I had a pretty good day with my short game,” Mickelson said. 

He only hit nine greens in regulation on a cold, windy day at Pebble Beach Golf Links but scrambled to a 5-under-par 67 to give himself a chance to win a record sixth AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. He’s one shot behind Nick Taylor.

Mickelson holed out twice in the round but scared the hole a bunch more.

At the seventh, from a dicey spot requiring a delicate shot, he almost holed out, saving a par that felt like a birdie.

“Didn't go in, but it was the second best I've ever hit,” he said. “I was just trying to not make 5. I was trying to get on the green and just make a 4, give myself a putt at a par. But it came out great.”

So what was his best bunker shot?

“I made one in the final round at Memorial, Muirfield Village, the old 16th hole, from under the lip, plugged,” he said. “I holed that one.”

At the 8^th, Mickelson nearly holed out another bunker shot, leaving himself another tap-in par.

“It was a pretty good day in saving shots,” he said.

At the 13^th, he did hole out for a birdie from the left greenside bunker.

“It was a really good day in saving shots and hitting shots, but I'm usually OK with a wedge,” he said.

At the 14^th he holed out again after botching a half wedge to the green. He chipped in for birdie from in front of the green.

“You’ve just got to get the ball in the hole some way,” he said.

After missing the 18^th green to the right, leaving himself in a thick patch of grass, he opened the blade of a wedge and slashed a towering flop shot over the bunker, exciting the gallery as his ball tracked toward the hole before slipping past. He made a 5-foot birdie to close his round.

“I scored well today, on a day that wasn't easy,” Mickelson said. “The greens were firm. I thought the wind made it difficult, and I ended up playing really well and making a good score.”

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – Nick Taylor has won a PGA Tour event, but he has never slept on a 54-hole lead in one.

He has also never played with Phil Mickelson.

That’s all the more daunting here on the Monterey Peninsula, where Mickelson’s family roots run deep.

“I’m sure I won’t be the crowd favorite,” Taylor said.

That’s the challenge Taylor faces Sunday at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

“Not having played with Phil, it's going to be a new experience, for that reason,” Taylor said. “Not really trying to pay attention to what he's doing. Obviously, if he makes a putt, or great shot, the crowd's going to go wild. I've just got to do my own thing, try to block all that out. Easier said than done, without having done it before, but I'll do the best I can.”

Taylor, a 31-year-old Canadian, claimed his lone PGA Tour title at the Sanderson Farms Championship in his rookie season six years ago. He came from four shots back in the final round to win.

Yes, Taylor is the underdog facing one of the game’s giants, but he doesn’t have to look back very far in AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am history to see David slaying Goliath.

Ted Potter Jr. was No. 246 in the world when beat No. 1 Dustin Johnson in a head-to-head final-round duel to win this event just two years ago. Taylor is No. 229 in the world with an eye on making a big move.

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – Jason Day has done everything but win the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, and Sunday he’ll be looking to remedy that.

Still, even if he doesn’t, he’s grateful for yet another chance as he continues to recover from the nagging back pain that dogged him most of last year.

“I've got a lot more gratitude being here, especially with the injuries and all that stuff, being able to come and play and kind of perform the way that I've wanted to,” Day said. “I'm a lot more thankful to obviously be here. So, in that respect, I think I'm a lot happier, and that hopefully yields better play tomorrow.”

Day has finished T-5 or better in four of the last five AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Ams, but he’s also nearly two years out from the last of his 12 PGA Tour victories. The former world No. 1 has slid to No. 46.

“I think a lot of people would probably view it that I'm desperate for a good finish,” Day said. “I don't think I'm worrying about that. I’ve just got to focus on trying to do the best job I can tomorrow, and if it happens, it happens. If it doesn't, then I just build on it and go to the next tournament . . . I honestly believe if I keep playing the way that I am, I will win, if not tomorrow, soon.”

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – Phil Mickelson is looking for a double-double Sunday at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

Mickelson is one shot back in the PGA Tour event, and he also trails by a single shot in the pro-am division, teaming with playing partner Steve Young, the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback.

“He's terrific,” Mickelson said. “He's hit a lot of good shots, and he's a fun guy to be around. He understands competition and how to perform at the highest level, so it makes it very easy being in the same group with him and having him as your partner.”

It’s been a good week for NFL and former NFL players on the Monterey Peninsula.

Kevin Streelman and Arizona Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald lead the pro-am division at 27 under.

Three NFL quarterbacks, or former NFL quarterbacks, were among the 25 teams to make the cut to Sunday’s final round.

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers and fellow University of California-Berkeley alum Max Homa are tied for seventh, five shots back.

Former Denver Broncos and Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning and Luke Donald are tied for 10^th, seven shots back.

A special cricket match is taking place today in Melbourne between a Ricky Ponting XI and an Adam Gilchrist XI to raise funds for the Red Cross bushfire appeal. We'll bring you the best of the action and the colour in this live blog

Josh Philippe recalled the feeling of being "terrified" on his Big Bash debut two years ago, as he was named Player of the Match after producing the dominant innings of the 2020 final to lead the Sydney Sixers to the title.

Philippe hit 52 off 29 balls in a game that was reduced to 12 overs per side - few expected a match to even be possible - which ensured the Sixers overcame a mid-innings stutter to post a total that proved well out of reach for the Melbourne Stars after their top order folded.

It capped a golden finish to the tournament for Philippe who made three half-centuries in his last four innings, lifting his overall tally to 487 runs, after a period mid-tournament where he hit a lean patch.

Philippe started his BBL career with the Perth Scorchers - he plays state cricket for Western Australia - and his debut was against the Sydney Sixers in 2017 before he was lured east to join the club with Steven Smith playing a significant part in the move.

He began in the middle order before shifting up midway through last season and this year has shown a new level of maturity to his game, typified by his innings in the final when, despite the pressure of the occasion, the reduced overs and not getting a huge amount of strike, he did not throw his wicket away.

"When I played my first Big Bash game I was terrified, so I definitely think after getting a few games under your belt you get used to a lot of the external pressure and noise that you don't really get playing state cricket," he said. "When there's twenty or thirty thousand people compared to a hundred it's a different feel. It's definitely something I've worked on and comes with playing a lot of games.

"I've had a few games this year where I haven't [seen it through], I've got out and it's really cost us. A few of them stuck in the back of my mind. I just knew if I was out there towards the back end, it's funny it somehow gets easier, you might nick a four, and you get away and it's a different game so I just try to take it as deep as I can."

Philippe said that the thought the game could be abandoned without any play - which would have given the Sixers the title as hosts of the final - perhaps helped reduce any pre-match nerves but he still surprised himself by how calm he remained.

"I guess looking at the forecast it continued to get worse, we almost thought we probably weren't going to get on at all. That's not how we wanted to do it, we really wanted to play in front of our home crowd. When you aren't expecting to play you don't get especially nervous, I was actually incredibly calm last night and all day today. When we started I still remained calm which surprised me a bit."

Philippe's growth this season was lauded by his BBL captain Moises Henriques as he showed the range of gears he has as a batsman.

"What he has done this year, we've seen him bat in many different modes throughout the season," he said. "We all know he can whack it everywhere around the park but you can't score as many runs as he did throughout the season without composure and making the right decisions at the right times. Not only just whacking it around the park but knowing how to build an innings and get through some tough times through the 20-over period."

A season like Philippe has had in the BBL will continue the push for what feels like an inevitable Australia call-up before too long, although whether he can force himself into the planning for the T20 World Cup in October remains to be seen. He has a deal with Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL which, if he isn't sat on the bench, could be another important learning experience particularly in his development against spin.

"The destiny is there - it is in his hands," Henriques said. "He has definitely got the talent to go on but it is up to him. As I've said about the weather, you can't predict the future. You don't want to put any more pressure on young men than what they already put on themselves. He is just a great kid with a great head on his shoulders. If he keeps doing the right things, who knows what will happen."

For the player himself, he was just thinking about more short-term practicalities. He was due to fly back to Perth on Sunday afternoon before jumping on another flight on Tuesday as part of Western Australia's Sheffield Shield squad with the competition resuming on Friday.

"My game's developed so much over the last year and I think I'm really learning how to handle myself in pressure situations," he said. "You never know until you get the opportunity. I'm just going to try and get as many runs as I can and see what happens."