WHEATLAND, Mo. – Kyle Slader piles up thousands of highway miles a year, sometimes bypassing tracks closer to his Oklahoma home, to pursue his racing endeavors.

“I like to go out and see a lot of different race tracks,” Slader said. “That makes it a lot more fun. If you get tied down to one race track, I think that kind of burns you out. You aren’t gonna get faster racing at one track every week, so I like to venture out, learn some stuff and try to get faster to help our program.”

For example, four times this year the 24-year-old Slader made the four-hour haul from Muskogee, Oklahoma to Lucas Oil Speedway in south-central Missouri. Each trip had a purpose.

“We were trying things for this weekend,” Slader said of the sixth annual Big Buck 50 Presented by Whitetail Trophy Hunt, one of the nation’s elite races for Street Stocks.

The three-night event – which includes full Warsaw Auto Marine & RV ULMA Late Model programs Friday and Saturday – opens Thursday with practice for both divisions and time trials for the Street Stocks. Qualifying heat races are set for Friday along with dashes for the top two finishers in each heat, before the alphabet mains and 50-lap main event on Saturday.

Slader’s four test sessions, during Lucas Oil Speedway’s Big Adventure RV Weekly Racing Series season, produced two wins, one second-place finish and one DNF.

“Each time, I went with a different set-up on the car,” Slader said. “I was lucky enough to win two of them. The one that I ran second, the car was out of balance and way too tight. But the reason for the different setups when I was there, in different track conditions, was to see what the car was going to need.

“We were trying stuff and I know what worked and what didn’t work. We won’t have to second-guess anything for a $10,000 race.”

Slader, who also races a B-Mod about once a month, said he’s spent the last several days going over every nut and bolt on his car.

“We have a pretty good weekly program, but for this race a lot goes into it,” Slader said. “We disassemble the car and go over every detail just to make sure there’s nothing we need to replace.

“I mean, between this and Batesville, it’s the biggest races of the year for Street Stocks. You have to make sure that you have your stuff right.”

Ninety-six Street Stocks entered the Big Buck 50 two years ago, when it was a $5,000-to-win race. Last year’s event was rained out and Slader said the anticipation – plus the bigger prize money – has everyone amped.

He expects at least 100 cars with quality to match quantity.

“You have a lot of really fast, good drivers in the Street Stock class,” Slader said. “It’s really competitive and you have to stay on your game and do your homework to be able to run up front with those guys.”

Driving a Tony Jackson Jr.-built car owned by Shannon Scott of Muskogee’s Henryetta Ford, Slader said it’s been a solid season.

A third-generation racer, Slader said a key will be securing a good starting position for Saturday’s 50-lap finale with a good performance in qualifying.

“You really want to qualify for the front row of your heat so you don’t have to do so much hard work driving through the field in the heat races,” he said. “You want to get locked into the show if you can.

“Two years ago, the first time they ran the alphabet mains (on Saturday) I broke in the heat race. I can’t remember if I was in the C or the D, but I came through all of them and got into the A Main, where I broke. So if you qualify good, it starts your weekend out right. If you don’t qualify good, you’re behind the 8-ball.”

No matter where he might start in the feature, Slader said his strategy will be the same. While some talk about extra patient being required for a longer-than-normal feature, Slader said he will be in full-go-mode from the start.

“Lucas is not hard on tires,” he said. “As long as you have a good set of tires, you can get away with driving hard all 50 laps without hurting the tires.”

Two days after a cellphone incident boiled over and led to a three-year suspension for a player on the Korean Tour, the PGA Tour warned its members of possible cellphone interruptions during the circuit’s upcoming Asian swing.

A memo was sent to Tour players Wednesday explaining that “it is illegal in South Korea and Japan for any mobile phone manufacturer to sell a phone that allows the user to silence the faux shutter sound on their mobile phone camera.”

The CJ Cup in South Korea and the Zozo Championship in Japan will be played later this month.

At last week’s DGB Financial Group Volvik Daegu Gyeongbuk Open, Bio Kim lost his temper after a cellphone camera shutter went off during his downswing on the 16^th hole on Sunday. Kim flipped off the crowd and slammed his club into the ground.

The Korean PGA announced Tuesday that Kim was suspended for three years for making the obscene gesture.

In an attempt to avoid similar situations at the CJ Cup and Zozo Championship the Tour explained in Wednesday’s memo that marshals at both events “will instruct spectators not to distract players on the tee boxes, in the landing areas and around the greens by taking pictures during a swing.”

Andre Russell, Glenn Maxwell and Harbhajan Singh are among the 165 overseas players to have registered for the inaugural draft of The Hundred, ESPNcricinfo can reveal.

The first handful of overseas stars who have signed up for the tournament were released on Tuesday, and included many of the biggest names on the T20 circuit, including Rashid Khan, Chris Gayle, David Warner, Aaron Finch and Babar Azam.

The full list of overseas players ahead of the main player draft on October 20 includes players from 11 different countries, including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Ireland and Nepal.

The most notable absentee comes in the form of AB de Villiers, who had previously expressed his interest in playing in the competition. De Villiers said in January that he was open to playing in the tournament, but ESPNcricinfo understands that he has no plans to do so.

It is understood that de Villiers' primary concern is not about money - the top band of draft picks will be paid £125,000 for their involvement in the tournament - but instead scheduling, with each team's eight group games spread out over the course of a month rather than a shorter time period.

He is due to play in the Big Bash League this winter for Brisbane Heat, and remains one of the most sought-after figures on the global T20 circuit, so his non-involvement represents something of a blow to the competition.

As anticipated, India's white-ball stars like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah have not entered the draft, in line with the BCCI's refusal to allow active internationals to play in overseas domestic leagues that rival the IPL. Harbhajan is the only Indian player to have registered, and may have to announce his retirement from international cricket if he is picked up.

ALSO READ: Harbhajan enters player draft for The Hundred

That said, the full list of overseas players still includes the vast majority of the world's top T20 players, and the tournament comes during a quiet period in the Future Tours Programme.

Eight players have set their reserve price at the highest possible salary of £125,000 (USD155,000). They are the Australian trio Steven Smith, Mitchell Starc and David Warner, South Africans Quinton de Kock, Lungi Ngidi and Kagiso Rabada, and T20 legends Lasith Malinga and Chris Gayle.

Seventeen overseas players have entered with a reserve price of £100,000 (USD124,000), including Harbhajan, Russell, Maxwell, Rashid Khan, Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim Iqbal, Sandeep Lamichhane, Shahid Afridi, Dwayne Bravo, Sunil Narine and Kieron Pollard.

Players with a £75,000 (USD93,000) base price include Dale Steyn, Babar, Marcus Stoinis and Mohammad Hafeez. Nicholas Pooran, Martin Guptill, Faheem Ashraf and Shaheen Afridi have £60,000 (USD74,000) base prices.

Imad Wasim, D'Arcy Short, Evin Lewis and Mitchell Santner headline those with a £50,000 (USD62,000) base price, while Thisara Perera, Alex Carey, Lendl Simmons and Shimron Hetmyer could get picked up for as little as £40,000 (USD50,000).

Sixty-seven players have not set a reserve price, meaning that they could be paid as little as £30,000 (USD37,000) for their involvement in the competition. Potential moneyball-style picks without a reserve price include Chris Green, Ashton Turner, Fabian Allen and Adam Milne.

The ECB's attempts to bring the game to a new audience could be furthered if some of the six Afghanistan players or the six Bangladeshis are selected. Both teams' World Cup games were well-attended, and the ECB's research suggested that the "demographic profile" for ticket-buyers is wider for international than domestic fixtures.

The Afghanistan players in the draft are Rashid, Qais Ahmad, Zahir Khan, Gulbadin Naib, Mohammad Nabi and Mujeeb Ur Rahman, while Mohammad Mithun, Mohammad Saifuddin, Mustafizur Rahman, Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib and Tamim are the Bangladesh players on the long list.

Several players, including Lamichhane, Lynn and Narine are beneficiaries of the ECB's decision to change their visas regulations. Until this season, players had to have played at least one Test or 15 white-ball internationals in the preceding 24 months for an ICC Full Member to qualify for a 'governing body endorsement' from the ECB, necessary for any player hoping to apply for a visa.

But with The Hundred in mind, the ECB successfully lobbied the Home Office to change those stipulations, with a clause added allowing those who have played at least 20 T20 games in the past 24 months to secure an endorsement.

Paul Stirling is the lone Irish representative in the longlist, as he now qualifies as an overseas player. Stirling is in an unusual situation as a British passport holder but an Ireland international, and recently told the Telegraph that he was "baffled" about the fact he would have to play as a non-local.

Each team will be permitted three overseas players in their squad and in their playing XI.

Harbhajan Singh is the solitary Indian player to enter the draft for the inaugural season of The Hundred, which starts in July 2020. Harbhajan, who last played for India during the 2016 Asia Cup, has put his base price at £100,000.

Senior off-spinner Harbhajan is one of the 25 overseas player on the longlist with a base price of £100,000 (US$124,000) or more with the draft scheduled for October 20 in London.

The development is likely to raise eyebrows in the BCCI considering no Indian player can participate in overseas T20 leagues without having retired. Recently Harbhajan's former India and Punjab team-mate Yuvraj Singh featured in the Global Canada Twenty20, but that was possible only because the allrounder had retired.

ESPNcricnfo understands Harbhajan, who is 39, is keen to feature in The Hundred, but he is yet to approach the BCCI, which he will only do if he is picked in the draft. The tournament rules dictate only three overseas players are allowed in the squad as well as the team. In the extreme case where the only option left to him is to retire, it is understood that Harbhajan would not be shy to take that step.

Harbhajan's 417 Test wickets puts him as the 13th-highest wicket-taker overall and the third on the all-time Indian list in the longest format. In ODI cricket, Harbhjan is fifth on the all-time India list with 260 wickets. Despite having featured in the inaugural World T20 that India won in 2007, Harbhajan has only played 28 T20Is.

However, his stock in the IPL has always soared, where he is joint-third on the all-time list grouped with legspinner Piyush Chawla at 150 wickets. After a long and successful stint at Mumbai Indians, Harbhajan was bought by another multiple-IPL winner, Chennai Super Kings, led by old friend MS Dhoni in 2018. In the last two years, Harbhajan has been used by Dhoni mostly in the Powerplay where he has taken 11 wickets at an economy rate of 8.4 and average of 25. Overall he has 23 wickets in the last two seasons of the IPL in 23 innings at an economy rate of 7.67 and an average of 25.30.

Although Harbhajan waits in expectation for an India call-up, he is at the same time well aware that he has a limited shelf life as far his playing career is concerned. In 2020 he will be 40 and he will believe he still has at least two years left in him to play the shortest formats. For the past few years he has only featured regularly in the IPL. He stopped playing domestic cricket last year as he did not want to take up a position that could go to a young player.

Realistically the chances of the BCCI relaxing the rules remain highly unlikely. That would put the onus on Harbhajan, who would then need to retire to feature in the overseas leagues.

Zimbabwe 168 for 2 (Moor 92*, Munyonga 44) beat Singapore 167 for 7 (Chandramohan 66, David 47, Jakiel 2-27) by 8 wickets

Peter Moor smashed 92* off 60 as Zimbabwe avenged their shock defeat against Singapore in the two sides' last meeting in the Singapore Twenty20 Tri-Series 2019, beating the home team by a handy eight wickets, with eight balls to spare.

The result meant Zimbabwe finished the tournament as the team with the most points, having three wins and one defeat in their four games. Singapore, and the third team Nepal, had one win and one no result each. The tournament does not have a final, so Zimbabwe were effectively the winners, with the double round-robin league stage completed.

ALSO READ: Why Singapore beating Zimbabwe is a big deal

Put in to bat, Singapore were driven by a 90-run second-wicket stand between opener Surendran Chandramohan (66 off 47) and Tim David (47 off 23). There were no big contributions either side of that partnership, but it was enough to carry Singapore to 167 for 7. Right-arm medium pacer Daniel Jakiel was Zimbabwe's best bowler, with 2 for 27 in four overs.

Singapore would have got even fewer, having collapsed from 114 for 1 in 10.5 overs to 130 for 4 in 14.2 overs, but a quick 22 by Janak Prakash at No.6 gave them impetus at the end.

But it wasn't enough to trouble Zimbabwe, whose chase was helmed by Moor from the top of the order.

Singapore struck early enough, with Janak having Regis Chakabva caught in the fourth over, but just like it had in the first innings, there was a substantial second-wicket stand in the chase too. Moor got together with Tony Munyonga (44 off 33) to put on 84 in ten overs.

David completed a good all-round day by sending back Munyonga caught and bowled, but Zimbabwe followed one good stand with another. Captain Sean Williams played second fiddle as Moor blasted off, with the unbroken third-wicket partnership yielding 63 runs in just 5.3 overs, completing a comfortable win.

India women 99 for 5 (Harmanpreet 34*, Ismail 2-19) beat South Africa women 98 for 8 (Wolvaardt 17, Radha 3-23, Deepti 2-19) by five wickets

Spinners Radha Yadav (3 for 23) and Deepti Sharma (2 for 19) stifled South Africa women before Harmanpreet Kaur steered the tricky chase to see India women home by five wickets in the additional T20I in Surat. Their victory ensured the extra game, scheduled to make up for two washed-outs, had no impact on the series result as India lead the now six-match series 3-0.

After being put in, South Africa kept losing wickets at regular intervals and could manage only 98 for 8. Six of their top seven batsmen reached double digits but none could cross 20.

Stand-in captain Sune Luus promoted herself to open the innings with Lizelle Lee but the move didn't pay off. Deepti and medium-pacer Shikha Pandey, who found some swing with the new ball, restricted the visitors to 13 in the first four overs. Lee tried to step it up with back-to-back fours off Deepti in the fifth over but Radha broke through by trapping Luus lbw with her first ball in the next.

Lee didn't last long either and fell to Poonam Yadav for 16 when she top-edged a slog to Smriti Mandhana at deep backward square leg. Laura Wolvaardt and Nadine de Klerk added 32 in 28 balls to take the side to 57 for 2 at the end of the 11th over. But both batters fell in successive overs. Wolvaardt missed a sweep against Harmanpreet and was bowled for 17, while de Klerk fell to Radha.

The lower-middle order dragged South Africa to 96 for 5 before they lost three wickets in three balls while trying to accelerate. On the last ball of the penultimate over, Radha got debutant Anne Bosch while Deepti dismissed Shabnim Ismail and Lara Goodall with the first two of the 20th. Tumi Sekhukhune prevented the hat-trick but South Africa could manage only two runs from the final over and failed to reach even the three-figure mark.

India though stumbled in what looked like a walk in the park and found themselves at 29 for 3 in the seventh over. However, Harmanpreet's unbeaten 34 off 32 balls, during which she also became the second Indian woman to reach 2000 T20I runs took the hosts to victory with 17 balls to spare.

Shafali Verma started the chase aggressively by lofting Ismail and Ayabonga Khaka straight down the ground for fours before Ismail got her caught behind for 14. At the other end though, Smriti Mandhana once again struggled for the timing and took six balls to open her account and was eventually dismissed for 7 in the last over of the Powerplay. And when Jemimah Rodrigues too fell in the next over, it appeared South Africa had an opening.

Harmanpreet though batted sensibly, nudging the ball in the gaps to rotate the strike while still putting away the loose deliveries. Along with Deepti, she took India to safety as the two added 50 in 49 balls for the fourth wicket.

Ismail struck again to send Deepti back for 16 but Harmanpreet stayed till the end and finished the game with an imperious square drive.

Roger Binny was elected as president of the Karanataka State Cricket Association on Thurday, winning by 943 votes to the 111 that his competitor M.M Harish. This is the former India allrounder's third stint at the KSCA - he was a vice-president from 2007 to 2012 - and it will keep him in office until 2021-22.

Binny, 64, was part of the World Cup winning side in 1983. He played 99 games for India (27 Tests and 72 ODIs) scoring a total of 1459 runs and picking up 124 wickets. Former India captain Shanta Rangaswamy, who resigned from the BCCI's Cricket Advisory Committee on Sunday, became the first woman to be elected into a managing committee in the KSCA.

The Supreme Court of India had ordered all state associations in India to conduct elections by October 4. Several of them have announced their results but the KSCA is one of a few which has chosen a former cricketer as its president after former captains Sourav Ganguly and Mohammad Azharuddin took charge in Bengal and Hyderabad respectively. Saurashtra too have a former player as its head - Jaydev Shah, who played over 100 first-class games. He is also the son of longtime cricket administrator Niranjan Shah.

This isn't the first time a cricketer will be running things in Karnataka. Anil Kumble was elected president of the state association in 2010. Additionally, this time around, KSCA also has a former umpire as its joint secretary - Shavir Tarapore.

Korean golfer Bio Kim, who was suspended for three years by the Korean Tour for an obscene gesture directed at a spectator during the final round of a tournament Sunday, said he will not appeal the suspension or fine and is concerned about his golf future.

Kim, 29, told ESPN's Michael Collins on Monday that he is "sincerely sorry" for his actions and "takes full responsibility" for what he did in reaction to a spectator's cellphone camera going off during his backswing.

According to the Korean Tour, Kim has 15 days to appeal his suspension, but the golfer said he would not be doing so because it might suggest his apology is not genuine. He believes the fine and punishment are warranted.

As he played the final round of the DGB Financial Group Volvik Daegu Gyeongbuk Open in South Korea on Sunday, Kim held a one-shot lead on the 16th tee when he was distracted in his backswing by a spectator taking a photo. His tee shot carried only a short distance.

Kim angrily turned to the crowd, flipped off a spectator and slammed his club to the ground. The incident was captured on live television in Korea. Kim went on to win the tournament, his second victory of the year and fifth overall on the Korean Tour.

"Kim Bi-o damaged the dignity of a golfer with etiquette violation and inappropriate behavior," the Korean Tour said in a statement.

Kim said he was not notified directly of his suspension by the tour, that he was aware of it and a fine of $8,350 only via news reports.

Kevin Na, a PGA Tour player competing this week in Las Vegas, said he reached out to Kim and believes a three-year suspension is unwarranted.

"What he did was wrong. Kind of surprised me," Na said. "He's not that kind of person. I talked to him on the phone [Tuesday]. We exchanged some texts. From what I've gathered, I guess it wasn't the first time that happened that day. He was fed up with it.

"Yes, what he did was wrong. Should he be fined? Yes. Three years is ridiculous. ... Yes, he was unprofessional and there should be consequences for it, but not take a man's job away for three years. At the same time, the spectator was disrespecting the game and the player at the same time."

Na said he spoke with someone on the PGA Tour about the incident and will do what he can to help Kim.

Cellphones are now common at golf tournaments across the world, as spectators use them to check scores and take photos or videos. On the PGA Tour and its various developmental tours, spectators are made aware that they need to put their phones on silent so they will not make noise when photos are taken.

But that is against the law in South Korea. Cellphones there are not made with that feature due to a law that prohibits mobile phone manufacturers from silencing the sound made when a photo is taken. The law went into effect in 2013 due to privacy concerns.

This has created issues at golf events in South Korea, including the 2015 Presidents Cup. Kim said that just like on the PGA Tour, spectators are advised to take photos only before a player takes his stance or after the swing is completed. This etiquette is breached often "to put it mildly," Kim said, and players are simply expected to deal with it.

To Kim's knowledge, no action was taken against the spectator.

Kim played on the PGA Tour in 2011, and in 2018 had 19 starts with two top-25 finishes and 11 missed cuts on the Korn Ferry (formerly Web.com) Tour, one of the PGA Tour's developmental circuits.

He said he was in touch with tour officials to seek clarification on whether he might be able to qualify for various events or accept sponsor invites. For now, the PGA Tour said he is not eligible pending its own review.

The New York Yankees have left CC Sabathia off their roster for the American League Division Series, manager Aaron Boone announced Thursday.

Boone also announced that James Paxton will start Game 1 of the series against the Minnesota Twins and will be followed by Masahiro Tanaka and Luis Severino for Games 2 and 3, respectively.

"I've been talking to teammates, asking them what it's been like pitching in the postseason," Paxton said.

Paxton (15-6, 3.82 ERA) won a career-best 10 straight starts before leaving his final regular-season start after one inning Friday because of a tight glute muscle in the left buttocks. He said the injury was a "non-issue."

Paxton, 30, struggled in the first inning this season, allowing 12 of his 23 home runs. However, he gave up just six homers in his final 11 starts.

"I threw a few more pitches in the bullpen [during the] second half of the season, so I could kind of get the first few hitters out of the way in the bullpen," Paxton said. "Just so to try and sharpen myself up, and that seemed to help a little bit -- and also trying to be really aggressive from pitch one."

Boone said Sabathia would not be included on the division series roster because of issues with his pitching shoulder. Sabathia had a cortisone shot and did not respond well enough after throwing in a simulated game Tuesday.

"Frankly, [he] threw the ball pretty well, but just not quite where it needs to be -- to be in the kind of role we're going to ask him to be in where he's potentially getting up on the spot and then maybe having to get up later in the game," Boone said.

The Yankees' full ALDS roster will be announced Friday, Boone said. He anticipates Edwin Encarnacion will be on the roster. Encarnacion, who hasn't played since Sept. 12 because of a strained left oblique, hit in a pair of simulated games this week.

Thursday's decision means Sabathia, who serves as a baseball analyst for ESPN, will miss at least the first round of the playoffs in his final season as a major leaguer.

The Yankees put the 39-year-old left-hander in the bullpen for the season's final week, and Sabathia made his first regular-season relief appearance Sept. 24. A second planned bullpen outing was scrapped.

"It's tough, obviously, being here and not being able to participate in playoffs," Sabathia said. "I didn't want to put the team in jeopardy. I want the best opportunity for this team to win a championship. I feel like we have a good opportunity. I didn't want to be selfish and go out there hurt and put the team in a bad spot."

Sabathia has had four stints on the injured list because of his chronically hurt right knee.

Left-hander J.A. Happ (12-8, 4.91) will start the series in the bullpen but could be an option to start Game 4.

"We'll try and have him prepared for a lot of different roles, but he'll certainly, in some way, shape, or form, be in play the first two games," Boone said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.