NAPLES, Fla. – When it comes to goals, Leona Maguire has achieved almost all of them this season.

Finish in the top 40 in points and get back to the CME Group Tour Championship? Check. She posted 10 top-9 finishes, including two runners-up, and entered this week’s season-ending event at No. 17 in points.

Make the Solheim Cup team? Check. But she didn’t just earn a spot as a rookie, she went 5-0.

Qualify for all the majors? Well, almost. She narrowly missed getting into the U.S. Women’s Open this summer, but she’s already locked up her spot for next year’s championship at Pine Needles.

“It's as good a rookie year as I think I could have expected,” Maguire said. “It's actually gone better than I expected. … Obviously, nice to get a win, but I've pretty much done everything but that.”

There’s still time, though.

Maguire, who starred at Duke by capturing two Annika Awards and four first-team All-America honors, took two years to earn her graduation from the Symetra Tour. After finishing No. 59 in CME points last season, she was extended another rookie season as the LPGA carried over status because of the pandemic – and she took advantage, fueled by a move to graphite iron shafts that reignited her iron game.

“All parts of my game have gotten that bit better and feel a bit more comfortable every week,” she said. “Sort of playing with the best players in the world I think raises your game without you even realizing it.”

While Maguire was edged out by major winner Patty Tavatanakit for Louise Suggs Rookie of the Year honors, she has the best chance of the rookies to claim the $1.5 million first-place prize on Sunday at Tiburon Golf Club. She fired a 6-under 66 on a windy Saturday to enter the final round at 12 under, just two shots back as she eyes her maiden LPGA win.

“There are a lot of great golfers ahead of me on the leaderboard and around me, so it's going to take another low one,” said Maguire, who is looking up at five co-leaders, including Nelly Korda and Jin Young Ko. “At the same time, it's a golf course you have to stay really patient on, take your chances when you get them, and be smart about it. That's the kind of golf I like, so excited for another day.”

Asked where she stacks up against the game’s best, the former top-ranked amateur in the world was modest: “I mean, I haven't as much on my resume as a lot of them, so I'm getting there,” she said. “I'm working my way up.”

Her goals for next season certainly should get a little more aggressive.

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – Denny McCarthy made a mess of the eighth hole Saturday at the RSM Classic. There was a drive into a native area, a penalty stroke, a poor chip and putt that all added up to a double bogey-6.

He was still smiling.

McCarthy’s third-round 65 moved him into a tie for 12^th place and within five shots of the lead thanks to a brilliant opening nine holes on the Seaside Course’s greens.

McCarthy, who started his round on No. 10, made a 29-footer for birdie at No. 11, 7-footer for birdie at No. 13, 31-footer for birdie at No. 14, 23-footer for eagle at No. 15 and capped that run with a 23-footer for birdie at the 16^th hole. He picked up more than five shots in strokes gained: putting, a career-best mark, and rolled in 157 feet of putts, also a career-best line.  

“My putter's usually my strong suit and I've gotten on some hot runs before, so I was waiting for a day like today for a little while. It was nice to have my putter warm up a little bit,” he said. “It felt hot in my hands.”

McCarthy, who started the day nine shots off the lead, has always ranked among the PGA Tour’s best putters but struggled this year on the greens. He said the difference on Saturday was keeping things simple. “Not too mechanical. I treat it as an art form and just have fun with it,” he said.

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – Every time a PGA Tour player considers the circuit’s “off-season” it always comes with “air quotes.” It’s a nod to the circuit’s nearly nonexistent off-season that unlike other sports is measured in days, not weeks or months.

Ten days separated Patrick Cantlay’s FedExCup winning performance at East Lake and the start of the new season in Napa, Calif. Instead, players look forward to the wraparound schedule’s winter break between this week’s RSM Classic and the Sentry Tournament of Champions in January. It’s a giddy, almost juvenile outlook that gives this week’s stop at Sea Island something of a last-week-of-school vibe.

“I almost feel a little bit more freed up I would say. You don't feel quite the pressure to go out there and practice because you know there's a break coming up,” said Tom Hoge, who will be four shots off the lead held by Talor Gooch to begin the Tour’s final turn of 2021. “I've just tried to relax and have some fun out there. I've played well these last weeks, so hopefully I can keep it going.”

No one needs a break more than Hoge. The Tour doesn’t dole out an Ironman award but if it did the 32-year-old would be a lock every year. The RSM Classic is Hoge’s 34^th start this year and the looming break is hard to ignore.

“That will be nice,” he said when asked if he was looking forward to putting his golf clubs away for a few weeks. “I've played a lot this year. I think this is maybe 33 or 34 for me for this year, so yes, I am looking forward to it.”

Gooch doesn’t have the wear and tear of 34 starts (he's played 27 events in ’21) but he’s also looking forward to being at home for more than a few days. It’s been a particularly eventful fall for Gooch, who has four top-15 finishes in five starts this season, and his third-round 67 in blustery conditions pushed him three strokes clear of Seamus Power and Sebastian Munoz.

For the second consecutive day, winds gusted to 30 mph and the temperature continued to drop, but even as the field scoring average climbed (70.81) he remained aggressive.

“It's easy to try to stay level par and to be frank what you're trying to do out there is avoid bogeys. It would have been easy today at times, like I said, to just really get conservative and really be defensive,” said Gooch, who made just one bogey on Day 3 and birdied two of his final four holes. “I was being very conservative at times, I was still able to stay aggressive, the mentality of trying to extend what I have rather than just maintaining.”

Whatever happens Sunday on Sea Island, Gooch plans to take a few weeks away from golf before gearing back up for the restart in January with a few days in Scottsdale, Ariz., next month with his swing coach, Boyd Summerhays. He hears the call of the winter break but there’s still work to be done.

“You want to play well any time of the season, but especially the last event of the year, you want to send it off right, you know?” Gooch said. “There's also that part of you that's, we're all tired, we're all excited to get a little bit of a break, so we're hopeful that we can just play well before we can get a break finally.”

Breaking through for his first Tour victory would make that break-even sweeter as well as give him some leverage over some of his more outspoken friends. Gooch explained that he and a group of friends take a buddy’s trip in January to Arizona, but a victory on Sunday would come with a spot in the winner’s-only event in Maui to start the year.

“It's always the first week of January and so I'm hopeful that we're going to have to adjust that. That's what will be talked about,” Gooch laughed.

Gooch said he and his team have focused on finishing the year strong and 18 cold and windy holes await before he can finally embrace an off-season that doesn’t require air quotes.

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – Trying to win for the first time on the PGA Tour is always stressful but for Talor Gooch, it could always be worse ... he could be working at Best Buy.

Gooch will take a three-stroke lead into the final round of the RSM Classic following a third-round 67 and he explained that although he knows there will be plenty of stress on Sunday it won’t compare to his experience in 2016 during the second stage of Q-School.

“I was on the number [to advance] going to the third round and I didn't have any more money and I was 3 over through four walking off the par 3 and I thought to myself, I don't know why this came up, but Best Buy, I'm going to have to go work at Best Buy,” he laughed.

Gooch rallied and advanced to the final stage to secure his Korn Ferry Tour card. The next year he advanced to the PGA Tour. As for why Best Buy was where he turned in his most stressful moment, he could only guess.

“I've never had a job in my life and I was like there's got to be something like a Best Buy where even I can go and do this and they'll let me work there,” he said.

NAPLES, Fla. – Gaby Lopez loves to journal. She’s estimated that she’s gone through 12 notebooks during her golf career, including three this season alone.

“I journal pretty much every day,” Lopez said. “You know, I like to see myself back where I was struggling, what did I do to get out of the struggle. I like to see what I was doing when I was playing good or I was mentally good. I just I like to question myself all the time.”

She’ll have plenty to write about Saturday evening.

Lopez shot 3-under 69 to enter Sunday’s final round of the CME Group Tour Championship at 13 under, a shot out of a four-way tie for the lead that included Nelly Korda and Jin Young Ko. But it was how she finished her day at Tiburon Golf Club that will demand most of the attention: double bogey, eagle, bogey.

First came the “terrible” tee shot on the par-3 16^th hole that found the penalty area. Lopez then hit a “beautiful” drive and 5-iron to set up a long eagle make at the par-5 17^th hole, punctuating the moment with a huge fist pump and yell. Finally, Lopez again found the water, this time with her approach at the par-4 18^th hole, but she got up and down to save bogey, a score that felt like a birdie to Lopez, who remained upbeat after her round.

“You know, I tried to stay calm all day long,” Lopez said. “I tried to stay calm throughout the tournament. Sometimes when I bring this emotion, I just can't stop it. I feel that I dragged [my celebration on 17] into 18. It was hard to keep it together. But at the same time, it's something that I love from my game, something I embrace so much. I'm sure that I'm going to learn from it. I know I'm going to have the discipline next time to calm down. But it's exciting. I love this position. I love to see myself grow.

“I think that I've grown so much through the years, and having this opportunity tomorrow to be one shot back and be able to hit exactly the shots that I’ve been wanting, been picturing, visualizing, it's just really exciting.”

Wanting, picturing, visualizing and writing.

Jakob Glesnes scored late in extra time and the No. 2 seed Philadelphia Union outlasted the seventh-seeded New York Red Bulls 1-0 in Round One of the MLS Cup playoffs on Saturday in Chester, Pa.

- ESPN+ viewers' guide: LaLiga, Bundesliga, MLS, FA Cup, more
- Stream ESPN FC Daily on ESPN+ (U.S. only)
- Don't have ESPN? Get instant access

In an expected low-scoring, tight affair between two of the Eastern Conference's best defensive teams, it looked as if the match was headed to penalties.

But when the Red Bulls were unable to clear the ball, it chested off Glesnes, who positioned himself just outside the top of the box and curled his shot high past leaping keeper Carlos Coronel and into the corner of the net in the 123rd minute of the contest.

It was no surprise that scoring was at a premium in this contest. New York's 33 goals conceded during the regular season tied for fewest in MLS. Philadelphia, meanwhile, allowed just 35. The Union and Red Bulls met three times during the regular season, with five total goals scored.

New York had a pair of strong back-to-back chances early in extra time -- both from Patryk Klimala.

Alone from the right side, Klimala missed wide left in the 94th minute. Seconds later, his follow-up strike was stopped by Union goalkeeper Andre Blake -- New York' first shot on target of the match.

Sergio Santos nearly gave Philadelphia the lead early in the second-half of extra time when his well-timed, point-blank strike was abruptly stopped by Coronel. Shortly after, New York's Kyle Duncan nicked the far post on his shot.

These sides combined for 17 shots during regular time, with the Union recording the only one on target. But, it was a golden chance from Alvas Powell, whose point-blank strike was saved by Coronel in the first half.

Philadelphia stepped up the pressure about halfway through the second half. In the 82nd minute, Santos got in close and set up teammate Kacper Przybylko for a glorious chance, but the Union's leading scorer sent the ball well high over the net.

A streaking Santos had a side chance of his own in the waning seconds of regular time, but his strike landed into the hands of a standing Coronel.

Philadelphia moves on to the semifinals against the winner of Tuesday's match between No. 3 seed Nashville SC and No. 6 Orlando City SC.

Xavi Hernandez was happy to win his first game as Barcelona coach but says his side must improve in attack after a 1-0 win in Saturday's Catalan derby against Espanyol.

Memphis Depay scored the only goal of the game from the penalty spot in the second half at Camp Nou as Barca ended a four-game winless streak in LaLiga to climb to sixth in the table.

- ESPN+ viewers' guide: LaLiga, Bundesliga, MLS, FA Cup, more
- Stream ESPN FC Daily on ESPN+ (U.S. only)
- Don't have ESPN? Get instant access

Just over 74,000 fans attended the game, double the amount that attended Barca's last home game against Alaves, but they almost witnessed a sting in the tale as Espanyol missed a flurry of late chances.

"In general, I was happy with the performance and the three points," Xavi, who replaced Ronald Koeman earlier this month, said in his post-game news conference.

"The attitude and the effort were very good. We dominated for 75 minutes but from there Espanyol created a lot of problems. We had some luck with the woodwork twice.

"It's difficult to attack a back five with a line of four in front of them, but we have to work on that because we will come up against it many times.

"We need to take more risks going forward but that comes with confidence and time. We need to know when to go wide and when to come inside and we need to work on our timing. I'm happy but there's a lot to improve."

Xavi said Barca's sluggish final 15 minutes was "not a physical problem but a football one" and called on his players to "keep possession and show more personality" moving forward when protecting leads.

With a long injury list, featuring Ansu Fati, Pedri and Ousmane Dembele, among others, Xavi turned to youth for his first game in charge of the club he made 767 appearances for as a player.

He handed a debut to 17-year-old Ilias Akhomach on the wing, with Gavi, 17, and Nico Gonzalez, 19, also starting the game.

However, it was the "exceptional" Abde Ezzalzouli, 19, whose performance most caught Xavi's eye after coming on for Ilias on the left of a front three at half-time.

Espanyol were aggrieved to leave with nothing. Striker De Tomas, who hit the post twice, said the penalty, given for a Leandro Cabrera foul on Memphis, was a "joke," while coach Vicente Moreno also felt the decision changed the game.

"That was a key moment," Moreno said in a news conference. "If we take away that, I think we were maturing into the game at that point."

Prior to the match, reports had emerged suggesting a heart problem has forced Barcelona striker Sergio Aguero to retire the game.

Sources at the Catalan club told ESPN that was not true and referred to a statement released after the Alaves game in September, when Aguero experienced chest pain, which said he would be treated and monitored for the next three months.

"What has come out about Aguero is not true," Xavi added. "I spoke with him the other day. We will see how things evolve and if he can continue playing football, but it's a medical issue."

Kelley O'Hara scored in the 97th minute and the Washington Spirit won the National Women's Soccer League championship with a 2-1 extra time victory over the Chicago Red Stars on Saturday.

- ESPN+ viewers' guide: LaLiga, Bundesliga, MLS, FA Cup, more
- Stream ESPN FC Daily on ESPN+ (U.S. only)
- Don't have ESPN? Get instant access

The NWSL championship game at Lynn Family Stadium in Louisville, Kentucky, closes a tumultuous ninth season for the league. The Spirit had to forfeit a pair of games this season because of coronavirus issues. The team played under interim coach Kris Ward after Richie Burke was fired in September for violating the league's anti-harassment policy.

It was the first league championship for the Spirit, who advanced to the semifinals with a 2-1 victory over second-seeded OL Reign.

O'Hara, a defender who was on the U.S. national team that won the World Cup in 2015 and 2019, scored her first goal of the season. Her game-winning back-post header came off a pass from Trinity Rodman, the NWSL Rookie of the Year.

O'Hara called it "the best feeling ever'' to be ending the season as champions.

"I can't describe it, because of everything we've been though, and the fact that we're ending it as NWSL champions is pretty crazy and very special,'' O'Hara said. "I'm really proud of this team. People have no idea what we've all gone through, and the resiliency and the perseverance of every single player on this team is pretty incredible.''

Mallory Pugh, who didn't play in the semifinals because of COVID-19 protocol, started for the Red Stars but left the game in first-half stoppage time with an apparent injury. Shortly after her departure, Rachel Hill scored off a cross from Arin Wright to give the Red Stars a 1-0 lead.

Chicago downed the top-seeded Portland Thorns 2-0 in the semifinal. Earlier in the game, Chicago's Vanessa DiBernardo was subbed off with an injury. Despite their struggles, the Spirit's roster included Golden Boot winner Ashley Hatch and Goalkeeper of the Year Aubrey Bledsoe, as well as Rodman, who is former NBA player Dennis Rodman's daughter.

"We've overcome so much, but we did it together,'' Bledsoe said. "We never quit, we never gave up on each other, and that second half, that shows exactly who we are.''

Rodman nearly tied the game in the 61st minute with a blast from distance that hit the post. But the Spirit pulled even a short time later when captain Andi Sullivan made a penalty kick that beat Chicago goalkeeper Cassie Miller. Chicago had a chance in the second extra time period on Makenzy Doniak's shot, but it was deftly stopped by Bledsoe.

"Certainly going to sting but incredibly proud of the team and the players, they never quit,'' Chicago coach Rory Dames said. "Got two chances late in the second overtime to still try to knot it up, and I think that kind of epitomizes the team. The never give up. They never stop. They always beleived in themselves and each other and hey played until the end, and as a coach that's all you can ask.''

The Red Stars were also playing without goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher, who was injured while playing for the United States in the Olympics, as well as Julie Ertz, who was hurt for most of the season, and Kaelia Watt, who went down with a knee injury during the semifinal.

Games were cancelled and players protested during the season after North Carolina coach Paul Riley was accused by two former players of sexual harassment and coercion, allegations he denied. Burke's dismissal game shortly before Riley was fired in the wake of the serious allegations leveled against him by former players Sinead Farrelly and Mana Shim. After those reports, NWSL Commissioner Lisa Baird resigned and the NWSL and U.S. Soccer commissioned independent outside investigations. The league cancelled a weekend of games, and when play resumed players stopped matches momentarily to gather in a circle at midfield, in a quiet show of unity.

Fans at Saturday's championship match had signs reading "Sell the team, Steve'' in reference to Spirit owner Steve Baldwin.

The announced attendance for Saturday's game was 10,360. It was the second time the title game had gone to extra time.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is expected to be sacked as Manchester United manager following Saturday's disastrous 4-1 defeat to Watford, sources have told ESPN.

One source added that Solskjaer knew he had to win on Saturday and is now expecting the worst.

- Stream ESPN FC Daily on ESPN+ (U.S. only)
- Don't have ESPN? Get instant access

Despite humiliation at the hands of Liverpool and Manchester City, United chiefs, including co-chairman Joel Glazer and executive vice chairman Ed Woodward, were keen for Solskjaer, who signed a new three-year contract in the summer, to at least see out the season.

But the manner of the performance at Vicarage Road and United's fifth defeat in their past seven games warranted fresh discussions between Glazer and Woodward on Saturday night. Chief negotiator Matt Judge was also involved in talks.

Talks among executives late on Saturday focused on compensation costs for the manager, as well as which of his staff would stay on at Old Trafford in the event of his dismissal.

A lack of alternatives and results in the Champions League -- United are top of Group F with two games to play -- have kept Solskjaer in the job during a miserable run of results, but there are now genuine fears the Norwegian will not be able to get the team into the top four and earn a place in the financially lucrative Champions League for next season.

United passed up the opportunity to speak to Antonio Conte following the 5-0 defeat to Liverpool at Old Trafford in October, and the Italian has since been appointed by Tottenham Hotspur.

There are varying levels of support among United executives for Mauricio Pochettino, Brendan Rodgers, Zinedine Zidane, Erik ten Hag and Ralf Rangnick to take over, but all of the candidates except Zidane are employed at other clubs.

There would be support for technical director Darren Fletcher and assistant coach Michael Carrick to lead the team in the interim, but the duo are untested as top-level coaches and United are facing a daunting run of 10 games in five weeks before the end of the calendar year.

The next break in the side's schedule is between Brighton and Hove Albion's visit to Old Trafford on Dec. 18 and the trip to Newcastle United on Dec. 27.

The latest setback against Watford has seen United slip to seventh in the table.

They face Villarreal in Spain on Tuesday before a trip to leaders Chelsea on Sunday and a home game against Arsenal on Dec. 2.

WATFORD, England -- On Friday, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer spent his usual pregame news conference talking, via video, about how well his Manchester United players trained during the international break and his belief that the problems they have faced in recent weeks have been ironed out.

A game against Watford, newly promoted to the Premier League and a team that does not score many and concedes plenty, should have been the perfect time to put all that hard work into practice. Instead, United served up another catastrophic performance and lost 4-1; their seventh defeat in 13 games and a fifth in seven.

It has become a regular theme for United fans to ask what exactly is done in training, and it remains a mystery after they witnessed the actions.

And despite Solskjaer's positive talk, it is now expected to be Norwegian's final game in charge.

- Sources: Solskjaer expects Man Utd sack
- Stream ESPN FC Daily on ESPN+ (U.S. only)
- Don't have ESPN? Get instant access

Watford fans sang "Ole's at the wheel" at the end, but it might not be the case for much longer. Even after humiliation at the hands of Liverpool and Manchester City, the United board was keen for Solskjaer to make it to the end of the season, but the campaign is in danger of total implosion.

Usually, the risk of losing out on Champions League money makes the Glazers act with regard to managers, and United will not finish in the top four playing like this. Indeed, if it goes on much longer, the club will be lucky to finish in the top 10.

At the final whistle, Solskjaer went over to the away fans at the end and was greeted by scattered boos by the supporters who stayed until the end. It riled Bruno Fernandes, who seemed to gesture toward the whole team as if to say "blame us" and was eventually dragged away by Fred.

Harry Maguire was already in the dressing room, sent off for two yellow cards in a seven-minute period in the second half that made his cupped-ear celebration for England seem even more ill-judged. Cristiano Ronaldo was not far behind the United captain at the end of the game, further signs that this is not so much a club falling apart, but one already smashed to bits.

Inevitably, the first question in Solskjaer's postgame news conference was whether he believes he's still the right man for the job. He was defiant -- "I always have belief in myself. Of course, at the moment it's a difficult time for us. I believe we can turn this around" -- but the question is: Can he?

Just over 24 hours after saying he had prioritised defensive stability for opponents, who had not scored in seven of their 11 league games this season and who had not won at home since opening day, Solskjaer watched as Watford went 2-0 up by half-time and kicked themselves that it wasn't more.

Josh King got the first midway through the first half and Ismaila Sarr the second just before the break, but that did not do justice to the horror show that United, who have just two clean sheets in 25 games, had managed to produce.

With the game goalless, Sarr had the same penalty saved twice by David De Gea after VAR ordered a retake because of encroachment into the penalty area, while Nemanja Matic gifted Emmanuel Dennis a chance and King should have scored with a point-blank header.

It was telling that, when the second goal went in, United's players trudged to the halfway line. There was no talking, arguing or even eye contact. Not so much as a token clap or an encouraging "come on," just a sullen march, as if more punishment was inevitable. That it did not arrive was thanks only to referee Jon Moss' half-time whistle.

Donny van de Beek, on as a substitute at the break along with Anthony Martial, tried to put up some kind of resistance with a goal to make it 2-1, then laid on a chance for Ronaldo, but it turned out to be the only 10 minutes in the game when United were on top. Watford were comfortable against 10 men and added to their lead in stoppage time through Joao Pedro and Dennis.

If anything, Van de Beek's cameo only served to reinforce belief that the Dutch international should have been playing a long time ago. United fans in the corner of Vicarage Road began singing his name after 10 minutes, almost a mini protest against the manager when outright revolt against a club legend is not an option.

"I understand fans who follow the club through thick and thin; they've been fantastic the last few years," Solskjaer said. "It's a difficult period; we've had a hard time since Sir Alex [Ferguson] left and fans who've been with us have been unbelievable.

"Being second [last season] we hoped to kick on and at the moment we can't seem to find our form," United's manager added. "I understand, that's their right to show their opinion. I need to get the players to perform better; that's my responsibility, that's the biggest thing now. The whole afternoon was so disappointing and far away from our standards."

Hours after United's humiliation ended on the pitch, it continued at Anfield, where Liverpool and Arsenal fans sang in union for Solskjaer to stay. While United are stuck in limbo, their rivals are leaving them behind, laughing as they do so.