Patrick Reed believes the back nine will prove crucial during The 145th Open after going round in 66 in his opening round. Portland Trail Blazers Pro Shop . The American took the clubhouse lead on five under after a round that included five birdies, an eagle and just two bogeys. Watch The Open Watch the first round of The Open for free, no contract Its one of these golf courses where you feel like you have to go out and make a ton of birdies early, Reed told Sky Sports. But at the same time, if you get too aggressive then you can make a lot of big numbers so what I tried to was, I played pretty conservative through the first six or seven holes. Then it just happened that I holed out a wedge shot, hit a couple of good iron shots and rolled in a couple of puts. The key this week isnt so much the front as it is the back nine. The back nine here, if it plays into the wind, is brutal.Reed also spoke of how he feels that competing in last weeks Scottish Open has benefited him at Royal Troon. Justin Thomas started his round with four birdies on the bounce Its very important, he added. It allows you to get a little bit more comfortable because back home everything is carry and spin and over here it is more about keeping the ball down, fighting it but at the same time, you need to get comfortably hitting pitching wedges from 100 yards. I think that is the hardest thing for me - hitting something really soft yet really being able to control the trajectory, distance and direction. Justin Thomas finished on four under at Royal Troon in his first ever round at The Open Justin Thomas, meanwhile, began his round with four consecutive birdies on his debut at The Open and another gain on the last saw him finish -4.It definitely helps, thats for sure, he said of his superb start. The front nine was definitely scoreable, the wind is in a good direction and it wasnt too heavy so you had to get on those on the front nine.I put myself in good spots off the tee and gave myself a lot of chances and it was nice to make the turn like that.It was great [to end with a birdie] after I felt like I was grinding throughout the back nine just to salvage pars and bogeys and doubles even.I love links golf, I have been fortunate enough to play some events on it and you just have to be creative. You never know what youre going to get with the conditions and so I think  in terms of a gameplan and how youre going to attack the course, it changes day to day.On a day like today, you can be a little bit more aggressive but that back nine is still really, really difficult and you just have be patient, get the ball on the fairway and try to minimise the mistakes. Also See: Sign in to watch The 145th Open LIVE! Latest leaderboard WATCH: Oosthuizens hole in one! Cheap Blazers Jerseys . They kicked off the still-going trend of host cities winning the Grey Cup and sent Hall of Fame head coach Wally Buono to the front office a champion. Gary Trent Jersey .com) - The Eastern Conferences best team takes on one of its worst Tuesday night when the Atlanta Hawks pay a visit to the Wells Fargo Center to take on the Philadelphia 76ers. PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Penguins acknowledge theyve been getting by more on talent than discipline recently even as theyve soared to the top of the Eastern Conference standings. The perpetually rebuilding Florida Panthers have no such luxury. On Monday night, the Panthers hard work made up the difference. Drew Shore scored twice for the first multi-goal game of his career and the Panthers ended Pittsburghs club-record 13-game home winning streak with a 5-1 victory. "It was a big game," Shore said. "We kind of treated it like a playoff game. We only had a couple more games until the (Olympic) break so we wanted to make a strong push." Jonathan Huberdeau, Dmitry Kulikov and Shawn Matthias also scored for the Panthers, who won in Pittsburgh for the first time in five years. Scott Clemmensen stopped 35 shots in his first start in three weeks as Florida ended a two-game losing streak. "I asked them for 60 minutes and 200 feet," Florida coach Peter Horachek said. Pittsburgh coach Dan Bylsma received neither. Matt Niskanen scored the only goal for the Penguins as Pittsburgh lost at home for the first time since Nov. 13. Marc-Andre Fleury made 23 saves but fell for only the fourth time in his past 37 starts at Consol Energy Center. "We were just awful," Niskanen said. "Bad execution. Bad work ethic. We just werent hungry enough to win the loose puck battle and they just beat the (stuffing) out of us." Pittsburgh defenceman Paul Martin played 20 minutes in his return from a broken leg, clearing the way for him to play for Team USA in the Olympics. Forwards James Neal, Chuck Kobasew and Jayson Megna also returned from injuries as the Penguins -- already with a comfortable 13-point cushion in the Metropolitan Division -- continue to get healthy with the Olympic break looming. While it may take a game or two for the Penguins to adjust to the familiar faces, they dont necessarily view it as an excuse. "Were assimilating players back into our lineup ... but thats not a new challenge for this group," Bylsma said. "Its not a new challenge for our team." Neither is winning in Pittsburgh for the Panthers. But Florida beat the Penguins for the second time in three meetings behind Clemmensen, a resurgennt penalty kill that has gone a franchise-record 10 games without allowing a goal and some unlikely offensive contributions. Jack Ramsay Jersey . "I dont think we got lucky tonight," Clemmensen said. "I think we just willed it a little bit. It doesnt always go your way obviously. You stick with it and nights like tonight happen." Shore entered with just four goals in 54 career games and has spent most of this season in the American Hockey League. Still, he scored twice in less than 20 minutes to stake Florida to an early lead that was more than enough to end Pittsburghs two-month run of perfection. The Penguins entered the night having trailed barely 10 per cent of the time at home since their streak began. A significant chunk came in last weeks 4-3 comeback victory over Washington, when they rallied from a goal down three times to escape. It was the kind of game thats popped up frequently since Christmas, where Pittsburghs high-powered offence was able to overcome some uncharacteristic lapses at the other end of the rink. The miscues finally caught up with them. A rare breakdown by the leagues top power-play unit gave Shore the chance to stake Florida to an early lead. Clemmensen stopped Evgeni Malkins shot, then passed to Shore to spark a two-on-one that ended with Shore flicking a wrist shot over Fleurys shoulder 15:46 into the first period. The Panthers had three opportunities in the second to double their lead only to let three straight power plays go to waste before Shore struck again. Huberdeau stripped a Penguin behind the Pittsburgh net, slid the puck to Jesse Winchester, who found a streaking Shore down the slot. The wrist shot caromed off Fleurys shoulder and into the net to make it 2-0 at 13:34 of the second. Kulikov pushed the Florida lead to 3-0 by taking a long bounce off the end boards then beating Fleury just 1:17 into the third. Niskanens seventh goal of the season 5:11 into the period briefly gave the Penguins some energy, but it faded when Huberdeau and Matthias scored 12 seconds apart to send the Panthers to the upset. NOTES: Pittsburgh went 0 for 3 on the power play. ... The Panthers have killed 31 straight penalties. ... Florida is 10-0-1 when leading after two periods. ... Pittsburgh hosts Montreal on Wednesday. ... The Panthers play at Buffalo on Tuesday. ' ' '

PHILADELPHIA -- Shea Weber finally made himself at home in Philadelphia. Bart Starr Jersey . The Nashville Predators were glad their captain was still on their side. Weber had a goal and two assists, and Roman Josi scored the shootout winner to lift the Predators to a 4-3 win over the Flyers on Thursday night. Josi beat Flyers goalie Steve Mason for the last of a combined five shootout goals to give the Predators the needed road win as they chase a playoff spot. Weber had a big night in his first game against Philadelphia since the Flyers made him a $110 million, 14-year offer in the summer of 2012. The Predators matched the deal, keeping him in Nashville. He declined to go into detail about his return to Philly, simply stating he was happy with the win. He wasnt even booed by the fans, though Flyers forward Scott Hartnell got in his ear. "Just Hartsy cause hes always chirping," Weber said, smiling. "But thats nothing new, though." Weber snapped a tie game with a power-play goal early in the third period. Wayne Simmonds tied the game 3-all with a power-play goal with 1:24 left in regulation to send the game into OT. Eric Nystrom and David Legwand also scored in regulation for Nashville. Brayden Schenn and Andrej Meszaros scored for the Flyers. "We moved our feet, made the right plays and played the way we wanted to play," Flyers captain Giroux said. "We had our chances. We played well and were able to tie it up at the end there. They just did a good job in finding a way to get the two points." Nashville dug deep into the pocketbook and decided to pay Weber the $110 million over 14 years offered by the Flyers. The Flyers were looking for someone to fill the void left in defenceman Chris Prongers absence. Instead, they were left scrambling without the former All-Star and Olympic gold medallist . Even with their captain in the fold, the Predators are fighting for a playoff spot in the Western Conference. They can thank Webers 12th goal for setting up this win -- and one incredible save by Carter Hutton. The Predators acquired Oilers goaltender Devan Dubnyk this week, but went with Hutton in front of another sold out Philadelphia crowd. Hutton was behind the net as he chased a puck that knocked off the boards and back to a charging Michael Raffl, who had an open look at the net and fired for the seemingly easy goal. Hutton hustled like an All-Star shortstop and made a diving grab to snatch the puck. Raffl could only shake his head in disbelief on the second period stop. That was just the break the Predators needed. "That was sick," Josi said. "Thats going to be on the highlight reel for a long time. He was more like a soccer goalie on that save." The Flyers needed only 1:26 into the game to score when Schenn tapped in a loose puck for his 13th goal of the season. The fast start was short-lived. Nashville scored the next two goals, erasing Philadelphias early momentum. Raffl whiffed as he tried to clear the puck, giving Gabriel Borque a look at the net. His shot was deflected by Nystrom for his seventh goal. The Flyers were then down two players after Kimmo Timonen was whistled for boarding and Giroux for tripping. The Predators failed to score on their 1:18 of a 5-on-3 advantage, but just as Girouxs penalty came off the clock, Legwand connected on a one-timer for a 2-1 lead. Weber assisted on the first two goals, exactly the kind of play the Flyers expected when they made him the monster offer. One of the worst teams in the league at protecting the puck, the Flyers had seven giveaways in the first period. "I thought we may have been sitting back a little too much," Schenn said. "Obviously, they are a very quick team who works hard. When you sit back theyre going to take it to you." Meszaros tied the game 2-all with 3.6 seconds left in the second period. NOTES: The Flyers have lost two straight at home after winning 10 straight at home. ... The Predators won in Philadelphia for the first time since 2006. ... Weber leads NHL defenceman with 12 goals. Mike Michalske Jersey . Patton told The Baltimore Sun that he took an Adderall pill four days before the season finished, trying to improve his short-term focus. "I took one because I was stupid," Patton told The Sun. Danny Vitale Jersey . With the win, the Marlies complete a three-game series sweep of the Admirals and move on to the second round of the Calder Cup playoffs. T.J. Brennan added an empty netter with less than 25 seconds remaining for his second of the playoffs. ST. LOUIS -- Down four regulars, the Milwaukee Brewers kept right on rolling. Lyle Overbay fouled off two bunt attempts, then singled in Khris Davis with the tiebreaking run and the Brewers beat the St. Louis Cardinals in extra innings for the second straight night, winning 5-4 in 11 innings Tuesday. "Were a team thats going to grind it out. We dont give in, we dont give up at-bats," said Milwaukee starter Kyle Lohse, a former Cardinal. "I dont really look at the big picture. Were just trying to win as many games, rack up the wins and keep piling them on." Davis hit a go-ahead triple to help the Brewers win 5-3 in 12 innings Monday night and started the winning rally this time with a leadoff double against Kevin Siegrist (0-1). "With two strikes, obviously Im just trying to get him over to third base any way I can," said Overbay, who is 10 for 19 during an eight-game hitting streak. "That was a mistake, finally. The pitch that I hit up the middle, I dont know what he was trying to do with it." Milwaukee is a major league-best 20-7, two more victories than the previous franchise best for the opening month, and 11-1 on the road. Milwaukees lineup featured light-swinging Scooter Gennett batting third. Ryan Braun and Jean Segura didnt start for the third straight game, Aramis Ramirez had a swollen elbow from getting hit by a pitch, and catcher Jonathan Lucroy got a scheduled day off that manager Ron Roenicke elected not to reschedule. The Brewers makeshift lineup managed just enough offence to beat the Cardinals again. "Were playing great and well enjoy it as long as we can, but its not going to last the whole season," Roenicke said. "But again, were doing things right." Carlos Gomez homered and Lohse had a two-run single for the Brewers, who have won five of six. Tyler Thornburg (3-0) struck out four in two scoreless innings and Francisco Rodriguez finished for his 13th save in 13 chances. Yadier Molina hit a three-run homer in the first and Allen Craigs RBI triple tied it in the seventh for the Cardinals, who have lost tthree of four. Brett Favre Jersey . "Its April," said Matt Adams, who opened with two hits but struck out his last three trips. "Were not happy that were not winning right now but were going to continue to show up every day ready to compete. "Things are going to turn around in our favour." The Brewers are 4-1 in extra innings and the Cardinals are 0-3. St. Louis 3-0 in both games in this series. "Not as good as I should have been, plain and simple," Cardinals starter Lance Lynn said. "You get three runs in the first, you win that game." Molina had been 1 for 13 with runners and scoring position and two outs before depositing a belt-high 1-1 fastball into the first row of seats in left-centre. It was the first homer off Lohse since he gave up two in his first start of the season, and Molinas fourth overall. Lohse followed with five scoreless innings and matched his season best with nine strikeouts, plus a two-run single to cap a three-run fourth against Lance Lynn to tie it. "I fouled off a couple below the label and I think the one I hit was below the label as well," Lohse said. "He kept coming with fastballs, kind of did me a favour." Gomez homered in the seventh against Tyler Lyons, in his second inning of relief. Lyons had been listed as the starter Friday at Chicago against the Cubs, but the Cardinals have a day off Thursday and could use ace Adam Wainwright on regular rest. NOTES: Shelby Miller is 4-0 with a 1.95 ERA in six career starts against the Brewers entering the series finale. Milwaukee starter Matt Garza (1-2, 4.09 ERA) is 0-1 with an 8.31 ERA in three starts in St. Louis. ... Two rehabbing Cardinals pitchers, Jaime Garcia and Jason Motte, are getting closer to returning. Garcia (shoulder surgery) is scheduled to make his first start Sunday for Double-A Springfield and the team said Motte (elbow) is likely to join that team this weekend. ... Segura pinch-hit in the ninth and was thrown out trying for a bunt hit. ... The Brewers are 36-36 at 9-year-old Busch Stadium, one of only three NL teams that are .500 or better. ' ' '

NASHVILLE, Tenn. Vans Toy Story Sale . - James Neal had to be patient while waiting for his name to be called in the shootout. Then he made his opportunity count.Neal scored the only goal of the six-round tiebreaker to give the Nashville Predators a 4-3 win over the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday night.Craig Smith, Ryan Ellis and Eric Nystrom scored in regulation for Nashville, winners of four of five. In the shootout, Neal beat Martin Jones with a wrist shot between the pads.You just see what the goalie is doing and what the guys are doing with their first few shooters, what their moves are, Neal said. I think a lot of guys have a couple moves that they like to go to. For me, I go in and I think I know what I am going to do before I shoot.Entering Tuesday, Jones was 12 for 12 in the shootout in his career. Los Angeles shooters are 2-14 in shootouts this season.It was a hard-fought point, Los Angeles coach Darryl Sutter said. Weve got to start scoring some shootout goals. It cost us on the road.Pekka Rinne made 18 saves in regulation and overtime, and then denied all six Kings shooters in the tiebreaker.Not my strongest game, but we got the win eventually and thats all that matters, Rinne said. You try to give your team a chance to win in the shootout.Nashvilles last two victories have come in shootouts.We knew it was going to be difficult to generate scoring chances, but yet I felt like we were able to do that pretty consistently, Nashville coach Peter Laviolette said. They got opportunities, and when they did, they certainly made the most of them.Jamie McBain, Marian Gaborik, and Drew Doughty scored for Los Angeles, which has lost two straight.Trailing by a goal late in the second, Nashville took the lead after Ellis and Nystrom scored 52 seconds apart.Ellis scored at 17:36 on a one-timer from above the right circle. Nystrom followed at 18:28 when he tipped Taylor Becks spinning shot from the right dot past Jones.Doughty converted after an end-to-end rush at 38 seconds of the third to tie it 3-3.They were playing a 1-1-3 in their neutral zone, which gives you a lot of room to skate, Doughty said. I saw it through the first two periods, that if I had a good opportunity and some speed, I could probably get through the neutral zone and get to the offensive zone and make a play from there.Smith gave Nashville a 1-0 lead at 6:24 of the first period.In the neutral zone, Colin Wilson found Smith in full stride on the right side. On the break, Smith moved toward the low slot, where he beat Jones between the pads with a quick wrist shot.The Kings tied it at 11:32 of the first after Justin Williams shot from the slot hit McBains skate and beat the outstretched left pad of Rinne.Gaborik gave the Kings a 2-1 lead at 1:01 of the second.From inside his blue line, Jeff Carter lifted a pass into the Nashville zone. Gaborik outraced Ellis to the puck and beat Rinne.NOTES: Nashville D Shea Weber recorded his 223rd career assist. He is the franchise leader among defencemen. ... Gaborik has 29 points in 30 career games against Nashville. ... The Predators were 0-4 on the power play, falling to 1-32 at home this season. Nashville is 3-1 in shootouts this season. Vans Sale Store . - The Mavericks built a 12-point lead with 2:50 to play, gave away all but two points of it, and still managed to hang on. Vans Shoes Wholesale Store . The rest of the team was already on the field stretching before batting practice while Puig was getting dressed in the clubhouse. He had been slated to start in right field for the afternoon game against the San Francisco Giants, who beat the Dodgers 8-4.SAO PAULO, Brazil -- Former Germany great Franz Beckenbauer was banned from football for 90 days by FIFA on Friday for not co-operating with an investigation into the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bids. FIFA said the suspension was requested by ethics prosecutor Michael Garcia, making Beckenbauer the first person to be punished as a result of the case. Beckenbauer refused "repeated requests for his assistance, including requests that he provide information during an in-person interview or in response to written questions provided in both English and German," FIFA said in a statement. It was unclear whether the FIFA suspension would prevent Beckenbauer -- who won the World Cup as both a player and coach -- from attending the tournament in Brazil. FIFA suspensions relating to "any football-related activity, at any level" typically include attending matches and meeting other football officials. Beckenbauer was a voting member of FIFAs executive committee in December 2010 when it chose Qatar, and Russia as 2018 World Cup host. He said last week that he rejected two attempts by Garcia to speak with him, claiming he was no longer active in football. Beckenbauer still holds top-level positions in world football, after serving on FIFAs board from 2007-11. He joined after leading Germanys organization of the 2006 World Cup. He is an adviser to FIFAs football committee and a global ambassador for German champion Bayern Munich. Garcia, a former U.S. Attorney haas said that next month he will deliver a dossier on the World Cup case, which FIFA critics hope will order a redo of the votes. Vans Sk8 Low Sale . Beckenbauer was named in reports this past weekend by The Sunday Times, which has alleged widespread corruption linked to Qatari official Mohamed bin Hammam and the 2022 bidding campaign. The newspaper said Beckenbauer took paid consultancies in 2011 with German firms seeking contracts for World Cup related projects in the gas-rich emirate. Like most FIFA board members, Beckenbauer has not publicly revealed who he voted for. Qatar defeated the United States 14-8 in the fourth round of voting, FIFA President Sepp Blatter has previously said German and French business and political interests influenced the FIFA vote. FIFA said its independent ethics judge, Munich-based Joachim Eckert, was not involved in the decision to suspend Beckenbauer, who faces further sanctions. "The case is now the subject of formal investigation proceedings being conducted by investigatory chamber member Vanessa Allard as chief of the investigation," FIFA said. Garcia could still seek to interview Beckenbauer, though he closed the investigation phase of his probe on Monday. On Wednesday, Garcia addressed FIFAs 209 member countries in Sao Paulo and stressed that football officials are obligated to co-operate with his work. "And it makes real penalties available to all those who fail," the American lawyer said then. ' ' '