Sports
Journeyman Brian Campbell stuns even himself with first PGA Tour win: ‘I’m freaking out’
Brian Campbell came out on top at the Mexico Open on Sunday night as viewers were treated to some sudden-death playoff chaos between two antithetical player profiles: Campbell, a journeyman and one of the shortest hitters on the PGA Tour, and Aldrich Potgieter, the 20-year-old South African prodigy who currently leads the tour in driving distance.
Campbell defeated Potgieter after two playoff holes, marking his first PGA Tour win in just 28 starts. The Mexico Open field included just two players ranked in the top 40 in the Official World Golf Rankings, but the 31-year-old Campbell will earn a trip to Augusta National for his first Masters with the victory. He also claimed a spot in the Players Championship, the PGA Championship and five of the remaining signature events on tour.
Ten years of chugging along and 159 starts on the Korn Ferry Tour without a victory defined Campbell’s path to this win at the Vidanta Vallarta Course in Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico. The University of Illinois alum first graduated from the Korn Ferry Tour in 2016 but was quickly relegated after missing 13 of 20 cuts. He finally found a groove last season in the minor leagues, finishing seventh in the KFT’s points ranking to earn his tour card again. Three starts later he played his way into the winner’s circle. It didn’t happen without a few hiccups along the way.
“I’m literally freaking out on the inside, I have no idea what’s going on,” Campbell said to the Golf Channel following the conclusion of the playoff. “To be in this position is just so unreal.”
Potgieter began Sunday’s final round with a one-stroke cushion over Campbell after firing a second-round 61 and a third-round 67 to tie the 54-hole scoring record at the event. Potgieter is only 10 starts into his PGA Tour career, but he is no stranger to competing and winning on the game’s biggest stages. Potgieter’s amateur résumé includes the Amateur Championship, where he became the youngest champion in the event’s history at age 17. With only 12 measured drives thus far on the PGA Tour, Potgieter has emerged as the longest hitter on tour, surpassing Rory McIlroy with an average of 328.7 yards off the tee.
The Vidanta Vallarta Course this week fit Potgieter’s game perfectly, allowing him to use his length off the tee to its full potential, as offline drives are not particularly penal on the Greg Norman design. However, it became apparent that the bombs-away game plan wasn’t the only way to attack the course, as Campbell continued to hang around the top of the leaderboard. On Sunday, NBC commentators compared Campbell’s ball speed to that of a senior tour player. He ranks last according to the tour’s driving distance statistics — 182 out of 182.
“He’s playing a different course than we are,” Campbell said of Potgieter’s game. “It’s been honestly fun to watch.”
Neither Campbell nor Potgieter had their best on Sunday, but both plugged away. Potgieter struggled out of the gates while Campbell floated around even par. The pair finished regulation play tied at 20-under, surpassing Isaiah Salinda’s clubhouse lead at 19-under.
The power of sudden-death pressure was on full display as both players hit multiple wayward shots en route to the final result. On the second playoff hole, Campbell’s drive was headed well beyond the out-of-bounds fence when it ricocheted off a tree and back into play. Potgieter then stood with an approach shot nearly 100 yards shorter than Campbell’s.
Instead of capitalizing on the opportunity, Potgieter’s attempt to reach the par-5 18th hole in two left him short of the green, in a bunker. He failed to get up and down, while Campbell made a birdie with a short wedge in his hands after laying up. After nearly handing the tournament to his opponent off the tee, Campbell couldn’t believe the outcome.
“That bounce? I mean, I’ll take it,” Campbell said. “Got ourselves back in position, gave ourselves a chance and it paid off.”
Required reading
(Photo: Hector Vivas / Getty Images)
Sports
New York Attorney General Letitia James joins FIFA investigation into possible ticket price gauging
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New York Attorney General Letitia James has joined New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport to launch an investigation into FIFA’s high World Cup ticket prices on Wednesday, the New York Post reports.
Officials say the steep prices have sparked a “gauntlet of confusion, fake scarcity, and impossibly high prices,” ahead of the soccer tournament next month.
FIFA FACES LAWSUIT OVER PLAN TO BAN IRAN’S PRE-REVOLUTION ‘LION AND SUN’ FLAG AT 2026 WORLD CUP STADIUMS
New York Attorney General Letitia James stands silently during a press conference at the office of the Attorney General in New York City on Dec. 15, 2025. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
Both James and Davenport announced the joint probe — which includes subpoenas sent to FIFA by the two attorneys general — to focus on the myriad issues that stem from the soccer federation’s ticket sales for the tournament, including reports that fans were being misled about where their seats were located in addition to the exorbitantly high prices.
“Being honest about ticket sales is not complicated. But FIFA has turned buying a ticket to the World Cup into a gauntlet of confusion, fake scarcity, and impossibly high prices — all at the expense of consumers and hardworking New Jerseyans,” AG Davenport said in a statement.
ZERO BS. JUST DAKICH. TAKE THE DON’T @ ME PODCAST ON THE ROAD. DOWNLOAD NOW!
The FIFA World Cup 2026 winner trophy is displayed at FIFA headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland, as the draw for the 2026 World Cup European qualifiers begins on Dec. 13, 2024. (Dursun Aydemir/Anadolu)
The joint probe from both states makes sense when considering a number of World Cup games, including the final on July 19, are being played at nearby MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Sky-high ticket prices for the World Cup seem to be a bipartisan issue, as this probe comes in the wake of President Donald Trump also making disparaging comments regarding the high prices earlier this month, which were routinely rumored to be north of $1,000.
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President Donald Trump dances at the end of the draw for the 2026 soccer World Cup at the Kennedy Center in Washington on Dec. 5, 2025. (Mandel Ngan/Pool Photo via AP)
“I did not know that number,” President Trump said, “I would certainly like to be there, but I wouldn’t pay it either, to be honest with you.”
The 2026 World Cup kicks off on June 11 between Mexico and South Africa.
Look, up in the stands — it’s J.K. Simmons and your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man!
The Academy Award-winning actor, who portrayed Daily Bugle chief J. Jonah Jameson in director Sam Raimi’s “Spider-Man” trilogy, was reunited with his onscreen nemesis at the New York Mets game Tuesday.
After a clip from “Spider-Man” was shown on the stadium screen at Citi Field during the Mets game against the Cincinnati Reds, the camera cut to Simmons in the stands. In the row behind him was Jameson’s favorite masked menace, reading a copy of the Daily Bugle.
The “Whiplash” actor played along with the bit, turning around to face Spider-Man and waving his arms to express his displeasure. Channeling his inner Jameson, a spirited Simmons then motioned for Spider-Man to get tossed from the game. Photos and videos of the moment have been shared across social media.
(A devoted Detroit Tigers fan, Simmons repped his favorite team under the Mets jersey he wore at the game.)
After playing Jameson in Raimi’s “Spider-Man” trilogy that wrapped in 2007, Simmons returned to the role for a mid-credits cameo in the 2019 film “Spider-Man: Far From Home” when the vocal Spider-Man critic revealed the hero’s identity to the world. Simmons’ incarnation of the character has since appeared in “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” (2021), “Spider-Man: No Way Home” (2021) and “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” (2023).
The next installment of the webslinging superhero’s adventures is “Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” which hits theaters July 31. Simmons’ involvement has not officially been confirmed.
Sports
Thunder push Spurs to brink with dominant Game 5 win as Wembanyama posts series-low 20 points
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The Oklahoma City Thunder are just one win away from a second consecutive NBA Finals berth. The Western Conference Finals shifted back to Oklahoma City on Tuesday night, with the defending league champions pulling away in the second half for a 127-114 victory in Game 5.
The reigning two-time NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 32 points and nine assists Tuesday night.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder watches during the fourth quarter of Game Five against the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Western Conference Finals at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on May 26, 2026. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Stephon Castle led the Spurs with 24 points and five rebounds, while Victor Wembanyama finished with a series-low 20 points.
Entering Tuesday, the Spurs appeared to follow a relatively simple formula for success in the Western Conference Finals: When Wembanyama was the best player on the floor, they won. When he wasn’t, they lost.
San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama looks on during the Western Conference Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Wembanyama, who delivered 41- and 33-point performances in the Spurs’ two wins earlier in the series, never appeared to fully find his rhythm in Game 5. He was 4 for 15 from the floor, missing all five of his 3-point attempts.
He offered an impassioned speech to teammates during a timeout barely two minutes into the third quarter, after the Thunder opened an 18-point lead. And it worked — to a point. Oklahoma City scored again to get the lead up to 20, but the Spurs closed within eight later in the third.
Elsewhere, the New York Knicks will have to wait until at least Thursday to find out which team emerges from the Western Conference.
Jared McCain of the Oklahoma City Thunder celebrates during the fourth quarter of Game Five against the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Western Conference Finals at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma on May 26, 2026. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Even before Game 5 of the Spurs-Thunder series tipped off, San Antonio coach Mitch Johnson was asked about Knicks fans in Manhattan chanting, “We want Wemby! We want Wemby!”
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“I know New York’s on fire. They won so that city is obviously enjoying it and they’ve had a heck of a playoff run,” Johnson said. “But unfortunately, I’ve been pretty locked-into what we’ve got going right here in front of us.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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