Golf is still far from popular; high cost limits its practice.

▲ Bryson shot -13 yesterday and is aiming to win the LIV Golf Mexico at the Chapultepec Club this Sunday. AP Photo

Adriana Díaz Reyes

La Jornada Newspaper, Sunday, April 27, 2025, p. a11

Although golf has been played in Mexico and Latin America since the late 19th century, its professional level remains accessible only to a select segment of the population.

Although the city government is pursuing a popularization strategy through free schools and classes, combining it with other disciplines such as soccer, baseball, or boxing seems like a task that will take more than one administration.

“It’s not just about the classes; to be a golfer, you have to take into account other factors, such as acquiring the necessary tools like shoes, balls (from 200 to 1,000 pesos each), clubs (from 3,000 to 35,000 pesos), and a caddie , and none of them are very cheap,” shares Jorge, who attends the LIV Golf México tournament held at the Chapultepec Club with his family.

Although golf in our country generates revenues of more than 20 billion pesos a year, it still remains on the margins of popular interest, also due to the high cost of tickets to tournaments hosted by Mexico.

At the 54th Chapultepec Stadium, for example, the cheapest ticket costs over a thousand pesos, and the most expensive, half a million.

Additionally, you have to add about 700 pesos a day for food per person and about two thousand pesos for official merchandise. Golf isn't a very accessible sport yet, but hopefully it will be soon , Jorge added.

DeChambeau remains the leader

American Bryson DeChambeau maintained his lead in the second round of the LIV Golf Mexico after posting a score of -13.

Although he had some problems on the 5th hole, the two-time Masters champion was able to recover and maintain his lead over Cameron Smith, who finished second and was now one stroke behind (-12) the leader.

I had the same problem as yesterday, but I managed to recover. I tried to feel more comfortable on the course and enjoy myself instead of putting pressure on myself, and I think it worked. The lead is minimal, so I have to play much better tomorrow (today) , said the player, who holed an eagle, six birdies , and three bogeys .

Latin America raised its hand on the second day of activities, with Chile's Joaquín Nieman in third place at -10.

“I've had some good weeks on the greens because they're a bit tricky. The whole course slopes in one direction and the greens in another. It's a bit tricky, but I feel like I'm getting used to it,” the Andean commented.

Mexican Carlos Ortiz is in eighth place at -6, while fellow host Abraham Ancer handled the altitude a little better and climbed to 30th.

It would be incredible to win at home in front of my fans after so long without playing here. I feel good after two rounds, but I haven't played well enough to get any closer to the leaders , Ortiz said.

Spaniard Jon Rahm and Englishman Tyrell Hatton are close behind the leaders, with scores at -9 and -8, respectively, and are in contention for the Mexican championship.

In the team tournament, Ripper GC remains in the lead with -24 in its accumulated after two days, followed by Crushers GC with two less strokes and a Torque GC combination of all Latin players (Niemann and Ortiz among them), who with an overall -19 will seek victory this Sunday before the Mexican public.

AFP

La Jornada Newspaper, Sunday, April 27, 2025, p. a11

Miami. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 38 points to help the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Memphis Grizzlies 117-115 yesterday, securing a 4-0 sweep and becoming the first team to advance to the NBA Western Conference semifinals.

The Grizzlies, who were without Ja Morant due to a hip injury last game, faced a nearly impossible task against the powerful Oklahoma team, as no team has ever recovered from a 3-0 deficit in the NBA playoffs .

In the next round, the Thunder will face the winner of the series between the Denver Nuggets and the Los Angeles Clippers. The former tied the series at 2-2 with a 101-99 victory.

Memphis trailed by 12 points with three and a half minutes remaining when they made one last push with a 10-0 run, before Oklahoma City sealed the victory from the free throw line.

For the Grizzlies, Scotty Pippen Jr. again filled in for Morant with 30 points and 11 rebounds, while Desmond Bane and Santi Aldama each added 23 points. However, Gilgeous-Alexander, a finalist for the MVP award, finished with a fabulous 38 points, shooting 54 percent from the field, 5 rebounds, and 6 assists. Forward Jalen Williams followed with 23 points.

Jáquez played only 5 minutes

Meanwhile, the Cavaliers, the top team in the East, defeated the Miami Heat 124-87 in Game 3 of the series, with Mexican Jaime Jázque playing only five minutes. With this result, Cleveland will have its first chance to advance in Game 4 of the series next Monday.

Jáquez played in the final minutes of the match, but couldn't do much, and now his team has the difficult task of winning, even if it's just their fourth match.

Ty Jerome (Cleveland) scored 13 points and also dished out 11 assists, a record for a Cavaliers reserve in the playoffs .

▲ After suffering his third straight defeat, world number five Novak Djokovic admitted he was facing a new reality after two decades as a professional tennis player. His public admission of his unusual slump came after falling 3-6, 4-6 to Italy's Matteo Arnaldi in his Madrid Masters debut. "I'm looking to win a match or two, without thinking about going far in tournaments. It's a completely different feeling than I've had for more than 20 years on tour. I guess it's just the cycle of life. It was bound to happen at some point ," reflected the 37-year-old Serb, who is chasing his 100th title. Photo by AFP with information from AP

La Jornada Newspaper, Sunday, April 27, 2025, p. a11