ht in the final rounds.Our priority over the coming weeks is to give both our boys the best possible chance of winning the remaining four races, Wolff said. The title is purely between them, which is fantastic news for

The UL International Crown played to a tight conclusion in a team format Sunday at the Merit Club in Gurnee, Illinois. With golfs return to the Olympic Games on the near horizon, the United States one-point victory over South Korea showed what will be lacking in Rio de Janeiro.Sure, golfers will be representing their country in Brazil as they did at the International Crown, which features eight four-woman teams playing three days of four-ball matches with five teams making it to a final day of singles. But it will be 72 holes of individual stroke play for men and women in South America, a format that, while common and understandable to casual fans, will lack the elements that energize competitors and spectators alike when it is team against team.I think for the Olympics its kind of all new to us, so whereas youre representing Team USA youre playing as individuals, Gerina Piller, who was part of the American victory and will compete in Rio, told reporters in Illinois. Its kind of hard to tell how thats going to be. I know that were probably going to be hanging out a lot together, and Im excited to just be part of Team USA, not just golf.Piller, Stacy Lewis and Lexi Thompson, the U.S. Olympic women golfers, were joined by Cristie Kerr at the International Crown, staging a scale-model comeback of the historic final-day rally they were part of at the 2015 Solheim Cup, when America made up a record deficit to defeat Europe.Through three days at the Merit Club, England was the surprise leader with nine points followed by South Korea (8), with the U.S. (7), Chinese Taipei (7) and Japan (4) completing the qualifiers for the last day. Just having an opportunity to win on Sunday was progress for the Americans compared to the inaugural International Crown in 2014 when they failed to advance out of pool play -- particularly after being shut out on Day 1 last week.We had zero points the first day, and we still ended up with the most, Lewis said of the 13-12 triumph over South Korea. Its just a testament to [my teammates] and their will to want to win this thing.Lewis set the mood for the Americans in singles, defeating Japans Mika Miyazato 3 and 2. Piller, Lewis partner in better-ball, then beat Yani Tseng of Chinese Taipei 4 and 3. After play was suspended for an hour because of a thunderstorm, Kerrs 3-and-2 victory over Englands Mel Reid secured the Crown title. Then Thompson lost 2-and-1 to So Yeon Ryu of Korea in a match that didnt affect the outcome.The victory could provide some confidence for the Americans, not only for the three who will compete in Rio but for all of them in this weeks Ricoh Womens British Open at Woburn Golf Club. U.S. players have won only two of 21 LPGA events in 2016 -- Thompson at the Honda LPGA Thailand and Brittany Lang at the U.S. Womens Open -- as the globalization of the womens game has been front and center.Lewis described the team victory as particularly satisfying in the context of constant scrutiny of why arent the Americans playing well, why arent they winning? The result could buoy her game as the 11-time career LPGA winner tries to break a two-year drought. Lewis was in a similar position after the 2015 Solheim Cup, when pairings with Piller seemed to awaken her game.Similarly, Kerr was a good influence paired with Thompson at the Merit Club. One of the best putters in womens golf, Kerr, 38, read putts for her partner 17 years her junior. Thompsons putting, the element that can hold her back, was torrid for a couple of days beside Kerr. In her singles match, Thompson missed two short putts on the front nine against Ryu, providing an opening for the talented Korean.How quickly things can change in the womens game showed in the makeup of the International Crown field compared to 2014. Defending champion Spain and Sweden didnt qualify -- the teams are determined by the combined Rolex Rankings of the top four players from each country -- and were replaced by China and England.Had England been able to hold on the lead after three days, it would have been a remarkable upset, particularly given that it narrowly lost a second-day four-ball match when Reid had to take on two opponents because partner Charley Hull was ill and unable to play. Thats the kind of twist that can occur when the format isnt that found week to week on tour.The same could be said of the drama in the playoff to determine the fifth team to make it the final day. Japans Ayaka Watanabe rolled in a 30-foot eagle putt on the first playoff hole to eliminate China and Thailand, Ariya Jutanugarn of Thailand lipping out a 15-footer that would have extended the playoff.After two stagings in the United States in 2018 the International Crown will be played at Jack Nicklaus Golf Club in Incheon, South Korea, site of the heavily attended 2015 Presidents Cup. For a country crazy about womens golf, whose players have made such an impact on the game in the last two decades, it will be a very big deal. As a home-field advantage, it will like Ohio State in the Shoe or Clemson in Death Valley. Flags will wave. Roars will reverberate.And it certainly wont be mistaken for just another tournament. Yeezy Boost 350 Günstig . Ouellette, from Montreal, already has three Olympic gold medals since joining the team in 1999. Yeezy Schweiz Bestellen . The judges scored it 48-47, 48-47, 49-46 for Jones (19-1). It was the champions closest call. Despite the loss, it was a remarkable show by the confident Swedish challenger, who had the best of the early rounds and then hung on in the fourth and fifth. http://www.yeezyschweizkaufen.com/yeezy-boost-schweiz-outlet/yeezy-boost-350.html . Jason Zucker and Matt Cooke also scored for Minnesota, which has won five of six. Kuemper made five saves in the first, nine in the second, and nine in the third. The rookies best save came with 2:17 left in the third period when he denied former Wild forward Matt Cullen from just outside of the crease on the right side. Yeezy Schweiz . - Connor McDavid scored 53 seconds into overtime as the Erie Otters came from behind to defeat the visiting Guelph Storm 4-3 on Saturday in Ontario Hockey League action. Adidas Lite Racer Kinder . The Americans, skipped by John Shuster, seized the advantage in the eighth end by scoring five points for a 7-3 lead. The Czechs pulled two back in the ninth, but Shusters team of third Jeff Isaacson, second Jared Zezel and lead John Landsteiner ended with another point to secure the last Olympic berth on offer. Toto Wolff admits the pressure is on Mercedes to ensure another car failure does not decide the 2016 drivers title fight between Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton.Rosberg leads Hamilton by 33 points with four races to go, a gap that was boosted by the latter suffering an engine blowup while leading the latter stages of the Malaysian Grand Prix. Even though Hamilton can win the next four races and still not claim the title, Mercedes boss Wolff is determined to see a straight fight in the final rounds.Our priority over the coming weeks is to give both our boys the best possible chance of winning the remaining four races, Wolff said. The title is purely between them, which is fantastic news for the team as we can be happy whatever the final outcome. However, the pressure is on to ensure that their battle is decided man-to-man, and hopefully wheeel-to-wheel, on the race track.ddddddddddddMercedes wrapped up a third straight constructors crown in Japan, continuing its incredible dominance of the V6 turbo era which started in 2014. Wolff insists the team cannot afford to dwell on its success with a big rule change on the horizon in 2017.We may already have celebrated our championship success as a team -- but we have a responsibility to the drivers and will not let anything distract us from the job at hand. Likewise, we have an entirely new challenge to prepare for in 2017.While we savour these moments, its going to be a long, hard winter ahead. There is much work to be done in the coming weeks and months - but also plenty of excitement on the way Im sure. ' ' '