Sports News Roundup: Golf-Norman says Saudi-backed circuit's prize money will attract top players; Motor racing-Nissan takes full control of e.dams Formula E team and more

The 20-times Grand Slam champion endured a tough start to the year as he was unable to defend his Australian Open title in January after being deported from the country for being unvaccinated against COVID-19. Shirley Spork, LPGA founding member, dies at 94 Shirley Spork, one of the 13 women who founded the LPGA, died Tuesday in her home in Palm Springs, Calif., the LPGA Tour said.

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Golf-Norman says Saudi-backed circuit's prize money will attract top players

Many of the world's top golfers have distanced themselves from the Saudi-backed LIV Golf Invitational Series but Greg Norman said the lure of the huge prize purses on offer will prove too hard to resist. The series released details of eight new tournaments in March, promising prize money of at least $250 million. The U.S.-based PGA Tour has told its, members, that they would be banned if they joined it.

Motor racing-Nissan takes full control of e.dams Formula E team

Nissan has taken full ownership of the French-based e.dams team in the Formula E championship, the Japanese manufacturer said on Tuesday. Nissan entered the all-electric series in 2018 in partnership with e.dams and last year confirmed its commitment to the next stage of the championship through to 2026.

Tennis-Nadal skips Barcelona Open, return date still uncertain

Rafa Nadal is still uncertain when he can return to competitive tennis after withdrawing from this month's ATP event in Barcelona as he recovers from a rib injury, his team told Reuters on Tuesday. The Spaniard, who has won 21 Grand Slam singles titles, was ruled out last month for up to six weeks with a stress fracture in his rib.

In Argentina, the mecca of polo, women swing mallets in first World Cup

Some of the world's top women polo players compete this week in Argentina in the sport's first-ever female World Cup, the culmination of years of the growing opportunity in a game known for its equestrian allure and high-society sensibilities. The woman's polo World Cup got underway last Saturday at the Cathedral stadium in the leafy Palermo neighborhood of Buenos Aires, the Argentine capital, and will conclude on April 16 after the week-long tournament. The competition features teams from the home country, the United States, Brazil, England, Italy, and Ireland.

Athletics-Boston to boost police presence at subways ahead of marathon

Boston officials will increase the number of police around subway stations ahead of Monday's Boston Marathon after a mass shooting in a New York subway but stressed there was no known threat to the race and voiced confidence in it going ahead. A gunman wearing a gas mask set off a smoke bomb and shot 10 people in a New York City subway car during Tuesday's morning commute, authorities said. None of the wounded had life-threatening injuries, they added, and a manhunt for the perpetrator was underway.

NBA-Brooklyn Nets coach Nash says subway attack hits close to home

Brooklyn Nets head coach Steve Nash called Tuesday's shooting on a subway train in Brooklyn "tragic and senseless" and said it hits close to home for the team, whose practice facility and offices are located close by. At least 17 people were injured when a gunman wearing a gas mask set off a smoke bomb and opened fire on the train. Police said the man, believed to have acted alone, fled the scene.

Tennis-Djokovic falls to Davidovich Fokina in Monte Carlo, Tsitsipas advances

World number one Novak Djokovic slumped to defeat in only his fourth match of the season, losing 6-3 6-7(5) 6-1 to unseeded Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the Monte Carlo Masters second round on Tuesday. The 20-times Grand Slam champion endured a tough start to the year as he was unable to defend his Australian Open title in January after being deported from the country for being unvaccinated against COVID-19.

Shirley Spork, LPGA founding member, dies at 94

Shirley Spork, one of the 13 women who founded the LPGA, died Tuesday in her home in Palm Springs, Calif., the LPGA Tour said. Spork was 94. Spork became a professional golfer while teaching at a Detroit public school in 1950. That year, she signed the original charter of the LPGA alongside women like Babe Didrikson Zaharias and Patty Berg. Marlene Hagge is now the only surviving founder.

Motor racing Ferrari's hopes run high after previous false starts

Ferrari fans know all about false dawns and dashed hopes but the first three races of the Formula One season have brought the good times back to Maranello and sent expectations soaring. Charles Leclerc, seeking to become the Italian team's first world champion since Kimi Raikkonen in 2007, has taken 71 of 78 points available from the opening races in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and Australia.

Tennis-Djokovic says he ran out of gas in Monte Carlo defeat

Novak Djokovic said he felt drained of energy towards the end of his loss to Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the second round of the Monte Carlo Masters on Tuesday, admitting that the defeat was almost inevitable going into the final set. Playing in his fourth match of the season after he was denied a chance to defend his Australian Open title in January due to being unvaccinated against COVID-19, Djokovic was broken nine times and made 51 unforced errors in a 6-3 6-7(5) 6-1 defeat by the Spaniard.