Mickey Wright, who won 13 majors among her 82 victories and gave the fledgling LPGA a crucial lift, died Monday of a heart attack in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. She was 85.
Wright joined the LPGA in 1955, and her 82 wins place her second on the all-time list behind Kathy Whitworth, who won 88 times. The Associated Press named Wright the Female Golfer of the Century, and a Golf Magazine poll of golf pros in 2009 indicated her as the best female golfer in history.
Among her major wins were four U.S. Opens and four LPGA Championships. Wright's record in Minnesota includes third place in the 1966 U.S. Women's Open at Hazeltine, won by Sandra Spuzich, and top-10 finishes in all four American Women's Opens, 1958-61 at Brookview and Hiawatha. She tied for third in the 1977 Patty Berg Golf Classic at Keller.
NBA
All-Star ratings rise
Ratings for the NBA All-Star Game were up 8% over last year, with an average of 7.3 million viewers watching Sunday night's broadcast on TNT.
About 8 million viewers were tuned in for the end of the game, when LeBron James' team defeated Giannis Antetokounmpo's team 157-155.
Pregame coverage, which included tributes to Kobe Bryant, averaged 6.3 million viewers, up 19%.
Around the horn
College baseball: After a 3-1 weekend, Michigan took the top ranking in the Baseball America Top 25 for the first time in the publication's 40-year history. It's also the first time a Big Ten team reached No. 1. Michigan was No. 8 in preseason rankings.
MLS: DC United midfielder Paul Arriola has an injury to his right knee that he said "will take months to recover from." Arriola, a midfielder who has been a regular starter for the U.S. national team, was injured in an exhibition game Saturday.
