How many top strikers would pass up the chance of a hat-trick so a man who might end up taking their place could get a goal?

Tommy Fleetwood admitted he had been determined to retain his hunger after successfully defending the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.

"It was another great round and another really good confidence builder - not just for this week but for the rest of the season, as well."

You have to go back 123 years to the last time a team started the season with 29 goals from their opening eight top-flight games.

Manchester United return to the Champions League fray tomorrow with their aura of invincibility ever so slightly dented.

Rory McIlroy started his final round in the WGC Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone, Akron, Ohio, with three birdies in six holes to get within a stroke of the lead only to fade disappointingly around the turn and fail to put in a serious challenge over the closing holes.

Jimmy Walker fired a second round 65 to move to the top of the leaderboard in the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational in Akron.

Rory McIlroy shrugged off a closing three-putt bogey and declared his opening 67 in the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational with new bagman Harry Diamond as the start of a new chapter in his career.

Ernie Els believes he got two major decisions right after calling a penalty on himself in the first round of the BMW PGA Championship.

So emphatic, so mesmeric at times, was the quality of this Arsenal win that it was difficult to know whether to be hypnotised by its quality or outraged that a group of players who chronically underachieved for long periods of this campaign should finally hit peak form when it may be too late for Arsene Wenger and Arsenal’s season.

Sport can be cruel, but in Garcia golf has another worthy champion who finally determined his own destiny, writes John McHenry.

Stoke City 1 Liverpool 2: Liverpool’s Champions League challenge is taking their players to their absolute limits — but manager Jurgen Klopp admitted he played his ‘get out of jail’ card at Stoke City.

World number one Dustin Johnson has withdrawn from the Masters after injuring his back in a fall on Wednesday.

If ever a performance encapsulated champions it was this one. Gritty, dogged, clinical - Chelsea are cantering towards the Premier League title at a similar pace to one of Antonio Conte’s frenetic touchline bursts.

Man City 0 - Stoke 0: Stoke frustrated Manchester City as they held out for a goalless draw in their rearranged Premier League clash at the Etihad Stadium.

Pádraig Harrington admits he may need to undergo surgery on a troublesome shoulder injury to ensure he gets back to fitness in time for the Irish Open and the Open at Royal Birkdale.

Now that the dust has settled on the Christmas fixture schedule, it’s time for Fantasy League managers to catch our breath and take a look at the lessons we’ve learned so far.

Chelsea 4 Stoke City 2

Stoke 3 Swansea City 1: Stoke striker Wilfried Bony ended his 310-day goal drought with a brace to haunt old club Swansea.

Lee Westwood feels he let down European captain Darren Clarke after failing to win a point in the Ryder Cup.

Outgoing captain Darren Clarke has urged the European Tour not to follow the Americans and make sweeping changes to their Ryder Cup system in the wake of his team’s defeat at Hazeltine National.

If you were only interested in the final outcome of the Ryder Cup, then this one was pretty much decided as early as last Friday morning once Europe lost the opening series of foursomes to the USA 4-0.

Rory McIlroy said he needed a paracetamol after a raucous Saturday’s play in the cauldron that was Hazeltine National but you got the feeling that Darren Clarke had the bigger headache because of his underperforming captain’s picks.

The USA are ahead by three going into the final day.

Rory McIlroy felt he and Thomas Pieters won their battle with the crowd on the second morning of the Ryder Cup at Hazeltine.

Sergio Garcia and Rafa Cabrera Bello gave Europe the perfect Ryder Cup boost going into Saturday's afternoon fourballs as they fought back to square their foursomes match with American stars Jordan Spieth and Patrick Reed.

The United States lead Europe 6 1/2 to 5 1/2 after the morning foursomes on day two of the Ryder Cup.

European captain Darren Clarke turned to Plan B as day two of the 41st Ryder Cup got off to an electrifying start at Hazeltine.

Maybe we have been spoiled by recent European domination but lest we forget, there was a time when Americans made a habit of bullying their way to Ryder Cup success.

The pressure mounts when you’re a wild card selection and have the added stress of feeling the need to justify your place in a Ryder Cup.

Such is the enormity of the occasion that for a number of weeks now Darren Clarke would have been silently praying he would only have to play two rookies in the opening foursomes series of matches in the 41st Ryder Cup.

Ryder Cup captains Darren Clarke and Davis Love have backed their two top partnerships to get their sides off to a good start at Hazeltine National on Friday.

John McHenry dissects the pick of the Ryder Cup rookies.

There will have been no tears from Shane Lowry as confirmation came that Darren Clarke would not be making him one of his captain’s picks for Hazeltine next month.

European captain Darren Clarke faces some tough phone calls over the next 24 hours after Belgian Thomas Pieters spectacularly birdied the last three holes to win the weather-delayed Made in Denmark and stake his claim to one of three Ryder Cup wildcards.

Shane Lowry showed Darren Clarke that he won’t give up on his Ryder Cup dream without a fight when he followed his opening 75 with a sensational six under 65 to make the cut in the Made in Denmark.