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LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Barely able to tie his shoes three days ago, Tiger Woods is ready to tee it up in the PGA Championship. Woods caused the biggest sensation of the week Wednesday afternoon simply by driving his silver SUV into the parking lot at Valhalla. He has never arrived so late for a major championship and had so little time to prepare -- just nine holes at Valhalla, which he had not seen since winning the PGA Championship in 2000. But at least hes playing. That much was in doubt Sunday when he withdrew from the final round of the Bridgestone Invitational because of back pain that made it a chore to switch out of his golf shoes. Woods said he suffered a pinched nerve, but that it was not at all related to back surgery he had March 31 that kept him out of golf for three months. He said his trainer adjusted the area above the sacrum. "Once he put it back in, the spasms went away," he said. "And from there, I started getting some range of motion." The latest injury occurred when Woods tried to play a shot from just above a deep bunker on the second hole at Firestone, and his momentum caused him to land hard in the sand. He kept playing, and hit some horrific shots before deciding to withdraw after a tee shot on the ninth hole. That was only his third tournament since his return from surgery, leading to concern that he might be done for the year. "It was a different pain than what I had been experiencing," Woods said. "So I knew it wasnt the site of the surgery. It was different and obviously it just the sacrum." His arrival put some life into what had been an ordinary week. Dozens of cameras captured Woods putting on his shoes with ease at his car. He got a big cheer just walking onto the practice range and the crowd was six-deep down the first hole, about like it was for the Ryder Cup at Valhalla six years ago. In the nine holes he played with Steve Stricker, Davis Love III and Harris English, Woods looked the same as he did last week. He drilled his driver down the first fairway. He badly pulled his tee shot on the third hole. It was a mixture of good and bad, about what can be expected from someone who has played only nine rounds in the last five months. "Nothing great," Woods said. "Its only Wednesday." Woods tees off Thursday alongside Phil Mickelson and Padraig Harrington. He simply said, "Yes," when asked if he expected to win, which seemed to be a tall order considering his return from surgery. Woods missed the cut by four shots at the Quicken Loans National, had his worst 72-hole finish in a major at the British Open and was in the middle of the pack at Firestone when he withdrew. Barring a victory, this likely will be his last tournament for at least six weeks. Woods is not eligible for the FedEx Cup playoffs, and he hasnt given U.S. captain Tom Watson much reason to pick him for the Ryder Cup. Woods said he would have to "play well" to give reason for Watson to take him. "Thats the only thing I can control," Woods said. "Try to go out there and win this event. Thats all Im focused on." Watson has said he wanted Woods on the team if he was healthy and playing well. About the time Woods arrived at the course, Watson was successfully dodging questions about his chances of making the team. "Its speculation whats going to happen," Watson said. "I cant tell you whats going to happen with Tiger." The excitement over his arrival was sure to be tempered by the reality of the task ahead. Not only has Woods gone more than a year without winning -- and six years since he last won a major -- Rory McIlroy has replaced him as the overwhelming favourite. McIlroy went wire-to-wire at the British Open, then rallied from a three-shot deficit to win the World Golf Championship at Firestone. Sergio Garcia was a runner-up both times. Garcia, who went 0-3 playing in the final group with Woods at three majors, was asked about similarities between the two. "When they are both at their best, to me it seems like Rory is less afraid of hitting driver," he said. "And when hes hitting it as well as hes hitting it now, hes hitting it very far and quite straight. So its a little bit of an advantage at that point." Woods might have lost his advantage from being a past champion at Valhalla. He missed the Ryder Cup in 2008 while recovering from knee surgery, and course architect Jack Nicklaus has made plenty of changes, particularly on some of the greens. Woods spent much of his time chipping from collection areas that werent around 14 years ago. "Its a totally different golf course than what I played in 2000," he said. "The greens are all different. I have my book from 2000 -- its useless. Theres some new things that we have to learn out there." With that, he headed to the back nine to walk the remainder of the course with his putter. He had 15 hours before teeing off in the final major of the year. Royce Freeman Jersey . The triple gold medallist from the 2010 Paralympics tweeted on Tuesday: "Woke up with a virus yesterday. Timing couldnt be much worse. Not the ideal prep for the . Broncos Jerseys . -- Oakland Athletics third baseman Scott Sizemore has undergone surgery on his left knee to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament. http://www.thebroncosstoreonline.com/Youth-Jared-Veldheer-Broncos-Jerseys/ .Y. - Lou Williams scored 21 points and the Toronto Raptors beat New York 81-76 on Monday night in the Knicks preseason home opener. Case Keenum Jersey . The game got off to a less-than-ideal start for the Jets as Oliver Ekman-Larsson found a wide open net from the slot and opened the scoring for the Coyotes a lead in the first period, but Olli Jokinen answered back just over half a minute later. Marquette King Broncos Jersey . Louis Cardinals a hard-fought victory. The Colorado Rockies intentionally walked Yadier Molina with one out and runners on first and third to load the bases for Kozma. MULHOUSE, France -- On a day local Roman Catholics were celebrating the feast of Saint Anthony, two other Tonys had their own reason to celebrate in the Tour de France. Germanys Tony Martin took the stage win Sunday, and Frances Tony Gallopin took the yellow jersey during an up-and-down Stage 9 in the eastern Vosges mountains. Martin, a three-time world champion known more for time-trial dominance, showed that he could climb too; Italys Vincenzo Nibali, who has been wearing the leaders yellow jersey, didnt lay a hard enough chase of Gallopin to keep it. French media -- delighted to see the countrys first yellow jersey holder since Thomas Voeckler wore it in 2010 -- reveled in the fact that Gallopin will lead Frances most beloved race on the Bastille Day holiday Monday. The 29-year-old German, meanwhile, said his stage victory might have been an "omen" for Germanys World Cup ambitions against Argentina -- which it turned out to be. Gallopin, of the Lotto Belisol team, said hed been plotting a move for the yellow jersey since Stage 5 -- when he positioned himself for a challenge because Nibali was unlikely to want to hold it all the way to Paris on July 27, when the race ends. Its a lot of pressure to try to carry the leaders shirt so long, through the Alps and Pyrenees ahead. But Nibali knows that Gallopin is unlikely to make it up the big climbs ahead, and the Italian didnt lose any time against his biggest rivals -- highest among them, two-time Tour champion Alberto Contador. Gallopin, by finishing about 5 minutes ahead of Nibali, easily erased his deficit to the Italian and now leads him by 1:34. Portuguese rider Tiago Machado is third overall, 4:08 back. But, like Gallopin, he is not considered a Tour contender. "Its with great pride that I will ride on the national holiday day in the yellow jersey," said 26-year-old Gallopin, adding that he feared he may not keep it after an uphill finish at the super-steep Planche dees Belles Filles on Monday.dddddddddddd"Its a little bit scary, but I will enjoy the day." "It was always a dream of wearing the yellow jersey," said Gallopin, who finished 2:45 back of solo breakaway leader Martin. Contador finished safely in the main pack along with Nibali and is 4:08 back in ninth place overall. They will resume their contest in the toughest stage so far -- Mondays 161.5-kilometre (100-mile) trek from Mulhouse to the famed La Planche des Belles Filles, featuring four steep Category 1 climbs. The pack takes its first rest day on Tuesday. "It was a tough day," Contador said, looking ahead to Monday. "Well have to decide whether or not we try to attack or ride defensively." The Tour paid tribute to those who died in the First World War -- 1914-18 -- by riding along the battlefields where millions died. Sundays route took the peloton past a landmark remembering the Battle du Linge in 1915, where some 17,000 French and German soldiers fell in three ferocious months of fighting. The groves and thickets in Le Linges mountainous pass helped mask lethal sections of barbed wire protecting tight German defensive lines. Shortly before the days most difficult climb -- a Category 1 ascent of 10.8 kilometres (6.7 miles) up Le Markstein -- Martin broke away, and Gallopins chasing group was about two minutes behind with Nibali more than six minutes adrift. Martin, some 18.5 minutes back, was no threat to Nibalis yellow jersey. Nibali lost more and more ground, and urged his Astana teammates to step up the pace as they reached the last of the climbs -- a short, sharp ascent up Grand Ballon. But they left themselves with far too much to do. Martin, who narrowly beat Tour champion Chris Froome in a time trial last year, continued to surge ahead, with tail winds making for a quick descent down to the finish. The departure of Froome in Stage 5 due to injury has blown the race wide open. 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