ORLANDO, Florida (Reuters) – Bill Haas and Justin Rose shared the second-round lead at the Arnold Palmer Invitational on Friday while Tiger Woods’s bid for an eighth Bay Hill triumph took a hit when he bogeyed the final three holes.

Among the first onto the course, Haas set the early target with a bogey-free six-under 66 that no one could match, sending the American to the top the leaderboard where he was joined much later in the day by the British world number five.

ORLANDO, Florida, March 22 (Reuters) – Already a global sport, golf’s future lies in the growth of the international game and a return to the Olympics, seven-times major winner Arnold Palmer said on Friday.

After 112 years, golf will return to the Olympic program at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Summer Games, making it the sport’s most significant event after the four major championships.

ORLANDO, Florida, March 21 (Reuters) – Briton Justin Rose returned a seven-under 65 to grab the first-round lead at the Arnold Palmer Invitational on Thursday, while Tiger Woods got his bid for an eighth Bay Hill title off to a solid start.

Helped by a red-hot putter, Rose outshone playing partners Woods and South African Ernie Els by mixing an eagle and six birdies with a single bogey on a sunny but chilly and blustery day at “Arnie’s place.”

ORLANDO, Florida (Reuters) – With seven wins, Tiger Woods may own the Arnold Palmer Invitational and Bay Hill may be “Arnie’s Place” but this is Justin Rose’s home and the Briton showed as much by grabbing the first round lead on Thursday.

Rose, who makes his U.S. residence in Orlando and lives a few minutes away from Bay Hill, looked as comfortable as if he was entertaining guests in his own living room, outshining his illustrious playing partners Woods and South African Ernie Els.

ORLANDO, Florida (Reuters) – Briton Justin Rose returned a seven-under 65 to grab the first-round clubhouse lead at the Arnold Palmer Invitational on Thursday, while Tiger Woods got his bid for an eighth Bay Hill title off to a solid start.

Rose outshone playing partners Woods and South African Ernie Els by mixing an eagle and six birdies with a single bogey on a sunny but chilly and blustery day at “Arnie’s place.”

ORLANDO, Florida (Reuters) – Rory McIlroy’s decision to skip the Arnold Palmer Invitational surprised the tournament host, who expressed his disappointment on Wednesday that the world number one was not at Bay Hill this week.

The 83-year-old Palmer said he had jokingly suggested he might break McIlroy’s arm if he did not show up but did not try to force the young Northern Irishman into making an appearance.

ORLANDO, Florida (Reuters) – With two wins in his last four starts Tiger Woods appears to have found his groove, found a new girlfriend and by the end of the week could find himself back at the top of the world golf rankings.

Certainly Woods heads into Thursday’s start of the Arnold Palmer Invitational with a little extra-spring to his step, fresh off a victory at the WGC-Cadillac championship and playing on a Bay Hill layout that has been a happy hunting ground for the 14-times major winner.

LONDON, Ontario (Reuters) – With figure skating on the decline in North America it was hoped that the return of charismatic South Korean skate queen Kim Yuna to this week’s world championships would give the sport a badly-needed jolt.

But any boost her comeback gives the sport will be ephemeral with the Olympic champion set to hang up her blades after she defends her gold medal at next year’s Winter Olympics in Sochi.

LONDON, Ontario (Reuters) – The figure skating world championships closed on Sunday as they almost always do with a glitzy gala, arguments and controversy.

With a scoring system that is harder to understand than the theory of relativity and offers about as much transparency as a Papal conclave, figure skating still struggles to connect with the average fan, particularly in North America where their numbers are on the decline.

LONDON, Ontario (Reuters) – South Korean Kim Yuna capped her comeback season with a magical victory at the world figure skating championships on Saturday, serving notice that the Queen is back.

Queen Yuna, as Kim is known to her legions of fans around the globe, delivered a regal performance that sent a clear warning to any skater with aspirations of replacing her as Olympic champion next year – be ready for a fight.