🗞️ Let Him Cook

⛳️ Australian PGA Championship Preview: The BMW Australian PGA Championship officially kicks off the new season and a double header Down Under.

Royal Queensland will play host to the first event of the Opening Swing and a strong home contingent heads the field.

LIV Golf’s Cam Smith is undoubtedly the star attraction, while his Ripper GC teammates Marc Leishman and Lucas Herbert are also in town.

Meanwhile, Min Woo Lee returns to defend his crown from 12 months ago.

The tournament dates back to 1929 and has since welcomed – and been won by – some of the game’s best ever players.

Aussie Watch: 

Cameron Smith ($9.0) stands as the top contender, given his recent form, course knowledge, and statistical strengths.

Min Woo Lee ($9.0), Cam Daivs ($15.0)& Jason Day ($11.0) the highest-ranking player in this field at #31, are also strong contenders, with Lee’s ball striking and Day’s putting being key strengths for this course.

Marc Leishman ($15.0) and Lucas Herbert ($15.0) could provide some each way value.

🏏 Nathan McSweeney navigated a fierce challenge as Australia's gun quicks and Nathan Lyon peppered him at the WACA, challenging the new opener as he closes in on his Test debut ahead of the highly anticipated Border-Gavaskar Trophy series.

Days out from the first match of Australia's five-Test series against India, taking place at Perth's Optus Stadium from Friday, McSweeney padded up to face Pat Cummins, Mitchell.

🏉 The Wallabies have called Hamish Stewart, Darby Lancaster, Tom Hooper and Harry Hoopert into the squad ahead of the Scotland Test.

The group will link up with the Test squad after featuring for Australia XV during their defeat to England A last weekend.

📸 Pic of the week 1: Jockeys ride horses around the first bend of the William Thomson Dunkeld Cup, which was won by Jack Hill riding Rhinoceros on 16 November in Dunkeld, Australia

👶🏻 Chelsea have condemned the "unacceptable and hateful homophobic comments" aimed at Sam Kerr and Kristie Mewis after the couple said they are expecting a baby.

On Monday, Chelsea striker Kerr announced the pregnancy of her partner, West Ham midfielder Mewis, on her Instagram account.

The post contained photographs of the couple with the caption: "Mewis-Kerr baby coming 2025!"

On Tuesday, Chelsea addressed homophobic comments left on the post.

"Chelsea Football Club is aware of recent unacceptable and hateful homophobic comments published across various social media platforms," the club said.

"There is no place in society for any form of discrimination and we will not accept any abuse directed towards our players, staff or supporters.”

📸 Pic of the week 2: Tasmania Jackjumpers' Sean Macdonald drives to the basket during the round nine NBL match against Brisbane Bullets at MyState Bank Arena on 15 November in Hobart.

⛳️ Hannah Green has been recognised for her stellar three-win season on the LPGA Tour by being crowned the Greg Norman Medallist for the second time.

Green was announced as this year’s winner of Australian golf’s top honour at the PGA Awards Gala Dinner ahead of the Australian PGA Championship in Brisbane on Tuesday evening.

NRL NEWS

✍🏼 Melbourne Storm fullback Ryan Papenhuyzen has declared he will be at the club next season and money won’t influence his next contract conceding he’s yet to make a decision amid growing speculation he’s set to sign with the Bulldogs.

Papenhuyzen has one year left on his current deal but is free to negotiate with rival clubs for 2026 and beyond.

The 2020 Clive Churchill Medal winner endured a horror run of injuries after his premiership win, with serious leg injuries and concussion restricting him to just 30 appearances in the three years after he lifted the trophy.

AFL NEWS

☝🏼 Likely Richmond No. 1 draft pick Sam Lalor plays like Dustin Martin and is ready to help a gaggle of top-rated draftees turbocharge the Tigers' AFL rebuild.

The Tigers, who finished bottom of the ladder this year in Adem Yze's first season as coach, have a staggering eight selections in the top 24.

Richmond (1, 6, 10), Melbourne (5, 9) and St Kilda (7, 8) all boast multiple top-10 picks.

Richmond’s includes the coveted No. 1 pick in tonight’s first round, plus the often-sought opening selection of the second round the following night.

Sam Lalor is poised to be taken by Richmond with the No. 1 pick.

The Tigers have kept their cards close to their chest as they prepare to welcome their first No.1 pick since taking Brett Deledio in 2004.

A handful of talented youngsters have been billed as possible top picks, including Victorian midfield prospects Lalor, Finn O'Sullivan and Jagga Smith.

But as the draft has edged closer, Lalor, who insists he has no idea whether the Tigers will pick him, has bolted into favouritism for the prized selection.

"Obviously I want to go as high as I can," Lalor said on Tuesday.

😢 Rafael Nadal was beaten in what might prove to be the final match of his career as the start of his Davis Cup retirement party fell flat.

Spanish great Nadal, who has won 22 Grand Slam titles, will end his tennis playing journey after the men's team event in Malaga.

It had been unclear whether the 38-year-old former world number one would be ready to play in the singles. But even though he had not played competitively for over three months, Nadal was selected by Spain captain David Ferrer.

The move backfired in front of a partisan Spanish crowd as Nadal lost 6-4 6-4 to Botic van de Zandschulp, who admirably maintained his composure in testing conditions to put the Netherlands ahead in the tie.

If Spain are unable to recover the 1-0 deficit in the best-of-three encounter, there will be no other opportunity for Nadal to take to the court as a professional again.

Nadal took time to linger in the centre of the court after his defeat, showing gratitude by waving to all sides of the arena as 11,500 fans packed out the Palacio de Deportes.

Roger Federer says Rafael Nadal "made the whole tennis world proud" during his "epic career" as he paid tribute to his former rival before his retirement.

Nadal, a 22-time Grand Slam champion, will bring an end to his illustrious career aged 38 after representing Spain at the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga this week.

Federer, who retired in 2022 with 20 Grand Slams, won 16 matches and lost 24 - including an epic final at Wimbledon in 2008 - in the 40 times he faced Nadal.

"As you get ready to graduate from tennis, I've got a few things to share before I maybe get emotional," wrote 43-year-old Federer on Instagram.

"Let's start with the obvious: you beat me - a lot. More than I managed to beat you. You challenged me in ways no-one else could. 

"On clay, it felt like I was stepping into your backyard, and you made me work harder than I ever thought I could just to hold my ground.

Federer added that Nadal made him "reimagine" his game, to the extent that the Swiss changed the size of his racquet head.

🏃🏽‍♀️💩 Battling to the finish line of a triathlon after a bit of an accident that is not uncommon for endurance athletes, American Taylor Knibb had one request for a cameraman.

"I just sh**t myself, so can you not get my a**e?" the Olympic athlete asked.

Without hesitation, the cameraman agreed to not broadcast the mess, responding simply with a thumbs up.

🏀 Dyson Daniels came up with arguably the biggest defensive play of the season. The Aussie defensive dynamo blocked Kings star De’Aaron Fox’s potential game-winning shot to secure Atlanta’s 109-108 road win in Sacramento on Tuesday (AEDT).

🏉 The British and Irish Lions are in line to take on a team made up of players with indigenous Australian and Pacific Islands heritage as part of their tour of Australia next summer.

The tourists were supposed to play the Melbourne Rebels on 22 July, but the Super Rugby team have gone into administration since the fixtures were announced in July 2023.

Rugby Australia chief executive Phil Waugh said he hoped to attract box-office names for the fixture.

⚽️ One for the little guy: San Marino, the world's bottom ranked team, made history as they were promoted to the third tier of the Nations League with the first away win in their history - against Liechtenstein.

It was also the first time they scored more than once in a competitive game and the first time they had scored three goals in any match.

The minnows' two previous victories also came against Liechtenstein - a friendly in 2004 and a Nations League game in September, both 1-0 and both in San Marino.

The country ranked 210th in the Fifa world rankings have lost 199 of the 211 fixtures they have contested. They have conceded 10 or more goals in seven games.

📸 Pic of the week 3: Ramy Saghadani El Ouariachi of Spain performs an overhead kick while under pressure from Tim Nicolas Kaufmann of Germany in the third-place match at the Neom Beach Games on 16 November in Saudi Arabia.

⚽️ EPL Gossip: Chelsea are plotting a summer bid for Liverpool and Republic of Ireland goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher, 25.

Manchester United are interested in AC Milan and USA winger Christian Pulisic, 26, along with Liverpool and West Ham. 

Ruben Amorim is set to operate on a more modest budget to former Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag and will be tasked with maximising the untapped potential in the squad as the club aims to end the damaging and costly cycle of mass overhauls.

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TODAY

11:00 - CONMEBOL WC Qualifier - Argentina v Peru - SBS

11:00 - NBA Cup - Boston Celtics v Cleveland Cavaliers - ESPN

11:45 - CONMEBOL WC Qualifier - Brazil v Uruguay - SBS Viceland

12:00 - NHL - Winnipeg Jets v Florida Panthers - ESPN 2

13:30 - NBA Cup - San Antonio Spurs v Oklahoma City Thunder - ESPN

19:00 - AFL - AFL Draft, Day 1 - Fox Footy

THURSDAY

11:30 - NBA - Milwaukee Bucks v Chicago Bulls - ESPN

14:00 - NBA - Phoenix Suns v New York Knicks - ESPN

14:30 - NHL - Los Angeles Kings v Buffalo Sabres - ESPN 2

19:00 - AFL - AFL Draft, Day 2 - Fox Footy

23:00 - Men's Asia Cup Qualifier - Thailand v Australia - ESPN