(TULSA, Okla.) — Justin Thomas stunned fans on Sunday, coming from behind to win the 2022 PGA Championship at the Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
After starting the day down seven strokes, Thomas, 29, rallied and bested Will Zalatoris in a three-hole playoff to take home the title, his second PGA championship.
But before the spotlight shifted to Thomas, many were watching Tiger Woods, who ended up dropping out of the tournament Saturday following a career-worst round.
Woods, 46, withdrew from the competition after three rounds, posting a 9-over 79.
Despite a strong early start, it appeared Woods’ right leg, which he had surgically repaired following a car accident last year, was bothering him as the tournament progressed.
(NEW YORK) — Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “special military operation” into neighboring Ukraine began on Feb. 24, with Russian forces invading from Belarus, to the north, and Russia, to the east. Ukrainian troops have offered “stiff resistance,” according to U.S. officials.
The Russian military has since launched a full-scale ground offensive in eastern Ukraine’s disputed Donbas region, capturing the strategic port city of Mariupol and securing a coastal corridor to the Moscow-annexed Crimean Peninsula.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
May 21, 11:42 am
Biden signs $40 billion Ukraine aid bill into law
President Biden signed the $40 billion Ukraine aid bill into law Saturday, the White House announced in a press release.
The bill provides supplemental emergency funds to Federal agencies to respond and provide assistance to Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked Biden on Twitter for the aid.
“The leadership of US, President Biden & the American people in supporting Ukrainians fight against the Russian aggressor is crucial. Look forward to new, powerful defense assistance. Today it is needed more than ever,” Zelenskyy said.
-ABC News’ Molly Nagle and Max Uzol
May 21, 10:44 am
Russian Foreign Ministry publishes list of Americans banned from entering Russia
The Russian Foreign Ministry on Saturday published a list of American citizens who are barred from entering the Russian Federation on a permanent basis.
Russia said the move was in retaliation for anti-Russian sanctions currently imposed by the U.S.
The list published on the ministry’s website comprises 963 U.S. citizens, including President Joe Biden.
May 20, 5:00 pm
More than 40 countries to take part in next Ukraine Contact Group meeting
More than 40 countries will be represented at the second meeting of the Ukraine Contact Group, formed last month to coordinate international support for Ukraine, according to Pentagon press secretary John Kirby.
Monday’s meeting “will allow us to continue to dip into a process to get Ukraine, or at least to make other nations available and knowledgeable about what Ukraine needs as the fight is ongoing,” Kirby told reporters during a briefing Friday.
More than 40 nations attended the first meeting both virtually and in-person at Ramstein Air Base in Germany. New countries will attend the second, which will be strictly virtual, Kirby said.
“There are some countries that have shown an interest in participating that weren’t in the first meeting,” said Kirby, who called the first iteration “a true global community” of countries in NATO and beyond.
May 20, 3:41 pm
Russian Ministry of Defense claims it has taken complete control over Azovstal steel plant, Mariupol
Russia’s Ministry of Defense claimed Friday it has taken complete control of the Azovstal plant and Mariupol from the Ukrainian forces, expelling them from the port city.
The underground facilities of the plant, in which the Azov National Regiment militia were hiding, came under the complete control of Russian forces, the ministry claimed.
The commander of the Azov Regiment was reportedly taken out of the territory of the plant in an armored car, the ministry said.
Russia claims 2,439 Ukrainian servicemen have laid down their arms and surrendered since May 16.
May 20, 1:10 pm
Russia to cut off Finland’s natural gas Saturday morning
Gasum, Finland’s natural gas company, announced Friday that it was informed its imports from Russia’s Gazprom Export will be cut off on Saturday at 7 a.m. local time.
The move by Russia comes days after Finland submitted its application to join NATO.
“It is highly regrettable that natural gas supplies under our supply contract will now be halted. However, we have been carefully preparing for this situation and provided that there will be no disruptions in the gas transmission network, we will be able to supply all our customers with gas in the coming months,” Gasum CEO Mika Wiljanen said in a statement.
Gasum will supply natural gas to its customers from other sources though the Balticconnector pipeline, which connects Finland with Estonia, the company said in a statement.
Gasum said its gas-filling stations in the network area will continue in normal operation.
May 20, 8:57 am
US-supplied howitzers to Ukraine lack accuracy-aiding computers
Dozens of artillery systems supplied by the United States to Ukraine were not fitted with advanced computer systems, which improve the efficiency and accuracy of the weapons, ABC News has learned.
The M777 155mm howitzers are now being used by the Ukrainian military in its war with Russia.
The Pentagon did not deny that the artillery pieces were supplied without the computers but said it had received “positive feedback” from the Ukrainians about the “precise and highly effective” weapons.
That positive sentiment was echoed by a Ukrainian politician, who spoke to ABC News on condition of anonymity. However, the politician also expressed frustration that the artillery pieces had not been the fitted with the digital computer systems.
Artillery is currently playing a crucial role in the fighting across eastern Ukraine, as Russia continues its offensive in that part of the country. U.S. officials recently confirmed that all but one of the 90 howitzers promised to Ukraine had now been delivered, along with tactical vehicles used to tow them.
If fitted to a howitzer, the digital computer system enables the crew operating the weapon to quickly and accurately pinpoint a target. Howitzers without a computer system can still be fired accurately, using traditional methods to calculate the angle needed to hit a target.
Modern computer systems, however, rule out the possibility of human error. Why the artillery pieces supplied to Ukraine did not have the digital targeting technology installed is unclear. The Pentagon said it would not discuss individual components “for operational security reasons.”
-ABC News’ Tom Burridge and Luis Martinez
May 20, 6:58 am
1,700 Ukrainian soldiers likely surrendered from Mariupol plant, UK says
As many as 1,700 Ukrainian soldiers have likely surrendered from the Azovstal Iron and Steel Works plant in war-ravaged Mariupol this week, according to the U.K. Ministry of Defense.
“An unknown number of Ukrainian forces remain inside the factory,” the ministry said Friday in an intelligence update. “Once Russia has secured Mariupol, it is likely they will move their forces to reinforce operations in the Donbas.”
For weeks, Ukrainian fighters and civilians were holed up inside the sprawling industrial site as the remaining pocket of resistance to Russia’s relentless bombardment of Mariupol, a southeastern Ukrainian port city strategically located on the Sea of Azov between eastern Ukraine’s disputed Donbas region and the Moscow-annexed Crimean Peninsula. Russia claimed Thursday that 1,730 Ukrainian soldiers had surrendered in Mariupol over the previous three days, while Ukraine confirmed Tuesday that more than 250 had yielded in the initial hours after it ordered them to do so.
Mariupol is the largest city that Russian forces have seized since launching an invasion of neighboring Ukraine on Feb. 24. Its complete capture gives Russia total control of the coast of the Sea of Azov as well as a continuous stretch of territory along eastern and southern Ukraine.
“Staunch Ukrainian resistance in Mariupol since the start of the war means Russian forces in the area must be re-equipped and refurbished before they can be redeployed effectively,” the U.K. defense ministry said. “This can be a lengthy process when done thoroughly.”
“Russian commanders, however, are under pressure to demonstrably achieve operational objectives,” the ministry added. “This means that Russia will probably redistribute their forces swiftly without adequate preparation, which risks further force attrition.”
May 20, 6:42 am
Belarus says nearly 28,000 Ukrainians have arrived since Russian invasion
Nearly 28,000 Ukrainian citizens have arrived in Belarus since Russia invaded neighboring Ukraine on Feb. 24, according to the Belarusian State Border Committee.
“Between 6 a.m. on February 24 and 6 a.m. on May 20, a total of 27,868 Ukrainian citizens arrived in Belarus, including 15,793 who crossed the Ukrainian-Belarusian border, 10,563 by transit through Poland, 1,305 through Lithuania, and 207 through Latvia,” the committee said in a statement Friday.
In the past 24 hours alone, 154 Ukrainian citizens arrived in Belarus, including 120 via Poland, according to the committee.
Belarus shares a land border with both Ukraine and Russia, and is Moscow’s main ally.
May 19, 8:07 pm
Biden to sign Ukraine aid bill while abroad
President Joe Biden will sign the $40 billion Ukraine aid bill while he’s in Asia, a White House official said.
“The president does intend to sign the bill while he’s on the road so that he can sign it expeditiously,” national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters aboard Air Force One while en route to the region Thursday evening. “The modalities of that are being worked right now so that he can get it and sign it.”
The bill, which passed the Senate earlier Thursday with bipartisan support, will need to be flown to the region so that Biden can sign it. The practice of flying bills to presidents for signature dates back to the Truman administration, but this is a first for Biden.
Biden departed for South Korea Thursday and will visit Japan later in the week during his first trip to Asia as president.
TIME magazinerevealed its annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world Monday, naming Mary J. Blige, among others.
Writing about each of the list members are guest contributors — fellow stars and entertainers — who speak about the contributions of the honorees.
Writing about Blige’s career and accomplishments is fellow hip-hop artist Nas,who says, “Mary came up the way we all did. She was a voice for us, but she wasn’t like other R&B artists at the time. She became a household name early because she was a hip-hop artist who also sang. The industry needed someone like that. The streets wanted that. Pop culture wanted that.” He continued, “And when Mary came onstage at the Super Bowl halftime show this year, she got one of the loudest responses … She carved out a lane for herself, and now she can feed the people more than just music.”
This list includes 48 other women, such as Zendaya, Quinta Brunson, Zoë Kravitz and Oprah Winfrey, who, falling under the “Titans” category, makes the list for the 10th time.
Writing about Winfrey is Michelle Obama, who highlights the talk show host’s ability to connect with anyone and everyone.
“When Oprah connects with something — a person, a book, a song, an idea — she makes sure to shine her light on it. She validates it. She anoints it … That’s why no matter where you go, everyone knows her name. And all of it makes me wonder: maybe her success isn’t rooted in the fact that she found a common denominator that unites us all. Maybe Oprah is our common denominator.”
Others on the list include Ketanji Brown Jackson, Jon Batiste, Issa Rae, Jazmine Sullivan and New York Attorney General Letitia James.
Eric Church‘s headlining show at Madison Square Garden was made even more impressionable with the presence of Ashley McBryde.
When Eric’s backup singer, Joanna Cotten, tested positive for COVID and announced she was unable to perform during the final night of The Gather Again Tour, the Chief knew just who to call to fill in. Ashley held her own inside the massive arena, where she sang backup for Eric in front of a crowd of more than 17,000 people. Videos captured by fans show her harmonizing on his chart-topping hits “Springsteen” and “Hell of a View,” along with a cover of Bruce Springsteen‘s “Thunder Road.”
“When the Chief @ericchurchmusic calls from @thegarden, you answer,” Ashley wrote in the Instagram caption accompanying photos from the special night. “Thanks for answering,” the headliner replied, adding in a statement, “when Joanna had to sit this one out, we immediately knew who to ask. Ashley is meant for arena stages, and she’ll be headlining her own show at MSG soon.”
This is one of many times the two have collaborated. Eric invited Ashley onstage to sing “Bible and a .44” with him in Chicago in 2017 during his Holdin’ My Own Tour. They also performed “The Snake” at the 2019 ACM Awards, and Ashley joined Eric during his medley of hits at the 2022 ACM Awards.
Halsey has inadvertently created a viral TikTok moment by claiming that their record label is forcing them to create a viral TikTok moment.
In a TikTok posted on Sunday, we see Halsey frowning as a song — presumably the one they want to release — plays in the background. The text reads, “Basically, I have a song that I love that I want to release ASAP, but my record label won’t let me.”
The text continues, “I’ve been in this industry for eight years and I’ve sold over 165 million records and my record company is saying I can’t release it unless they can fake a viral moment on TikTok.”
“Everything is marketing and they are doing this to every artist these days,” the text concludes. “I just want to release music, man and I deserve better tbh. I’m tired.”
In the comments, fans were indignant on Halsey’s behalf, while a few joked, “plot twist this is the viral tiktok they planned.”
Then, Halsey posted receipts: A video of themselves listening to someone who presumably works at their label, telling them how the TikTok rollout should go. When the label guy asks Halsey why they look upset, they say, “Honestly, I just hate this. It sucks.” “Oh, I know,” he replies. “I hate it.”
The text over the video reads, “I wish I was kidding lol.”
When a fan wrote in the comments, “What counts as ‘viral’ tho?” Halsey replied, “It’s like…if it doesn’t get a certain amount of views or likes or [whatever] they will just keep making me make videos and push [the song’s release] back until they’re happy.”
“Reverse psychology this IS the marketing scheme,” another fan commented.
So far, according to Variety, Halsey’s label hasn’t commented.
As Yes prepares to launch a tour of U.K. and Ireland next month celebrating the 50th anniversary of their classic album Close to the Edge, the prog-rock legends’ have announced that longtime drummer Alan White wn’t be taking part in the trek because of “current health issues.”
A message on Yes’ social media pages explains, “Alan was really looking forward to playing live again preparing to celebrate 50 years with Yes, having joined the band for the July 1972 Close to the Edge Tour, coming full circle in 2022. Alan’s close friend Jay Schellen will be taking on drumming duties in Alan’s place.”
Schellen has regularly joined Yes on the road since 2016, either playing alongside White or filling in for him.
The upcoming leg of Yes’ Album Series Tour 2022 kicks off June 15 in Glasgow, Scotland, and is scheduled through a June 29 show in Cork, Ireland. The shows will feature the band performing Close to the Edge in its entirety, followed by a set of other memorable songs from Yes’ back catalog.
The concerts will include a high-definition video wall with a presentation directed by longtime Yes artist Roger Dean. Dean also will accompany the band on tour, and an exhibition of his work will be on display at each show.
Released in September 1972, Close to the Edge became Yes’ highest-charting album ever on the Billboard 200, peaking at #3. The record as made up of three long musical pieces — the title track, “And You and I” and “Siberian Khatru.”
Yes also will be bringing the Close to the Edge anniversary trek to Japan for four shows in September.
The band recently postponed a planned 2022 tour of mainland Europe until spring 2023. Yes will showcase its 1974 album Relayer on that trek.
Letitia Wright dropped some hints to Varietyabout the upcoming sequel Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, and how all involved are honoring the original film’s star, the late Chadwick Boseman.
Wright plays Shuri, the genius sister to Boseman’s King T’Challa, and rumor has it she’ll be taking on the mantle of Black Panther, as Boseman will not be recast.
Wright suffered an injury on the set of the film that was severe enough to cause changes to production to the Marvel Studios film. She says cast and crew soldiered on, as a tribute to Boseman, who died in 2020 at age 43 after a private battle with colon cancer.
“We committed everyday to working hard, no matter what circumstances we faced,” Wright told Variety from a red carpet event at the Cannes Film Festival. “And we faced a lot of circumstances. A lot of difficult situations, but we came together as a team.”
She added, “It is an incredible honor for Chadwick Boseman, it’s jam-packed with exciting stuff.”
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever will hit theaters on November 11.
Marvel Studios is owned by Disney, parent company of ABC News.
Evanescence guitarist Jen Majura is no longer in the band.
The “Bring Me to Life” rockers shared the news in a social media post over the weekend, which reads, “It has been a very special chapter in the band with our dear friend Jen Majura, but we have decided it’s time to go our separate ways.”
“We will always love her and support her, and can’t wait to see what she does next!” the statement continues. “We are so grateful for the good times and great music we made all around the world together.”
Several hours later, Majura issued a tweet suggesting that the parting of the ways wasn’t an exactly a mutual decision.
“I feel the need to address that none of this was my decision!” Majura wrote, though she added that she has “no hard feelings against anybody” and that she wishes her now-former band “all the best.”
“I am allowed to carry beautiful memories of these past years, I am grateful,” she wrote.
Majura joined Evanescence in 2015 and played on their 2021 comeback album, The Bitter Truth, as well as their 2017 compilation, Synthesis, which featured alternate versions of the band’s past songs rerecorded with orchestral and electronic elements.
As for who will take Majura’s place, Evanescence will be announcing “exciting news about the new lineup…in the next few days.”
Evanescence is set to launch a European tour in June. They’ll return to the U.S. for a couple festivals in July, followed by a tour with Korn kicking off in August.
Marvel movie star Chris Prattannounced over the weekend that he and his wife, Katherine Schwarzenegger, welcomed their second baby together.
“We are so excited to announce the birth of our second daughter, Eloise Christina Schwarzenegger Pratt,” he posted to Instagram on Sunday, adding, “Mama and baby are doing well. We feel beyond blessed and grateful.”
Katherine announced back in December that she and Pratt were expecting their second child. The couple also has a 1-year-old daughter, Lyla.
Pratt has a 9-year-old son, Jack, from his first marriage to actress Anna Faris.
(NEW YORK) — Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “special military operation” into neighboring Ukraine began on Feb. 24, with Russian forces invading from Belarus, to the north, and Russia, to the east. Ukrainian troops have offered “stiff resistance,” according to U.S. officials.
The Russian military has since launched a full-scale ground offensive in eastern Ukraine’s disputed Donbas region, capturing the strategic port city of Mariupol and securing a coastal corridor to the Moscow-annexed Crimean Peninsula.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
May 23, 10:08 am
Zelenskyy calls for preventative sanctions in virtual address at World Economic Forum
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke Monday at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, calling on the West to recognize as a mistake the refusal to impose preventive sanctions on Russia and take decisive steps in that direction.
“We must not react, but act preventively,” Zelenskyy told the forum in a virtual address. “And not only adapt what we have to the new realities, but create new tools. … Do not wait for fatal shots. Do not wait for Russia to use chemical, biological or, heaven forbid, nuclear weapons. Do not give the aggressor the impression that the world allegedly will not offer sufficient resistance. Protect immediately to the maximum freedom and a normal, useful world order.”
Zelenskyy said there are still no such sanctions against the Russian Federation, and listed them:
Complete embargo on Russian oil.
Complete blocking of all Russian banks.
Complete rejection of the Russian IT sector.
And complete cessation of trade with the aggressor.
Zelenskyy also called for freezing and confiscating Russian assets around the world and sending them to a special fund to pay compensation and restore Ukraine.
“There should be a precedent for punishing the aggressor. … Russian assets scattered across different jurisdictions should be found, arrested or frozen, and then confiscated and sent to a special fund, from which all victims should receive compensation,” Zelenskyy said.
He warned it will not be easy, but added that various aggressors will definitely not be motivated to do what Russia has done and continues to do in Ukraine.
Zelenskyy said he believes the world is at a turning point and that the future of not only Ukraine, but the whole world, depends on the resistance to brutal force.
“This year, the words ‘turning point’ are not just a rhetorical figure of the speech,” Zelenskyy said. “Now is really such a moment when it is decided whether brutal force will dominate the world. If it dominates, then our thoughts are not interesting to it, and we can no longer gather in Davos. For what? Brutal force is looking for nothing but subjugation of those whom it wants to subdue, and it does not debate, but kills immediately, as Russia is doing in Ukraine right now — at this time when we are talking to you.”
May 22, 3:21 pm
Lithuania becomes first EU country to suspend all Russian energy imports
Lithuania is suspending all imports of Russian oil, natural gas and power, the country’s energy minister Dainius Kreivys announced in a statement Sunday, making it the only country in the European Union to suspend all imports on Russian energy.
Lithuania is now receiving liquified gas from the U.S. after becoming the first EU country to suspend Russian gas imports in April, Kreivys said. The country is now generating electricity via local power generation and local EU imports via existing connections with Sweden, Poland and Latvia.
It is unclear what alternate source of oil Lithuania will rely on, but Kreivys’ statement indicates that its sole importer of oil, Orlen Lietuva, refused to import Russian oil more than a month ago, Kreivys said.
The move is an expression of solidarity with Ukraine, Kreivys said, adding that it cannot allow its money to finance a Russian war machine.
The EU stated in March that it would end its dependency on fossil fuels imports from Russia and made plans to phase out Russian oil, gas and coal. The European Commission presented details on how it plans to achieve that last week.
May 22, 2:54 pm
50 to 100 Ukrainian soldiers killed every day, Zelenskyy says
While Ukraine has rarely reported on its combat losses since the Russian invasion began in late February, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced during a press briefing Sunday that 50 to 100 Ukrainian soldiers are being killed every day.
The last time Zelenskyy revealed military death toll figures was in April, when he said that around 3,000 Ukrainian soldiers had been killed in action and around 10,000 wounded. Zelenskyy did not provide a total figure for combatants killed in action on Sunday.
Since the start of the invasion, most Ukrainian men ages 18 to 60 have been banned from leaving the country. On Friday, a petition calling for the government to cancel the ban was registered with the president’s office.
The petition surpassed the 25,000-signature threshold that requires the president to address it on Sunday. Zelenskyy acknowledged the petition during Sunday’s briefing.
“How would I explain that to relatives of our defenders who are fighting at the most difficult positions in the East, where 50 to 100 troops lose their lives every day?” he said.
Ukraine’s parliament voted to extend martial law through Aug. 23. Zelenskyy’s office has a few weeks to consider the petition.
May 22, 12:41 pm
Zelenskyy welcomes president of Poland amid Ukraine’s bid to join EU
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy extended a warm welcome to Polish President Andrzej Duda on Sunday amid his bid to have his country join the European Union.
During a parliamentary session, Zelenskyy expressed his gratitude to all Poles for their support, making it clear that he’s pushing full steam ahead to ensure Ukraine is granted candidate status.
“I am sure that all the necessary decisions will be made first for the status of a candidate for Ukraine, and then for full membership,” he said. “In particular, thanks to Poland’s many years of protection of Ukrainian interests on the European continent.”
Shortly after Zelenskyy and Duda addressed lawmakers, the parliament session was briefly interrupted when air sirens sounded in Kyiv, and members of parliament were moved to a shelter. The Ukrainian regional military administration later confirmed a Russian missile was intercepted over the Kyiv region.
France’s Minister for European Affairs Clément Beaune in his interview with France TF1 radio said on Sunday that it could take 15 to 20 years for Ukraine to become an EU member state, adding that Kyiv could enter the European political community proposed by French President Emmanuel Macron in the meantime.
May 22, 12:07 pm
Recent attacks have killed more than 200 Ukrainians, Russian military claims
The Russian Defense Ministry provided updates to what it described as the “special military operation in Ukraine” on Sunday, saying that hundreds of Ukrainians were killed in recent attacks.
High-precision air missiles and other attacks launched in Donetsk, Lugansk and Krasnyi on Sunday hit command posts, areas where Ukrainian manpower and military equipment are concentrated and ammunition depots, according to the Russian Defense Ministry.
The attacks killed more than 210 Ukrainian nationals and destroyed as many as 38 armored motor vehicles, the ministry claimed.
Russian air defense also shot down 11 Ukrainian aircraft and intercepted “multiple launch rockets” in the Kharkov region, according to the defense ministry.
The ministry claimed that, in total, 174 Ukrainian aircraft and 125 helicopters, 977 unmanned aerial vehicles, 317 anti-aircraft missile systems, 3,198 tanks and other armored combat vehicles, 408 multiple launch rocket systems, 1,622 field artillery and mortars and 3,077 units of special military vehicles were destroyed during the operation.
