SPRINGFIELD, N.J. -- Rory McIlroy took stock of his game and the shots required at Baltusrol and reached a most logical conclusion Tuesday. He believes the PGA Championship will be his best chance this year to win a major.He overlooked the obvious. It now is his only chance this year to win a major.McIlroy is not alone.Except for the three players who have achieved the ultimate in golf this year by winning majors -- Danny Willett at the Masters, Dustin Johnson at the U.S. Open and Henrik Stenson at the British Open -- the PGA Championship is all they have left.The focus starts with McIlroy, Jordan Spieth and Jason Day. They began the year as the modern version of the Big Three because they had captured five of the previous six majors and took turns at No. 1 in the world ranking.But they have come up empty in the majors -- so far.Spieth is feeling it as much as anyone, mainly because he nearly won them all a year ago with a major performance that ranked among the best ever. So when a question was posed to him Tuesday that expecting 20 more years like that would probably be a tough benchmark, Spieth leaned toward the microphone and interrupted.Probably? he said.Even with two victories and a chance at the Masters that he threw away with one bad swing at the wrong time, he has been noticeable in the last two majors by his absence from the leaderboard. Spieth, who turns 23 on Wednesday, had contended in five straight majors. He finished 13 shots behind in the U.S. Open and 22 shots behind at the British Open.I set my own expectations so high, Spieth said. So have I met them this year? Not yet.He still can.So can Day, a three-time winner on the PGA Tour this year. Stensons victory at Royal Troon surely gave hope to players who have yet to win a major, from Sergio Garcia to Lee Westwood, from Rickie Fowler to Matt Kuchar.Baltusrol was soaked with nearly 2 inches of rain overnight, though the Lower Course was in remarkably good shape for a full day of practice on Tuesday in sweltering conditions that only add to the pressure of players trying to break through.McIlroy was especially optimistic given the length of Baltusrol, exceptionally long (7,462 yards) for a par 70 that doesnt have a par 5 until the final two holes. He is among the top power players in the game, and his driving is aesthetically beautiful because of his balance.That wasnt lost on McIlroy as he blasted a 345-yard drive off the first tee in the Long Drive Competition and made his way around the course. He looks ready to go, and he will find out Thursday what kind of traction he has.McIlroy was asked to describe his season in one word, and after some thought, settled on neutral.Thats another way of saying he has been spinning his wheels.I feel theres been times where I got a little bit of momentum, and then sort of got set back a little bit, he said. Its been a little stop-start in a way. But its hard. Im trying to stay as positive as I can. I feel like I am positive because my game is in good shape. But I guess just maybe running out of patience a little bit and trying to make it happen.I dont know if theres one word to describe this year, he said. But I think you get a sense of how Ive felt about the year and trying to get better and trying to get my name in the mix, and hopefully I can do that this week.His record in the PGA Championship is in his favor. McIlroy has won the Wanamaker Trophy twice in the last four years, and he has three other finishes in the top 10. Even though he grew up in Northern Ireland, the American brand of golf suits him best. Baltusrol is big, and likely will be soft with the overnight rain, the steamy heat and the threat of thunderstorms.McIlroy won the Irish Open before a home crowd this year. That was a big deal. He still has the FedEx Cup playoffs, which he has never won, and the Race to Dubai to complete the European Tour season. He struggled again when asked for a grade to his season, settling on better than a B.I could change that into an A-plus on Sunday, he said. Theres a lot of golf left, last major of the year. I want to give it my all to get in the mix and try to win another one of these things before I have to wait another eight months. Cheap Mavericks Jerseys . But what about the officials? Every sport has officials and they also have stories about hard work and sacrifice but their accomplishments are seldom recognized by anyone outside their inner circle. Wholesale Mavericks Jerseys . The Americans, skipped by John Shuster, seized the advantage in the eighth end by scoring five points for a 7-3 lead. The Czechs pulled two back in the ninth, but Shusters team of third Jeff Isaacson, second Jared Zezel and lead John Landsteiner ended with another point to secure the last Olympic berth on offer. http://www.cheapmavericksjerseys.com/?tag=cheap-kostas-antetokounmpo-jersey . White came in fourth place in the event. He was the two-time defending gold medallist. The gold medal went to Swiss snowboarder Iouri Podladtchikov. Cheap Mavericks Jerseys Authentic . -- Edmontons Val Sweeting is two wins away from a trip to Winnipeg to play in Canadas Road of the Rings in December. Cheap NBA Jerseys . 1 position. The Mustangs (6-0), who beat Queens 50-31 last weekend, earned 17 first-place votes and 287 points in voting by the Football Reporters of Canada. Western was last ranked first in the country in October 2011. While these werent exactly the footsteps of Peyton Manning that Trevor Siemian wanted to follow, the Denver Broncos QB at least had a little fun over his sprained left foot that sidelined him last week.While rookie Paxton Lynch was running the offense at practice, Siemian recreated Mannings famous photo from a year ago of the injured QB sitting at a hot tub with iPad in hand, one foot soaking and his helmet on so he could listen to the plays being called.Siemian sent the side-by-side photos (https://twitter.com/TrevorSiemian/status/805055555161227264 ) to Manning, who he said got a big kick out of it, before posting them on Twitter with the caption, This seemed to work out well for the last guy.While Manning was no Adonis, several followers did note that the five-time MVP looked more chiseled than Siemian.Id like to go on record that Peyton was flexing in his picture, Siemian said. Im getting a lot of heat that he looks stronger than me. So, Ive got to clear that air.---SHOT BLOCKER: Bengals defensive end Carlos Dunlap wasnt much of a scorer on the basketball court. He was in the game for one reason: Make the other team miss.Dunlap was adept at blocking shots when he played basketball while growing up, a skill hes parlayed into the NFL. The 6-foot-6 lineman leads the team with 14 passes defensed, which is six more than any other NFL lineman. He had four of them during a 32-14 win over the Eagles last Sunday and caused a misdirected pass by Carson Wentz that was picked off.Its something youve kind of got to have a knack for, Dunlap said. Its a lot of timing.Dunlap learned the timing while playing defense around the rim.That was my specialty, Dunlap said. I didnt score a lot of points; I blocked a lot of points. I blocked shots and got rebounds.The NFL doesnt keep detailed statistics on passes defensed, so Dunlaps accomplishment cant be put into historical perspective.---TREADING WATER: Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Laquon Treadwell has been a nonfactor in his rookie season, with one reception for 15 yards. Only recently has he begun to see more significant action, playing 34 of 58 snaps at Detroit on Nov. 24, and 11 of 74 snaps against Dallas on Dec. 1. Though Treadwell wasnt targeted on any of Sam Bradfords 37 passes in that game against the Lions, he emerged with valuable experience.That game really helped me with my mental state, just feeling the game, going the actual speed of the game, said Treadwell, the 23rd overall pick in the draft out of Mississippi. I was competing every day in practice making plays, but once youre in the game its a whole new edge of intensity that you have to play with.With wide receivers Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen each having already established career highs in receptions and yards, and the re-emergence of Cordarrelle Patterson in the offense, the Vikings havent been counting on Treadwell. But the lack of prodduction has been startling for a first-rounder.ddddddddddddOnce the season gets here, theres not a lot of reps, especially for someone who might be behind a couple guys. The starters are usually the ones who take all of them. So, its just hard for him to get time, but I think in the past couple weeks, he has really shown some flashes, Bradford said. And hes a guy that we feel like if we can get him involved and get him some targets, I think it would be good. I think the biggest thing for him is just experience and just getting out there and playing.---CONCUSSION WATCH: One year after reaching the Super Bowl, the Carolina Panthers have been plagued by concussions. Ten players have been in the concussion protocol since the start of the preseason, including quarterback Cam Newton and linebacker Luke Kuechly, both All-Pros in 2015.Panthers coach Ron Rivera said he will spend more time this offseason analyzing head injuries and ways to prevent them -- and hopes other will, too.To be very frank about it, I think its very important that, not just me, but that other people in this industry try to get to understand it a little bit more, Rivera said. Because who knows? Maybe theres something that were missing in terms of preparation. ... I dont know if there is an answer to it, but I think that if we are better educated, maybe we can spot things before they happen. Maybe theres something else we can do as coaches and professionals in this business to see if we can make a difference.---AARON DONALD, CHAMPION: Rams defensive lineman Aaron Donald is an Xbox champion.Donald, a 2015 All-Pro, beat Seahawks star receiver Doug Baldwin in the championship of Microsofts Xbox NFL Player Charity Challenge. They competed in Madden 17 on Xbox One for the chance to win $51,000 and Microsoft products for the charity of their choice.The game wasnt as close as all the pregame trash talk would have projected, with Donald winning 20-9.Helping Donald win were strong performances by rookie quarterback Jared Goff (passing for 245 yards and two touchdowns) and Tavon Austin, who had eight receptions for 124 yards. Donald also got a goal-line stand by the Rams defense in the first half.Doug was a fierce competitor tonight, but Im so thankful I was able to pull off a championship win and give back to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, Donald said.I had my shots in the game, but Aaron played well and I tip my cap to him, Baldwin added. Definitely a little disappointing that I wasnt able to bring it home for the Southern Youth Sports Association.---------AP Pro Football Writers Barry Wilner, Dave Campbell and Arnie Stapleton, and Sports Writers Joe Kay and Steve Reed contributed.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '