Oct. 17
Today in sports history
Today is Oct. 17. On this date in:
1860: Willie Park Sr. won the first Open Championship at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland, defeating Tom Morris Sr. by two strokes in golf’s first major championship.
1910: Charles “Chief” Bender pitched a three-hitter as the Philadelphia Athletics defeated the Chicago Cubs 4-1 in the World Series opener.
1920: The Decatur Staleys, the future Chicago Bears, defeated the Rock Island Independents 7-0 in the franchise’s first American Professional Football Association game during the league’s inaugural season.
1964: Australian sprinter Betty Cuthbert won the Olympic 400-meter gold medal in Tokyo, becoming the first athlete to win Olympic titles in the 100, 200 and 400 meters.
1965: New York Giants receiver Homer Jones was believed to be the first player to celebrate a touchdown with a celebratory spike after scoring against the Philadelphia Eagles.
1968: Viktor Saneyev of the Soviet Union won the Olympic triple jump with a world-record leap of 17.39 meters after the record changed hands five times during the competition in Mexico City.
1971: Roberto Clemente homered and Steve Blass threw a complete game as the Pittsburgh Pirates defeated the Baltimore Orioles 2-1 in Game 7 to win the World Series. Clemente earned World Series MVP honors.
1973: Poland earned a 1-1 draw against England at Wembley Stadium to qualify for the 1974 World Cup and eliminate England from the tournament.
1974: The expansion Washington Capitals recorded their first victory, defeating the Chicago Blackhawks.
1974: The Oakland Athletics defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 3-2 in Game 5 to win their third consecutive World Series, and Rollie Fingers earned series MVP honors.
1978: The New York Yankees defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 7-2 in Game 6 to capture their 22nd World Series title and complete a second straight championship season.
1979: Willie Stargell homered and drove in two runs as the Pittsburgh Pirates defeated the Baltimore Orioles 4-1 in Game 7, completing a comeback from a 3-1 deficit to win the World Series.
1980: Willie Aikens delivered a 10th-inning single that gave the Kansas City Royals a 4-3 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies and the first World Series win in franchise history.
1981: Nelson Piquet finished fifth in the Caesars Palace Grand Prix in Las Vegas and edged Carlos Reutemann by 1 point for his first Formula 1 world championship; Alan Jones won the race.
1983: The Green Bay Packers defeated Washington 48-47 at Lambeau Field in what was then the highest-scoring game in “Monday Night Football” history.
1989: The Calgary Flames erased an 8-3 deficit by scoring five goals in the final seven minutes and tied the Quebec Nordiques 8-8 in the wildest late-game comebacks in NHL history.
1989: The Loma Prieta earthquake struck shortly before Game 3 of the World Series between the Oakland Athletics and San Francisco Giants at Candlestick Park, postponing the Series for 10 days.
1991: Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Paul Coffey recorded two assists in an 8-5 victory over the New York Islanders and passed Denis Potvin as the highest-scoring defenseman in NHL history with 1,053 points.
1992: Los Angeles Kings forward Jari Kurri scored his 500th NHL goal, becoming the first European-trained player and the 18th player overall to reach the milestone.
2000: Colorado’s Patrick Roy passed Terry Sawchuk as the winningest goaltender in NHL history when the Avalanche defeated Washington in overtime.
2004: Dave Roberts stole second and scored the tying run before David Ortiz hit a 12th-inning walk-off home run as the Boston Red Sox defeated the New York Yankees 6-4 in AL Championship Series Game 4, beginning their historic comeback from a 3-0 series deficit.
2015: Jalen Watts-Jackson returned a botched punt 38 yards for a touchdown on the final play, giving Michigan State a stunning 27-23 victory over Michigan.
2020: Kenya’s Peres Jepchirchir won the World Athletics Half Marathon Championships in 1:05:16, setting a women-only world record.
— USA TODAY Network
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Today in sports history, October 17