Two years ago Rory McIlory tore apart rain-softened Congressional Golf Club when it staged the US Open, but he said not to expect a repeat of that feat this week at Merion Golf Club. The Ulsterman won his first major at the Washington course, posting a US Open record 16-under par total in the process and winning by eight strokes. Heavy rain in the Philadelphia area over the last few days have raised concerns that Merion, at 6,996 yards one of the shortest US Open courses in recent years, could experience a similar fate.

By Mark Lamport-Stokes ARDMORE, Pennsylvania (Reuters) - Like most top golfers, Luke Donald prefers major championship venues to play firm and fast, so the Englishman rues the fact that Merion Golf Club has been softened by heavy rain for this week's U.S. Open. Since Friday, the iconic par-70 East Course has been saturated by more than five inches of torrential downpours, in Donald's opinion considerably lengthening the list of potential winners of the year's second major.

(Reuters) - Richmond International Airport in Virginia was evacuated early on Tuesday after a threatening phone call, but a sweep of the airport located no dangers, officials said. The airport "received a threat by phone, deemed serious enough to evacuate the terminal as a precautionary measure," according to its Twitter page. Police dogs were brought in to search the terminal, and all public areas were swept and declared clear of any threat, the Twitter page said.

NEW YORK, N.Y. - A group of about 100 high school students travelling from New York to Atlanta were ejected from an AirTran flight after the pilot and crew lost patience with kids who wouldn't sit down and put away their cellphones. Seniors from the Yeshiva of Flatbush in Brooklyn were on the flight about 6 a.m. Monday at LaGuardia Airport.