Your Top Plays for Today: AP's Sports Guide

The bumpy fairways and patchy putting surfaces -- more burnt-out browns than grassy greens -- are not much to look at. In Iran however, this is golf at its finest. In the same way that the streets of Tehran got new names when the Islamic republic dramatically came into being in 1979, so did the Engelhab ("Revolution" in Farsi) Club. Iran's only recognised golf course has had a fairly rough time since.

LeBron James posted a season-high 42 points with 11 rebounds and five assists to lead Cleveland to a 110-99 NBA victory over league-leading Golden State. In Thursday's game, touted as a possible NBA finals preview, James insisted the Cavaliers weren't out to make a statement against the Warriors, but they did so nevertheless. Cleveland avenged a 112-94 loss to the Warriors in January as they notched their fourth straight victory and an 18th win in their last 20 games.

Former NBA Most Valuable Player Derrick Rose will have surgery on Friday to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee, the Chicago Bulls said. Rose will undergo a meniscectomy, which is removal of part or all of the meniscus, and Bulls general manager Gar Forman will discuss the 26-year-old's prognosis after the procedure. If the tear is small, it's possible Rose could return within six weeks. It's the second straight season that Rose has needed surgery for a similar injury in the same knee.

World number one Rory McIlroy battled to a three-over-par 73 at a windswept Honda Classic in his first US PGA Tour start of 2015. Given Thursday's daunting conditions, which saw only 19 players break par, the Northern Irishman wasn't too disappointed with an effort that left him eight shots off the pace set by Web.com Tour graduate Jim Herman.

By Simon Evans PALM BEACH GARDENS, Florida (Reuters) - Rory McIlroy has had his share of ups and downs at the Honda Classic and Thursday's opening round, where he shot a three-over-par 73, was no different. The Northern Irishman won at PGA National in 2012 with a victory that sent him to the world number one spot for the first time in his career and signaled his arrival as one of the sport's true stars. McIlroy walked off the course just a year later during his first round, talking about being in a "bad place" but later saying a painful toothache had been behind his withdrawal. Twelve months ago, he played some outstanding golf but surrendered a three-stroke lead with an error-strewn 74 in the final round before losing out to American Russell Henley in a four-way playoff.

By Simon Evans PALM BEACH GARDENS, Florida (Reuters) - American journeyman Jim Herman was the unlikely first round leader at the Honda Classic after shooting a five-under-par 65 as world number one Rory McIlroy struggled at blustery PGA National on Thursday. Northern Irishman McIlroy, looking to make a winning start to his build-up to the April 9-12 Masters, recovered from an erratic first 14 holes as he finished birdie-birdie for a three-over 73. Herman, 37, has never won on the PGA Tour and was not even sure of entry into the tournament on Monday but he handled the tough conditions superbly as he stayed bogey-free while recording five birdies on the Champion Course.