LA QUINTA, Calif — A chaotic week for 18-year-old Blades Brown was an inch away from a most spectacular highlight Friday when he narrowly missed a 6-foot birdie putt for 59, leaving him tied for the lead in The American Express with Scottie Scheffler.

Brown, who turned pro last year and is weeks removed from graduating high school, needed only one birdie over the final three holes on the Nicklaus Tournament course at PGA West, the easiest of three courses in the rotation in ideal weather.

He hit a gap wedge just right of the pin on his last hole, the par-4 ninth. He had the advantage of seeing David Ford go first on the same line. He picked his spot, rolled the putt and it stayed right, grazing the edge as the gallery groaned.

Brown earned Korn Ferry Tour status last year and was in the Bahamas for a tournament that didn’t end until Wednesday. He used a flight voucher he earned from a top-50 finish in the Myrtle Beach Classic last year to fly private to Palm Springs, arriving to his hotel about 8 p.m. on the eve of The American Express, where he is playing on a sponsor exemption.

Pro climber has to wait

TAIPEI, Taiwan — Organizers delayed professional rock climber Alex Honnold’s ropeless ascent of the Taipei 101 skyscraper for 24 hours due to weather, they said.

Honnold’s free solo climb of the iconic building in Taiwan’s capital city was supposed to broadcast live on Netflix on Saturday local time, or Friday evening for viewers in the U.S.

But it was still raining in Taipei less than an hour before the event’s scheduled start. Organizers have delayed Honnold’s climb until Sunday morning in Taiwan, where the weather forecast shows sunnier skies.

Netflix said in their announcement safety was their top priority.

Organizers previously said they were aware of a chance of light rain on the morning of the climb and were prepared to delay the event for Honnold’s safety if weather conditions were bad.

The event will air live on Saturday in the U.S. at 5 p.m. Pacific or 8 p.m. Eastern.

UFC fight gets cancelled

LAS VEGAS — Bantamweight fighter Cameron Smotherman collapsed Friday afternoon immediately after weighing in and his bout with Ricky Turcios at UFC 324 was cancelled.

Smotherman made his way to the stage seemingly without any complications. But as he stepped onto the scale and successfully made weight at 135.5 pounds for Saturday’s event, his eyes appeared heavy, slowly blinking twice. He stepped off to his left, wobbling toward the stairs and falling face-first onto the stage in a scary moment.

Smotherman hit his head and chin on the stage.

After briefly sitting up with assistance, Smotherman laid back down on his left side before being rolled onto his back as doctors rushed to his aid for medical treatment.

Once again, roughly three minutes after collapsing, Smotherman was assisted to a seated position for another minute before being brought to his feet, where he appeared to go unconscious as he was carried off the stage by UFC personnel.

A UFC spokesperson said Smotherman was transported from T-Mobile Arena to a hospital for precautionary evaluations and was discharged.