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WASHINGTON – The Washington Wizards fired coach Flip Saunders on Tuesday after opening the season with a National Basketball Association-worst 2-15 record.

The Wizards, who started the season with eight consecutive losses, were trounced by the Philadelphia 76ers 103-83 on Monday, for their seventh road loss in as many tries this year.

Assistant Randy Wittman will take over on an interim basis for the remainder of the season beginning with the Wizards hosting the Charlotte Bobcats on Wednesday night.

“We felt the team had become unresponsive and we will look to Randy to provide a different voice and a change in philosophy moving forward,” Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld said in a statement.

“We were disappointed in the lack of development of our players at this point in our rebuilding plan.”

Wittman, 52, was head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers for two seasons and later directed the Minnesota Timberwolves for two-plus seasons.

He has a 100-207 record as a head coach and served as the Wizards’ lead assistant since the 2009-10 season.

“We have struggled as a team at times this season, but we have also seen a great deal of potential from our young players and glimpses of what we can accomplish together as a team,” Wittman said.

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Robert Rock is closing in on 200 European Tour events without a win, but maybe a change of caddie is about to bring a change of luck.

In his first round with Andy Forsyth on the bag, Rock started the Andalucian Open with a five-under-par 65 in Malaga and shares the lead with fellow Englishman Jamie Elson and Swedes Johan Edfors and Rikard Karlberg.

The 33-year-old had been with Jamie Lane for years, but told the Tour website: ‘Things had got a little bit stale.

‘We got on fine, but nothing was really happening and a change was probably the easiest option.

‘I’ve been playing good but not getting on any run of birdies or building any momentum.’

That was the way it seemed to be again when he stood level par with eight holes to play, but then came five birdies for a front nine of 29.

Rock has had three runners-up finishes in his career and even walked away with the winning cheque at the 2009 Irish Open because it was amateur Shane Lowry who beat him in a play-off.

Elson was on the same winning Walker Cup team as Graeme McDowell and Luke Donald, but 10 years on does not have a full Tour card and needed a top-10 finish in Sicily to qualify for this week’s event.

The 29-year-old, whose father Pip was the circuit’s rookie of the year in 1973, came joint fifth on Monday and on the back of that went to the turn in 30 before adding another birdie at the long 12th.

‘My fairways hit stats last year were abysmal and that’s why I lost my card, but I went over to the States over Christmas and made some really ground-breaking changes, so I’m delighted,’ Elson said.

‘The first time I had a card was 2004 and perhaps it came a bit early for me.

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