Sports briefs

0 Comments | Deseret News (Salt Lake City), May 5, 2007

Golf

WOODS, SINGH TIED: Tiger Woods finally had the lead to himself on a chilly Friday at the Wachovia Championship in Charlotte, N.C., as he walked toward the eighth green, only two holes left in his second round and his ball 6 feet below the cup for another birdie.

Padraig Harrington was one shot behind and warming up on the range. Vijay Singh was four shots back in the group behind.

Things sure can change in a hurry at Quail Hollow.

On a day when the steamy South felt more like late fall in New England, the leaderboard shifted just as suddenly. Within a half- hour, Woods and Singh were tied for the lead to set up a showdown between the top two players on the PGA Tour this year.

Woods missed his short birdie putt, then took his only bogey of the round when he drove into the trees on No. 9 and had to settle for a 4-under 68. Singh played the final three holes in 3 under to salvage a 71 and join Woods at 6-under 138.

Also tied for the lead was Arron Oberholser, who also emerged from obscurity quickly with birdies on his last three holes for a 69.

Auto racing

ANOTHER POLE FOR GORDON: Jeff Gordon rolled to his third consecutive NASCAR Nextel Cup pole position Friday in Richmond, Va., and former series champion Dale Jarrett was among those headed home as Toyota teams again struggled to compete.

Gordon, a four-time series champion, will start on the pole for the fourth consecutive week -- he started first as the series points leader when qualifying was rained out at Texas -- and for the fifth time in six races. He's also won two races in a row and has opened a 203-point lead over second-place Jeff Burton after nine races.

"I'm kind of blown away right now with the roll that we're on," Gordon said.

Jarrett was blown away, too, by almost everyone. His Toyota finished 47th among the 50 cars attempting to make the field, with a fast lap at just 123.226 mph.

BOWYER WINS BUSCH RACE: Clint Bowyer won the race off pit road with about 28 laps to go Friday night and easily went on to his fifth career NASCAR Busch Series victory in Richmond, Va. Matt Kenseth dominated much of the latter part of the race but pitted along with the other leaders after the final caution flew on lap 223. Carl Edwards and David Ragan assumed the top two spots by staying out, but their stay in front didn't last long. Kenseth came out fifth, behind Bowyer and Jeff Burton, after a mishap with the jack on Kenseth's right front tire. Edwards and Ragan faded, but Bowyer remained strong, taking the lead with 19 laps to go and winning by 1.483 seconds.

Football

4 PLAYERS CLEARED: Charges were dismissed against four of six Penn State football players involved in an off-campus fracas, but the judge ruled there was enough evidence against two players to order them to stand trial.

Standout starting cornerback Justin King of Pittsburgh had been charged with criminal trespass, disorderly conduct and harassment, but prosecutors said at the start of a preliminary hearing Friday that they were dropping him from the case due to lack of evidence.

District Judge Carmine Prestia dismissed identical charges against Lydell Sargeant, Tyrell Sales and Jerome Hayes at the end of the eight-hour hearing, also citing a lack of evidence.

HUMANE SOCIETY WANTS BAN: A prominent animal-rights group called on NFL commissioner Roger Goodell to ban players who are involved in dog fighting, saying it was especially troubled that evidence of the deadly activity was allegedly found at a home owned by Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick.

The Humane Society of the United States sent a letter to Goodell on Thursday, calling on the NFL to "collaborate with us in an organized effort to eradicate animal cruelty and illegal animal fighting activity from the ranks of the NFL."

"We believe that the current situation involving Michael Vick is indicative of a larger subculture within the NFL of dog fighting and other forms of violence against animals," wrote Wayne Pacelle, chief executive officer of the Humane Society.