Tiger Woods drops out of top 50 in world

Tiger Woods is out of the top 50 in the world golf rankings for the first time in nearly 15 years.

Woods, who hasn’t won in nearly two years, was assured of dropping from the top 50 when Louis Oosthuizen finished in a three-way tie for fifth in the Dunhill Links Championship on Sunday at St. Andrews, Scotland.

That ends a streak of 778 consecutive weeks inside the top 50, dating to when Woods was No. 61 on Oct. 13, 1996.

Woods, who has not played since missing the cut at the PGA Championship, returns to competition this week at the Frys.com Open at CordeValle in Northern California.

Northern Ireland’s Michael Hoey edged countrymen Rory McIlroy and Graeme McDowell to win the Dunhill Links Championship by two shots.

Hoey, ranked No. 271, lost his three-shot overnight lead early in the final round but regrouped well, birdieing three of the last four holes for a four-under-par 68. His 22-under total broke the tournament record by one shot.

McIlroy’s closing 65 gave him second place — two shots clear of McDowell (69) and Scotland’s George Murray (67), who finished tied for third.

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Kevin Na won the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open at Las Vegas for his first PGA Tour title, hitting three birdies near the end of his round to pull away for a two-stroke victory over Nick Watney.

Na closed with a six-under 65 for a 23-under 261 total at TPC Summerlin in the Fall Series opener. Watney shot a 67.

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Kenny Perry won the SAS Championship at Cary, N.C., for his first Champions Tour title, making a 30-foot eagle putt on the par-five 17th en route to a two-under 70 and a one-stroke victory over Jeff Sluman and John Huston.

The 51-year-old Perry, a 14-time winner on the PGA Tour, had an 11-under 205 total.

ETC.

Acclamation wins his fifth straight

Acclamation extended his winning streak to five races with a victory in the $150,000 Clement L. Hirsch Turf Championship at Santa Anita, keeping him on course for the Breeders’ Cup.

Acclamation pressed pacesetter Make Music for Me until taking the lead going into the stretch and winning by three-quarters of a length under Patrick Valenzuela. The winner ran 11/4 miles in 1 minute 59.45 seconds and paid $2.80, $2.20 and $2.10 as the 2-5 favorite.

In the $250,000 Oak Leaf Stakes, Weemissfrankie rallied to win by half a length over Candrea and earned a berth in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies.

After a last-place finish Saturday in the Lady’s Secret Stakes at Santa Anita, Blind Luck won’t run in next month’s Breeders’ Cup Ladies’ Classic, trainer Jerry Hollendorfer said Sunday.

Blind Luck, who was the champion 3-year-old filly of 2010, had never finished worse than third in her 21 previous starts.

—Eric Sondheimer

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Ed Carpenter edged Dario Franchitti at the Kentucky Speedway finish line in Sparta to pick up his first IndyCar Series victory.

Franchitti finished second and reclaimed the IndyCar points lead after Will Power had an awful day. Franchitti started the day trailing Power by 12 points in the standings. He goes to the Oct. 16 season finale in Las Vegas with an 18-point lead over Power.

The margin of victory, .0098 of a second, was the sixth-closest in IndyCar history.

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Rain forced NHRA officials to postpone the final eliminations in the NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway in Mohnton, Pa., until Monday.