Ozaki Shoots 63 to Take Early Lead at Las Vegas

Joe Ozaki, taking advantage of a pro-am format most pros dislike, shot an eight-under-par 63 Wednesday to take a one-stroke lead after the first round of the Las Vegas Invitational.

Ozaki had a 29 on the back nine at the Las Vegas Hilton Country Club to grab the lead on the first day of a tournament that stretches over five days on three courses.

Rick Fehr topped a group of four golfers a shot back at 64. Fehr was also eight-under, but his round was shot at the par-72 Las Vegas Country Club.

Pro Basketball

The NBA Board of Governors added two places in next year’s draft lottery, increasing the number of teams that will have a crack at the top college players from 11 to 13 teams. With the addition of two expansion teams--the Toronto Raptors and Vancouver Grizzlies--the number of teams in the league increased to 29.

Clipper guard Terry Dehere is doubtful for Friday night’s exhibition opener against the Orlando Magic after spraining his left ankle in a scrimmage. He is listed as day to day.

Tennis

Top-seeded Thomas Muster of Austria was upset by unseeded Frederik Fetterlein of Denmark, 6-2, 6-7 (7-1), 6-1, in the third round of the Israel Open Championships at Tel Aviv. . . . Eighteen-year-old Mark Philippoussis of Australia dominated former world No. 1 Stefan Edberg, taking only 43 minutes to win, 6-0, 6-2, in the Seiko Super tennis tournament at Tokyo. . . . The WTA Tour has reached agreement with the Canadian soft-wear company Corel to be the women tennis group’s first main sponsor in two years.

Miscellany

The long estrangement between linebacker Ken Norton Jr. and his father, former heavyweight champion Ken Norton, is over. The younger Norton, who plays for the San Francisco 49ers, said his wife, Angela, was instrumental in patching up the relationship.

The NCAA Council, seeking to reward student-athletes who did not meet the academic standards after high school but achieve academic success in junior college, is sponsoring legislation that would make football and basketball players immediately eligible at four-year schools.

A final budget of $1.61 billion was approved for the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. Tickets sales have been spectacular but corporate support has been lacking, leaving the final budget showing no profit and scant room for error. All but $227 million--or about 14%--of the projected revenue is now either in hand or contractually committed, officials said.

Tim Flannery, a member of San Diego’s 1984 World Series team, is expected to be named the Padres’ third-base coach today. He’ll replace Graig Nettles, who was let go last week after just one season on the coaching staff.

Hockey

Richard Burke and his partners expect to own the Winnipeg Jets by the weekend, and NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said that Minnesota has about a month to help Burke bring the team to Minneapolis. Bettman said he worked hard to keep the sale price--$67 million--lower than other franchise deals, and to give Minnesota the first shot at the Jets.

Jurisprudence

Suzanne Elizabeth Whalen, the first witness in boxing promoter Don King’s insurance fraud trial in New York, testified that as president of Hanleigh Companies, an insurance brokerage in Oradell, N.J., she helped obtain insurance for King for fights including a 1990 Mike Tyson bout that was postponed after he hurt himself, and a 1991 fight between Julio Cesar Chavez and Harold Brazier.

Prosecutors said King submitted a phony contract to get Lloyd’s of London to pay $350,000 for training fees that were never paid to Chavez.