Norman Begins to Pull His Game Together

Four days after his Masters cave-in, Greg Norman pulled his psyche and his golf game together to land in contention Thursday in the MCI Heritage Classic at Hilton Head Island, S.C.

Norman, who gave away a six-stroke lead and the green jacket to Nick Faldo at Augusta National on Sunday, finished with a 69. He was three strokes behind the four leaders--Ken Green, Guy Boros, Jim Furyk and Loren Roberts.

“It was important to have a good solid round today, especially with what happened the week before,” Norman said.

Norman opened with a bogey, then missed birdie putts of 20 feet or less the next four holes. He broke through on the par-five 15th, hitting a wood about 230 yards over a live oak tree to the back of the green with his second shot and making a two-putt birdie.

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Hale Irwin went into the water twice to save pars and worked his way around the wind-swept Champion Course at Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., in six-under-par 66 for the first-round lead in his first PGA Seniors’ Championship.

Irwin, who turned 50 in June, played a bogey-free round and negotiated the very difficult final eight holes at two under to take a one-stroke lead over Larry Gilbert. Vincente Fernandez was another stroke back at 68.

“After No. 10, the golf course really begins,” John Schroeder said after shooting a 69, three strokes off the lead along with Isao Aoki and Tommy Aaron.

“If you can play those last eight holes in even par every day, you are going to have a good tournament,” Schroeder said.

Irwin fared better than other seniors who were at the Masters last week. Defending champion Raymond Floyd shot a 74. Jack Nicklaus, winner of the Tradition two weeks ago, triple-bogeyed No. 17 and shot a 77, and Arnold Palmer had a 77.

Pro Football

A judge ruled that the legal tussle over the Seattle Seahawks’ attempted move to Southern California will be heard in Seattle and not moved across the Cascade Mountains to Ellensburg.

The Seahawks had argued that moving the trial to a more neutral forum was warranted because of unrelenting publicity against team owner Ken Behring. They also said King County filed the lawsuit as a “preemptive strike” during negotiations to settle differences between the sides.

“This court finds neither of these arguments to be founded in fact or law,” King County Superior Court Judge Jim Bates ruled.

Free-agent offensive lineman Steve Wallace signed a one-year contract with the Philadelphia Eagles.

Terms of the deal weren’t announced. Wallace, San Francisco’s fourth-round draft pick in 1986, played 10 years with the 49ers.

Safety Patrick Bates, who sat out last season, was acquired by the Atlanta Falcons from the Oakland Raiders for a second-round pick, the 48th overall, in Saturday’s draft.

Safety Bennie Blades has accepted a one-year, $1.7-million offer to remain with the Detroit Lions for the 1996-97 season.

Defensive end Leonard Marshall, a starter on the Giants’ 1986 and 1990 Super Bowl teams, re-signed with New York so he could retire as a member of the team.

The Cincinnati Bengals terminated cornerback Mike Brim’s contract after he failed a physical.

Jurisprudence

Retired all-pro linebacker Lawrence Taylor is four months behind in child support payments and owes $58,538, but his agent says he’s no deadbeat dad.

“It’s the furthest from the truth,” agent Bobby Cupo said. “He’s got the best relationship with his kids. They’re living in a $500,000 house in North Carolina and they’re well provided for.”

Bergen County Sheriff Jack Terhune was quoted in the Star-Ledger of Newark as saying that a warrant for Taylor’s arrest could be issued next week at Hackensack, N.J., if he fails to catch up on his $14,000 monthly child support payments.

New England Patriot running back Dave Meggett was acquitted of charges that he assaulted a former girlfriend at Franklin Lakes, N.J.

A July 15 trial date has been set for the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Bam Morris, who pleaded innocent at Rockwall, Texas, to two drug possession charges stemming from his arrest last month during a traffic stop.

Tennis

Pete Sampras defeated Swedish qualifier Magnus Norman, 5-7, 6-4, 6-1, to advance to the quarterfinals of the Japan Open at Tokyo.

Michael Chang lost five consecutive games in the first set but struggled to a 5-7, 6-3, 6-4 victory over fellow American Jeff Tarango.

In women’s matches, 18-year-old American Corina Morariu upset fifth-seeded Naoko Sawamatsu of Japan, 5-7, 6-3, 7-6 (7-5), to advance to the quarterfinals.

Defending champion Thomas Muster of Austria, seeking the 38th title of his career, ousted Czech Bohdan Ulihrach, 6-4, 7-5, at the Barcelona Open in Spain.

Also, Jim Courier of the United States coasted past Roberto Carretero of Spain, 6-4, 6-3, and will play Todd Martin in the quarterfinals. Martine defeated Christian Ruud of Norway, 6-0, 6-4.

This year’s Wimbledon men’s champion will collect an extra $41,000 at the world’s premier grass-court tournament.

The men’s winner will receive $592,675, an increase of $41,525; the women’s winner will take home $533,030, up by $37,750.

Miscellany

Dr. Paul Schroy, one of the doctors who treated Boston Marathon women’s champion Uta Pippig, said test results showed her biggest problem was dehydration related to the diarrhea and to a lesser extent menstrual blood loss.

“It’s not a serious condition,” he said.

Soccer clubs Rapid Vienna and Paris-St. Germain advanced to next month’s final of the European Cup Winners Cup.

Canadian sprinter Sean Baksh was banned for four years by Athletics Canada after testing positive for the substance stanozolol during random drug testing conducted earlier this month.

A contract extension and a 34% pay raise were approved for Mississippi State basketball Coach Richard Williams, who led the Bulldogs to their first NCAA Final Four appearance last month.

The Mountain Pacific Sports Federation men’s volleyball coaches selected UCLA’s Stein Metzger as the league’s player of the year.

Former Angel Bobby Grich has been named assistant general manager of the Long Beach Riptide of the independent Western League. The club, known last season as the Barracudas, is the defending champion.