Woods Gets Overshadowed by Trio in Opening Round

Tiger Woods had the fans. Larry Nelson, Joey Gullion and Charlie Rymer were content with the birdies.

Nelson, Gullion and Rymer shot five-under-par 65s Thursday to share the first-round lead in the Quad City Classic at Coal Valley, Ill. Denis Watson and Ed Fiori opened with 66s on the Oakwood Golf Club course.

Woods, making his third start as a pro, was four behind with a 69.

“When you’re not shooting well, it’s nice to be under par,” the three-time U.S. Amateur champion said. “I didn’t play very well. It was just a day when my timing was off.”

Rymer had seven birdies and two bogeys. Nelson made four consecutive birdies, starting and finishing by holing 20-foot putts.

With six birdies and a bogey, Gullion found himself in an unfamiliar position.

“It’s the first time I’ve seen my name as No. 1,” he said. “It felt good, seeing my name at the top of the scoreboard.”

Crowds estimated at more than 2,500 followed Woods, limiting the viewing for many.

“I never had this much trouble seeing at the Masters,” said one spectator.

“The bad thing is he’s such a nice guy,” Rymer said. “If he was a weasel, you could hate him.”

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Gordon Brewer Jr. of Huntingdon Valley, Pa., won three of the final six holes to claim his second USGA Senior Amateur title, beating Heyward Sullivan of Greenville, S.C., 2 up at Taconic Golf Club in Williamstown, Mass.

Pro Basketball

The Philadelphia 76ers have reached contract terms with Allen Iverson, the former Georgetown star and No. 1 pick in the NBA draft. Iverson has agreed to a three-year contract, which, according to sources, is worth $9.6 million, the most money allowed under the NBA’s rookie salary cap.

Tennis

Top-seeded Alberto Costa trailed, 3-1, in the first set, but won 11 of the next 13 games and crushed David Skoch of the Czech Republic, 6-4, 6-1, reaching the quarterfinal of a clay court tournament in Bournemouth, England.

In the quarterfinal, Costa will play unseeded British player Danny Sapsford, a wild-card entry who upset another Spaniard, seventh-seeded Juan Albert Viloca, 7-5, 7-5.

Romanian Dinu Pescariu struggled, but beat seventh-seeded Gilbert Schaller of Austria, 4-6, 6-4, 6-2, in the Romanian Open at Bucharest.

Eighth-seeded Len Lindborg of Laguna upset No. 1 Gordon Davis of Encino, 6-4, 6-3, in the men’s 60-and-over singles at the USTA National Grass Court championships in Lawrence, N.Y.

Lindborg will oppose Jim Nelson of Newport Beach, the third seed and defending champion, in the semifinals. Nelson eliminated fifth-seeded Rey Garrido of Miami, 7-6 (8-6), 6-4.

Top-seeded Val Wilder of Springfield, Mass., the defending champion, moved into the semifinals of the USTA National Men’s 35 Grass Court Championships in Southampton, N.Y., with a 7-5, 6-4 victory over David Kramer of East Hanover, N.J.

Wilder plays fourth-seeded Hans Carlson of Richardson, Texas, who eliminated Neil Levinson of Santa Monica, 6-4, 7-6 (7-2).

Jurisprudence

Walker Lee Ashley, former Minnesota Viking linebacker, received a stayed jail sentence in Hastings, Minn., for stealing about $1,300 in public money. Ashley was placed on probation for one year and ordered to perform 50 hours of community service. Ashley also must make restitution.

A federal court judge in Denver reluctantly declined to force a Colorado athletic body to bend its rules on age to permit Gabriel Lane, a 20-year-old with Down’s syndrome, to play high school football. U.S. District Court Judge Zita Weinshienk said it was not appropriate for the court to act as a rule maker for the Colorado High School Activities Assn.

A judge dismissed Kentucky basketball Coach Rick Pitino and Athletic Director C.M. Newton as defendants in a discrimination lawsuit filed by former men’s basketball trainer JoAnn Hauser. The summary judgment doesn’t pertain to guilt or innocence but only to personal liability should Hauser win a judgment. Hauser is seeking more than $2 million in damages, lost wages and legal fees. She contends that she was discriminated against when Newton asked her to move from trainer of the men’s team to the same position with the women’s team.

Name in the News

Kansas point guard Jacque Vaughn is scheduled to undergo wrist surgery today. Vaughn, who tore ligaments in his right wrist Tuesday during a pickup game with teammates, is expected to be out of action for 12 to 16 weeks.