Sluman Gets By With Help From Non-Golfing Friend

Jeff Sluman gained his first golf tournament title in 19 months and gave his best friend a special thrill too.

Rick Bruder, who doesn’t play golf, agreed at the last minute to caddie for Sluman during the Greater Milwaukee Open.

As Sluman was heading toward his third PGA Tour victory Sunday, Bruder, who had never caddied, was getting excited.

“He is on cloud nine,” Sluman said. “It has been a wonderful week. He was really, really nervous out there. It was a lot of fun seeing him. He probably kept me relaxed. I was kind of laughing inside at how nervous he was.”

Sluman, who won the PGA Championship in 1988 and the Tucson Classic last year, bogeyed No. 18 to finish with a three-under-par 68 for a 19-under 265 total that earned him $324,000.

“Eighteen certainly wasn’t an artistic success, but I ended up with a check and that is all that really matters,” he said. “I feel my game is in really good shape.”

Sluman had an eagle on No. 6 after his second shot on the par-five hole found heavy rough off the green, about 20 feet away. On his next shot, he punched his left hand in celebration as his chip bent slightly left and rolled into the center of the cup. “Chipping in from there really adds a lot of momentum to your round,” he said. “From there it just started rolling and I felt pretty comfortable.”

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Dana Quigley sank a 33-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole to finish with a seven-under-par 65 and a three-day total of 10-under 200 that beat Jim Colbert by one stroke in the Senior PGA Tour’s Emerald Coast Classic at Milton, Fla. . . . Danielle Ammaccapane shot a final-round 72 to win the LPGA Safeway championship at Portland, Ore., by one shot over Emilee Klein by three shots over her younger sister Dina. Danielle’s total was 12-under 204. . . . Germany’s Sven Struver defeated Sweden’s Patrik Sjoland on the first playoff hole to win the European Masters at Crans-Sur-Sierre, Switzerland. Struver shot a final-round five-under 66 for a 263 total, and Sjoland, the leader after three rounds, struggled to a 70.

Soccer

Canada earned a berth in the 1999 Women’s World Cup with a 1-0 victory over Mexico at Centennial Stadium in Toronto. After Liz Smith scored in the 42nd minute, Mexico twice came close to tying, including a shot in the 68th that got past goalkeeper Nicole Wright before defender Isabelle Morneau kicked the ball away. Canada becomes the 10th team to qualify for next year’s event, which will be held in the United States. The loss didn’t eliminate Mexico from World Cup contention. Mexico will meet Argentina in a home-and-home series, with the winner securing a tournament berth.

Stern John scored his league-leading 20th goal and the Columbus Crew beat the New York-New Jersey MetroStars, 4-3, at Columbus, Ohio. John’s goal in the 35th minute came off an indirect kick from 19 yards out to give Columbus a 2-0 lead. Rob Smith put the Crew up, 4-2, in the 67th minute when he dribbled around a defender and scored from 21 yards out.

All players on Thailand’s national soccer team have offered to quit after their poor performance in last week’s Tiger Cup tournament in Vietnam during which they tried to lose a match. Indonesia and Thailand were fined the maximum $40,000 each Friday by the ASEAN Football Federation for failing to play to win during their Aug. 31 game. Both teams sought to lose to avoid traveling to Hanoi from Ho Chi Minh City to play Vietnam. Indonesia resorted to kicking the ball into its own goal in the closing minutes to ensure the loss.

Miscellany

In a poll published by the Deseret News of Salt Lake City, 58% of Utah residents said they don’t feel part of the 2002 Winter Games, which the city is hosting, and about half said they don’t want to be a part of the event.

Olympic yachting medalist Lars Grael lost most of his right leg when his vessel was hit by another boat near Rio de Janeiro. Grael was competing in the national championships in Vitoria, 250 miles northeast of Rio, when the crash occurred, said Alice Monjaedem, a spokeswoman at Unimed hospital. The Brazilian yachting champion, won bronze medals at the 1988 and 1996 Olympics.

Olympic champion Xeno Mueller of Switzerland launched his bid for a title at the World Rowing Championships at Cologne, Germany, qualifying for the semifinals of the men’s single sculls. Mueller completed his 2,000-meter heat in 6 minutes 54.97 seconds.

Cyclist Jeroen Blijlevens of the Netherlands won the second leg of the Tour of Spain at Cadiz in 6 hours 30 minutes 24 seconds. Markus Szberg of Switzerland, winner of the first leg Saturday, was the overall leader.

The attorney for an Italian doctor who reportedly implied that top Austrian skiers use performance-enhancing drugs stated in a letter that the remarks were misinterpreted. Herbert Schonhuber, head of the medical commission for the Italian winter sports federation, was quoted by Gazzetta dello Sport as questioning the increase in muscle mass of Olympic double-gold medalist Hermann Maier.