THE INSIDE TRACK : Newswire : Woods’ Conflict Expected to Rearrange Grand Slam

After dominating the PGA Tour this summer, Tiger Woods now may be rearranging it.

PGA of America officials said Wednesday the Grand Slam of Golf, the tournament for winners of the four major events, may have to be moved back a week because defending champion Woods has a commitment to play the same week in the World Cup in Kuala Lumpur.

The Grand Slam, a 36-hole event with a total purse of $1 million, is set for Nov. 16-17 on Kauai, but officials are trying to reschedule, with Nov. 23-24 being mentioned.

Others who have qualified for the Grand Slam are Masters champion Jose Maria Olazabal, U.S. Open winner Payne Stewart and British Open champion Paul Lawrie.

Hockey

Mario Lemieux’s takeover of the bankrupt Pittsburgh Penguins was approved by the NHL’s board of governors, pending court approval. Lemieux said he and his group of investors, numbering more than a dozen, have put together $52 million so far and hope to raise more money. He said the market value of the Penguins is currently $85 million. . . . Former Florida Panther right wing Dino Ciccarelli is retiring after 19 NHL seasons because of a back injury. Ciccarelli, 39, is ninth on the NHL’s all-time goal scoring list with 608.

Markus Naslund, the Vancouver Canucks’ leading scorer last year with 36 goals and 66 points, signed a three-year, $7.2-million contract with the club. . . . The Chicago Blackhawks announced the re-signing of goaltender Jocelyn Thibault and defensemen Brad Brown and Jamie Allison to multiyear contracts. . . . Former St. Louis Blues defenseman Ed Kea, whose career was cut short in 1983 by a head injury, drowned Tuesday in an accident at his family’s summer cottage in Ontario, Canada. He was 51.

Miscellany

Matt Hartl, one of the leaders of the 1995 Northwestern football team that played in the Rose Bowl, has died after a lengthy battle with Hodgkin’s disease. He was 23.

Injured Marion Jones, as expected, pulled out of Friday’s Van Damme track meet at Brussels, and the Golden League’s $1-million jackpot became a two-way contest between distance runners Wilson Kipketer and Gabriela Szabo.

Defending champion D.C. United will open against Olimpia of Honduras in the eight-nation CONCACAF Champions Cup soccer tournament this month in Las Vegas. In other games, it’s the MLS champion Chicago Fire vs. Joe Public of Trinidad; Toluca of Mexico vs. Alajuelense of Costa Rica; and Necaxa of Mexico vs. Saprisa of Costa Rica.

Two-time world champion Michael Schumacher, who broke his leg July 11 in a crash, said he won’t drive in the next two Formula One Grand Prix races. Schumacher made the announcement after taking a car around Ferrari’s home track at Monza, where the Italian Grand Prix will be run Sept. 12.

Mark Spitz, who won seven swimming gold medals at the 1972 Olympics, criticized the International Olympic Committee for failing to introduce tests for all banned drugs because of pressure from countries such as China.