Tiger Gets Big-Time Style Pointers

Tiger Woods didn’t win the British Open, but he looked as if he was the best dressed. It was no accident. His outfits were planned weeks in advance by Nike.

In case you missed them, a quick review:

* First round: Engineered chest stripe polo (burnt heather, black and dark mocha).

* Second round: Stripe Jacquard polo (whip, dark loden, limestone).

* Third round: Statement Jacquard polo (limestone, whip, dark mocha).

* Fourth round: Two-color Jacquard polo (black and Chianti).

Now you know.

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Trivia time: Who is the only major league most valuable player never to make an All-Star team?

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Sagging interest: No wonder no one wants to relocate an NFL team to Los Angeles. According to figures released by Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Journal, the soccer Galaxy and arena football Avengers have had the largest drops in attendance in their leagues.

The Galaxy is down 33.7% from last year, while the Avengers were off 30.2%.

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Surprise, surprise: Entering Monday’s play, Houston Astro left fielder Lance Berkman was leading the National League in batting with a .360 average in his first full year in the majors, but he says he’s still in awe of his position.

“Every time I go up there now, I feel like I’m fighting for my life,” Berkman said. “A lot of times I go up there and feel I have no chance at all, and somehow a guy throws a pitch and you happen to run into it and you go, ‘Wow, how did that happen?’ ”

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Marketing Update: Like the Sparks, the Sacramento Monarchs are marketing their WNBA team to lesbian groups by holding a “First Annual Gay Pride Event.”

Shelly Crouse-Monarez, a member of a lesbian group from UC Davis, told the Sacramento Bee: “Call it politically correct [if you like], I just call it being nice.”

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Just thinking: Observations from the San Jose Mercury News’ Bud Geracie:

* “Apropos of their season, the Texas Rangers’ series at Baltimore was disrupted by a train wreck.

* “By signing with Orlando, Patrick Ewing will be closer to his future rest home.

* “Michael Vick already has moved up on the [Atlanta] Falcons’ depth chart, although passing Eric Zeier is a debatable measure of progress.”

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Shut down: The folks at Atlanta Athletic Club are taking seriously their role as hosts of the Aug. 16-19 PGA Championship.

The course was closed to members Sunday and they won’t get on it until after the tournament. By contrast, Augusta National members can play their course the Sunday before the start of the Masters.

The 30,000-square-foot indoor tennis complex is closed too--to be prepared as the media center.

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Trivia answer: Kirk Gibson, MVP with the Dodgers in 1988, was never selected as an all-star in 17 seasons.

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And finally: How hard does Houston Astro reliever Billy Wagner throw?

In the All-Star game, his fastball broke catcher Charles Johnson’s glove.

“My glove blew up,” Johnson told USA Today. “I’ve never had that happen before. Unbelievable. The ball hit the webbing and tore it straight across.”