Woods Takes Five-Stroke Cushion With a 67

Despite no bogeys over 54 holes and his largest lead in two years, Tiger Woods figures he needs one more round of good golf to capture the American Express Championship at Thomastown, Ireland.

Everyone else might need a lot more than that.

Woods didn’t hit the ball as crisply as he did the first two days, but he still produced a nonchalant round of five-under-par 67 for a 19-under 197 and a five-stroke lead over Kelly and several others.

Scott McCarron set a course record with an eight-under 64. He was at 14-under 202.

Woods is 29-4 when he has at least a share of the lead going into the final round.

The round got off to a scary start when a contract worker lost control of his golf cart and plowed into the gallery near the first tee as Woods was about to play. Three spectators were injured, the worst injury being a broken ankle.

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Annika Sorenstam and Carin Koch led a European sweep of the afternoon best-ball matches to give Europe a 9-7 lead over the United States after the second day of the Solheim Cup at Edina, Minn.

Koch and Sorenstam were the only European winners in the four morning alternate-shot matches. Europe, the defending champion, needs five victories in the 12 singles matches today to reach 14 points and retain the cup.

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K.J. Choi shot a three-under 68 for a five-stroke lead in the Tampa Bay Classic at Palm Harbor, Fla. Choi is at 14-under 199.... Andy North birdied his last four holes for a second-round 66 and held a one-shot lead over Bruce Lietzke in the SAS Championship at Cary, N.C.

Auto Racing

Todd Burns of Riverside closed in on the Auto Club Late Model Series championship while three more track champions were crowned in front of 5,310 at Irwindale Speedway. Burns earned his 26th career win by holding off Doug McComb and Tim Huddleston, who trails Burns by 34 points, 756-752.

In the 40-lap Vista Paint Super Stock Series feature, Darren Cheek won the race and the series flag. Travis Thirkettle won the 35-lap Grand American Modified season finale, but John Watkinson took the series title. In the 35-lap Modified 4s series finale, Terry Limberopoulus earned his first title.

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Scott Wimmer used a quick stop to beat Mike McLaughlin off pit road during a late caution in the NASCAR Busch Series MBNA All-American Heroes 200 at Dover, Del., and drove to his first victory.... Mike Bliss extended his NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series points lead by winning the Hardee’s 250 at Big Daddy’s South Boston (Va.) Speedway. The race was slowed by a series-record 88 laps of caution.

Miscellany

Gail Devers won the 100-meter hurdles in 12.65 seconds in the World Cup at Madrid, beating runner-up Bridgette Foster of Jamaica by 0.17. Marion Jones did not run in the women’s 200 and Debbie Ferguson of the Bahamas took advantage, winning in 22.49. Africa became the first men’s team to win four consecutive Cup titles, piling up 134 points. The U.S. was second with 119. Russia won its first women’s title in the two-day event with 126 points. The defending-champion U.S. team was fourth with 105.

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Serena Williams defeated Amy Frazier, 7-6, 6-3, in the semifinals of the Toyota Princess Cup at Tokyo. Kim Clijsters defeated defending champion Jelena Dokic, 5-7, 6-2, 6-3, in the other semifinal.

The Ottawa Senators traded defenseman Sami Salo to the Vancouver Canucks for left wing Peter Schaefer, who signed a bonus-laden, two-year, $1.125-million deal with Ottawa.

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German boxer Graciano Rocchigiani won a $30-million judgment against the World Boxing Council when a Manhattan jury agreed that he was cheated out of his claim to the light-heavyweight championship, his attorney said. The WBC declared its light-heavyweight title vacant in 1998 after then-champion Roy Jones considered becoming a heavyweight. On March 21, 1998, Rocchigiani beat Michael Nunn for the light-heavyweight title. But when Jones decided to return to the division in June, he was restored as champion.