Sorenstam Ends Year With Another Victory

Nothing went according to plan for Annika Sorenstam until the trophy presentation Sunday at the ADT Championship, a script she knows better than anyone.

She could have ended a dramatic duel with Cristie Kerr by making a 12-foot birdie on the 72nd hole, but the putt turned away at the edge of the cup to force a sudden-death playoff at Trump International in West Palm Beach, Fla.

Sorenstam birdied the 16th hole to catch Kerr, and missed a 12-foot birdie putt on the 18th that led to the third playoff in the nine-year history of the tournament.

Sorenstam shot a three-under-par 69, and Kerr finished with a 68. They finished at 13-under 275.

Kerr, who had not made a bogey in 44 holes, hit a marginal drive that left her a seven-wood into the 18th green in the playoff. Off a sidehill lie, she pushed it badly into the water, then missed the green with a sand wedge and wound up with a double bogey.

Once Kerr was in the water, Sorenstam needed only to hit the green. Instead, she pulled it left and hit a spectator, keeping the outcome in doubt for a while longer.

Sorenstam chipped down to five feet above the hole, and when Kerr tapped in for double bogey, she had only to two-putt to win the title and the $215,000 first prize.

“It wasn’t as pretty as the previous holes,” Sorenstam said. “A win is a win. By the end of the day, the trophy is in my hand. I’m happy.”

So ended another spectacular year for Sorenstam: eight victories, slightly more than $2.5 million in earnings and more evidence that she is the most dominant player in golf.

She won for the 56th time in her career, moving past Betsy Rawls into fifth place all-time, and she became the first three-time winner of the LPGA’s version of the Tour Championship.

Karrie Webb and Carin Koch each shot 69 and finished third at 280.

Jennifer Rosales, who played in the final group with Sorenstam, took a double bogey on No. 9 that knocked her out of contention. She holed out a long bunker shot on the 18th for a 74 to finish fifth.

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Tiger Woods earned his first stroke-play tournament victory in more than a year, winning the Dunlop Phoenix at Miyazaki, Japan, by eight strokes after closing with a three-under 67.

Woods began the final round with a 10-stroke lead and had five birdies to finish at 16-under 264 in the $1.89-million event, the richest on the Japan tour.

This was Woods’ second title this year after the Match Play Championship in February. The last time he won a stroke-play tournament was in October 2003.

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Paul Casey putted exceptionally well and teamed with Luke Donald to lead England to the World Cup title with a one-stroke victory over Spain.

The two combined for an eight-under-par 64 in the alternate shot format and had a total of 31-under 257 at Real Club de Golf de Sevilla in Spain. The Spanish team of Sergio Garcia and Miguel Angel Jimenez closed with a 66.

The Irish team of Padraig Harrington and Paul McGinley finished with a 65 for third, three strokes behind. The U.S. team of Scott Verplank and Bob Tway shot a 72 and finished 10 shots behind.

Winter Sports

Axel Teichmann’s strong finish helped Germany win a World Cup cross-country ski relay at Gallivare, Sweden.

Norway, anchored by Marit Bjorgen, won the women’s event. The Norwegians haven’t lost a women’s World Cup relay since February, when they finished second at La Clusaz, France.

The races were held more than 60 miles north of the Arctic Circle in temperatures of nearly four below zero. The World Cup meet was moved to Gallivare because of a lack of snow in Ostersund.

Teichmann broke away on the homestretch, finishing 1.8 seconds ahead of Italy in the 40-kilometer relay that included two classical style and two freestyle legs. Also on the German team were Jens Filbrich, Tobias Angerer and Rene Sommerfeldt, last season’s overall World Cup champion.

Russia finished third but was disqualified after one of its skiers made an improper track change. France was awarded third place, 25.1 seconds behind Germany, which was timed in 1 hour 33 minutes 37.4 seconds.

Bjorgen skied the last leg for a team that also included Kine Beate Bjornas, Vibeke Skofterud and Hilde G. Pedersen. Norway’s winning time was 52 minutes 51.9 seconds.

Soccer

U.S. midfielder DaMarcus Beasley scored a goal to help PSV Eindhoven defeat Vitesse Arnhem, 2-0, in the Dutch league. It was the 10th consecutive shutout for unbeaten PSV, which leads the league with 35 points in 13 games. The team has not allowed a goal in league play since a 2-2 tie against NAC Breda on Aug. 28.

Striker Washington broke the all-time scoring record in the Brazilian league, scoring his 31st and 32nd goals to help first-place Atletico Paranaense beat Ponte Preta, 3-2. Dimba, a striker for Goias, scored 31 goals last year.

Mexican league leader Veracruz failed to show up for its match against visiting Chiapas, automatically forfeiting, 2-0. The team will also have to pay a $4,100 fine.

Club owner Rafael Herrerias objected to his team’s playing an afternoon game in the port city of Veracruz and refused to let the players take the field after his request to play Saturday night was turned down.

Except for two matches with no playoff significance, league officials scheduled all games to start on Sunday at midday, so that no team would take the field knowing its playoff fate.

Miscellany

Dick Pound was unanimously reelected chairman of the World Anti-Doping Agency’s foundation board, and the board also increased the agency’s budget by $1.47 million.

The 2005 budget will be slightly more than $21.7 million. It is the first budget increase for WADA in two years, and officials said it was necessary because of the agency’s increased responsibilities.