Brady Gets a Bigger Deal

The New England Patriots have signed quarterback Tom Brady to a six-year extension worth $60 million, a deal that for the first time brings the two-time Super Bowl MVP’s salary in line with his accomplishments.

The extension was reported by ESPN and confirmed to the Associated Press on Saturday night by a football source, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Brady had two years left on his previous contract that had a total value of about $30 million -- less than Indianapolis quarterback Peyton Manning got in signing bonus alone even though Brady and the Patriots beat the Colts in the playoffs in consecutive years.

A sixth-round draft pick, Brady took over the Patriot starting job when Drew Bledsoe was injured in the 2001 season and has led New England to three Super Bowl victories in four years.

Brady was the MVP of the 2002 and 2004 Super Bowls, twice leading the Patriots on game-winning drives in the final minutes.

They won their third Super Bowl in February, running Brady’s playoff record to 9-0.

Golf

Sergio Garcia made eight birdies in his first 15 holes and shot a five-under-par 67 to take a six-shot lead after three rounds of the Wachovia Championship at Charlotte, N.C.

Garcia was nearly flawless from tee to green, and even better with his putter. He pulled away with three birdies on the back nine on his way to a 12-under 204 total.

D.J. Trahan, a 24-year-old rookie, shot a 71 and is at six-under 210, along with Vijay Singh (71) and Jim Furyk (69).

Tennis

Ninth-seeded Guillermo Coria upset sixth-seeded Andre Agassi, 7-5, 7-6 (0), in the semifinals of the Italian Masters at Rome.

Coria will play for the title today against fifth-seeded Rafael Nadal in the clay-court tuneup for the French Open.

Nadal advanced by beating David Ferrer, 4-6, 6-4, 7-5, to extend his winning streak to 16 matches. He is a tour-best 30-2 on clay this year.

Justine Henin-Hardenne took another step in her comeback, defeating seventh-seeded Patty Schnyder, 6-0, 6-1, to reach the final of the clay-court German Open at Berlin.

Henin-Hardenne, seeded 12th, extended her winning streak to 16 matches since her return from a virus and injury that sidelined her for seven months.

She will play sixth-seeded Nadia Petrova, who beat Jelena Jankovic, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-3, for the title.

Hockey

Sweden defeated Canada at the world championships, but this time the gold medal wasn’t at stake. Defenseman Kenny Jonsson scored the winning goal with 6:13 left in the third period as Sweden, which had lost the last two finals to Canada, rallied from a two-goal deficit to win, 5-4, in the second round at Innsbruck, Austria.

Samuel Pahlsson made a nice pass to Jonsson, who one-timed a shot past Martin Brodeur. Mattias Norstrom, a defenseman with the Kings, also got an assist on the play.

Representatives of the new Mighty Duck ownership have asked the Kings for permission to interview assistant general manager Kevin Gilmore for the Ducks’ general manager position, a source familiar with the operation said.

The group spoke with former San Jose General Manager Dean Lombardi last week. Brian Burke, Neil Smith and Mike Smith, all former NHL general managers, have already interviewed for the job.

Track and Field

Justin Gatlin, the Olympic gold medalist, won the men’s 100 meters at the IAAF Japan Grand Prix in Osaka, finishing in 10.15 seconds at Nagai Stadium.

American Brian Lewis was second in 10.28 and Obadele Thompson of Barbados was third in 10.30. The race was much slower than Gatlin’s gold-medal sprint at Athens, when five runners clocked under 9.95.

In the women’s 100, American Allyson Felix was timed in 11.30 to finish .09 ahead of teammate Angela Daigle.