Singh in five-way tie at Maui

Convinced that he has figured out his flaws, determined not to let an opportunity on Maui slip away, Vijay Singh survived the raging trade wind at Kapalua to make six birdies for a four-under-par 69, leaving him in a five-way tie for the Mercedes-Benz Championship lead as the PGA Tour season began in strenuous conditions.

The wind was so strong that Stephen Ames had 152 yards to the hole at No. 13 and ripped a five-iron. He called it the toughest wind since Saturday at Muirfield in the 2002 British Open, the day Tiger Woods’ hope for a Grand Slam ended with an 81.

The result was a crowd atop the leaderboard.

K.J. Choi struck the first shot of the season and was the first to post a 69 with a nice chip to tap-in range on the par-five 18th. Will MacKenzie, one of 13 newcomers to the Mercedes-Benz Championship, and Brett Wetterich and Ames eventually joined the lead.

Davis Love III was poised to join them until he hit a slight fade that the wind turned into a wild slice, the ball disappearing into the weeds on the 16th hole, forcing him to hit another. He escaped with a bogey, then finished with a two-putt birdie on the 18th after hitting a four-iron from 275 yards with the wind at his back. He was one shot back at 70.

TENNIS

Top-seeded Davydenko reaches Qatar semifinals

Top-seeded Nikolay Davydenko converted three of eight break-point opportunities to defeat Olivier Rochus, 6-4, 6-3, and reach the semifinals of the Qatar Open at Doha.

Davydenko next plays fourth-seeded Andy Murray, who beat Max Mirnyi, 2-6, 6-2, 6-2. Second-seeded Ivan Ljubicic will play sixth-seeded Robin Soderling in the other semifinal.

Ljubicic defeated fifth-seeded Mikhail Youzhny, 2-6, 7-6 (7-2), 7-6 (7-3), and Soderling beat third-seeded Marcos Baghdatis, 6-3, 6-2.

Fourth-seeded Lleyton Hewitt lost to Igor Kunitsyn, 4-6, 7-6 (4), 6-4, in a round-robin match at the Adelaide International, falling out of his hometown tournament in Australia.

Top-seeded Rafael Nadal and Fabrice Santoro advanced to the quarterfinals of the Chennai Open in India. Nadal defeated wild-card entry Karan Rastogi, 6-4, 6-1, and Santoro beat Bjorn Phau, 6-4, 6-2.

Top-seeded Russia will play second-seeded Spain in the Hopman Cup mixed teams final at Perth, Australia, while the U.S. team heads home without a victory.

Australia beat the U.S., 2-1, after Alicia Molik and Nathan Healey won the deciding mixed doubles over Ashley Harkleroad and Mardy Fish, 6-4, 7-5. The Americans finished 0-3.

Russia advanced when Nadia Petrova and Dmitry Tursunov won their singles matches and combined to win the mixed doubles for a 3-0 win over France. Spain qualified when it won the two singles matches of its final round-robin match against India.

WINTER SPORTS

It’s another World Cup slalom win for Schild

Marlies Schild won her fourth World Cup slalom of the season to extend her lead atop the women’s overall standings.

While others struggled and fell on the tricky Slijeme course at Zagreb, Croatia, Schild had a pair of near-flawless runs. She finished in 1 minute 1.63 seconds.

After 14 of 33 events, Schild has 697 points. Fellow Austrian Nicole Hosp is second at 564.

Resi Steigler of Jackson Hole, Wyo., was the highest-placed American, finishing fifth. Julia Mancuso of Olympic Valley, Calif., finished eighth.

Two-time overall champion Anja Paerson led going into her last run with only Schild left to ski, but fell in the lower section after her arm clipped a gate.

HOCKEY

Lemieux meets with officials about new arena

Pittsburgh Penguins owner Mario Lemieux emerged from a “very positive” meeting with Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell and local leaders without hinting whether the team will stay or move to Kansas City, Mo.

Hours after touring the under-construction Sprint Center in Kansas City, Lemieux returned to Pittsburgh for his first in-person meeting with government officials since a plan to fund a $290-million arena with casino money was rejected.

Neither side offered specifics about the so-called Plan B deal to build a replacement for Mellon Arena, but Lemieux did not appear disappointed by the talks.

Detroit Red Wings defenseman Chris Chelios is taking an indefinite leave of absence while he helps employees of his sports bar cope with the stabbing deaths of two co-workers.

Chelios, who did not play in Detroit’s 2-1 win against the Ducks on Tuesday night and did not travel with the Red Wings for Thursday night’s game at San Jose, said he will rejoin the team when the time is right.

MISCELLANY

Padres pitcher Peavy arrested in Alabama

San Diego Padres pitcher Jake Peavy was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct at Mobile (Ala.) Regional Airport.

Peavy, 25, a Mobile native, was taken to the Mobile County Metro Jail shortly before 7 a.m. and was released on a $350 bond, according to the jail log.

Padres General Manager Kevin Towers told the Associated Press he was told that Peavy double-parked to drop off his bags and was told by airport police to move his car.

“The airport police told him he couldn’t park his car there and he said, ‘Write me up a ticket and I’ll pay for it,’ ” Towers said. “He was arrested.”

Pepperdine baseball Coach Steve Rodriguez, who has guided the Waves to three consecutive NCAA tournament appearances, has signed a five-year contract extension that will run through the 2012 season, Athletic Director John Watson said.

In three seasons as coach, Rodriguez has an overall record of 113-76, including 55-26 in West Coast Conference play, while leading the Waves to three straight conference titles.

Jerry Weinstein has resigned as pitching coach at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo to become manager at Modesto, the Colorado Rockies’ affiliate in the Class-A California League.

BASKETBALL

Sparks open season at Chicago on May 22

The Sparks, who will play the 2007 season without three-time WNBA most valuable player and expectant mother-to-be Lisa Leslie, open their 34-game schedule May 22 at Chicago and play their first home game June 8 at Staples Center against the Minnesota Lynx, it was announced by the league. Their last game is Aug. 19.

Meanwhile, the WNBA announced that it will hold a dispersal draft Monday involving players on the Charlotte Sting roster, with the Sparks picking 12th among the league’s 13 teams. It was announced Wednesday that the Sting had folded.

-- Jerry Crowe