Verplank leads by three shots

Scott Verplank shot his second straight eight-under-par 64 Friday to take a three-stroke lead in the Children’s Miracle Network Classic at Lake Buena Vista, Fla., the final official PGA Tour event of the year.

Steve Marino (66) and Troy Matteson (68) were tied for second.

Friday was cut day in the event that ends the race for spots in the top 125 on the money list, the cutoff for a full 2009 PGA Tour exemption.

Bob Tway, who played with Verplank and shot a 62 after a first-round 73, made the cut and needs to finish in the top 12 to make the top 125.

Erik Compton, who has had two heart transplants and got a sponsor exemption, shot a 68 and made the cut by two strokes. He’ll play in the second round of Q-school next week, only six months after his second transplant.

Heavy rain wiped out all play at the HSBC Champions tournament at Shanghai. Henrik Stenson of Sweden led after the first round with a seven-under 65.

OLYMPICS

Rogge criticized by IAAF leader

In a highly unusual show of discord between Olympic leaders, IAAF chief Lamine Diack sharply criticized International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge for displaying “a lack of respect” for track and field.

Diack, president of track and field’s governing body, assailed Rogge for criticizing Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt’s celebrations in Beijing and for suggesting that the Olympic track in London could be ripped up after the 2012 Games.

“Destroying the track would be totally unacceptable,” Diack said.

Diack, scheduled to meet with Rogge in Lausanne, Switzerland, on Nov. 17, said he will “remind him of the contribution that athletics has made to the Olympic Games throughout its history and particularly to the success of the most recent Olympic Games in Beijing.”

World champion flyweight boxer Rau’shee Warren has decided to stay in the amateur ranks for four more years in an attempt to become the first three-time boxing Olympian in U.S. history.

Warren, 21, a three-time national champion, was the first two-time American Olympic fighter in 30 years when he lost a one-point decision in his opening bout in Beijing.

TENNIS

Serena, Ivanovic pull out of event

Serena Williams and Ana Ivanovic withdrew from the WTA’s season-ending event, when top-ranked Jelena Jankovic advanced despite losing, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4, to Vera Zvonareva at Doha, Qatar.

Zvonareva and Jankovic both advanced to the semifinals of the Sony Ericsson Championships because of winning records in the round-robin stage.

Zvonareva plays Elena Dementieva and Jankovic faces Venus Williams today.

Serena Williams pulled out with a stomach injury before her match against Dementieva. Ivanovic withdrew from her match against Svetlana Kuznetsova with a virus.

ETC.

Harvick races to NASCAR truck win

Kevin Harvick raced to his first NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series victory in five years at Avondale, Ariz., where championship contenders Johnny Benson and Ron Hornaday faltered. Hornaday wrecked on the first lap, and Benson was involved in four of his own incidents as neither driver was able to take command of the title race. Benson started the night with a six-point lead over Hornaday, and they now head to next week’s season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway separated by only three points. . . . UCLA guard Darren Collison and USC forward Taj Gibson are among 50 players named to the preseason watch list for the John R. Wooden Award, which goes annually to college basketball’s top player.

Former NFL quarterback Ryan Leaf has resigned as quarterbacks coach at Division II West Texas A&M.; Leaf was placed on administrative leave earlier in the week while police investigated an allegation of his involvement in a minor drug crime. . . . Tribune Co., the owner of the Chicago Cubs, is willing to sell a smaller share of the team than initially planned because the credit crunch has made it tougher for potential buyers to obtain loans, a person familiar with the talks told the Associated Press. Tribune Co. owns The Times. . . . Hall of Fame catcher Gary Carter will manage the Long Island Ducks, an independent minor league team. He spent last season managing the Orange County Flyers of the Golden Baseball League.