Stuart Appleby, Shigeki Maruyama lead Sony Open

Stuart Appleby finished with three straight birdies and tied Shigeki Maruyama for the lead Saturday in the Sony Open at Honolulu, setting up a long final day in which just about everyone is still in the game.

Because the opening round was washed out at Waialae, Sunday will feature a 36-hole final.

Maruyama holed out from the bunker to the right of the par-three seventh late in his round and shot another five-under-par 65. Appleby had a strong finish for the second day in a row and shot 66. They were at 10-under 130.

Mark Wilson (67), Steve Marino (67) and Roland Thatcher (65) were one shot behind, and the group at 132 included Justin Rose and Matt Kuchar.

Still, the tournament is only half over.

Ron Santo to be honored with statute at Wrigley Field

When Ron Santo died last month, his funeral procession traveled past Wrigley Field and well-wishers gathered on sidewalks to cheer the former Chicago Cubs broadcaster and third baseman one last time.

Now, the cozy neighborhood ballpark will feature a more permanent reminder of one of the franchise’s most beloved figures.

The Cubs announced that they will unveil a statue of Santo outside their longtime home before their game against the Washington Nationals on Aug. 10. Players, coaches and other uniformed personnel will wear a special patch this season to pay tribute to one of the team’s most enthusiastic backers.

“We join our great fans in dedicating the 2011 campaign to a man who dedicated so much of himself to us,” owner Tom Ricketts said in a news release.

Santo becomes the fourth person with a statue of his likeness outside Wrigley, joining Ernie Banks, Billy Williams and Harry Caray. The location is to be determined.

A nine-time all-star in his 15-year career, Santo hit .277 with 342 home runs and 1,331 runs batted in. He won the Gold Glove award five times.

Santo’s long battle with diabetes cost him both legs below the knees, but he ultimately died of complications from bladder cancer Dec. 3 at 70.

Catcher Geovany Soto agreed to a $3-million, one-year deal with the Cubs, avoiding arbitration.

Soto, the 2008 National League rookie of the year, batted .280 with 17 home runs and 53 RBIs in 105 games last season, when his salary was $575,000. He had his season cut short when he had surgery on his right shoulder in September.

The Phillies and outfielder Ben Francisco avoided arbitration by coming to an agreement on a one-year, $1.175-million deal, which includes performance bonuses.

Free-agent reliever Kyle Farnsworth agreed to a $3.25-million, one-year contract with the Tampa Bay Rays. The deal includes a club option for 2012.

The St. Louis Cardinals and reliever Kyle McClellan agreed on a one-year contract worth $1,375,000, avoiding arbitration.

The 26-year-old right-hander appeared in 68 games in a setup role last season, going 1-4 with a career-best 2.27 earned-run average and two saves. He made $425,000.

Free-agent pitcher Bruce Chen is set to re-sign with the Kansas City Royals.

The team said Chen agreed to a one-year contract, pending a physical.

The 33-year-old left-hander led the Royals in wins last season, going 12-7 with a 4.17 ERA in 33 games, including 23 starts. He began the year at triple-A Omaha and made 10 relief appearances before joining the rotation May 30.

College football: Florida adds Bryant Young as defensive line coach

New Florida Coach Will Muschamp completed his staff, hiring former San Francisco 49ers standout Bryant Young as defensive line coach.

Young was a four-time Pro Bowl selection during his 14 years with San Francisco. He will assist defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, who coached Young for four seasons (2001-04) in San Francisco.

Georgia outside linebacker Justin Houston, who ranked second in the Southeastern Conference with 10 sacks this season, is skipping his senior year to enter the NFL draft.

Etc.: Olympics tickets go on sale in March

Tickets for the 2012 London Olympics will go on sale March 15.

Olympic organizers announced that tickets will be on sale six weeks through April 26 to residents of Britain and some European countries. The 6.6 million tickets range in price from $31 for standard events to a symbolic 2,012 pounds, or $3,105, for the top-priced seats at the opening ceremony.

Those in other countries will have to buy them through their local Olympic committee or its authorized ticket reseller.

Tickets for the 2012 Paralympics will go on sale Sept. 9.

Nasser Al-Attiyah of Qatar claimed his first Dakar Rally title and Marc Coma of Spain won the motorbike event for the third time.

Al-Attiyah finished second in the 13th and final stage as Volkswagen swept the podium to finish the two-week event, which ended in Baradero, Argentina.

Kikkan Randall of the United States and Ola Vigen Hattestad of Norway won cross-country skiing World Cup sprint events at Liberec, Czech Republic.

Randall led Hanna Falk of Sweden by a half-second on the 1.3-kilometer course, while Celine Brun-Lie of Norway was third. It was the second career World Cup win for Randall, who finished second in the sprint in Liberec at the 2009 worlds.

Klaus Kroell of Austria defeated Swiss veteran Didier Cuche to win the classic World Cup downhill race on the Lauberhorn at Wengen, Switzerland. Bode Miller was eighth.

Lleyton Hewitt defeated Gael Monfils of France, 7-5, 6-3, in the final of the Kooyong Classic at Melbourne, Australia.

The 29-year-old Australian took a 4-1 lead after breaking Monfils’ serve twice. He was serving for the set at 5-3 but Monfils fought back, forcing Hewitt to four set points in the 12th game before sealing it.

The former No. 1 will begin his Australian Open campaign next week against longtime rival David Nalbandian. Hewitt has won Wimbledon and U.S. Open titles, but never his national title.

Australia’s Jarmila Groth won the Hobart International in Australia with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over American Bethanie Mattek-Sands. Groth converted five service breaks against Mattek-Sands, who was aiming for her first WTA title and a victory to complement her role in the United States’ victory in the Hopman Cup.