Observer & Busness 3 Mar 2012 - Oman Daily Observer

PALM BEACH GARDENS,
Florida — Davis Love matched
the course record with a 64
on Thursday to seize a twoshot
first-round lead at the
Honda Classic over a group
led by Northern Ireland's Rory
McIlroy.
As 14-time Major champion
Tiger Woods again found
it tough to get putts to drop,
Love avoided any putting
problem completely at the
197-yard fifth hole, where he
made a hole-in-one.
The 47-year-old US Ryder
Cup captain capped his round
with birdies at 17 and 18 as
his six-under effort on the par-
70 course put him in position
to challenge for his first US
PGA Tour title since Disney
in 2008.
He became the 10th player
to shoot 64 at PGA National,
the first since Graeme Mc-
Dowell last year.
"If I had not birdied the
last two holes, it still would
have been a good start," Love
said. "It's fun to tie the course
record. And it's fun to shoot
low scores."
McIlroy, 22, arrived in
Florida with a chance to claim
the world number one ranking
with a victory.
On Sunday he was runnerup
at the elite World Golf
Championships Match Play
Championship in Arizona.
McIlroy, the reigning US
Open champion, teed off on 10
and birdied 14, 17 and 18.
He nabbed two more birdies
coming in, at the par-four
second and par-three seventh
— where his six-iron landed
12 feet from the pin.
"It was pretty stress-free
out there," McIlroy said. "I hit
quite a few fairways and a lot
of greens and gave myself a
lot of chances, and that's sort
of what you need to do around
this golf course."
McIlroy was joined on
66 by England's Justin Rose,
Ryan Palmer, Dicky Pride,
17 SPORT
OMAN DAILY Observer
SATURDAY, MARCH 3, 2012
Love leads, McIlroy lurks, Woods well back
Jordan says
Chinese suit
to go ahead
WASHINGTON — Retired
NBA superstar Michael Jordan
on Thursday welcomed
the news that Chinese courts
have agreed to hear his
lawsuit against a Chinese
sportswear and shoe maker
over unauthorised use of his
name.
"I am very happy that the
Chinese courts have accepted
my case to protect the use of
my name and the interests of
Chinese consumers," Jordan
said in a statement issued in
both the US and China.
"Qiaodan Sports has built
a business off my Chinese
name, the No 23, and even
attempted to use the names
of my children, without authorisation.
"I think Chinese consumers
deserve to be protected
from being misled, and they
should know exactly what
they are buying."
The lawsuit filed by Jordan
in February charges that
Qiaodan Sports Company
deliberately misled Chinese
consumers about ties to the
six-time NBA champion.
Jordan has been known
in China by the name Qiaodan
since he became a global
basketball star in the 1980s,
his playmaking skills being
seen on Chinese television
since the 1987 NBA All-Star
Game, the first NBA telecast
in China.
"No one should lose control
of their own name, and
the acceptance of my case
shows that China recognises
that this is true for everyone,"
Jordan said. "After all,
what's more personal than
your name?"
Jordan led the Chicago
Bulls to six NBA titles in
the 1990s and sparked the
1992 Barcelona Olympic US
"Dream Team" to gold.
He led the NBA in scoring
a record 10 times and his average
of 30.1 points a game is
the highest in NBA history.
MELBOURNE — World
and Olympic champion Asbel
Kiprop plans to work on
his speed after placing fifth at
the Melbourne Track Classic
in his first 1,500 metres of the
year yesterday.
The 22-year-old Kenyan
led for the middle stretch of
the race on a gusty evening at
Lakeside stadium, but faded
coming into the last lap to post
a time of three minutes 42.52
seconds, over four seconds shy
of local winner Ryan Gregson.
"I don't know exactly what
happened. It was not my day
today. This is sports," Kiprop,
who won the 800 metres in
Sydney last week, told reporters.
RORY McIlroy of Northern Ireland hits his tee shot on the 17th hole during first round play in the Honda Classic
PGA golf tournament in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, on Thursday. — Reuters
ORLANDO — Kevin Durant
led the league-leading Thunder
to a seventh consecutive
victory as Oklahoma City
used an explosive fourthquarter
charge to rally for a
105-102 road victory over the
Orlando Magic in the National
Basketball Association (NBA)
League on Thursday.
Durant scored 18 of his
game-high 38 points in the
final quarter at the Amway
Center to help the Thunder
(29-7) overcome a 14-point
deficit.
"I was so down on myself,
I was going downhill fast after
the first quarter but my
coaches and my team-mates
continued to talk to me and
encourage me," Durant told
reporters.
"They told me they believed
in me. It just clicked for
me. I always feel like I have to
be aggressive in the fourth. I
guess that is my time no matter
how I am playing."
The forward sank two free
throws with four minutes remaining
to give the Thunder
their first lead since the opening
quarter (90-89) and then
added 10 more points to protect
the advantage.
The most damaging basket
by Durant was a desperation
heave as the shot clock expired
to give the Thunder a 101-96
Martin Flores, Kevin Stadler,
Noh Seung-Yul of South Korea
and Harris English.
Reigning PGA champion
Keegan Bradley headed a
group of nine players on 67.
lead with less than a minute to
play.
"That was a prayer," Durant
said. "I threw that one up. God
McIlroy's round included
two tough par putts from
within six feet in his first three
holes.
"That's been a huge improvement,
especially inside
six feet," McIlroy said. "The
more you see the ball go in
from there, the more confidence
you get."
Woods, playing at PGA
National for the first time as a
professional, would have liked
to see more putts go in but settled
for a one-over par 71 that
included four bogeys and three
birdies.
He drained a 19-foot birdie
putt at the first hole, but didn't
make another putt from outside
10 feet. A 14-foot birdie
attempt at 18 brushed the left
edge but didn't drop.
Woods, seeking his first
tour-level win in more than
two years, played in more difficult
afternoon conditions and
said he was pleased with the
way he hit the ball, even if he
didn't score well.
"I didn't get a whole lot out
of my round," said Woods,
who missed only three greens
but needed 34 putts.
"I hit the ball a lot better
than I scored, and I certainly
putted well, and I didn't hardly
get anything out of the round.
Hopefully, tomorrow it will be
better." — AFP
Durant helps Thunder rally past Orlando Magic
WINNIPEG — The Winnipeg Jets
narrowed the Florida Panthers' NHL
Southeast Division lead with a comprehensive
7-0 thrashing of their rivals
at the MTS Center on Thursday.
The Jets (31-27-8) scored five goals
in the third period to add some gloss to
the scoreline as well as snap a threegame
winning streak for the Panthers
(30-21-12).
The win moves Winnipeg to within
two points of Florida and into the
eighth and final play-off berth in the
Eastern Conference.
"You could tell there was an extra
little buzz around the city with everything
on the line," Winnipeg's Blake
Wheeler told reporters. "I think they
want first place, they made that clear
tonight, too and that was great.
"Our team definitely had that feeling
in our locker room and to go out
there on the ice and get the same feeling
from the fans was a huge lift for us
was on my side on that one and
I made a decent shot."
The Thunder outscored the
Magic 35-21 in the final quarter.
"Our fourth-quarter defence
was pathetic," Magic
coach Stan Van Gundy said. "I
give them credit for what they
did, and they're hard to stop.
But it shouldn't be every possession."
The Magic (23-14) used a
21-10 run to extend a 53-50
halftime lead into a 14-point
cushion in the third quarter,
led by Dwight Howard, who
finished the game with 33
points and nine rebounds.
Russell Westbrook added
29 points for the Thunder and
had 10 assists, while James
Harden scored 13 points off
the bench.
In other games, Phoenix
Suns beat Minnesota Timberwolves
104-95, Los Angeles
Clippers defeated Sacramento
Kings 108-100 and Miami
Heat bested Portland Trailblazers
107-93. — Reuters
Winnipeg Jets give Florida Panthers a pasting
"I did 10 seconds slower
than what I was expecting. It
doesn't disappoint me at all.
"Since November when we
started the buildup, we concentrated
only on long runs...
So I'll go home now and go
to prepare well to do speed
work and to train hard," added
Kiprop, who came second to
Bahrain's Rashid Ramzi at the
2008 Beijing Olympics but
was awarded the gold after the
Moroccan-born runner failed a
dope test.
The time was also over 12
seconds short of his personal
best set at Rieti last year, and
marked his third consecutive
disappointment in Melbourne
over the distance, having lost
MIAMI Heat’s Dwyane Wade (left) drives to the basket as Portland Trail Blazers’ Gerald
Wallace defends during their NBA game in Portland on Thursday. Miami Heat won 107-93.
WINNIPEG Jets’ Kyle Wellwood (right) celebrates a Jets goal on Florida
Panthers goaltender Jose Theodore during their NHL game in Winnipeg.
to Australia's Jeff Riseley in
the previous two meetings.
The night doubled as Olympic
trials for local athletes
but strong winds put paid to
the small crowd's hopes of impressive
times.
World champion and local
hero Sally Pearson won the
100 metres in 11.83 seconds,
using the race as preparation
for her specialty 100 hurdles.
"It's frustrating when I
know I'm in good shape and I
can't show my good shape because
of the winds... That's the
way it goes," said the 25-yearold,
who has won 21 of her last
22 races in the hurdles.
"The conditions are supposed
to be better tomorrow so
we'll see."
Australian triple jumper
Henry Frayne battled fluky
gusts to leap an Olympic qualifying
distance of 17.23 metres
on his last jump, three centimetres
over the benchmark.
His previous jump of 17.34
and it helped us, especially early on."
Evander Kane and Jim Slater scored
goals two minutes apart early in the
first period to set the Jets on course for
a resounding home victory.
The Panthers responded with a
strong second period by out-shooting
Winnipeg 17-8 but were unable to find
a way past Ondrej Pavelec, who made
33 saves for his fourth shutout of the
season.
Kane scored again in the third period
and added two assists to complete a
four-point game. Kyle Wellwood, Bryan
Little, Nik Antropov and Wheeler
also scored for the Jets.
Results: Boston Bruins bt New Jersey Devils
4-3, Montreal Canadiens bt Minnesota Wild
5-4, Philadelphia Flyers bt NY Islanders 6-3,
New York Rangers bt Carolina Hurricanes 3-2,
Winnipeg Jets bt Florida Panther 7-0, Columbus
Blue Jackets bt Colorado Avalanche 2-0,
Calgary Glames bt Phoenix Coyotes 4-2, Vancouver
Canucks bt St Louis Blues 2-0, Buffalo
Sabres bt San Jose Sharks 1-0. — Reuters
Kenya’s Kiprop misfires in year’s first 1,500m in Melbourne
metres had not counted for
qualification because of a
tailwind over the legal speed
of two metres per second and
Frayne found himself rushing
into his last chance as the wind
picked up.
"It was really gusting some
rounds," the rangy 21-year-old
said. "On that last one, it was
still and I had to do my routine
and it started to pick up a bit
and I thought "'Oh God!' So I
just went."
Frayne will also compete in
the long jump in the second and
final day of the meeting today,
as he bids to join Australian
world silver medallist Mitchell
Watt who has already qualified
for London. — Reuters
Chiefs use strong
first half to blast
Blues off park
THE New South Wales players celebrate after defeating
Melbourne Rebels 35-19 in a Super Rugby clash
in Melbourne yesterday.
HAMILTON — Scrum-half
Tawera Kerr-Barlow was at
his sniping best as he scored
a try and constantly tested the
defensive line as the Waikato
Chiefs used a blistering first
half to beat the Auckland
Blues 29-14 in their Super
Rugby clash here yesterday.
Undaunted by driving
rain, Kerr-Barlow was given
an easy ride by his pack, who
cleared out the breakdown
and provided him with a superb
attacking platform to unleash
his back-line.
The home side, who let
the Otago Highlanders pinch
a 23-19 victory last week, put
the game beyond doubt in
the first half when prop Sona
Taumalolo, wingers Asaeli
Tikoirotuma and Tim Nanai-
Williams, and Kerr-Barlow
all scored tries as the hosts
blasted the Blues off the park.
Fly-half Aaron Cruden
was also deadly accurate with
his boot, slotting three conversions
and a penalty while
his Blues opposite Michael
Hobbs was successful with
two penalties as the Chiefs
went into the break with a
29-6 lead.
"It was one of those halves
of footy where everything
went right, everything seemed
to stick and it was pretty expansive
for a wet weather
game," Chiefs captain Craig
Clarke said. "We just had to
stick to it in the second half."
The Blues were more organised
and held on to the
ball in the second half but
were stymied by a blistering
defensive line from the Chiefs
as they fell to their second
straight defeat in a disappointing
start to the season.
Hobbs added a penalty for
Auckland to reduce the deficit
Open TT junior events
after examinations
MUSCAT — Children attending
exams need not feel
disheartened as they can also
participate in the forthcoming
Open table tennis tournament
beginning on March 10.
Indian Social Club Muscat,
the organisers of the Villelroy
& Boch and Hansgrohe Open
table tennis tournament sponsored
by Al-Amana Building
Materials have announced
that matches for the junior
boys and girls’ u-13 and u-16
events will be scheduled in
such a way that their preparations
for the examinations are
not affected.
The junior events will
begin only after March 15
and matches of those having
exams after this date will be
with 25 minutes remaining,
but neither side was able to
trouble the scoreboard again
until Blues replacement Sherwin
Stowers scored a consolation
try with three minutes
left.
"The Chiefs played... well
today and we played poorly in
the first half and it just wasn't
good enough," Blues captain
Keven Mealamu said in a
blunt television interview.
"We have to go away and
look at ourselves because
we were just not... good
enough."
WARATAHS DOWN
REBELS
In Melbourne, the New
South Wales Waratahs produced
a controlled performance
to secure a bonus point
and overcome an error-prone
Melbourne Rebels 35-19 in a
niggly Super Rugby clash that
resulted in several off the ball
scuffles.
The Waratahs dominated
the first 55 minutes to establish
a 23-point lead then seemed to
lower their intensity, allowing
the Rebels to gain some momentum
that was halted once
Daniel Halangahu kicked a
70th minute penalty.
"The first 50 minutes everything
went to plan and we
executed well but getting
involved in that niggly stuff
let them back in the game,"
Halangahu said. "It was really
on out there and there was a
lot of feeling... but I'm happy
with the win."
Inside-centre Tom Carter
scored two tries and tight-head
prop Sekope Kepu notched
his first Super Rugby try for
the Waratahs, while fly-half
Halangahu added two conversions
and full-back Bernard
Foley slotted a penalty.
scheduled in such a way that
their exams will not be affected.
The juniors should mention
their examination dates
on the entry form, said a press
note from the ISC.
The tournament, open to
players of all nationalities,
will include Omani men's
singles, open men's singles,
women's singles, veterans'
singles, junior singles for
boys and girls u-13 and u-16
years of age, men's doubles
and mixed doubles. The deadline
for submission of entries
is set for 8 pm on March 5.
Entry forms are available
at the Indian Social Club in
Darsait. More information can
be had from the ISC in Darsait
(24797921/24701347).
THE Jotun Paints Trophy was held at WNGC in ideal
conditions of blue skies with a slight breeze. Taking
advantage of these conditions Ali Said was victorious with
37 points. Paul Sharples with an excellent back nine tried
his best to catch Ali but had to settle for top place in the
A division. In the B division a better back nine by Paddy
Fitzgerald pipped Tam Sutherland on count-back. Ian
Brown was nearest the pin on the 4th hole. Prizes were
given by the Club captain, Kevin Fitzgerald.