Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current, August 04, 1999, Page 8, Image 8

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Page B2
Œlp? ffo rtta n b ©beeruer
August 4,1999
As the Dust Settles...
CONTINUED
FROM FRONT
PAGE
S c a ttlc -a re a
home needs a kid­
ney transplant.
But Schrempf
reportedly chose
Portland to stay
close to his and
his two sons.
“Some people
may insist that
my decision not
to re-sign with
the Sonics was
m o tiv a te d by
money, but the
reality is that the
d e c is io n w as
based purely on
issues o f fairness
and lo y a lty ,”
Schrem pf said in
a statement.
By tra d in g
Sm ith, 30, the
Hawks would end
a commitment o f
Jim Jackson
$36 million over the next four sea­
sons toaplayerw ho missed 14games
last season with bruised knees.
Rider is among the m ost heavily
fined and suspended players in the
N BA . He was suspended three
gam es last season and 12 overall
during three seasons in P ortland
for violations ranging from fla-
Ed Gray
Woods Steals Show in
Prime-Time Showdown
B y DOUG FERGUSON
© T he A ssociated P ress
T H O U SA N D O A K S, C a lif.
(Aug. 2) — G o lf went prim e time,
and so did Tiger W oods. But it
was hardly a m asterpiece.
The official score from M on­
day nig h t’s unofficial event will
be W oods over David Duval 2& 1.
It was an exhibition, not a rivalry.
They walked the fairways side-by-
sid e, an d shared som e h earty
laughs when it was over.
And they both got a lot o f money
for a short day o f work.
U n d e r th e f lo o d lig h ts at
Sherw ood C ountry Club and the
spotlight o f a national television
audience. W oods took command
o f the match on the par-3s and
finished it on the last one w ith a
short par putt that D uval conceded
on the 17th hole.
W oods won $1.1 m illion, and
D uval had to settle for $400,000.
Each will donate $200,000 to char­
ity, including $100,000 each to
the PGA Tour-sponsored First Tee
program .
“My desire is that this brings
more people to the gam e,” Duval
said. “W hen Tiger turned pro in ’96,
golf became cool — not a dorky
game. This really is pretty cool.”
W oods, w ho has w on three
times and has finished no w orse
than seventh since his post-M as­
ters break, is No. 1 in the w orld
rankings - a position D uval p revi­
ously held by becom ing the first
player in 25 years to w in four times
before the M asters.
That w asn’t at stake M onday
night, in w hat essentially was an
exhibition, a chance for the top
two players in the w orld to finally
go head-to-head.
“ I d id n ’t approach the m atch
that w ay,” W oods said. “I ap­
proached the match that D avid and
I are good friends, and we w ere
going to come out here and put on
a good show .”
Both held up their end o f the
bargain at times, with W oods’ 300-
yard drives crackling through the
air and D uval recovering from
trouble to m ake a sm all com eback
that ended up in the rocks.
T w o -u p a fte r the firs t tw o
holes, Duval d id n ’t w in another
one until the 13th. He tried to
push W oods dow n to the w ire, but
w hat he thought was a perfect
drive on N o. 16 took a w icked
hop into a clu ster o f stones and
shrubs, giving W oods a 2-up lead
and m aking the m atch dorm ie.
“ I know I can play better against
him than I d id,” Duval said. “ My
game did not feel really good to­
day. 1 don’t know w hy.”
W oods and Duval have been
paired together only one other time,
in the third round o f the World
Series o f G o lf last year, a tourna­
m e n t th a t Duval went on to win.
Davenport Repeats as
Bank of the West
Champion
B y ROB GLOSTER__________________
© T he A ssociated P ress
STANFORD, Calif. (AP) - Lind­
say Davenport was at dinner on the
eve o f her Bank o f the W est Classic
final against Venus W illiams when
other players told her o f Williams
boast that nobody in women’s tennis
has the power to hit with her.
Davenport, the world’s top-ranked
player and the defending champion
o f the tournament, took that as a
challenge. And on Sunday she proved
Williams wrong.
“I figured I’d take my chances
and see what happens, and that’s
what I did,” said Davenport, who had
three aces while W illiams had none.
“T hat’s the way I ’m going to
win. I ’m not going to win a lot o f
points by running down balls or
serve and volleying. W hat I do in
my game I do really well. I served
really w ell today.”
Davenport, who has won eight o f
nine matches against Williams, had
defeated her 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, in the
Bank o f the West final last year.
Davenport, 23, used that win as a
springboard toward the U.S. Open
title and the No. 1 ranking.
“A year ago I was No. 2 or No. 3,
and since then I’ve won two Grand
Slams,” said Davenport, who won
W imbledon this July. “It’s been an
incredible year and I’ve enjoyed ev­
ery minute o f it. To have your great­
est success a little later is sometimes
more enjoyable.”
“ 1 was able to play important
when it counted,” said Davenport,
who earned $80,000 for the win.
“It’s ju st one o f those things where
you have to concentrate harder and
play better percentage tennis. It’s
ju st one o f those things that come
with experience.”
W illiams, seeded second, was
leading 5-4 in the first set and had
two set points on Davenport’s serve.
ment - to make sure everything is
“ totally right between m yself and
the organization.”
S p é c ia l
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Steve Smith
in association with
it
Bridge Builders Program
Make Your Own Hours??
Coupon
Isaiah Rider
a
The Urban League of Portland
But Davenport saved both and even­
tually forced the tiebreaker, in which
Williams failed to win any ofher four
service points.
Davenport has won all three ofher
career tiebreakers against Williams.
Williams seemed to become frus­
trated and impatient in the second
set, especially as she wasted oppor­
tunities. In the fourth game, Will­
iams lost her serve after holding a 40-
15 lead. In the seventh game, she
wasted three break points.
IM M ED IA TE OPENINGS
a very talented
roster. There’s no
q u e s tio n
Jermaine has not
even reached his
potential and will
continue to get
better.”
O ’N e a l’ s
warm and fuzzy
news conference
cam e ju s t tw o
days a fte r he
called the Blaz­
ers’ initial offer -
re p o rte d ly
a
seven-year deal
worth $30 million
- “almost a smack
in the face.”
O ’N e a l a r ­
rived in Portland
from C olum bia
la te
Sunday
night to w orkout
d e ta ils on th e
contract.
O ’N eal said
he decided to re ­
sign for four years instead o f seven
- the m axim um allow ed under the
NBA ’ s collective bargaining agree-
T h e C o a lit io n
ok* l i h i c k > le n
Want To Be Your Own Boss?
■»-
grant fouls to spitting on fans.
O ’Neal, the youngest among the
league’s 156 free agents, signed a
four-year contract. As per its policy,
the team did not disc lose terms o f the
deal, but O ’Neal said he turned down
a one-year offer o f $9 million-$10
million from another team to stay in
Portland. His agent. A m Tellem, did
not immediately return a phone call.
“I want to be here for the next 10-
15 years,” O ’Neal said at a news
conference. “So hopefully I’ll play
to my potential the next two to three
years, and then we can talk about
some extensions, but overall 1 really
want to be here. I want them to retire
my jersey here.”
O ’Neal, a 6 -fo o t-1 1 ,226-pound
c e n te r - f o rw a r d , is a s tro n g
rebounder with good leaping abil­
ity. But playing behind Blazers cen­
ter Arvydas Sabonis and pow er for­
wards Rasheed W allace and Brian
Grant, he hasn’t gotten much op­
portunity to shine.
O ’Neal averaged just 2.6 points
last season, and ju st 1.6 points in
Portland’s playoff drive to the W est­
ern Conference finals. Over three
seasons, he has averaged 3.9 points,
3.0 rebounds and 11.3 minutes.
Still, the Blazers think he can live
up to the expectations they had when
they selected him with the 17th pick
in the 1996 NBA draft out o f Eau
Claire High School in Columbia, S.C.
“W e’re even more excited now
than we were three years ago,”
Whitsitt said. “H e’s continued to im­
prove each year. H e’s earned time on
Continued
2 8 0 -8 0 0 0
*1 si month must be paid in advance, valid thru 8/, 5'S9 "> us -.vest areas
The Coalition o f Black Men
The Urban League o f Portland
&
The Bridge Builders Program
Invites you to join them
fo r a rewarding day
o f fun-filled golf friends and food
all fo r three worthy causes:
M onday, A u g u st 3 0 , 1 9 9 9
C o lu m b ia -E d g e w a te r
C o u n tr y C lub
Eighth
Annual
Golf
Tournament
& Awards
Dinner
12220 NE Marine Drive • Portland, Oregon
Rated one of Golf Digest Magazine's "Top 10 Courses"
in the U.S.. Significantly challenging with bunkers and
water coming into play on many holes Oregon home
of the LPGA Tournament.
Registration - 11:00 am
Tee Off - 12:00 pm
Awards Dinner & Auction
in th^ Clubhouse
Happy Hour
featuring Live Music
5:30 - 7:00 pm
■«>
Qreat NE Portland Location
W eekly and M o n th ly Open Lease Chairs for
Dinner &
Awards Program
7:00 pm
featuring
PROFESSIONAL BARBERS
OR H A IR STYLISTS
Call Studio 69 Hair Design
284-1782X284-1786
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of
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