Pressel aims for $1 million finish at ADT
Ballesteros out of intensive care
Buick to scale back on courtesy cars at tourneys
Stanfords 69 good enough to win Ochoa
Compton misses advancing by 1 shot
Golfer Ballesteros likely to leave intensive care
Jordan to take on Bethpage Black before US Open
PGA schedule More money, FedEx Cup changes on way
An architect among 6 inducted to golf Hall of Fame

By Miguel Tovar (AP)

Annika Sorenstam made up five strokes on leader Angela Stanford on Saturday in the Lorena Ochoa Invitational, shooting a 5-under 67 to cut her deficit to just a stroke with one round left.

Making her second-to-last start before leaving the LPGA Tour, Sorenstam eagled the par-5 10th and added six birdies. The Swedish star is seeking her third tour victory in Mexico _ and first since the 2006 Mastercard Classic.

"Maybe it's the tacos or the margaritas," Sorenstam said. "I'm excited about tomorrow. I look forward to tomorrow. I will play the best that I can, make some putts, a...

By Miguel Tovar (AP)

Angela Stanford shot a 6-under 66 on Friday in the second round of the Lorena Ochoa Invitational to take a two-stroke lead over LPGA Championship winner Yani Tseng.

Stanford had a 10-under 134 total on the Guadalajara Country Club course. Tseng, No. 2 in the world behind Ochoa, shot her second straight 68. Ochoa followed her opening 73 with a 71 on her home course, leaving her 10 strokes back.

Meena Lee (69) was 6 under, and Karen Stupples (71) was 5 under. Annika Sorenstam (72), leaving the tour at the end of the season, was 4 under in group that included Juli Inkster (69)...

By Wong Maye-E (AP)

Ernie Els birdied two of his final four holes in the first round for a 5-under 66 and a one-stroke lead Friday in the Asian Tour's Singapore Open.

"I putted nicely and hit the ball OK," said Els, the South African star who played 14 holes Thursday before rain forced the suspension of play. "I felt comfortable with the swing and I'm pretty pleased with the start."

Tournament officials hoped to complete the second round Friday.

Singapore's Lam Chih Bing, trying to become the first local player to win the tournament, shot a 67 on Thursday to finish the round a stroke b...

By Miguel Tovar (AP)

Lorena Ochoa struggled Thursday in the first round in her own Lorena Ochoa Invitational, shooting a 1-over 73 on her home course to drop five strokes behind Annika Sorenstam and the other leaders.

"I can't say I'm happy because I'm not, but I'm feel like I can get closer. I hope to do it tomorrow," said Ochoa, who took up the game 21 years ago at Guadalajara Country Club. "It's a good pressure to play here, to feel the good vibes, and the love of my fans. I feel motivated because I know that we have three more days to play."

LPGA Championship winner Yani Tseng, No. 2 in...

By (AP)

Morgan Pressel has playing privileges at Trump International, meaning she can get on the lavish course whenever she wants.

Fortunately, she won't have to call in any favors this week.

It was a rocky 2008 for Pressel, who became the youngest major winner last season by claiming the Kraft Nabisco title but never got rolling this year, with her one victory overshadowed by five missed cuts (three consecutively) and not being able to finish better than 25th in 17 of 25 tournaments.

Still, she managed to be among 32 qualifiers for the ADT Championship, the season-ending LPGA...

By (AP)

Seve Ballesteros has been released from intensive care following brain surgery on a malignant tumor.

Madrid's La Paz hospital said Tuesday the 51-year-old golf great would remain in the hospital for rehab. Ballesteros had three operations in 18 days. There was no timetable for his release.

Ballesteros was admitted to the hospital Oct. 6 after fainting at Madrid's international airport. He underwent a 6 1/2-hour operation Oct. 24 to remove the tumor and reduce swelling around the brain.

...

By (AP)

In another sign of fragile financial conditions, some PGA Tour events are trying to figure out transportation for players after learning over the weekend that Buick will not be providing courtesy cars to most tournaments next year.

"We've already started scrambling to try to approach local dealers or national suppliers to see if they're interested," said Clair Peterson, tournament director of the John Deere Classic. "The car industry as a whole is in a tough spot. We've already had one company tell us everything has been frozen in '09."

Other tournaments that Buick will ...

By (AP)

Angela Stanford shot a 3-under 69 to hold off Annika Sorenstam and win the Lorena Ochoa Invitational on Sunday.

Sorenstam also shot a 69 to finish her penultimate LPGA Tour event tied for second. She was a stroke back of Stanford at 12-under 276 one day after she shot a 67 to make up five strokes on the leader.

Brittany Lang (65) also was at 12 under, and Katherine Hull shot a 71 to finish three strokes back of Lang and Sorenstam in fourth.

...

By (AP)

Erik Compton, playing six months after a second heart transplant, failed to advance by one shot in the second stage of PGA Tour qualifying after he closed with a 1-over 73 on Saturday.

Compton was tied for 13th going into the final round at Southern Hills Plantation Club, but had two bogeys in the opening three holes and never quite caught up. He was even at the turn, but bogeyed the 15th and finished with three pars for a 6-under 282 to tie for 22nd.

Only the top 20 and ties advance to the final stage of Q-school next month in California.

Todd Demsey, who returned to...

By (AP)

Golf legend Seve Ballesteros is likely to be released from intensive care next week following brain surgery on a malignant tumor.

Madrid's La Paz hospital said in a statement Friday that Ballesteros' condition "continues to improve."

The 53-year-old Spanish golf great underwent a 6 1/2-hour operation on Oct. 24 to remove the brain tumor and reduce swelling around the brain. It was his third operation since being admitted 18 days earlier after fainting at Madrid's international airport.

...

By (AP)

Michael Jordan has played with Tiger Woods in a pro-am at the Wachovia Championship and competed in the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic. His toughest test might come next June at Bethpage Black in the days before the U.S. Open.

Jordan has agreed to take part in the "Golf Digest U.S. Open Challenge," according to an official involved in the event. He will join Justin Timberlake, another celebrity and one amateur who best explains in a six-word essay why he or she can break 100.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the celebrities have not been announced.

Woods...

By (AP)

The PGA Tour released its 2009 schedule on Wednesday for the regular season which features 25 tournaments with at least $6 million purses and a newly configured "Texas swing" of three events in the spring.

Still to be determined are details on a revamped FedEx Cup, and whether to take a week off before the Tour Championship.

Once that it is decided, the tour said it would release the rest of its Fall Series schedule.

By announcing the majority of the schedule, the tour put to rest speculation that some tournaments might be in jeopardy because of the economy. The title...

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