Detroit Free Press from Detroit, Michigan • Page 15

WNDA I NEW YORK 60, DETROIT 56 Sandy Brondello, points, is only Shock player to score in double digits, pace 6b. BUSINESS I TIGHTWAD TV Recession-weary Japanese celebrate frugality with TV shOW. PACE 8B. SATURDAY August 14, 1999 111 1 1 I Tennis 2 Baseball 4-5 College football 5 Scoreboard 6 ON THE WEB www.treep.com IT phone 313-222-6660 Section it's over for Barry BETH A. KEISERAssociated Press Tiger Woods' bunker shot didn't keep him from matching leader Jay Haas' 67 to stay two shots back.

Haas has a majorly great day Cdddie-son sees dad take PGA lead; Garcia falters 22 years of playing football is enough for Lions' No. 20 By CURT SYLVESTER FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER "He wants to go out on top. He said, Tve got my health and I've got my JOCKO HUGHES, Lions security director he's retiring. He's been playing football for a long time and now is the time to go. And you have to respect that." The Lions still will try to get Sanders to repay $7.3 million of his signing bonus.

Although the Lions never underestimated Sanders' resolve, they had held out a glimmer of hope that he might reconsider as the NFL season drew closer. Ford had hoped to meet with him to sell him on a return to the Lions, and Sanders' father, William, said he I. BY JAN 5AI IAJH. me," Hughes said. "And you have to respect that.

"He said he gave it a lot of thought and he wants to go out on top. He said, 'I've got my health and I've got my strength. If I want to do something else, I can. I didn't get injured, and I've been playing football for 22 Sanders, 31, indicated he will talk to Ford within the next few days as a courtesy, but Schmidt said the Lions will as they have for the past two weeks respect his decision. "He's not mad at the organization or anybody in it," Schmidt said.

"He's basically restating what he said that Barry Sanders said it before and Friday he said it again: It's all over. Two weeks and three days after he shocked the Lions with his retirement announcement, Sanders put an end to speculation that he would change his mind and return to play football. Sanders informed Jocko Hughes, the Lions' security director, of his decision, and Hughes relayed it to Lions vice chairman Bill Ford Jr. and chief operating officer Chuck Schmidt. "He was honest and straight with "He said he was just tired of the game.

He said he had nothing against the coaches." WILLIAM SANDERS, Barry Sanders' father ii. 'nn Please see SANDERS, Page 7B ATLANTA 35, DETROIT 31 FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER i MEDINAH, 111. El Nino the Spanish kid, not the weather pattern came storming back to the field, and once again the PGA Championship is a wide-open affair. Sergio Garcia, the European teenage terror, slipped from an opening 66 to a 73 Friday and almost caught cold from the breeze of players rushing past him. Jay Haas, making a serious pitch for his first major title at age 45, added five-under 67 to his opening 68 and charged into the lead at the halfway mark at suburban Chicago's waterlogged Medinah Country Club.

"I've played a long time without winning a major," said Haas, who has included 12 birdies in his 36-hole total of 135, nine under par and one stroke better than Canadian Mike Weir. "I'm not devastated by that, it's been a nice career," Haas said. "Any championship would be a thrill, but to have Jay Jr. (his 18-year-old son) with me as caddie is unbelievable. "This is what I've worked for my whole career, to be in this position.

Hopefully, I still can be in it after Please see PGA, Page 3B THE LEADER BOARD AT THE TOP Jay Haas 68-67-135 KEY FOLLOWERS Mike Weir Tiger Woods 68-68-136 70-67-137 70-68-138 Lee Westwood BACK IN THE PACK Stewart Cink Skip Kendall Sergio Garcia Hale Irwin Miguel A. Jimenez 69- 70-139 74-65-139 66-73-139 70- 69-139 70-70-140 wj 'mf- v' i WHEN TO WATCH Today: TNT, 10:30 a.m.; CBS, 1:30 p.m. Tigers beat inglorious Angels, 8-7 Palmer's 2-out hit in 10th caps rally from 7-3 down By GENE GUIDI FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER JOHN BAZE MORE Associated Press Lions RB Ron Rivers looks for an opening as Atlanta's Keith Brooking closes in. Rivers, in his first start since Barry Sanders' retirement, gained 39 yards on five carries. Lions show grit in exhibition opener DREW SHARP Score not true sign of things to come By CURT SYLVESTER REE PRESS SPORTS WRITER 1 ATLANTA For one brief moment, Ron Rivers looked like his predeces- sor, capable of creating chicken salad 7i 4 out of chicken you-know-what.

The Lions were staring at a second down-and-20 situation fairly deep in their own territory after Atlanta sacked Charlie Batch for a 10-yard EXHIBIT A Firsts in the Lions' opener: Battlefield adjustment Charlie Batch changed the play at the line of scrimmage, then con- nected with Johnnie Morton for 1 1 yards and a first down early in the first quarter. Play from the shotgun Falcons DT Travis Hall buried Batch for a 10-yard loss. Big hit Lions free safety Mark Carrier belted Falcons receiver Tim Dwight to jar the ball loose in the first quarter. Big miss Carrier lunged but missed trying to break up Chris Chandler's 13-yard TD pass to Brian Kozlowski. All-Michigan backfield Batch (Eastern Michigan) with RB Sedrick Irvin (Michigan State) and FB Travis Reece (MSU) early in the second quarter.

NFL carry by Irvin A three-yard run with 1 2 minutes to play in the half. Agony and ecstasy LB Matt Russell scored on a 16-yard Interception return, but later sustained a knee injury and is out for the season. He suffered a season-ending knee injury in the first exhibition last year. The Tigers gave the home fans a rare treat to go along with the post-game fireworks Friday night a come-from-behind victory. With a crowd of 32,003 looking on many of them there presumably to see the fireworks and say their goodbyes to Tiger Stadium in its last year the Tigers topped the Angels, 8-7, in 10 innings on Dean Palmer's two-out RBI single.

"The funny thing is that Dean poked his head into my office before the game and said, 'The way I've been scuffling, maybe you shouldn't play me manager Larry arrish said. iv Palmer was 2-for-28 (.071) on the Tigers' just-completed trip. The long ball helped the Tigers overcome a 7-3 deficit, the third time they have come back from more than a two-run deficit to win. Palmer hit a solo homer (No. 28) and Frank Catalanotto a two-run shot (No.

10) in a three-run sixth that pulled the Tigers within 7-6. Tony Clark hit his 20th, tying the score in the eighth. Clark's homer marked the first earned run the Tigers ever scored 1 ATLANTA Charlie Batch was sharp in his first start of the exhibition season. Ron Rivers was effective in his first game as the heir apparent to retired All-Pro running back Barry Sanders. And the Lions showed more resiliency than might have been expected, without five defensive starters and their prize rookie offensive tackle, Aaron Gibson, all out with injuries.

All things considered, it wasn't a bad showing. Just not quite good enough. The Lions took the lead four times, couldn't hold on against the defending NFC champion Atlanta Falcons, and ended up with a 35-31 loss Friday night at the Georgia Dome. It was the first game for both teams. It wasn't the loss that hurt the most, however.

The big hurt came late in the game when linebacker Matt Russell sustained a knee injury that will require surgery and assure him of spending a second consecutive season on injured reserve. "He's one of the really fine people in our program, one of the most upbeat, positive people we could ever have," coach Bobby Ross said. "He's got a serious knee injury. ALAN MOTHNERAssoctated Press loss. They gave it to Rivers, who tried to take it around the right corner, and he ran right into linebacker Jessie Tuggle's grasp for what should have been a five-yard loss.

But Rivers wormed himself free. He eluded two other would-be pursuers, reversed direction and finally found daylight, ultimately gaining 14 yards and jump-starting an offensive drive that eventually concluded in the Falcons' end zone for the Lions' first touchdown. "Nah, I don't think I looked like Barry," Rivers said. "If it was Barry, he probably would have taken it all the way." Rivers understands that it's not his job to get one 60-yard run, but rather 10 six-yard runs. Solid and steady usually don't converge into a very dazzling-looking picture and that would accurately describe the Lions' drastically revamped running game Friday Charlie Batch completed 11 of 16 passes for 146 yards and wasn't intercepted.

Barry's heirs Round 1 in the race to replace Barry Sanders: NO YDS AVG TO Sedrick Irvin 14 39 2.8 0 Ron Rivers 5 39 7.8 0 Pepe Pearson 3 8 2.7 0 Please see TIGERS, Page 4B Please see SHARP, Page 7B Please see LIONS, Page 7B.