IN BRIEF

Sorenstam grabs lead in final tournament

Annika Sorenstam had an eagle and four birdies in a 6-under-par 66 Friday that gave her a one-shot lead after the second round of the Dubai Ladies Masters, her last tournament before retiring.

After dropping two shots on her final two holes Thursday, Sorenstam managed a bogey-free second round to sit at 8-under 136, one shot ahead of Nikki Garrett of Australia, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

First-round leader Johanna Head of England was among three players tied for third, another shot back.

MOTOR SPORTS

Watkins Glen without sponsor for Cup race

Watkins Glen International in New York needs a title sponsor for its NASCAR Sprint Cup race after Centurion Boats opted out of the final year of its contract.

Company officials said the decision was based on the downturn in the national economy.

Also: Two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Al Unser Jr. is listed as an extortion victim in a grand jury indictment against the suspected head of an Albuquerque, N.M., prostitution ring.

The district attorney’s office said the suspect, 47-year-old Bobby McMullin, tried to blackmail Unser with claims of a “compromising” videotape in February and March 2004.

Prosecutor Mark Drebing said the video is not related to the prostitution ring and that Unser was not a client.

“I don’t think Little Al did anything wrong,” Drebing said. “For our purposes, he is listed as a victim. He was extorted.”

MISCELLANEOUS

Cuts will not affect Breeders’ Cup purse

The Breeders’ Cup will slash $4.5 million in co-funding of stakes races at North American tracks in 2009 because of the economic downtown.

The cutback will affect 121 stakes races for Breeders’ Cup-nominated horses at about 40 racetracks.

The reduction won’t affect the two-day Breeders’ Cup, scheduled for November at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif. The purse money of $25.5 million will remain the same.

Also: Former Yankees All-Star center fielder Bernie Williams is expected to play winter baseball in his native Puerto Rico.

Williams, 40, is expected to join the Carolina Giants in about a week, said Enrique Cruz, the team’s general manager. Cruz said Williams wants to get back into the game in hopes of joining Puerto Rico’s squad in next year’s World Baseball Classic.

Former Oakland Athletics first baseman Troy Neel has been charged in Texas with fleeing to a tiny South Pacific island to avoid paying $724,325 in child support.

The 43-year-old Neel, who used to live in Austin, Texas, has been out of the country since he was ordered in 1998 to pay $5,000 a month, according to an indictment.

North Carolina and Maryland advanced to Sunday’s final of the men’s soccer College Cup with 1-0 victories in Frisco, Texas. The Tar Heels upset defending NCAA champion Wake Forest, and the Terrapins beat St. John’s.