In Brief

GOLF

Woods cards 66, trails McIlroy
by four at Dubai Desert Classic

Tiger Woods surged into contention at the Dubai Desert Classic in the United Arab Emirates, shooting a bogey-free 6-under-par 66 Friday in a bid to win his first tournament in more than a year.

With stellar putting and a consistent short game, Woods made six birdies for the day's low score. He was at 7-under 137 after two rounds, four shots behind leader Rory McIlroy.

McIlroy followed his opening 65 with a 68 to maintain his lead going into the weekend. The 21-year-old golfer from Northern Ireland earned his only European Tour victory at the tournament two years ago.

A shot behind at 10 under were Sergio Garcia (67) and South Africa's Thomas Aiken (67).

Also: Steve Marino made seven birdies for the second straight day and shot a 6-under 66 to build a four-shot lead in the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am at Pebble Beach, Calif.

Marino finally made his first bogey of the tournament on the par-5 14th Pebble Beach course when his third shot bounced along the ledge of a bunker before falling in. He followed that by making three birdies on his final four holes. He finished at 13-under 131.

D.A. Points recovered from a rugged start at Spyglass Hill and posted a 2-under 70 to reach 9-under 135.

Jay Don Blake shot an 8-under 64 to take a one-stroke lead over Tom Lehman after the first round of the Allianz Championship in Boca Raton, Fla.

Blake birdied eight holes in a bogey-free round, opening his 2011 Champions Tour season at the circuit's first full-field event.

PRO FOOTBALL

Cowboys lax in getting permit
for extra Super Bowl seating

The Dallas Cowboys didn't obtain a permit to install temporary seating at Cowboys Stadium until about three weeks before the Super Bowl, despite being informed of requirements five months ahead of the game, according to records released by the city of Arlington, Texas.

City and stadium officials then scrambled to prepare the temporary seating for the game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Green Bay Packers, the records show, but about 1,250 of the seats were deemed unsafe -- and about 400 fans who had bought tickets with a face value of $800 had nowhere to sit.

E-mails between Ed Dryden, Arlington's chief building official, and Jack Hill, the stadium's general manager, show the city began asking about the permit in September but didn't receive a request for it until Jan. 13. The lack of a response during the intervening months prompted at least one reminder from Dryden.

Also: The Packers signed general manager Ted Thompson to a multiyear extension.

Thompson, 58, took over as general manager in 2005. The Packers beat the Steelers 31-25 on Sunday to win the Super Bowl, just the second time a No. 6 seed has accomplished the feat.

Thompson's old deal went through the 2012 season. The length of the extension was not disclosed.

Three-time Pro Bowl defensive lineman Shaun Rogers paid a visit to the Washington Redskins, two days after being cut by the Cleveland Browns.

Rogers met with team officials at Redskins Park in Ashburn, Va., as he begins his search for a new team after three seasons in Cleveland. He was cut Wednesday after playing sparingly this past season because of ankle, hip and elbow injuries.

The Buffalo Bills signed Jon Corto, a safety who plays mostly on special teams, to a two-year contract, preventing him from becoming a restricted free agent.

Corto appeared in 11 games last season after opening the year on the physically-unable-to-perform list after having surgery in July on a broken left wrist.

LOCAL COLLEGES

Chambers, Rebels picked fifth
in Mountain West baseball race

The UNLV baseball team, under first-year coach Tim Chambers, has been picked to finish fifth in the seven-team Mountain West Conference, according to a preseason poll of the league's coaches and select media members.

Texas Christian, led by former UNLV coach Jim Schlossnagle, was unanimously picked to claim its sixth straight title. Brigham Young was a distant second in the balloting.

UNLV placed one player, sophomore outfielder Brandon Bayardi, on the preseason all-conference team. TCU had six players selected.

Also: The UNLV softball team opened its season with a sweep of two games in the Kick-Off Classic at Eller Media Stadium, beating Mississippi State 10-9 and UC Riverside 13-5 in six innings.

Ashlii Holland went 4-for-8 on the day with four RBIs, while Tayler Aleman went 4-for-5 in the first game and Paige Emerson 4-for-4 in the second.

Kris Kaplan clubbed a two-run homer to cap a three-run seventh inning as the College of Southern Nevada baseball team beat Louisburg (N.C.) College 3-0 on the first day of the JUCO National Classic in Marianna, Fla.

Winning pitcher Sam Wolf (3-0) scattered five hits in seven innings for the Coyotes (5-3).

The CSN softball team split a Scenic West Athletic Association doubleheader with North Idaho College at neutral-site St. George, Utah, losing 9-8 in the opener and winning 8-3 in the second game.

A.J. Woodward and Katie Uriarte homered for the Coyotes (9-11, 2-4 SWAC), with Samantha Powell getting the win.

MISCELLANEOUS

Forsberg returns to Avalanche
following three-year absence

Peter Forsberg returned to the NHL ice for his first game in three years, playing 22 shifts for a total of 17½ minutes and having one shot on goal as the Colorado Avalanche lost to the Columbus Blue Jackets 3-1 in Columbus, Ohio.

The 37-year-old former Hart Trophy winner as the NHL's Most Valuable Player had foot problems when he stepped away from Colorado after the 2007-08 season.

Also: The Detroit Pistons plan to retire Dennis Rodman's No. 10 during a halftime ceremony in April.

The eccentric rebounding specialist helped the Pistons win NBA titles in 1989 and 1990. He'll be honored April 1 when the Pistons host the Chicago Bulls, a team Rodman won three championships with from 1996 to 1998.

Rookie Greg Monroe currently wears No. 10 and will be allowed to keep it.

The owner of the Pistons confirmed she is in negotiations with a California billionaire interested in buying the struggling NBA franchise.

Michael Layne, a spokesman for owner Karen Davidson, confirmed the two-week "exclusivity" window and that the owner was working with investor Tom Gores.

Tom Carnegie, a veteran broadcaster and the voice of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway to generations of Indy 500 fans, died in Indianapolis. He was 91.

A veteran sportscaster who got his start in radio, Carnegie was known for signature calls like "Heeeeez-on-it!" when qualifiers sped up approaching the green flag, and "It's a new track record!"

The Ford Motor Co. has informed NASCAR it would like to race the Mustang in the elite Sprint Cup Series beginning in 2013. Ford currently uses the Fusion in the Cup Series.

NASCAR placed Nationwide Series driver Michael Annett on probation for the remainder of the year after his Sunday arrest in Mooresville, N.C., on a charge of driving while impaired.

Kim Clijsters regained the No. 1 ranking in women's tennis when the Belgian beat Jelena Dokic of Australia 6-3, 6-0 to reach the semifinals of the Open Gaz de France in Paris.