Ladbrokes makes Woods, Westwood Open favorites

England's Lee Westwood has been installed as co-favorite with Tiger Woods for this week's British Open at Royal Birkdale in Southport, England.

The bookmaker Ladbrokes reacted to Westwood's victory at Saturday's Loch Lomond tournament by cutting his odds to 11-1. It's the first time since his victory at the 1997 Masters that Woods has not been the sole betting favorite for any tournament he's played in, Ladbrokes said.

Westwood has three victories in his last four European tour starts and seven wins in seven countries in the past nine months. He would collect a $1 million bonus if he wins the Open.

"He is showing the two characteristics that the betting public dreams of, consistency and coolness under pressure," Ladbrokes spokesman Andy Clifton said.

After Woods and Westwood, Ladbrokes lists David Duval and Colin Montgomerie at 14-1; Ernie Els, Fred Couples and Jim Furyk at 16-1, and defending champion Justin Leonard, Tom Lehman and Mark O'Meara at 25-1.

Frenchman wins San Francisco race

Hamid Oubadriss of France won the hilly San Francisco Marathon, but his time was way off the course record and his own best. "It was a hard race," he said. "Twenty-six miles with hills makes it a difficult course. I hate to race on hills." Oubadriss was timed in 2 hours, 23 minutes, 54 seconds, far off the course record of 2:17:34, set four years ago by Kenyan Patrick Muturi. His best marathon time is 2:14. Kenya's Salina Chirchir won the women's division. Her time of 2:45:36 was five minutes slower than the record set by Russian Tatiana Titova in 1993.

British cyclist leads Tour de France

In the absence of any Irish competitors, Britain's Chris Boardman has been adopted as the local favorite in the Tour de France. And he's giving the fans plenty to cheer about. Boardman, whose English home is located about 200 miles east of Dublin, was to start today's second stage still donning the leader's yellow jersey after a last-minute tumble cost his chief opponent a chance at victory. Mario Cipollini of Italy posed the major threat to Boardman's points lead as Sunday's opening stage reached a tense, furious conclusion in Dublin's Phoenix Park. But one of Cipollini's Saeco teammates collided with another rider right in front of him as the bulk of 189 cyclists cleared the park's broad entrance and began sprinting for the finish line. Six riders fell, but Cipollini was the one who lost the most. Cipollini, a flamboyant sprinter who had hoped to reproduce his 1997 stage-one victory, sustained multiple bruises, but expected to race today.

Belgians challenge U.S.

Needing all the help it can get against the heavily favored United States, Belgium hopes to have Johan Van Herck at full strength for this week's Davis Cup quarterfinal in Indianapolis. Van Herck, returning from a hamstring injury, when through a hard practice Saturday for the first time since he was forced to retire last month from the first round of Wimbledon. The Americans are seeking their 18th consecutive home victory. Other challenges for Belgium -- in the quarterfinals of the World Group for the first time ever -- include playing on a hard court and against a team that features two players who were once ranked No. 1 in the world. The Belgium team began practicing at the Indianapolis Tennis Center on Saturday and will be joined by the U.S. team today. The U.S. lineup is set. Andre Agassi of Las Vegas and Jim Courier will play singles, and Todd Martin and Richey Reneberg will play doubles.

The clay-court curse continued for Boris Becker on Sunday when he was beaten 7-6 (7-5), 7-5, 6-3 by Alex Corretja in the final of the Swiss Open at Gstaad. Also on Sunday, Sweden's Magnus Gustafsson became the first player to win the Swedish Open four times, beating Andrei Medvedev of Ukraine 6-2, 6-3. At Newport, R.I., India's Leander Paes won the Hall of Fame Tennis Championships for his first ATP Tour title. Paes beat South Africa's Neville Godwin of South Africa 6-3, 6-2. Wimbledon champion Jana Novotna of the Czech Republic won the Czech Open at Prague, routing France's Sandrine Testud 6-3, 6-0 in the final of the clay-court tournament.

Locals seek national tennis titles

Two 12-and-under tennis players from Las Vegas will compete for titles at the USTA Clay Court Championships this week. They are Cameron Parker, who will play at Greensboro, N.C.; and Sabrina Capannolo, who will play at Boca Raton, Fla.

Pop Warner coaches needed

The Southern Nevada Pop Warner League has openings for head and assistant football coaches for the coming season. Call 873-4096 or 647-4388 for an appointment. The league has scheduled player and cheerleader signups for July 18 and 25 at the league office at 4065 Schiff Drive. A birth certificate and proof of residence is needed. Call 873-4096 for more information.

Coronado's Quest wins third straight

After acting up badly while being saddled before three losses in Florida earlier in the year, Coronado's Quest has been on his best behavior in winning three straight races in New York. "He ran great and gave a real professional performance," jockey Mike Smith said after Coronado's Quest won the Dwyer for 3-year-olds by five lengths Sunday at Belmont Park. "He was really kind and acted great today." Trainer Shug McGaughey McGaughey is not going to take any chances with Coronado's Quest. "We're on target for the Haskell (Aug. 9 at Monmouth Park)," he said. "It will be an interesting race, and we'll probably go up to Monmouth a few days before just to school him in the paddock. Should Coronado's Quest win the 1 1-8-mile Haskell, he would be in the thick of the fight for 3-year-old championship. Real Quiet, the Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner, is expected to start in the race. Another possible starter is Victory Gallop, winner of the Belmont Stakes.

Francis to rejoin Hurricanes

The Hartford Whalers made the mistake of trading away Ron Francis seven years ago. Preparing for their second season as the Carolina Hurricanes, the franchise is close to regaining the star center. Francis, ninth on the NHL's career scoring list with 1,434 points, was set to sign a four-year, $20.8 million contract today, The News & Observer of Raleigh reported. Performance incentives could push the deal to $6 million a season for Francis, who earned $1.9 million with Pittsburgh last season. Francis, Pittsburgh's captain, played his first 10 NHL seasons with Hartford before he was traded to the Penguins in 1991.

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