Pate (68) Takes Charge, Leads Senior PGA by 1

Jerry Pate shot a four-under-par 68 that gave him a two-day total of six-under 138 and a one-shot lead in the Senior PGA Championship at Ligonier, Pa., on Friday.

Pate broke away from the pack on a day when a dozen players shared or owned the lead at some point.

“It’s been 20 years,” the 51-year-old Pate said, referring to the last time he was in contention in a PGA tournament. “That’s a long time.”

Pate, the 1976 U.S. Open winner, followed up a two-under 70 to lead R.W. Eaks (70) by one shot and Mark McNulty (66) and Mike Reid (70) by two shots.

Hajime Meshiai, a 12-time Japanese Tour winner who has never been in contention in an American tournament, had a 71 and is joined by Dave Barr (72) and Tom McKnight (72) at three off the lead.

Arnold Palmer probably played his last competitive round in his native western Pennsylvania. His 14-over 86 followed an 82 and he missed the cut.

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Justin Leonard shot a five-under 65 to extend his lead to five strokes after the second round of the St. Jude Classic at Memphis, Tenn.

He had six birdies and his first bogey for a 13-under 127 total that was one stroke off the 36-hole course record held by John Cook (1996) and David Frost (1999). Both did it when par was a stroke higher.

Leonard, who led by two strokes after one round, matched the low 36-hole total on tour this year by Joe Ogilvie at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic.

Fredrik Jacobson, who also shot a 65, is in second place at eight-under 132. Paul Goydos (66) was another stroke back.

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Annika Sorenstam shot a four-under 68 to tie Sherri Turner for the second-round lead at the LPGA’s Corning Classic in Corning, N.Y.

Sorenstam jumped to the top of the leaderboard after a four-hour delay caused by lightning and rain. Play was stopped because of darkness after Sorenstam’s threesome finished, meaning that most of the afternoon starters will have to complete their rounds this morning.

Turner, who finished before the rain delay, shot a one-under 71 for a two-round total of seven-under 137.

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Motor Racing

Kasey Kahne drove his Dodge to a record lap of 186.735 mph to win the pole for today’s NASCAR Busch Series Carquest 300 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C. The previous mark was set two years ago by Kevin Harvick at 184.445.

Greg Biffle qualified second in a Ford at 186.432, and Carl Edwards, also in a Ford, was third at 186.194.

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Soccer

The U.S. national team meets England in an exhibition today at Chicago. The last time England played in the United States, in 1993, it lost to the Americans, 2-0, at Foxboro, Mass.

With the European season just ending and England not playing another World Cup qualifier until September, most of its regular starters, including David Beckham and Michael Owen, stayed home.

The Americans are without their top players too. Captain Claudio Reyna is resting because of a leg injury, and DaMarcus Beasley (knee) and Eddie Johnson (turf toe) are out.

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Jurisprudence

Former Oakland Raiders Marcus Williams and Bill Romanowski are settling their legal dispute.

Williams sued his former teammate after getting hit in the face by Romanowski during a practice drill in 2003. They announced that Romanowski is agreeing to pay $415,000 to resolve the litigation.

In March, a jury ordered Romanowski to pay Williams $340,000 in damages. Williams was not happy with the jury’s verdict, and was seeking a new trial until the two sides agreed to end the dispute.

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College Basketball

California forward Leon Powe, the Pacific 10 Conference freshman of the year in 2004, was cleared to return to basketball after sitting out last season while recovering from left knee surgery. He will play with the Golden Bears on a 12-day tour of Italy in August, wearing a brace on his reconstructed knee.

USC Coach Tim Floyd has received an oral commitment from Las Vegas Durango High junior Andre McFarland, a 6-foot-5, 205-pound forward who averaged 19 points and 10 rebounds last season.

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Miscellany

Gymnasts will be able to appeal their scores to judges using video replays under a new rule passed by the sport’s world governing body at Helsinki.

The international federation, known as FIG, also raised the minimum age limit for Olympics and world championships by one year to 16. The rule, for men and women, will go into effect in 2009.

The rule on scoring protests takes effect immediately. It applies only to the level of difficulty of a routine, not the execution.

Super-flyweight Jose Navarro (22-1) of South Los Angeles picked up his 10th knockout with a third-round victory over late replacement Miguel Del Valle (8-12) of Puerto Rico at San Antonio late Thursday night.