Woods is lurking one stroke off lead

February 14, 2011 at 5:33AM

Tiger Woods is bidding to end his drought in the desert.

The former world No. 1 is one shot off the lead going into Sunday's final round of the Dubai Desert Classic in the United Arab Emirates, rallying from a bad start with an eagle and three birdies on the back nine for a par 72 in winds of nearly 30 miles per hour Saturday.

He finished the third round at 7-under 209, in a seven-way tie for fourth behind co-leaders Rory McIlroy (75), Anders Hansen (71) and Thomas Aiken (74).

After a double bogey at No. 9 left Woods at 4-over 39, he made an eagle on the par-5 10th and birdies on Nos. 11, 15 and 18.

Marino leads at Pebble Beach

Steve Marino, playing the Shore Course at Monterey Peninsula, shot 1-over 71 and held a one-stroke lead after three rounds of the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. Jimmy Walker, who had a 63 at Monterey Peninsula, and Bryce Molder, who shot 68 at Spyglass Hill, were tied for second.

Lehman second in Champions event

Minnesota native Tom Lehman shot 3-under 72 and was in a tie for second place after two rounds of the Champions Tour Allianz Championship in Boca Raton, Fla. Peter Senior shot a 67 and led by one with a total of 133.

SKIING

Vonn plans last-minute decisionStill dealing with the lingering effects of a concussion, Lindsey Vonn will wait until just before the start of the downhill to decide whether to defend her title Sunday at the world championships in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany.

"If she feels OK, then she's going to go tomorrow," U.S. women's coach Alex Hoedlmoser said.

Vonn has described her races as "skiing in a fog" this week during the world championships.

Erik Guay of Canada won the men's downhill title. American Bode Miller, at a disadvantage because he raced late on a warm day, finished 15th.

NFL

Titans hire defensive coordinatorTitans coach Mike Munchak filled one of the biggest openings on his staff by hiring Jerry Gray away from the University of Texas to become Tennessee's defensive coordinator.

Gray was hired by Texas, his alma mater, to be defensive backs coach and assistant head coach last month. He was due to make $425,000, but this job meant at least doubling that for this season.

A two-time All-America at Texas, Gray was a four-time Pro Bowl pick during nine NFL seasons.

Haynesworth charged with assault

• Washington defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth was formally charged with misdemeanor assault stemming from a road rage encounter. Haynesworth and his attorney appeared at a Fairfax County police station Saturday morning.

• Redskins kick returner Brandon Banks is expected to be released from a hospital Sunday after being stabbed outside a Washington, D.C., nightclub at about 3 a.m. Saturday. His agent said he was coming to the aid of a friend.

LUGE

Fourteen-year German streak endsCanada's Alex Gough ended Germany's 105-race winning streak in World Cup women's luge, stopping a run that lasted nearly 14 years.

Gough had a a two-run time of 1 minute, 33.536 seconds in Paramonovo, Russia, to beat Germany's Carina Schwab by 0.378 seconds. Gough's victory was the first by a non-German in a World Cup event since Austria's Andrea Tagwerker won on Nov. 29, 1997.

"I always knew that this winning [streak] would come to an end one day," Gough said. "But I never thought that I would be the one."

AROUND THE HORN

Tennis: Kim Clijsters will face Petra Kvitova in the final of the Open Gaz de France in Paris. Clijsters, who will be ranked No. 1 on Monday, defeated Kaia Kanepi of Estonia 6-1, 7-5 in a semifinal. Kvitova cruised past Minnesota native Bethanie Mattek-Sands 6-2, 6-0 in the other semifinal.

Mixed martial arts: Fedor Emelianenko, considered the world's best heavyweight fighter for nearly a decade, took a beating and a loss in the Strikeforce heavyweight Grand Prix in East Rutherford, N.J. Brazilian jiujitsu star Antonio Silva won when the ringside doctor refused to allow Emelianenko to continue after a wild second round.

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