Sports Briefs: Ogrin ‘knew’ he would triumph

Monday, Oct. 14, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

SUN WIRE REPORTS

David Ogrin exuded confidence all weekend, even with Tiger Woods lurking just behind him.

And after winning the Texas Open in San Antonio, Ogrin said he'd known for days that the tournament would be his.

"I tried not to get all giddy and goofy about it, but we knew we were going to win," said Ogrin, whose wife and four children helped him celebrate his first PGA Tour victory Sunday.

A roaring hometown crowd at La Cantera Golf Club cheered the 38-year-old Ogrin, who edged Jay Haas by one stroke and a charging Woods by two.

Ogrin had an inkling he would win as early as Friday when he used two birdie streaks to grab the lead. He never relinquished it -- even after a potentially disastrous triple bogey in Sunday's final round.

Woods, who turned pro in August after winning an unprecedented third straight U.S. Amateur title, moved from 40th to 34th on the money list. He has earnings of $518,794.

In other tournaments:

* At St. Andrews, Scotland, Steve Stricker helped the United States beat New Zealand 2-1 and win its third Dunhill Cup title. Earlier Sunday, the U.S. defeated Sweden in the semifinals of the $468,000 event. Stricker shot a 5-under-par 67 to beat Grant Waite by six strokes, Mark O'Meara lost to Frank Nobilo 69-72 and Phil Mickelson beat Greg Turner 69-72.

* At Kutztown, Pa., Annika Sorenstam pulled away from Laura Davies to win the inaugural Betsy King LPGA Classic with an 18-under-par 270 total that tied the season low for a 72-hole tournament. Sorenstam, who shot a 4-under 68 for her second win of the year, matched Trish Johnson's total at last month's Fieldcrest Cannon Classic.

* At Napa, Calif., South African John Bland birdied the final two holes to beat Las Vegan Jim Colbert by a stroke at the $700,000 Transamerica Seniors for his fourth victory this year. Bland fashioned a 66 out of four birdies and an eagle to finish 12-under-par 204 and earn $105,000. Colbert, who also has four wins this season, made a hole-in-one on the par-3 15th in a 66 to make him runner-up to Bland for the third time this year.

* At Madrid, Spain, Tom Kite birdied the last hole and won the OKI Pro-Am in the rain and wind, his first victory since 1993. Kite closed with a 2-under-par 70 for a 273 total, one stroke ahead of Argentina's Angel Cabrera.

Hill takes F-1 title

Britain's Damon Hill won the Japanese Grand Prix and clinched his first Formula One championship Sunday. Hill completed 53 laps in his Williams-Renault over the 3.636-mile Suzuka Circuit in 1 hour, 32 minutes, 33.791 seconds for his eighth victory this season and 21st career. Two-time defending champion Michael Schumacher of Germany finished second, at 1:32:33.791 in his Ferrari. Finland's Mika Hakkinen, in a McLaren-Mercedes, was third at 1:32:35.674.

Becker wins in Austria

Fifth-seeded Boris Becker beat Dutchman Jan Siemerink 6-4, 6-7 (7-9), 6-2, 6-3 to win the $800,000 CA Trophy and $125,400 at Vienna, Austria.

In other tournaments:

* At Filderstadt, Germany, Sixteen-year-old Swiss star Martina Hingis won her first WTA tournament, defeating fifth-seeded Anke Huber of Germany, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 in the $450,000 Porsche Grand Prix.

* At Beijing, Britain's Greg Rusedski beat Czech Martin Damm 7-6 (7-5), 6-4 to win the $328,000 Beijing Open.

Coyotes to sign Roenick

The Phoenix Coyotes scheduled a news conference today, reportedly to announce that they have finally signed holdout center Jeremy Roenick to a contract. The Arizona Republic reported that Roenick and his Boston-based agent, Neil Abbott, arrived in Phoenix late Sunday night to finalize the contract with Coyote officials. The newspaper said the deal was expected to be worth an average of at least $3.5 million per season in base pay and loaded with bonuses and incentives. Roenick, a three-time all-star who scored 267 goals in 524 games for the Chicago Blackhawks, made $1.4 million last season in the final year of his five-year contract.

Galaxy Western champ

Mauricio Cienfuegos scored in the fifth shootout round to give the Los Angeles Galaxy a 2-1 victory at Kansas City on Sunday and the Major League Soccer Western Conference title. Robin Fraser and Greg Vanney also scored for Los Angeles in the tie-breaker. Galaxy goalie David Kramer, who came in when starter Jorge Campos moved to forward in the 73rd minute, stopped two of Kansas City's four shootout chances, allowing only a goal by Paul Wright. The Galaxy will face D.C. United for the MLS Cup next Sunday at Foxboro Stadium.

Fordham player dies

A Fordham University football player collapsed during pregame warmups and died Saturday, with his parents in the stands and his sister preparing to sing the national anthem. Bill Tierney, 20, of Lyndhurst, N.J., was taken to St. Barnabas Hospital, where he was pronounced dead less than an hour after collapsing at Coffey Field in the Bronx. Fordham immediately postponed the game with Lafayette College. The Fordham players were jogging from midfield to the end zone immediately before the game's scheduled start, when the junior defensive back collapsed.