Skip to main content

A roundup of the sports information of the week

BOATING—INTREPID successfully defended the America's Cup by defeating Australian challenger Dame Pattie in four straight races (page 26).

Alan Holt of Seattle skippered Ariel to finishes of 1-1-2-2-1 for his first North American Star-class Championship, on Lake Ontario.

BOXING—Argentina's OSCAR BONAVENA floored European Heavyweight Champion Karl Mildenberger four times before winning a 12-round unanimous decision in Frankfurt, Germany (page 20).

California Heavyweight JERRY QUARRY, 22, knocked out Brooklyn's Billy Daniels in 2:45 of the first round of a scheduled 10-rounder in Los Angeles.

FOOTBALL—AFL: Rookie Bob Griese took over for Starting Quarterback John Stofa, who broke his ankle early in the first period, and tossed two TD passes as MIAMI defeated Denver 35-21 (page 69). OAKLAND, with Daryle Lamonica pitching three touchdown passes and scoring another, made it two straight with a 35-7 rout of Boston. In the day's biggest upset in either league HOUSTON. loser of 13 straight games, crushed Eastern Division Champion Buffalo 20-3. One of the Oilers' touchdowns was set up by Zeke Moore's 46-yard return of a punt to the seven-yard line, and the other was scored right after W. K. Hicks ran back an intercepted pass 62 yards to the six-yard line.

NFL: Defending World Champion GREEN BAY opened the 48th National Football League season by tying lowly DETROIT 17-17 on Don Chandler's 28-yard field goal with less than two minutes left in the game. The Lions intercepted four of Bart Starr's passes (he had only three picked off in 1966) in the first half as they took a 17-0 lead. But the Packers, led by Starr—who had 14 completions in 23 attempts for 321 yards—scored twice on plunges by Elijah Pitts before an 84-yard pass from Starr to Pitts set up the tying field goal. Don Meredith tossed two TD passes and Linebacker Chuck Howley ran back an interception 28 yards to lead Eastern Conference Champion DALLAS to a 21-14 victory over Cleveland. Rejuvenated PITTSBURGH crushed Chicago 41-13 as Fullback Bill Asbury scored two touchdowns and gained 107 yards rushing in 12 carries, while the Pitt defense held Gale Sayers to two yards in seven tries. Sayers, however, scored one of the Bears' TDs on a 103-yard kickoff return. SAN FRANCISCO erupted to a 24-0 half-time lead over Minnesota and then held on for a 27-21 win when Ron VanderKelen directed the Vikings to three last-period touchdowns. BALTIMORE also had a scare after rolling to a 31-7 half-time lead over Atlanta, but the Colts managed to stagger to a 38-31 victory on the passing of Johnny Unitas. He completed 22 of 32 passes for 401 yards and two TDs. Norm Snead had a big day, too, for PHILADELPHIA, with 18 completions in 27 attempts for 301 yards and two TDs. He also scored a touchdown as the Eagles beat Washington 35-24. Rookie John Gilliam ran back the opening kickoff 94 yards for a touchdown to give New Orleans a quick lead over LOS ANGELES in the Saints' first official NFL game. But the Rams got the lead back at the end of the first half and went on to win easily 27-13. NEW YORK came from behind to beat St. Louis 37-20 as Fran Tarkenton tossed three TD passes—70 and 38 yards to Homer Jones, 33 yards to Del Shofner—in the second half.

GOLF—Thirty-six-year-old DAN SIKES of Jacksonville shot a final round four-under-par 68 to win the $110,000 Philadelphia Classic with a 72-hole total of 276, defeating George Archer by two strokes.

Britain's TONY JACKLIN won the $18,200 Dunlop Masters tournament in Sandwich, England when he shot a final-round 64 (including a hole in one on the 16th) for a 72-hole total of 274, defeating last year's winner, Neil Coles, by three strokes.

HARNESS RACING—ROMULUS HANOVER paced the fastest mile (1:58[2/5]) of the 1967 Michigan season at Hazel Park raceway when Billy Haughton drove him to a one-length victory over stablemate Nardin's Byrd in the $25,350 Little Brown Jug Trial.

HORSE RACING—QUICK PITCH ($2.80), carrying 172 pounds, galloped to a 16-length victory over Gay Sparkle in the 2½-mile $11,650 Rouge Dragon Hurdle Handicap at Aqueduct (page 24).

Riboco (7-2), with Lester Piggott up, earned owner Charles Engelhard of Far Hills, N.J. first-place money of $119,546 when he defeated Queen Elizabeth's Hopeful Venture by 1½ lengths in the St. Leger stakes—the last classic race of the English season—in Doncaster, England.

Hobeau Farm's MAC'S SPARKLER ($18.80), with Bill Boland aboard, finished a neck in front of Triple Brook to take the $81,900 Beldame for fillies and mares, at Aqueduct, while Mrs. Ethel D. Jacobs' Straight Deal, the favorite, wound up fourth, 2½ lengths behind Gamely.

Estreno II ($250.60), with Carlos Marquez aboard, scored a stunning upset in the $125,800 Michigan Mile and One-Eighth when he beat Handsome Boy by three-quarters of a length. Handsome Boy was disqualified for interference and placed fourth, behind Tenzing II and Carpenter's Rule.

Diplomat way ($3.40), with Milo Valenzuela up, set a track record of 1:34[3/5] in winning the first division of the $23,275 Chicago Handicap at Hawthorne raceway, but in the second division, also worth $23,275, Walter Blum rode CANAL ($7.40) to a new mark of 1:34[1/5] for the mile race on turf.

MODERN PENTATHLON—HUNGARY gained the world championship in J√∂nk√∂ping, Sweden for the third consecutive time with an accumulation of 14,237 points, 590 ahead of Sweden. The U.S.S.R. came in third, while the U.S. finished way back in 15th place.

MOTOR SPORTS—Grand Prix Formula I leader DENIS HULME of New Zealand, averaging 109.13 mph in his "Flower Power" Chevrolet, gained his second consecutive victory in the $500,000 Canadian-American Challenge Cup series by taking the SCAA Bridgehampton (N.Y.) Grand Prix by 48 seconds over his teammate Bruce McLaren.

Jack Brabham of Australia drove his Brabham-Repco at an average speed of 106.37 mph to beat Jackie Stewart of Scotland by five seconds in the Gold Cup Formula I and II race in Oulton Park, England.

POLO—With Benny Gutierrez scoring six goals, the MILWAUKEE POLO CLUB defeated Keswick of Virginia 11-7 in the finals of the National 20 Goal tournament in Milwaukee.

RODEO—LARRY MAHAN, a 23-year-old cowboy from Brooks, Ore. who was last year's top money winner on the professional rodeo circuit with $40,458, drew closer to repeating as the All-Around Champion when he gained the All-Around title and $1,985 at the Pendleton (Ore.) Roundup. Mahan's winnings this year now total $37,604.

MILEPOSTS—NAMED: Head track-and-field coach of the U.S. team for the 1968 Olympic Games, PAYTON JORDAN, 50, coach at Stanford University the last 12 seasons.

TRADED: For high-draft choices—to the Atlanta Falcons, Los Angeles Flanker TOMMY McDONALD, 33, who ranks fourth among alltime NFL pass receivers with 455, and second in lifetime total touchdown passes with 79; and, to San Francisco, SONNY RANDLE, 31, an outstanding split end for the St. Louis Cardinals for six years, who has caught 328 passes for 5,438 yards and 60 touchdowns.

DIED: L. K. Shapiro's 8-year-old gelding NATIVE DIVER, winner of more stakes races in California (34) than any other Thoroughbred; after an attack of colic, in Davis, Calif.

DIED: Former Houston First Baseman-Outfielder WALTER BOND, 29; of leukemia, in Houston. Bond, who played with the Astros in 1964 and 1965, had his best year in 1964 when he drove in 85 runs for a club record at the time, and hit 20 home runs.