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J.B. Holmes takes PGA Championship lead

BLOOMFIELD HILLS, Mich., Aug. 8 (UPI) -- J.B. Holmes fired a 2-under--par 68 Thursday to take the halfway lead at the PGA Championship, one stroke ahead of Ben Curtis, Justin Rose and Charlie Wi.

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Holmes was the only player under par at the Oakland Hills Country Club with a two-round score of 1-under 139.

Curtis, the 2003 British Open champion, and Rose each shot 67 and Wi posted a 70 to share second place at 140. David Toms (69), the 2001 PGA winner, and Henrik Stenson (70) were next at 141.

Holmes birdied the 12th, 13th and 14th holes but bogeyed 15 and 17.

"After my third birdie, the next four holes were pretty much into the wind right there and I was just trying to make par on those holes," Holmes said. "Glad I got in with (68). But I felt I left a few out there."

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Brandt Snedeker (71), Aaron Baddeley (71), Angel Cabrera (72), Sean O'Hair (73), Ken Duke (73), Sergio Garcia (73) and Jeev Milkha Singh (74) were tied at 2-over 142.

Phil Mickelson, the 2005 PGA champion, was another shot back after carding a 73.

"If they water the greens and change some pins, you can shoot under par," Mickelson said. "I'm within four going into the weekend. There's a lot of golf left out here."


Czech shooter wins first gold of 2008 Games

BEIJING, Aug. 8 (UPI) -- Katerina Emmons of the Czech Republic won the first gold medal awarded at the Beijing Olympics Saturday, capturing the women's air rifle event.

The silver medal, for the second straight Olympics, went to Lioubov Galkina of Russia. Snjezana Pejcic of Croatia won the bronze. American Jamie Beyerle finished fourth.


Report: Pennington signs with Dolphins

MIAMI, Aug. 8 (UPI) -- Quarterback Chad Pennington reportedly signed with the Miami Dolphins Friday, the day after he was cut by the New York Jets.

Pennington signed a multiyear deal with the Dolphins, The Miami Herald reported.

The Jets released Pennington Thursday after they acquired longtime Green Bay quarterback Brett Favre.

The 32-year-old Pennington is to join the Dolphins this weekend, the newspaper said. Miami opens its pre-season schedule Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

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Pennington played for the Jets for eight seasons. He completed 1,259 passes for 13,738 yards and 82 touchdowns.


Scott Dixon grabs Indy 300 pole position

SPARTA, Ky., Aug. 8 (UPI) -- Scott Dixon grabbed the pole position Friday for the Indy Racing League's Meijer Indy 300 at the Kentucky Speedway.

The No. 9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing driver circled the 1 ½ -mile oval four times in 1 minute, 37.3293 seconds at 218.968 mph, claiming his sixth pole this season and the 13th of his IndyCar career.

With four races left in the 2008 IndyCar season, six drivers remain mathematically eligible for the championship, but Dixon, the leader, holds a comfortable 65-point advantage over second-place Helio Castroneves.

"Our race car is very similar to our qualifying setup," Dixon said. "Hopefully we can lead a lot of laps, gain a lot of points and close in on that championship."

Dixon has five victories this season, including two in the last three races, and has led the standings since winning the Indianapolis 500 in May.

Vitor Meira will join him on the front row, with Dan Wheldon and Hideki Mutoh on row two.

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