The Portland Trail Blazers made seven-foot center Greg Oden of Ohio State the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft Thursday night. Oden guided the Buckeyes to the NCAA championship game last season before they were knocked off by the Florida Gators -- a team that had three of their players chosen in the first nine picks. Five international players went in the first round, led by Yi Jianlian of China. Yi was chosen sixth ... [full story]

Q: How long should I be watching the table coming in as a new player to get a feel for the game? - John, Wisconsin   HUCK SEED - Huck Seed is a respected tournament player and the 1995 World Series Main Event champion. He has won almost $3 million in tournament cashes and owns four WSOP bracelets. CNS Photo. A: I'm going to play conservative for a little bit. It could take up to an hour ... [full story]

  Professional Golf Tips: Getting off the first tee Your tee shot on the first hole is critical because it sets you up for the rest of the round.  [full story]

NEWPORT, Ore – The all-depth sport halibut fishery off the central Oregon coast will reopen July 5, 6 and 7. About 40,000 pounds remain of the quota for the central Oregon coast – from Cape Falcon 30 miles south of the Columbia River, to Humbug Mountain south of Port Orford. If sufficient quota remains after July 7, the spring fishery will continue on one or more of the following days: July 21, 20 and 19, ... [full story]

CORONADO, Calif. - Lou Gehrig is to blame for the crooked fingers on Joe DiGangi's right hand. Gehrig hit a foul ball in the 1930s that disclocated two of DiGangi's digits and nearly knocked off a nail. Then as now, the baseball catcher played a perilous position. Now as then, DiGangi would have gladly done it for a couple of hot dogs. "Lou Gehrig always had a hitch (in his swing), and he tipped one," ... [full story]

The National Football League does not need to cut corners. It can afford to navigate the straight and narrow and forgo unnecessary detours down dark alleys. It can choose to insist on citizenship. The most powerful operation in American sports is stronger still because of rookie Commissioner Roger Goodell's intolerance for trouble. In drawing a more stringent league-wide line on personal behavior, Goodell has rebalanced the risk/reward decisions of individual teams. He has forced executives ... [full story]

Q: Since you were born in Atlanta, would you consider yourself Old South or New South? A: "Borderline both. I like to hunt and fish." Q: Before you played in the pressure of Chicago, you broke in with Montreal. Good or bad? A: "I enjoyed my time in Montreal. I made it to the big leagues at a very young age. I was able to play and learn without external pressure. I played for three ... [full story]

SANTA CATALINA ISLAND, Calif. - Without a safety harness, wildlife biologist Peter B. Sharpe scales a steep crag to clamp ID bands on three bald eaglets as their screeching parents go into dive-bomb mode. He tries not to think about a similar encounter a few weeks earlier, when an eagle protecting its nest struck him with its talons, bloodying his face. Despite its aggressive defense, the distress call of America's national bird is surprisingly feeble. ... [full story]

The key to Graham Cooper's ultramarathoning success? God-given talent, discipline, a unique training program and a cast-iron gut. About 55 miles into last year's Western States 100-mile Endurance Run, in 103-degree Sierra heat, Suzie Lister recalls watching Cooper chug a can of Campbell's condensed chicken-noodle soup. "He downed it like it was a can of soda," says Lister, who helped pace Cooper for part of the race. "I looked at him in amazement. Are you ... [full story]

SAN DIEGO - If Michael Barrett came to San Diego with baggage, it was clean enough to get through security. GM Kevin Towers, the Padres' chief luggage inspector, did a thorough search. He found no contraband. Before making the Wednesday trade that brought the catcher here from the Cubs, Towers talked to everyone but Condoleezza Rice, who was unavailable. Towers is much like Chargers GM A.J. Smith. He doesn't want jerks running around his building. ... [full story]

SAN DIEGO - Pebble Beach had "Boat-Cam." Maybe Torrey Pines could have "Billabong-Cam." Or perhaps "Hang Glider-Cam." "We'll be looking for unique angles to show the place off," said Tommy Roy, NBC's longtime golf producer. At the last U.S. Open in California, in 2000 at Pebble Beach, "Boat-Cam" was just what it sounds like - a camera in a boat in Carmel Bay, which gave viewers a unique seal's-eye view of one of the most ... [full story]

If Amadou Fall had not been a champion African swimmer for Senegal in the 1970s, his son probably would not have taken up the sport. And if Assane Fall had not taken up competitive swimming, he probably wouldn't have heard from his coach about the lifeguard job on Yoff Beach outside the capital of Dakar.   THE ACCIDENTAL KAYAKER - Kayaker Assane Fall of Senagal, who has been training at the Olympic Training Center in California ... [full story]

  Tour de France jersey tied to yellow journalism – It wasn’t until the 16th running of the Tour de France that one of the race’s most distinctive features came to be. Partway through the race it occurred to tour organizer and newspaper editor Henri Desgrange that the race leader ought to wear something distinctive, because spectators along the route often had no idea who was winning.  [full story]