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2B – Daily News – Tuesday, August 31, 2010 Past Open champs fare well on Day 1 U.S. Open NEW YORK (AP) — Venus Williams landed awkwardly on her recent- ly injured leg after hitting a swinging volley and gri- maced. It was about the only glitch during her return to tennis. Playing for the first time in two months after spraining her left kneecap, seven-time Grand Slam champion Williams beat Roberta Vinci of Italy 6-4, 6-1 Monday night to reach the U.S. Open’s sec- ond round. ‘‘It was doing pretty good, till I landed on that leg on the swing volley. ... I was pretty happy to get through after not playing in forever,’’ said Williams, whose younger sister Ser- ena isn’t playing in the U.S. Open after surgery for deep cuts on her right foot. ‘‘It’s not the same without two Williamses,’’ the No. 3-seeded Venus added during an on-court interview. ‘‘I have big shoes to fill with just one Williams here.’’ She hit 10 aces, reach- ing 126 mph, and became only the fifth woman with 200 career victories at major tournaments. Vinci knew, of course, about Williams’ recent time off, and said after- ward with a sigh: ‘‘I hoped she would play worse.’’ Two of the American’s seven Grand Slam titles came at Flushing Mead- ows, in 2000 and 2001, and other past U.S. Open champions Kim Clijsters and Andy Roddick also won on Day 1, with yet another, Roger Federer, on court for the night’s last match. But 32nd- seeded Lleyton Hewitt, who won the tournament in 2001, hit 12 double- faults and was upset by 109th-ranked Paul-Henri Mathieu of France 6-3, 6- 4, 5-7, 4-6, 6-1. COURT (Continued from page baseball star jailed because of a conviction related to the performance-enhancing- drug imbroglio that has sul- lied their sport for much of the past 15 years. If convicted of six counts — three of making false statements, two of perjury and one of obstruction of Congress — Clemens could face up to 30 years in prison and a $1.5 million fine, although 15 to 21 months is the more likely sentence under federal guidelines. As he has throughout the process, Clemens again fought any suggestion that he cheated during a 23-season ‘‘I wasn’t expecting a whole heap coming into this tournament, based on my preparation,’’ said Hewitt, who had played only four matches, losing three, since Wimbledon. Monday’s loss is Hewitt’s only first-round exit in 11 trips to the U.S. Open. Williams, mean- while, improved to 12-0 in opening matches in New York, and 48-3 in openers at all major tour- naments. She hadn’t competed since being upset in the Wimbledon quarterfinals June 29 by then-No. 82 Tsvetana Pironkova of Bulgaria. Pironkova won Monday, too, and Williams could face her in the third round. That loss at the All England Club, shortly after Williams turned 30, led to talk about how much longer she can con- tend for major champi- onships — and even how much longer she intends to play on tour. Yes, once you reach a certain age, birthdays tend to make you reflect on your own mortality. They also, in the case of profes- sional athletes, tend to prompt questions about the state of your career. Roddick turned 28 on Monday, and after beating Stephane Robert of France 6-3, 6-2, 6-2, the ninth-seeded American was asked what signifi- cance he attributes to his age. In typical Roddick fashion, he injected his reply with some humor. ‘‘Obviously, I know I’m probably closer to the finish than I am to the start,’’ he said. ‘‘But ... it’s a number. I’m barely older than I was yester- day.’’ Well, that’s true. He also, however, is seven years older than he was when he won his lone Grand Slam title at the 2003 U.S. Open. There’s a reminder of that accom- plishment every time career that ended with 354 wins and 4,672 strikeouts. He won his first three Cy Young awards in 1986, ’87 and ’91, dipped ever so slightly, then won four more in 1997, ’98, 2001 and 2004, at the age of 42. On Monday, he was in Washington because of testi- mony he gave to Congress in 2008. He went before a House committee to clear his name after becoming a prominent figure in the Mitchell Report, which came out the year before with an unflinching account of base- ball’s drug crisis. Back then, Clemens testi- fied: ‘‘Let me be clear. I have never taken steroids or HGH.’’ This time, his words were MCT photo Andy Roddick follows through with a serve, Monday, at the U.S. Open. Roddick returns to Flush- ing Meadows: His spot in the locker room bears a special plate with his name and the year he was the champion, a bit of recognition he referred to as ‘‘the little deal on your locker that says you’re special.’’ Clijsters is ‘‘special,’’ too. The Belgian won the U.S. Open each of the last two times she entered, in 2005 and 2009, and she stretched her winning streak in New York to 15 matches Monday despite a brief blip. The No. 2-seeded Cli- jsters began her title defense with a 6-0, 7-5 victory over 104th-ranked Greta Arn of Hungary. It was an afternoon of most- ly straightforward results, although two-time French Open runner-up Robin Soderling was stretched to five sets before edging 214th-ranked qualifier Andreas Haider-Maurer, fewer but every bit as force- ful. And his actions spoke of a man who refused to let a court appearance ruin his day. He arrived at the court- house four hours early to go through fingerprinting and paperwork that is often left for after the official work in court is complete. Clemens apparently was trying to get to North Caroli- na in time to play in the first round of a weeklong ama- teur golf tournament. He arrived at The Pearl golf course in Calabash, N.C., shortly after 5 p.m. and shot a 12-over 84, matching wife Debbie’s first-day score. Clemens declined to answer questions about his court appearance, but did who pounded 34 aces. Other winners included No. 6 Nikolay Davy- denko, No. 11 Marin Cilic, No. 13 Jurgen Melzer, No. 17 Gael Mon- fils and No. 22 Juan Car- los Ferrero, while No. 27 Fernando Gonzalez quit in the third set of his match against Ivan Dodig because of a knee injury. Women moving into the second round included surprise 2009 U.S. Open quarterfinalist Melanie Oudin, French Open champion Francesca Schi- avone, French Open run- ner-up Sam Stosur, two- time major finalist Elena Dementieva, No. 10 Vic- toria Azarenka, No. 13 Marion Bartoli, No. 16 Shahar Peer, and No. 24 Daniela Hantuchova, who beat former No. 1 and cur- rent No. 50 Dinara Safina 6-3, 6-4. Another past No. 1 now sitting way down in the rankings, No. 40 Ana Ivanovic, reached the sec- ond round by eliminating thank tournament organizers for allowing him to compete in the event under the cir- cumstances. MLB West Division Texas A’s American League WL Pct GB 74 57 .565 — 65 65 .500 8.5 Angels 63 68 .481 11 Seattle 51 79 .392 22.5 East Division WL Pct GB New York 81 50 .618 — Tampa Bay 81 50 .618 — Boston 74 57 .565 7 Toronto 68 63 .519 13 Baltimore 48 83 .366 33 Central Division WL Pct GB Minnesota 75 56 .573 — Chicago 71 60 .542 4 Detroit 65 66 .496 10 Kansas City 55 76 .420 20 Cleveland 53 78 .405 22 ————————————————— Monday’s results New York 11, Oakland 5 Chicago 10, Cleveland 6, 11 innings Tampa Bay 6, Toronto 2 Texas 3, Kansas City 0 Los Angeles at Seattle, late Today’s games Oakland (Mazzaro 6-6) at N.Y.(P.Hughes 15-6),4:05 p.m.,CSNC Boston (Beckett 4-3) at Baltimore (Matusz 6-12), 4:05 p.m. Chicago (E.Jackson 2-0) at Cleveland (Masterson 5-12), 4:05 p.m. Toronto (R.Romero 10-8) at Tampa Bay (Niemann 10-4), 4:10 p.m. Detroit (Galarraga 4-5) at Minn.(Duensing 7-2), 5:10 p.m., MLBN Texas (Cl.Lee 10-8) at Kansas City (O’Sullivan 2-4), 5:10 p.m. Los Angeles (Haren 2-4) at Seattle (F.Hernandez 10-10), 7:10 p.m. Yes, You Can Bowl!! Regular & Short Season Leagues & Clubs to fit your schedule & budget now forming! Get the Details & Some Cool Savings at Call 530-527-2720 365 S. Main St.,Red Bluff www.lariatbowl.com Ekaterina Makarova 6-3, 6-2. Williams got off to a good start against Vinci, leading 3-0 and 4-1. But the Italian reeled off three consecutive games and 10 of 12 points to pull com- pletely even at 4-all, 30- all. That’s when Williams took over, delivering an overhead smash on the next point, followed by her fifth ace, at 115 mph, to hold for a 5-4 lead. Williams then broke Vinci at love, giving her six points in a row to close the first set. In the second set’s opening game, Williams winced and briefly seemed uncomfortable when she planted her left foot on a winner near the net. ‘‘Thankfully, ’ ’ Williams said, ‘‘after that, she did most of the run- ning.’’ Williams did look absolutely fine a couple of MLB West Division National League WL Pct GB Padres 76 53 .589 — GIANTS 72 59 .550 5 Colorado 68 61 .527 8 Dodgers 67 64 .511 10 Arizona 52 79 .397 25 East Division WL Pct GB Atlanta 76 55 .580 — Philadelphia 73 57 .562 2.5 Florida 65 64 .504 10 New York 65 66 .496 11 Washington 56 75 .427 20 Central Division WL Pct GB Cincinnati 76 55 .580 — St. Louis 69 60 .535 6 Milwaukee 62 69 .473 14 Houston 60 71 .458 16 Chicago 56 76 .424 20.5 Pittsburgh 43 88 .328 33 ————————————————— Monday’s results Colorado at San Francisco, late Atlanta 9, New York 3 Chicago 14, Pittsburgh 2 Cincinnati 5, Milwaukee 4, 10 innings Houston 3, St. Louis 0 Philadelphia at Los Angeles, late San Diego at Arizona,late Washington at Florida, late Today’s games Colorado (Rogers 2-2) at S.F.(Bumgarner 5-4),7:15 p.m.,CSNB Milwaukee (Gallardo 11-6) at Cincinnati (Harang 6-7), 4:10 p.m. New York (Niese 8-6) at Atlanta (Minor 2-0), 4:10 p.m. Washington (Zimmermann 0-0) at Florida (Ani.Sanchez 11-8), 4:10 p.m. Pittsburgh (Karstens 2-10) at Chicago (Dempster 12-8), 5:05 p.m. St. Louis (C.Carpenter 14-4) at Houston (W.Rodriguez 10-12), 5:05 p.m. San Diego (Correia 10-9) at Arizona (I.Kennedy 8-9), 6:40 p.m. Philadelphia (K.Kendrick 8-7) at Los Angeles (Monasterios 3-4), 7:10 p.m. Specialized Group Training for only $25 a month! Get in the best shape of your life with CrossFit Tehama CrossFit offers intense, dynamic workouts designed to enhance all components of fitness. Take your training to the next level with CrossFit Classes start in September Tuesday and Thursday 5:45am-6:30am Monday and Wednesday 4:30pm-5:15pm and 6:15pm-5:15pm 9:00am-9:45am Saturday Our trainers are college grads, strength and conditioning specialists, and collegiate athletes! Not your run of the mill instructors. Our instructors are all CrossFit certified. At Tehama Family Fitness Center, Tehama County’s CrossFit Affiliate Get in shape with the best! Join us for the Pump & Run Sept. 11 Tehama Family Fitness Center 2498 South Main St • Red Bluff 528-8656 • www.tehamafamilyfitness.com games later when she went ahead 2-1 by smack- ing a down-the-line fore- hand passing winner on a full sprint. ‘‘She kept pushing,’’ Vinci said. Williams came dressed for a night under the lights at the Open — or any- where in New York, for that matter. Though it wasn’t near- ly as risque as her lace French Open outfit, Williams’ sleek black dress had an exposed metal zipper up the back — the height of chic these days — and satin-looking side panels. There were two layers of fringe at the bottom of the skirt, and she topped off the look with two ropelike strands of neck- lace and a pair of dangling earrings. Her sister Serena weighed in with an opin- ion, tweeting: ‘‘Dress is the best ever soooo pret- ty!!!!!’’ North Division GOLDEN Golden League WL Pct. GB Calgary 24 14 .632 — OUTLAWS 20 15 .571 2.5 Victoria 20 16 .556 3 Edmonton 17 19 .472 6 St. George 8 24 .250 13 South Division Orange Co. 27 7 .794 — Maui Tucson 22 19 .537 8.5. Yuma WL Pct. GB 23 6 .793 1.5 12 25 .324 16.5 Tijuana 2 29 .065 23.5. ————————————————— Today’s games Calgary at Chico, 7:08 p.m. Victoria at Edmonton, 6 p.m. St. George at Tucson, 7 p.m. Yuma at Tijuana, 7 p.m. Orange County at Maui, 9:35 p.m. PGA FedExCup Leaders Rank Pts Money 1. Matt Kuchar 3,937 $4,244,798 2. Steve Stricker 2,572 $3,627,735 3. Martin Laird 1,977 $1,562,765 4. Justin Rose 1,860 $3,357,331 5. Ernie Els 1,851 $4,112,611 6. Dustin Johnson 1,737 $2,969,897 7. Hunter Mahan 1,718 $3,327,954 8. Jim Furyk 1,691 $3,308,872 9.Bubba Watson 1,688 $2,999,236 10. Phil Mickelson 1,629 $3,409,233 11.Ben Crane 1,607 $2,671,250 12. Jeff Overton 1,604 $3,318,056 13.Ryan Palmer 1,553 $2,502,683 14. Jason Day 1,469 $2,180,077 15. Zach Johnson 1,429 $2,459,868 16.Tim Clark 1,409 $3,101,881 17. Luke Donald 1,356 $2,262,234 18. Kevin Streelman 1,335 $1,135,174 19. Adam Scott 1,315 $1,974,902 20. Retief Goosen 1,306 $2,390,839 21.Vaughn Taylor 1,305 $1,784,830 22. Rickie Fowler 1,297 $2,281,040 23.Paul Casey 1,295 $2,414,694 24. Robert Allenby 1,279 $2,539,697 25.Bo Van Pelt 1,272 $2,554,508 26. Camilo Villegas 1,241 $2,631,273 27. Anthony Kim 1,216 $2,554,896 28. Rory McIlroy 1,169 $2,486,780 29. J.B. Holmes 1,153 $2,172,438 30. Carl Pettersson 1,142 $1,876,573 WNBA Conference Semifinals (Best-of-3) x-if necessary Eastern Conference Atlanta 2,Washington 0 Game 1:Atlanta 95, Washington 90 Game 2:Atlanta 101, Washington 77 New York 1, Indiana 1 Game 1:New York 85, Indiana 73 Game 2:Indiana 75, New York 67 Wednesday: at New York, 4:30 p.m. Western Conference Seattle 2,Los Angeles 0 Game 1:Seattle 79, Los Angeles 66 Game 2:Seattle 81, Los Angeles 66 Phoenix 2, San Antonio 0 Game 1:Phoenix 106, San Antonio 93 Game 2:Phoenix 92, San Antonio 73 It’s Fun! It’s Affordable It’s For Ever body It’s Time!! “We Care”