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2B – Daily News – Monday, March 22, 2010 Earnhardt up to 8th in NASCAR standings BRISTOL, Tenn. (AP) — It’s been a long stretch of struggles for Dale Earnhardt Jr., who rebounded for a strong finish at Bristol Motor Speedway. His reward for his sec- ond top-10 finish of the season? Earnhardt is back inside the top eight in points for the first time in 48 races. Earnhardt overcame a pit road speeding penalty Sunday to finish seventh, pushing him up five spots in the standings to eighth. The last time Earnhardt was this high in the points was the third Chase race of 2008, and it was all downhill from there. He was winless last year, finished 25th in the final standings, and Hen- drick Motorsports made getting Earnhardt back on track its offseason priori- ty. So for as thrilled as team owner Rick Hen- drick was with Jimmie Johnson’s victory at Bris- tol, he was equally proud of the progress made with Earnhardt’s No. 88 team. ‘‘They’ve worked real- ly hard,’’ Hendrick said. ‘‘That team is really com- WOODS Continued from page 1B some pretty bad things in my life,’’ he told ESPN’s Tom Rinal- di. Last week, a woman who claims to be one of Woods’ mis- tresses released an embarrassing transcript of text messages she said he sent her. Woods admitted that four months of nearly nonstop public ridicule had caused him shame. ‘‘It was hurtful, but then again, you know what? I did it,’’ he told the Golf Channel. ‘‘And I’m the one who did those things. And looking back on it now, with a more clear head, I get it. I can understand why peo- ple would say those things. Because you know what? It was disgusting behavior. It’s hard to believe that was me, looking back on it now.’’ Woods announced Dec. 11 that he would take an ‘‘indefinite break’’ from golf and was in a Mississippi clinic from the end ing together. I’m excited about the rest of the year. So we made a lot of progress there.’’ Earnhardt had worked his way to fifth shortly after the halfway point Sunday, but he was called for speeding with 174 laps remaining. The penalty dropped him down to 26th and he was furious about the call. He was slightly rattled as he questioned NASCAR over his in-car radio in an expletive-laden rant. ‘‘Getting busted at Bristol for speeding ... it’s not the way it should be,’’ he said. ‘‘There should be a different way to do it.’’ Crew chief Lance McGrew was able to get the focus back on track, and Earnhardt salvaged the day with his finish. ‘‘Lance and Dale have great chemistry,’’ Hen- drick said. ‘‘I think if you listen to them on the radio, they’re working well together. Dale had a great car. I think he would have been in the top-five or had a real shot at it himself had he been able to not have that speeding penalty.’’ ——— NOTHING TO SEE HERE: All was calm between the drivers Sun- day at Bristol, a place where on-track retaliation is easy and often expect- ed. But tempers never seemed to boil over, not even when Carl Edwards and Brad Keselowski were near each other. The two had been the center of attention the past two weeks after Edwards intentionally wrecked Keselowski at Atlanta, triggering a crash that sent Keselowski’s car airborne and earned Edwards a three-race pro- bation. Both drivers met with NASCAR on Saturday, vowing to move forward with their tense relation- ship. Still, the tight con- fines at Bristol raised doubt that the two could resist any further contact. Not only did they suc- ceed in a drama-free day, but they both notched their season-best finishes. Edwards was sixth, Keselowski 13th. ‘‘That’s the best we ran all day was sixth,’’ Edwards said, ‘‘so that’s pretty decent.’’ of that month until early Febru- ary. Asked by ESPN to describe the lowest point, he replied, ‘‘I’ve had a lot of low points. Just when I didn’t think it could get any lower, it got lower.’’ He did, however, look more comfortable and composed than he did last month, wearing golf clothes and smiling several times when talk turned to the Masters, a tournament he won four times. He resumed practicing with swing coach Hank Haney last week. Woods said he couldn’t wait to get back, though he had reser- vations about how he’ll be received. ‘‘I’m a little nervous about that to be honest with you,’’ he told ESPN. ‘‘It would be nice to hear a couple claps here and there.’’ Augusta National will pro- vide Woods one of the most tightly controlled environments in the sport. Tournament orga- nizers limit the number of cre- dentialed media and galleries traditionally are among the best- Keselowski’s run helped him move up three positions in owners points to 30th, giving him some breathing room from falling below the top-35 mark that guarantees a driver a spot in the race. ‘‘We did what we had to do and that was run hard, run smart and bring the car home in one piece,’’ Keselowski said. ‘‘That’s great for our team. It’s a great step for everyone on our Penske Dodge team.’’ Keselowski, who skipped a pit stop to inherit the lead when a light rain fell over the track, even led 26 laps. He did, however, stay true to his aggressive driving style by making it diffi- cult for eventual winner Jimmie Johnson to pass him midway through the race when the two were racing for position. ‘‘He’ll never learn, man,’’ Johnson said over his radio. ——— McMURRA Y REBOUNDS: Jamie McMurray, who struggled in the three races follow- ing his win in the season- opening Daytona 500, behaved in sports. Even so, CBS boss Sean McManus, whose net- work televises the final two rounds of the Masters, predicted it ‘‘will be the biggest media event, other than the Obama inauguration, in the past 10 or 15 years.’’ A number of news outlets had submitted requests to the Woods camp for interviews. Both ESPN and the Golf Channel were noti- fied late last week that Woods would agree to a five-minute interview Sunday afternoon with no restrictions on questions. CBS was also offered an inter- view, but turned it down. ‘‘Depending on the specifics, we are interested in an extended interview without any restric- tions on CBS,’’ spokeswoman LeslieAnne Wade said. The interviews were conduct- ed at Isleworth, the gated com- munity in Windermere, Fla., where Woods lives. Golf Chan- nel’s Tilghman said Woods’ wife, Elin, was not present and ‘‘it’s still in question whether she will attend the Masters.’’ had a strong day at Bristol to stop his monthlong slide. McMurray, who was 17th, 34th and 29th in the three races after the 500, ran inside the top 10 most of Sunday and wound up eighth. It was his highest finish at Bristol since he was seventh in 2004. ‘‘I will say that I haven’t run this well here in any of my years at Roush,’’ said McMurray, who had just one top-10 at Bristol in his four sea- sons driving for Roush Fenway Racing. ‘‘It felt really good to be able to come back.’’ McMurray, who was the points leader after Daytona and then slipped to 19th in the standings, moved up to 15th. And he did it despite feeling ill early in the race. ‘‘I don’t know if it was the fumes or something in my drink bottle or what, but 60 laps into the race I felt like I was going to throw up,’’ he said. ‘‘And it just seemed like it got worse every time there was a caution.’’ ——— BYE-BYE WING: The race was the final one Woods had asked that the interview not be aired until the PGA tournament being played Sunday was finished. Golf Channel spokesman Dan Hig- gins declined to speculate whether release of the embar- rassing text messages influenced the timing of the interview. ‘‘I can’t speak for them,’’ he said. ‘‘I have no idea.’’ Jim Furyk, who is both a friend and rival of Woods, called the interviews ‘‘part of that nat- ural progression before he comes back.’’ Furyk was handed a transcript shortly after winning the Transi- tions Championship in Palm Harbor, Fla. He characterized what he read as ‘‘pretty much the same stuff that we already knew, but I think it’s good for him to get his face out there and have people see him. ‘‘They are going to make their judgments,’’ he added, ‘‘but I think it allows him to kind of move on and get focused for the next thing.’’ Woods last played competi- Scoreboard NBA By The Associated Press All Times EDT EASTERN CONFERENCE Atlantic Division WL Pct GB Boston 45 24 .652 — Toronto 34 34 .50010 1/2 New York 25 45 .35720 1/2 Philadelphia24 46 .34321 1/2 New Jersey 7 62 .101 38 Southeast Division WL Pct GB x-Orlando 49 21 .700 — x-Atlanta 45 24 .6523 1/2 Miami 36 34 .514 13 Charlotte 35 34 .50713 1/2 Washington 21 47 .309 27 Central Division WL Pct GB y-Cleveland 56 15 .789 — Milwaukee 38 30 .55916 1/2 Chicago 32 37 .464 23 Indiana 24 46 .34331 1/2 Detroit 23 47 .32932 1/2 WESTERN CONFERENCE Southwest Division WL Pct GB Dallas 46 23 .667 — San Antonio41 27 .6034 1/2 Houston 36 32 .5299 1/2 Memphis 37 33 .5299 1/2 New Orleans33 38 .465 14 Northwest Division WL Pct GB Denver 47 23 .671 — Utah 45 25 .643 2 Oklahoma City 42 26 .618 4 Portland 42 28 .600 5 Minnesota 14 56 .200 33 Pacific Division WL Pct GB x-L.A. Lakers52 18 .743 — Phoenix 43 26 .6238 1/2 L.A. Clippers26 44 .371 26 Sacramento24 46 .343 28 Golden State1950 .27532 1/2 x-clinched playoff spot y-clinched division ——— Saturday’s Games Chicago 98, Philadelphia 84 Toronto 100, New Jersey 90 Miami 77, Charlotte 71 Memphis 123, Golden State 107 Milwaukee 102, Denver 97 Utah 106, New Orleans 86 Boston 102, Dallas 93 Sunday’s Games Houston 116, New York 112 Indiana 121, Oklahoma City 101 Sacramento 102, L.A. Clippers 89 Cleveland 104, Detroit 79 Atlanta 119, San Antonio 114, OT L.A. Lakers 99, Washington 92 Portland at Phoenix, 10:30 p.m. Monday’s Games Orlando at Philadelphia, 7 p.m. Miami at New Jersey, 7:30 p.m. Houston at Chicago, 8 p.m. Atlanta at Milwaukee, 8 p.m. Toronto at Minnesota, 8 p.m. Dallas at New Orleans, 8 p.m. San Antonio at Oklahoma City, 8 p.m. Boston at Utah, 9 p.m. Memphis at Sacramento, 10 p.m. Phoenix at Golden State, 10:30 p.m. Tuesday’s Games Charlotte at Washington, 7 p.m. Indiana at Detroit, 7:30 p.m. All Times EDT EASTERN CONFERENCE Atlantic Division GP W L OT Pts GFGA Pittsburgh 72 42 24 6 90 224205 New Jersey 71 42 25 4 88 189169 Philadelphia72 37 30 5 79 212199 N.Y. Rangers72 31 32 9 71 186197 N.Y. Islanders 72 29 33 10 68189222 Northeast Division GP W L OT Pts GFGA Buffalo 71 39 22 10 88 200180 Ottawa 72 37 30 5 79 194212 Montreal 72 36 29 7 79 196198 Boston 71 32 27 12 76 176181 Toronto 72 26 34 12 64 192238 Southeast Division GP W L OT Pts GFGA y-Washington 72 48 14 10 106283203 Atlanta 72 32 29 11 75 218230 Florida 71 29 31 11 69 186209 Carolina 72 30 34 8 68 201226 Tampa Bay 72 28 32 12 68 188225 WESTERN CONFERENCE Central Division GP W L OT Pts GFGA Chicago 71 45 19 7 97 234179 Nashville 73 42 26 5 89 206203 Detroit 71 35 23 13 83 193192 St. Louis 72 34 29 9 77 196199 Columbus 72 29 31 12 70 187229 Northwest Division GP W L OT Pts GFGA Vancouver 72 44 24 4 92 236187 Colorado 71 40 25 6 86 213190 Calgary 72 36 27 9 81 184181 Minnesota 72 35 31 6 76 198211 Edmonton 72 23 42 7 53 184248 Pacific Division GP W L OT Pts GFGA Phoenix 73 46 22 5 97 201179 San Jose 72 43 19 10 96 232192 Los Angeles70 41 24 5 87 207185 Anaheim 71 34 29 8 76 203217 Dallas 72 31 27 14 76 208230 NOTE: Two points for a win, one point for overtime loss. y-clinched division Saturday’s Games Toronto 3, Montreal 2, SO Phoenix 5, Chicago 4, SO Carolina 3, Pittsburgh 2, OT Dallas 5, Ottawa 4 St. Louis 1, New Jersey 0 Atlanta 5, Philadelphia 2 Buffalo 3, Florida 1 Washington 3, Tampa Bay 1 Nashville 1, Columbus 0, OT Detroit 4, Vancouver 3, OT Los Angeles 1, N.Y. Islanders 0 Sunday’s Games Phoenix 3, Dallas 2, SO Boston 2, N.Y. Rangers 1 Minnesota 4, Calgary 3 Buffalo 5, Carolina 3 Florida 5, Tampa Bay 2 Nashville 3, St. Louis 2 Atlanta 3, Philadelphia 1 Edmonton 5, San Jose 1 Anaheim 5, Colorado 2 Monday’s Games Pittsburgh at Detroit, 7 p.m. Ottawa at Montreal, 7:30 p.m. Colorado at Los Angeles, 10:30 p.m. Tuesday’s Games Florida at Toronto, 7 p.m. Columbus at New Jersey, 7 p.m. Denver at New York, 7:30 p.m. L.A. Clippers at Dallas, 8:30 p.m. NHL Boston at Atlanta, 7 p.m. Philadelphia at Ottawa, 7:30 p.m. Carolina at Tampa Bay, 7:30 p.m. Dallas at Nashville, 8 p.m. San Jose at Minnesota, 8 p.m. Phoenix at Chicago, 8:30 p.m. Anaheim at Calgary, 9 p.m. Vancouver at Edmonton, 9 p.m. NCAA By The Associated Press BIG TEN CONFERENCE (3) — Michigan State, Ohio State, Purdue BIG EAST CONFERENCE (2) — Syracuse, West Virginia BIG 12 CONFERENCE (2) — Baylor, Kansas State SOUHEASTERN CONFERENCE (2) — Kentucky, Tennessee ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE (1) — Duke ATLANTIC 10 CONFERENCE (1) — Xavier HORIZON LEAGUE (1) — Butler IVY LEAGUE (1) — Cornell MISSOURI VALLEY (1) — Northern Iowa PACIFIC-10 CONFERENCE (1) — Washington WEST COAST CONFERENCE (1) — Saint Mary’s, Calif. NASCAR By The Associated Press Sunday At Bristol Motor Speedway Bristol,Tenn. Lap length: .533 miles (Start position in parentheses) 1. (4) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 500 laps, 132.4 rating, 190 points, $199,978. 2. (11) Tony Stewart, Chevrolet, 500, 107.1, 175, $161,323. 3. (2) Kurt Busch, Dodge, 500, 140.3, 175, $167,523. 4. (25) Greg Biffle, Ford, 500, 116.4, 165, $123,175. 5. (7) Matt Kenseth, Ford, 500, 96.8, 155, $143,951. 6. (8) Carl Edwards, Ford, 500, 88, 150, $130,173. 7. (18) Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet, 500, 90.3, 146, $101,175. 8. (17) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet, 500, 105.9, 142, $124,604. 9. (38) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 500, 76.4, 138, $139,631. 10. (14) Jeff Burton, Chevrolet, 500, 97.9, 139, $131,515. 11. (33) Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet, 500, 72.2, 130, $128,501. 12. (19) Martin Truex Jr., Toyota, 500, 88, 127, $89,475. 13. (36) Brad Keselowski, Dodge, 500, 87.7, 129, $121,210. 14. (5) Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet, 500, 91.6, 121, $133,026. 15. (28) Brian Vickers, Toyota, 500, 80.4, 118, $125,923. 16. (21) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, 500, 74, 115, $117,179. 17. (23) AJ Allmendinger, Ford, 500, 70.3, 112, $125,301. 18. (12) Paul Menard, Ford, 500, 82.6, 109, $96,050. 19. (15) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 500, 63.7, 106, $103,675. 20. (37) Elliott Sadler, Ford, 500, 54, 103, $97,050. 21. (43) Bobby Labonte, Chevrolet, 500, 49.4, 100, $86,975. 22. (32) Robby Gordon, Toyota, 499, 43.6, 97, $105,273. 23. (16) David Gilliland, Ford, 499, 46.4, 94, $106,135. 24. (31) David Stremme, Ford, 498, 48.6, 91, $94,150. 25. (41) Travis Kvapil, Ford, 498, 44.9, 88, $86,350. 26. (6) Juan Pablo Montoya, Chevrolet, 498, 86.1, 90, $126,631. 27. (1) Joey Logano, Toyota, 495, 92, 87, $127,415. 28. (42) Kevin Conway, Ford, 492, 34.8, 79, $104,398. 29. (30) David Ragan, Ford, 483, 61.7, 76, $90,225. 30. (34) Casey Mears, Chevrolet, 483, 33.5, 73, $82,875. 31. (29) Scott Speed, Toyota, 480, 55.6, 70, $95,648. 32. (22) Sam Hornish Jr., Dodge, 477, 54.2, 67, $89,000. 33. (9) Marcos Ambrose, Toyota, 448, 63.9, 64, $102,473. 34. (24) Kasey Kahne, Ford, 432, 55.5, 61, $123,390. 35. (13) Mark Martin, Chevrolet, 408, 89.6, 58, $100,850. 36. (20) Regan Smith, Chevrolet, accident, 329, 47.7, 55, $88,800. 37. (40) Terry Cook, Dodge, brakes, 285, 30, 52, $80,750. 38. (10) David Reutimann, Toyota, engine, 113, 81.8, 49, $111,106. 39. (27) Aric Almirola, Chevrolet, brakes, 59, 34.9, 46, $80,650. 40. (26) Clint Bowyer, Chevrolet, engine, 56, 45.6, 43, $88,575. 41. (39) Michael Waltrip, Toyota, suspension, 46, 35.7, 40, $80,500. 42. (3) Dave Blaney, Toyota, accident, 40, 28.3, 37, $80,715. 43. (35) Joe Nemechek, Toyota, rear gear, 30, 25.4, 34, $79,982. ——— Race Statistics Average Speed of Race Winner: 79.618 mph. Time of Race: 3 hours, 20 minutes, 50 seconds. Margin of Victory: 0.894 seconds. Caution Flags: 10 for 103 laps. Lead Changes: 29 among 8 drivers. Lap Leaders: Ku.Busch 1; J.Logano 2; Ku.Busch 3-5; J.Johnson 6-33; Ku.Busch 34-42; J.Logano 43; B.Keselowski 44-47; J.Johnson 48-96; Ku.Busch 97-116; J.Montoya 117; Ku.Busch 118-123; G.Biffle 124-177; J.Montoya 178-195; G.Biffle 196-205; J.Montoya 206-214; G.Biffle 215-217; Ku.Busch 218; G.Biffle 219-221; Ku.Busch 222-264; J.Montoya 265; Ku.Busch 266-324; J.Burton 325; Ku.Busch 326-391; B.Keselowski 392-413; Ku.Busch 414-483; J.Burton 484; G.Biffle 485-492; T.Stewart 493; J.Johnson 494-500. Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Led, Laps Led): Ku.Busch, 10 times for 278 laps; J.Johnson, 3 times for 84 laps; G.Biffle, 5 times for 78 laps; J.Montoya, 4 times for 29 laps; B.Keselowski, 2 times for 26 laps; J.Burton, 2 times for 2 laps; J.Logano, 2 times for 2 laps;T.Stewart, 1 time for 1 lap. Top 12 in Points: 1. K.Harvick, 774; 2. M.Kenseth, 773; 3. J.Johnson, 760; 4. G.Biffle, 750; 5. T.Stew- art, 685; 6. Ku.Busch, 677; 7. J.Burton, 677; 8. D.Earnhardt Jr., 621; 9. P.Menard, 614; 10. Ky.Busch, 606; 11. J.Gordon, 603; 12. C.Bowyer, 601. ——— NASCAR Driver Rating Formula A maximum of 150 points can be attained in a race. The formula combines the following categories: Wins, Finishes, Top-15 Finishes, Average Running Position While on Lead Lap, Average Speed Under Green, Fastest Lap, Led Most Laps, Lead-Lap Fin- ish. BOWLING Bowling scores for the week of March 16-19 at Lar- iat Bowl in Red Bluff Tue. Senior Mixers Jerry Camba 231 - 611 Jerry Dutra 243 - 596 Joel Morrison 257 Pam Frost 201 - 529 Fred Zastrow 222 - 545 Gene Pierce 233 Wed. Mens Commercial Ed McFadyen 276 - 735 Mike Armstrong 256 - 636 Jack Johnson 244 - 579 Kent Leffler Fri. Adam & Eve Chris Gulliford 224 - 585 Bruce Powell 199 - 558 Bobbie Powell 165 - 432 Paula Grossman 165 - 427 PGA Transitions Championship Par Scores By The Associated Press Sunday At Innisbrook Resort and Golf Club, Copperhead Course,Palm Harbor, Fla. Purse: $5 million Yardage: 7,340;Par 71 Final Round Jim Furyk (500), $972,00067-68-67-69—271-13 K.J. Choi (300), $583,20069-69-67-67 —272-12 Bubba Watson (190), $367,20070-65-70-68—273-11 Nick Watney (135), $259,20073-70-65-67—275 -9 Retief Goosen (110), $216,00067-68-70-71—276-8 Stephen Ames (95), $187,65069-71-70-67—277-7 Luke Donald (95), $187,65071-68-67-71—277-7 Steve Stricker (75), $145,80070-66-71-71—278 -6 Nick O’Hern (75), $145,80072-68-67-71—278-6 Jonathan Byrd (75), $145,80067-70-70-71— 278-6 Padraig Harrington (75), $145,80069-65-72-72—278-6 Carl Pettersson (75), $145,80067-68-70-73—278-6 Jerry Kelly (58), $104,40070-70-68-71 —279 -5 Justin Rose (58), $104,40073-68-67-71—279 -5 Webb Simpson (58), $104,40073-69-65-72—279-5 Bill Haas (54), $83,70070-71-71-68—280-4 Jimmy Walker (54), $83,70070-71-68-71—280-4 Greg Chalmers (54), $83,70072-71-67-70— 280-4 Jeff Maggert (54), $83,70067-69-70-74—280 -4 Jason Bohn (49), $60,69675-69-68-69 —281 -3 Charlie Wi (49), $60,69670-72-70-69 —281 -3 Justin Leonard (49), $60,69671-68-72-70— 281-3 James Nitties (49), $60,69671-73-68-69— 281-3 David Toms (49), $60,69674-63-73-71 —281 -3 Spencer Levin (45), $44,10069-70-72-71— 282-2 Steve Elkington (45), $44,10068-68-76-70— 282-2 Lucas Glover (45), $44,10069-75-69-69—282-2 Charles Howell III (37), $30,94672-70-70-71—283-1 D.A.Points (37), $30,94670-72-70-71 —283 -1 Ted Purdy (37), $30,94672-69-71-71 —283 -1 Jeff Quinney (37), $30,94668-70-74-71—283 -1 Jeff Klauk (37), $30,94673-71-67-72 —283 -1 Chris DiMarco (37), $30,94671-71-68-73— 283-1 Martin Laird (37), $30,94670-70-73-70 —283 -1 Brett Quigley (37), $30,94670-73-66-74—283 -1 Adam Scott (37), $30,94673-66-74-70 —283 -1 Jason Dufner (37), $30,94670-74-70-69—283-1 Geoff Ogilvy (37), $30,94673-71-65-74—283 -1 Corey Pavin (37), $30,94672-68-74-69—283 -1 John Senden (37), $30,94669-72-66-76—283-1 Bob Heintz (0), $19,98073-67-70-74 —284 E David Duval (28), $19,98072-69-69-74—284 E Nicholas Thompson (28), $19,98070-68-76-70—284E Sergio Garcia (28), $19,98073-71-71-69— 284E Kris Blanks (28), $19,98072-70-73-69 —284 E Brandt Snedeker (21), $14,04069-69-73-74—285+1 Daniel Chopra (21), $14,04072-69-71-73—285+ 1 Derek Lamely (21), $14,04073-68-72-72— 285+1 Rickie Fowler (21), $14,04067-71-70-77—285+1 Nathan Green (21), $14,04073-71-70-71—285+1 Kevin Sutherland (21), $14,04073-71-70-71—285+1 Tim Wilkinson (21), $14,04073-68-73-71—285+ 1 Brendon de Jonge (21), $14,04072-72-71-70—285+1 Brian Davis (21), $14,04071-73-71-70 —285 + 1 238 - 574 for the wing NASCAR has used on the back of its cars since it phased in the current model in 2007. Starting next weekend at Martinsville, the more traditional spoiler will be returned. The swap is an effort to both improve racing and give fans the aesthetic look they prefer for a race car. ‘‘I’m anxious to see what the spoiler is going to be like,’’ said Jeff Gor- don. ‘‘I’m really looking forward to it and I don’t know how much change there is going to be, but I certainly look forward to trying it.’’ NASCAR will hold an open test session Tuesday and Wednesday at Char- lotte Motor Speedway for teams to get track time with the spoiler. Meanwhile, no one expects the switch to ensure cars will never again go airborne, some- thing the wing has been blamed for recently. ‘‘There is no evidence that suggests going from a wing to a spoiler will stop cars from getting airborne,’’ Ford aerody- namicist Bernie Marcus said. tive golf at the Australian Mas- ters, a tournament he won in November for his 82nd victory worldwide. He last played on the PGA Tour in the Tour Champi- onship in September. Woods told ESPN that being forced to confront his problems had made him stronger: ‘‘You start conquering it and you start living up to it. The strength that I feel now, I’ve never felt that type of strength.’’ But he also admitted being uncertain about how much he would play after coming back. ‘‘I will have more treatment and more therapy sessions. And as far as my schedule going for- ward, I don’t know what I’m going to do. ... I don’t know what I’m going to do in the future, either,’’ he told the Golf Chan- nel. ‘‘That, to me, is a little bit bothersome, too, in the sense that I don’t like not knowing what to do. ‘‘But what I know I have to do is become a better person and that begins with going to more treatment.’’