Toms, Three Others Tied for Lead at Honda

David Toms made five consecutive birdies to highlight his five-under round of 67 on Thursday and he shared the first-round lead at the Honda Classic with Geoff Ogilvy, Ryuji Imada and Mathias Gronberg -- the seventh alternate who didn’t know he was officially in the field until Wednesday morning.

Southeast winds from 15 to 25 mph, with higher gusts, began blowing early at Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., and strengthened steadily before dissipating some by day’s end.

“There are some good scores today, even with the conditions,” Toms said. “Somebody is always going to play well, no matter who is in the field.”

The average score was 74.28, the highest first-round mark on tour this year, and three players couldn’t play their final hole because of darkness.

Ogilvy’s round was bizarre: 11 pars, two eagles, two birdies, a bogey, a double bogey and a double eagle on the sixth hole. His tee shot, with the wind, went 373 yards; his eight-iron from 169 hit the green, hopped three times and dropped in the cup’s center.

Take the strong winds, add humpbacked greens that are tough in placid conditions, and it’s no surprise that Mirasol’s Sunrise course left most befuddled.

Defending champion Padraig Harrington battled to a 71, and the last three Honda winners before him -- Todd Hamilton, Justin Leonard and Matt Kuchar -- all shot 78.

“It’s only Thursday,” Imada said. “Come Saturday afternoon or Sunday, it’s a whole different story.”

PRO FOOTBALL

Patriots Release

Linebacker McGinest

The New England Patriots released linebacker Willie McGinest in a salary cap move, ending a 12-year relationship with the NFL’s all-time postseason sack leader.

The 34-year-old McGinest, a two-time Pro Bowler and former USC standout, carried a salary cap figure of more than $7 million for next season. The veteran linebacker is now a free agent and can sign with any team, including New England.

McGinest, who has been with New England his entire career, was the fourth pick of the 1994 draft.

IDITAROD

Swingley Holds On to Lead at Halfway Point

Four-time winner Doug Swingley kept his lead halfway through the Iditarod while another musher’s dog died in the grueling, 1,100-mile race toward Nome, Alaska.

Swingley was the first to arrive in Cripple as of early morning. Five teams were chasing him, having left the abandoned gold mining town of Ophir for the 60-mile journey to Cripple, an unpopulated tent checkpoint on the Innoko River.

A 4-year-old dog in Noah Burmeister’s team died Thursday, race officials said. Burmeister carried the dog, Yellowknife, in his sled into the Rohn checkpoint Tuesday. The dog was flown to Anchorage and died in a hospital. Pneumonia is the suspected cause of death, race marshal Mark Nordman said.

DeeDee Jonrowe of Willow, who twice has finished second, was in second place, followed by Cim Smyth of Big Lake. John Baker of Kotzebue, who has finished in the top 10 every year since 2001, was fourth.

SOCCER

U.S. Women Battle

China to Scoreless Tie

The U.S. women’s soccer team opened the Algarve Cup with a 0-0 tie against China at Faro, Portugal.

The three-time champion Americans outshot China, 16-8, getting 12 shots in the second half. Ally Wagner hit the crossbar in the 87th minute, and Abby Wambach missed scoring in the 89th when her shot after goalkeeper Hope Solo’s long punt was just outside the left post.

The Americans play Denmark on Saturday and France on Monday.

Prosecutors confirmed Thursday that they were investigating another match-fixing scheme by gamblers in German soccer, three months before that country plays host to the World Cup. Frankfurt’s district attorney did not release details. The Bild daily reported four men have been jailed.

MISCELLANY

Santa Ana Teenager

Scores Boxing Upset

Teenager Luis Ramos, a student at Santa Ana Valley High, pulled off an upset at the U.S. amateur boxing championships, beating two-time national champion Michael Evans in the 132-pound division to advance to Saturday’s finals at Colorado Springs, Colo.

Ramos beat Evans, from Dayton, Ohio, 32-30. He will meet Danny Garcia of Philadelphia for the 132-pound championship. Garcia defeated Terrence Crawford of Omaha, 21-20, in the other semifinal.

U.S. cross-country skiing coach Trond Nystad and American sprint coach Vidar Loefshus have resigned. Assistant Pete Vordenberg was promoted into the top spot at least through the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic Games.

Kim Yu-na upset defending champion Mao Asada of Japan to win the women’s crown at the World Junior Figure Skating Championship -- South Korea’s first title at a major international skating event -- at Ljubljana, Slovenia.

The Newport Beach Breakers and New York Sportimes will play in the finals of the World TeamTennis Pro League on July 28-30 at Palisades Tennis Club in Newport Beach.

David Blatt, an American-born Israeli, was named coach of the Russian men’s basketball team that will compete in the 2008 Summer Olympics at Beijing.

Blatt, 46, replaces Sergei Babkov, who was fired after Russia finished eighth at the 2005 European championship and also failed to qualify for this year’s world championship in Japan.