LOS ANGELES — Dustin Johnson made a hole-in-one and Steve Stricker had seven birdies to brighten an otherwise dreary day at rainy Riviera and finish atop the leaderboard Friday at the Northern Trust Open.
Johnson’s 8-iron from 152 yards landed between the pin and the famous bunker in the middle of the green at No. 6, spinning back into the cup for an ace that put him in the lead for most of the afternoon. He had two holes left when play was halted by darkness.
Stricker, playing in a morning rain that never relented, chipped in for birdie on the 18th and nearly made an ace on No. 4 when his hybrid from 230 yards lipped out. He shot a 6-under 65 and had the clubhouse lead at 10-under 132.
Johnson, also 10-under after making his lone bogey on the 15th, was to return today to face the par-5 17th and the 473-yard closing hole.
Stricker was four shots ahead of everyone who finished the second round, with former Kent Denver standout Kevin Stadler (71), Justin Rose (67) and Tim Wilkinson (67) at 6-under 136.
• Thongchai Jaidee‘s 6-under 66 gave him a 136 total and one-stroke lead over Miguel Angel Jimenez (67), Stephen Dodd (69) and Lee Westwood (65) after the second round of the Dubai Desert Classic in the United Arab Emirates.
Belichick to play bigger role
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — New Eng- land Patriots coach Bill Belichick will take a larger role in overseeing the defense and not hire a coordinator to replace Dean Pees, who joined the Baltimore Ravens.
“Titles are fine, nothing wrong with them,” Belichick said, “but the most important thing is each person’s role, that we do everything we can to help the players succeed, everyone collectively getting the job done.”
• Unable to find outside help, the Chicago Bears promoted Rod Marinelli to defensive coordinator. Marinelli, who retains his assistant head coach title, worked with the Bears’ defensive line this season.
Kennedy, Estes to join Nationals
WASHINGTON — Free-agent second baseman Adam Kennedy and the Washington Nationals have agreed to a contract pending a physical, while the team also agreed to a minor-league deal with former Rockies left-hander Shawn Estes.
• Reliever Kevin Gregg agreed to a $2.75 million, one-year contract with the Toronto Blue Jays.
Footnotes.
Arizona placed its men’s basketball program on probation for the 2010-11 and 2011-12 seasons for violations by former coach Lute Olson related to an offseason AAU tournament in 2008.
• Boston Red Sox minority owner Jeff Vinik agreed to buy the Tampa Bay Lightning in a deal contingent on approval from the NHL’s Board of Governors.
• Forward Jordin Tootoo signed a two-year, $2.5 million extension with the Nashville Predators.
• Olympic hurdler Duane Ross received a two-year suspension from the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency for using performance-enhancing drugs.
• Kansas senior Danielle McCray, the preseason Big 12 women’s player of the year, will miss the rest of the season because of a knee injury suffered during practice.
