Harrington three shots up on Woods

Golf: Padraig Harrington responded to a late charge by Tiger Woods with one of his own Saturday and shot a 3-under-par 67 at rain-softened Firestone to build a three-shot lead going into the final round of the Bridgestone Invitational in Akron, Ohio.

Woods put some life into a dreary afternoon of rain with four birdies over his last six holes for a 65 that left him tied for the lead when he walked off the course and fans chasing after him to cheer his charge.

It didn’t last long, however, as Harrington ran off three birdies in a four-hole stretch to seize control. Even after the Irishman made a careless bogey on the par-5 16th, he answered with a 20-foot birdie on the 17th to restore his three-shot lead.

Of his 69 victories on the PGA Tour, Woods has only won five times when trailing by three shots or more after 54 holes.

Harrington was at 10-under 200.

Tim Clark also was tied for the lead early on the back nine. The rain made Firestone play even longer, and Clark had to hit longer clubs, which eventually caught up with him. It got even worse after his round, when Clark was penalized two shots for not replacing his ball mark on the 16th green. That gave him a 73.

Jerry Kelly had a 69 and was at 205.

•Rollins increases lead in Reno: John Rollins doubled his lead in the Legends Reno-Tahoe Open at Reno, Nev., shooting a 5-under 67, to move four strokes ahead of Ryan Palmer.

Joe Ogilvie was another stroke back after a bogey-free 66 that included an eagle and four birdies.

•Song into amateur final: Jennifer Song moved within a victory of becoming the second woman to win two U.S. Golf Association championships in the same year, beating Tiffany Lua 3 and 2 in the U.S. Women’s Amateur semifinals at St. Louis.

Song will face Jennifer Johnson today in the 36-hole final at Old Warson. Johnson beat 14-year-old Alexis Thompson 1-up.

Roddick beats Isner, advances to final

Tennis: Andy Roddick advanced to the final of the Legg Mason Tennis Classic for the fourth time, beating John Isner 6-7 (3), 6-2, 7-5 in Washington.

The top-seeded Roddick is a three-time winner of the event. He will face last year’s champion, No. 2 seed Juan Martin del Potro, who defeated Fernando Gonzalez 7-6 (2), 6-3.

Roddick and Isner were even through most of the third set until Roddick broke Isner to go up 6-5.

•Sharapova loses in semifinal: Flavia Pennetta of Italy rallied to beat Maria Sharapova 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 in the semifinals of the L.A. Women’s Tennis Championships at Carson, Calif.

Pennetta advanced to today’s final against Australian Samantha Stosur, who routed Sorana Cirstea of Romania 6-3, 6-2.

Falcons’ White signs, ending holdout

Football: After holding out for the first week of training camp, receiver Roddy White agreed to a contract extension with the Atlanta Falcons.

Terms of the deal were not immediately available.

White had a career-best 88 receptions and set a franchise record with 1,382 receiving yards last season.

•Roethlisberger’s accuser under fire: The woman suing quarterback Ben Roethlisberger for alleged sexual assault has been accused of bragging about having consensual sex with him to a co-worker.

Angela Antonetti said her Harrah’s hotel-casino co-worker “appeared happy and boastful,” about the encounter. Antonetti made the remarks in a sworn statement in a motion to move the case from Reno to Minden, Nev.

Gio Ponti wins Arlington Million

Horse racing: Favorite Gio Ponti overcame a stumble at the start, took the lead on the final turn and won the 27th running of the Arlington Million at Arlington Heights, Ill.

The 4-year-old colt, owned by Castleton Lyons and ridden by Ramon Dominguez, captured his fourth straight Grade I race.

Two long shots took second and third. Just As Well was the runner-up and Stotsfold, bred in Great Britain, was third.

•Favorite Muscle Hill wins Hambletonian: Muscle Hill delivered as expected in the $1.5 million Hambletonian at the Meadowlands Racetrack in East Rutherford, N.J.

The dominant 3-year-old trotting colt cruised to a six-length victory in record time. The overwhelming 1-5 favorite, Muscle Hill trotted in 1:50.20, erasing the Hambletonian mark of 1:51.20 set by Glidemaster in 2006.

•Commentator upset in bid for third Whitney: Bullsbay has won the prestigious Whitney Handicap at Saratoga Race Course in an upset, with favorite Commentator finishing third in his bid to win the race for a third time at Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

•Zensational wins: Zensational zipped to the lead shortly after the start and went on to a 21/2-length victory in the $300,000 Bing Crosby Handicap at Del Mar, Calif.

Hardy captures 50-meter freestyle

Swimming: Jessica Hardy won the 50-meter freestyle at the U.S. Open Swimming Championships, narrowly edging Lara Jackson in Federal Way, Wash.

Hardy finished in 24.90 seconds, with Jackson at 24.93.