Birdie-birdie finish a big boost for Scott

Golf: Adam Scott finished birdie-birdie for the second straight day on the tough closing holes at East Lake, allowing him to recover from a rugged start for a 5-under-par 65 on Friday to take the lead at the Tour Championship in Atlanta.

He hit a 9-iron from a divot on the 17th to within 7 feet, then hit a 3-iron into about 10 feet on the par-3 18th to finish at 8-under 132.

K.K. Choi also had a 65 and is one stroke behind Scott.

Two shots behind them are Luke Donald, the No. 1 player in the world and No. 4 in the FedEx Cup, who had a 68; and Jason Day, who was paired with Scott on a balmy afternoon and shot 67.

Bubba Watson had the low round of the day at 64.

• Europe leads by one at Solheim Cup: Europe overcame a spirited rally by the United States in the fourballs to lead 4 1/2-3 1/2 after the opening day of the Solheim Cup at Killeen Castle in Dunsany, Ireland.

U.S. captain Rosie Jones wasn’t worried about heading into day two trailing Europe.

“I’m really proud of the three and a half points that we have,” she said. “I think it’s a great start with day one. We did real well on foursomes this morning. It could be even better (today).”

• Daly quits over dispute with official: John Daly walked off the course during the second round of the Austrian Open after a dispute with officials over a ball drop and two-shot penalty.

After completing the 15th hole, Daly was told by referee Andy McFee he had dropped his ball in the wrong place after it landed in an unplayable position under a TV tower. Instead of accepting the two-shot penalty, Daly decided to quit. He was 4 over par before the penalty.

The 45-year-old Daly, a two-time major champion, had thrown a club into the water after a mishit on the same hole.

Modano leaves NHL after 21 seasons

Hockey: Mike Modano walked away from the NHL with tears, signing an honorary one-day contract so he could retire after 21 seasons as a member of the Dallas Stars.

The 41-year-old retires as the NHL’s all-time leading scorer among American-born players in goals (561) and points (1,374).

“You wonder what this day would be like,” Modano told a crowd of about 200 family, friends, former teammates and members of the Stars front office. “It’s pretty overwhelming.”

NBA cancels 43 preseason games

NBA: Out of time to keep everything on its calendar intact, the NBA postponed training camps indefinitely and canceled 43 preseason games because it has not reached an agreement with the players union.

All games from Oct. 9-15 are off, the league said. Camps were expected to open Oct. 3.

Carl Lewis quits N.J. Senate race

Miscellany: Nine-time Olympic gold medalist Carl Lewis gave up on his race for New Jersey state Senate a day after a federal appeals panel removed him from the ballot because he didn’t meet a four-year residency requirement.

He had to decide quickly whether to drop out or press on with a court battle. Thursday’s ruling came with less than seven weeks before the Nov. 8 election and just as ballots are to be printed and sent out, first to voters overseas, then to others.

Lewis said he would still be involved in Democratic campaigns and charity work – and encouraging people to vote.

• Litwhiler, college coach, innovator dies: Danny Litwhiler, who followed an 11-year major league career in the 1940s with a lifetime of coaching college players and work on inventions intended to improve the game he loved, died in Clearwater, Fla. He was 95.

In 28 years of coaching Division I college baseball at both Florida State and Michigan State, Litwhiler had a combined record of 678-445-9 (.603) and guided his teams to nine appearances in the NCAA College World Series. His former players included Kirk Gibson, Rick Miller and Steve Garvey.

Litwhiler was also credited with helping to develop the first radar guns that were used to clock the speed of pitches.

• Federer extends leave of absence: Roger Federer has pulled out of the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament next month to rest “nagging injuries” and ensure a six-week break.

Federer said on his website that he needs “necessary time to rest and recuperate after a long summer.”

Federer’s next scheduled match is Oct. 31 at his hometown Swiss Indoors event at Basel.