Late Bloomer Gilbert Dies at 55 of Cancer

Larry Gilbert, who earned less than $20,000 on the PGA Tour, then turned 50 and earned $3.2 million as a senior, died Wednesday in Lexington, Ky., at 55 after a five-month battle with cancer.

Doctors had found a small tumor on Gilbert’s lung in a routine physical examination in August, a month after he won the Senior Players Championship. Subsequent tests revealed that the cancer had spread to Gilbert’s bloodstream, shoulder and rib.

He was one of three prominent Senior PGA Tour members diagnosed with cancer in 1997, joining Arnold Palmer and Jim Colbert, both of whom were found to have prostate cancer. Palmer and Colbert underwent surgery and have returned to competition.

“It’s a tragedy to lose a man as fine as Larry Gilbert just as he reached the pinnacle of his career,” PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem said. “Golf has lost a great individual.”

“The Ford Senior Players Championship was the level of achievement he had worked for his entire life, and he spoke often of how gratifying it was for him to play against the best and prevail.”

Gilbert was a three-time PGA Club Professional champion before becoming a Senior Tour player.

Gilbert is survived by his wife, Brenda, and two adult children, Allen and Chris.

Funeral arrangements were not immediately available.

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Pat Hurst and Meg Mallon shot matching five-under-par 67s to share the first-round lead in the LPGA Office Depot tournament at West Palm Beach, Fla.

Hurst had six birdies and a bogey and Mallon made five birdies on the 6,195-yard Heritage, one of two courses being used in the event, which ends Saturday to avoid conflict with the Super Bowl.

Sweden’s Helen Alfredsson and Peru’s Alicia Dibos were a stroke behind after 68s on the Heritage. Wendy Ward and Maggie Halpin were low on the adjacent, 6,277-yard Legend course with 69s.

Baseball

The Cincinnati Reds signed free-agent right-hander Pete Harnisch, who had been with the Milwaukee Brewers, to a one-year, non-guaranteed contract. Harnisch had earned $2.5 million while missing much of last season with the New York Mets to deal with depression. When he returned to the Mets, he was ineffective and eventually butted heads with Manager Bobby Valentine.

The Reds also announced that outfielder Melvin Nieves, acquired from the Detroit Tigers on Nov. 11, underwent successful hernia surgery. He is expected to make a full recovery by opening day.

Julio Franco, an infielder with the Milwaukee Brewers last season, agreed to a one-year contract with the Chiba Lotte Marines of Japan’s Pacific League. . . . Left-hander Eddie Guardado, who led a Minnesota Twin pitching staff in appearances last season with 69, signed a contract extension through 1999 with a club option for 2000. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Basketball

Rosell Ellis, who put a stranglehold on a referee after being called for a second technical foul, was suspended for the remainder of the season by the International Basketball Assn.

Des Moines Dragon General Manager Tim Kelly said the team wouldn’t appeal the suspension of its leading scorer for the team’s remaining 10 regular-season games and the playoffs.

Football

Dennis Dixon, who worked on the Golden West College staff for 18 seasons before becoming the school’s coach, died after a two-year fight with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

Dixon, who played at Fullerton College and at Alabama, was 5-5 in his only season at Golden West before taking a sabbatical after ALS was found in 1996.

Wide receiver Jamie Richardson has been kicked off the Florida football team and expelled from the university after being charged with aggravated battery for hitting a bouncer at the Florida Theater on Jan. 11.

The sophomore was Florida’s second-leading receiver last year with 27 catches for 408 yards and seven touchdowns.

Johnny Thomas, an Alcorn State alumnus out of coaching since 1989, was hired as coach at his alma mater.

Thomas replaces Cardell Jones, fired last month after a third consecutive 4-7 season. Jones was 42-33-2 overall in seven seasons, including a 33-15-1 record and two titles in the Southwestern Athletic Conference.

Swimming

Alex Popov beat Michael Klim in a rematch of their world championship final, winning a World Cup short-course 100-meter freestyle in 47.46 seconds in the 25-meter pool at the Sydney (Australia) International Aquatic Center.

Klim, who won four gold medals and seven medals overall at the world championships in Perth, was second in 47.69.

Also during the meet, Klim broke the world short-course record for the 100-meter butterfly with a time of 51.16 seconds, beating Russian Denis Panratov’s mark of 51.78.

Chinese swimmers Chen Yan and Zeng Qiliang pulled out the meet after it was announced that Australian police had found unidentified pills and other substances in a motel room that housed part of the Chinese team at the world championships.

Auto Racing

Jimmy Johnson, who helped build Hendrick Motorsports into a three-time NASCAR Winston Cup champion, has resigned as team general manager. Johnson will continue to be associated with the team for at least three more years, dealing with sponsorship matters from his home in Longboat Key, Fla., where his family will relocate this summer.

The Hendrick team includes drivers Jeff Gordon, the defending Winston Cup champion, Terry Labonte, the 1996 champion, and Ricky Craven.

Talladega Superspeedway said it will reduce the length of its Busch Series and ARCA Bondo/Mar-Hyde races to 300 miles. Both races had been 500 kilometers, which equaled 312 miles or 117 laps.