Tiger Inspires This Kind of Daring Robb-ery

If there are more camera-carrying fans than usual around Tiger Woods at next year’s British Open, blame Yvonne Robb.

She’s the 21-year-old woman who stripped to her bare essentials and ran onto the course at Carnoustie, Scotland, in July to give Woods a hug and a kiss.

The fact that a Scottish court has since fined her $160 for her romp and an additional $240 for helping a man sell photos of the moment to a newspaper has not deterred Robb.

The Open will be played at St. Andrews in 2000 and Robb promises, “I’m going to have to surprise you.”

Tiger can hardly wait.

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Jabberwocky: Woods, who turned 24 Thursday, played with Sergio Garcia on the first day of the $3.5-million Williams World Challenge, an exhibition event at Scottsdale, Ariz.

“We had a great time,” he said. “We were jibber-jabbering all the way around.”

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Trivia time: Where did the Ferrari racing team get the inspiration for its prancing black horse symbol?

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Worth 1,000 words: It was, by all accounts, a dull news conference.

Anna Kournikova, in Australia to play in the national hardcourt championships beginning Sunday on the Gold Coast and to prepare for the Australian Open, had little to say and said it poorly.

Never mind, the ever-inventive Aussie media saved the day. Undaunted by the lack of real news, the Age of Melbourne published a tightly cropped photo of the Russian teenager wearing a revealing, low-cut ensemble that could not fail to catch the readers’ eye.

And just in case it did, the caption steered them straight.

“Anna Kournikova,” it said, “busting with confidence as she gets ready for the Australian Open.”

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Beat up but upbeat: The final loss in a 2-14 season provided at least one positive note for the Cleveland Browns.

“We’re no longer an expansion team,” Coach Chris Palmer said.

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No icebergs ahead: Florida Panther Coach Terry Murray took a nautical tack when telling the Miami Herald what Pavel Bure means to the NHL team.

“When a star of his caliber buys in, you become like an ocean liner,” Murray said. “It gets going, and it can’t be stopped. The engine can even shut off, but the momentum you have keeps you moving for a long time.”

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What would Lombardi say? Tampa Bay Buccaneer defensive lineman Tyoka Jackson explained why he and several teammates hang out at a Tampa beauty salon.

“Although I’m a big man, it’s good to have soft skin,” he said.

The NFL isn’t what it used to be.

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Trivia answer: From Italian World War I fighter ace Francesco Baracca, who had one painted on his aircraft.

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And finally: Author and Miami Herald columnist Carl Hiaasen, an avid bonefish and marlin fisherman and environmentalist, remembers when Florida Bay was unpolluted and the hammerhead sharks were larger than his boat.

Seeing them that near, he said, “gets you closer to God real fast.”