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Golf

LPGA commissioner to retire after 2005

Ty Votaw pauses at the end of each year to assess the recent past and near future of the LPGA Tour he has guided since 1999. This time, he came to a startling conclusion.

The tour has never been better, and it's time for him to go.

Votaw, 42, said Friday he would step down as LPGA Tour commissioner after the 2005 season. His decision will end a seven-year tenure highlighted by a strong, secure schedule that offers more prize money than ever.

"I feel very much at peace with this decision," Votaw said. "I feel very good about having given the LPGA everything I've got, and I feel good about the results."

The LPGA has formed a search committee to find a successor.

Votaw said he doesn't know what he will pursue when the year is over, and that he will treat his final year as commissioner no differently from the previous six – making policy, building sponsorships, listening to players.

College Football

Jean-Gilles will be back with Georgia

After losing a couple of key players on defense, Georgia got some good news Friday on the other side of the line. Offensive tackle Max Jean-Gilles plans to return for his senior season with the Bulldogs.

His high school coach, Jeff Bertani, said Jean-Gilles was "definitely, 100 percent coming back to Georgia next year."

The 6-foot-4, 340-pound guard filed with an NFL committee for an assessment of where he might be drafted.

After being told he would likely go in the second or third round, Jean-Gilles decided to come back to Georgia for another year.

"He looked at everything he's been through at Georgia and kind of wanted to finish what he started," said Bertani, the coach at North Miami High School in south Florida.

Earlier in the week, safety Thomas Davis and linebacker Odell Thurman announced they would give up their final season at Georgia to enter the NFL Draft.

Jean-Gilles was their only teammate thought to be seriously considering such a move, though defensive tackle Gerald Anderson also filed for an analysis of his status.

The deadline for college juniors to enter the draft is Jan. 15.

- Miami running back Frank Gore is skipping his senior season and will enter the NFL Draft, becoming the second Hurricane in as many days to make that choice.

"I think it's time to move on," Gore said Friday.

His agent is David Levine.

Roscoe Parrish, Miami's leading receiver this season, made his decision to leave school Thursday.

Miami coach Larry Coker was among those who said Gore's stock would considerably rise if he stayed for 2005.

Gore had two major knee injuries in college, and was occasionally slowed by knee trouble this season.

He still had a team-best 945 yards, capping a career in which he ran for 1,975 yards and 17 touchdowns.

- Duke has hired Maryland running backs coach Bill O'Brien, a former Georgia Tech assistant, as its next offensive coordinator, the school announced.

O'Brien, 35, replaces Marty Galbraith, who was fired after one season. The Blue Devils (2-9, 1-7) ranked last in the Atlantic Coast Conference in points and total offense with 16.6 points and 265.5 yards per game.

O'Brien has been at Maryland for the past two seasons. Before that, he spent eight seasons on the staff at Georgia Tech, starting out as a graduate assistant before working as offensive coordinator during his past two seasons. He was assistant head coach his final year.

Tennis

Federer continues his march in Qatar

In Doha, Qatar, top-ranked Roger Federer defeated Nikolay Davydenko 6-3, 6-4 to reach the final of the Qatar Open.

Federer, tuning up to defend his Australian Open title, will meet Ivan Ljubicic in today's final. Ljubicic advanced with a 6-3, 7-6 (4) win over Albert Costa.

Federer has won all three of his matches here with ease, and defeated Davydenko in 64 minutes.