Associated Press
SAN FRANCISCO ó Scott Linehan declined the San Francisco 49ers’ offer to become their offensive coordinator Sunday, saying he wasn’t ready to commit to his next coaching move.
Linehan, a respected offensive coordinator for Miami and Minnesota, was fired four games into his third season as the St. Louis Rams’ head coach last September.
He still wants to return to coaching this year, but doesn’t intend to rush his choice.
“They were great to me from the top down, from ownership to the front office to (49ers coach) Mike (Singletary),” Linehan told The Associated Press in a phone interview from his home in St. Louis. “It’s just timing right now. I’m just not ready to make a decision.”
GOLF
KAANAPALI, Hawaii ó Fuzzy Zoeller successfully defended his Champions Skins Game title with new partner Ben Crenshaw, taking a dozen skins and $500,000 on the back nine Sunday to beat first-day leaders Greg Norman and Jay Haas.
– HONOLULU ó Zach Johnson won the Sony Open for his second victory in his last six starts on the PGA Tour, shooting a 5-under 65 on Sunday to beat Adam Scott and David Toms by two shots.
NBA
SALT LAKE CITY ó Jerry Sloan will return as the coach of the Utah Jazz for the 2009-2010 season.
The Jazz said Sunday that Sloan agreed to a one-year contract extension that will mark his 22nd season at Utah. Sloan is the longest tenured coach in NBA history after taking over for former coach Frank Layden on December 9, 1988.
Earlier this season, Sloan became the first NBA coach to win 1,000 games with one team. Since Sloan’s hiring there have been 225 coaching changes in the NBA and every team has made at least two changes except for Utah.
BASEBALL
BALTIMORE ó The Chicago Cubs finally lost patience with former prized prospect Felix Pie, trading the outfielder to the Baltimore Orioles on Sunday for left-hander Garrett Olson and minor league pitcher Henry Williamson.