Simpson best at Barclays

? Webb Simpson found enough birdies on long, tough and wet Liberty National for a 3-under 68 to build a two-shot lead in the Barclays, the opening playoff event on the PGA Tour.

Simpson, a 24-year-old rookie, took the outright lead with an approach to 10 inches on the fifth hole Friday. He was among nine players who broke par Friday, finishing at 8-under 134.

Paul Goydos and Steve Marino, among the leaders after the opening round, each had a 71 and were tied for second. The other leader, Sergio Garcia, played in the tougher morning conditions and had a 76.

Tiger Woods bogeyed his final hole for a 72 and was eight shots behind. He refused to speak to the media for the second straight day.

GOLF

U.S. Amateur semis set

Tulsa, Okla. — Byeong-Hun An advanced to the semifinals of the U.S. Amateur with his second straight playoff win. An needed three extra holes to defeat Stanford junior Steve Ziegler in the quarterfinals Friday.

The 17-year-old from South Korea is trying to become the youngest player to win the U.S. Golf Association’s national amateur championship. His opponent today will be Fresno State sophomore Bhavik Patel, who defeated Clemson senior Phillip Mollica 1 up.

Texas senior Charlie Holland defeated Oklahoma State sophomore Peter Uihlein in 19 holes to reach the other semifinal against fourth-seeded Ben Martin.

O’Meara leads Boeing

Snoqualmie, Wash. — Still winless on the Champions Tour, Mark O’Meara eagled the 18th hole Friday for a 66 to take a two-shot lead over a jumbled field after the first round of the Boeing Classic.

Bader tops Safeway Classic

North Plains, Ore. — Beth Bader shot an 8-under 64 at the Safeway Classic on Friday to take a 1-stroke lead into the second round at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club. Anna Nordqvist and Seon Hwa Lee each had 65s.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

Missouri boots backup QB

Columbia, Mo. — Missouri reserve quarterback Blaine Dalton has been kicked off the team after an overnight campus arrest on suspicion of drunken driving. Coach Gary Pinkel announced the move Friday morning. He declined to discuss any details. Campus police said the highly touted freshman was arrested at 1:16 a.m. Friday on suspicion of driving while intoxicated, failing to drive in a single lane and operating an unlicensed motor vehicle.

No helmets, no game

Charleston, W.Va. — A Division II school in Virginia has canceled its 2009 season opener because it doesn’t have helmets or football pads. St. Paul’s College has ordered the equipment, but it hasn’t arrived yet so the school canceled today’s game against West Virginia Wesleyan, WVW athletic director Ken Tyler said Friday.

Tyler, “flabbergasted” over the decision, says St. Paul’s AD Leroy Bacote called him with the news Thursday, less than 24 hours before the Wesleyan team was scheduled to travel to play the game in South Hill, Va.

NCAA must release records

Tallahassee, Fla. — The NCAA must release documents on Florida State’s appeal of an academic cheating penalty, a Florida judge ruled Friday, noting that the NCAA’s rationale for keeping the documents secret would “emasculate” the state’s broad public access laws. Circuit Judge John C. Cooper ordered that the copies be turned over to The Associated Press and other media.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

NU center out for season

Lincoln, Neb. — The center that Nebraska men’s basketball coach Doc Sadler had hoped could help lead the team is out for the upcoming season. Sadler issued a statement Friday saying Christopher Niemann — the team’s tallest player at 6-foot-11 — has again torn an ACL in one of his knees.

Pitt forward suspended

Pittsburgh — Pittsburgh has suspended forward Gilbert Brown from the men’s basketball team for the fall semester because of academic reasons.

AUTO RACING

Briscoe on Chicagoland pole

Joliet, Ill. — Ryan Briscoe took a small step to boost his IndyCar championship bid Friday, winning the pole for tonight’s race at Chicagoland Speedway. The series points leader averaged 215.364 mph, earning the top starting spot and a bonus point in the championship standings.

With three races left in the IndyCar season, Briscoe leads Dario Franchitti by five points. Briscoe will start alongside his teammate, Helio Castroneves, with Franchitti directly behind him in the third starting spot.

Busch takes truck victory

Joliet, Ill. — Kyle Busch held off Todd Bodine on a restart with seven laps to go, then cruised to a victory in the NASCAR Camping World Truck series race at Chicagoland Speedway on Friday night. It was the second Trucks series victory in as many weeks for Busch, who also won at Bristol Motor Speedway last week. With Friday’s win, the Sprint Cup series regular has four Trucks series victories this season and 13 in his career.

BASEBALL

Angels trade for Kazmir

Anaheim, Calif. — Scott Kazmir has been traded from the Tampa Bay Rays to the Los Angeles Angels, giving the AL West leaders a major boost to their unsteady rotation. The Angels acquired Kazmir, a two-time All-Star, on Friday night for two minor leaguers and a player to be named. The left-hander was 8-7 with a 5.92 ERA this season for the defending AL champion Rays.

Rangers sign Freel

Minneapolis — The Texas Rangers have signed free agent Ryan Freel to a minor-league contract. Freel was assigned to Triple-A Oklahoma City on Friday. He was designated for assignment by Kansas City on Aug. 5 and given his unconditional release on Aug. 17.

NBA

Smith, Richardson punished

New York — The NBA has suspended Denver’s J.R. Smith and Phoenix’s Jason Richardson after both were recently convicted of driving offenses.