Second Shot

ATLANTA - Michael Jordan generally doesn't leave a door cracked at the end of a game. For most of his storied career, when it's been time to finish a contest, Jordan has been the one to do it, and there's little left for an opponent to do but bemoan its fate. However, basketball's greatest closer left a sliver of door space last night against the Atlanta Hawks, and Shareef Abdur-Rahim burst through it, giving the Hawks a 91-89 victory over the Washington Wizards. Washington lost its fourth straight game and fell 2 1/2 games back in the race to catch Milwaukee for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

The writer of this course review is a Columbia resident and frequent golfer who has played most courses in Central Maryland. Almost daily, power carts are lined up near the pro shop with windshield tags bearing golfers' names and hole assignments for an outing. That's the only way most of us can play golf at Turf Valley Resort. Because it's private, play officially is limited to members and hotel guests. But Turf Valley - its main entry off U.S. 40 on the west end of Ellicott City - was host to about 200 outings last year for charities and other causes.

This golf course review is by a longtime Columbia resident and frequent golfer who has played virtually every course in Central Maryland. He also is an assistant business editor at The Sun. If you want to work on accuracy in your game, Fairway Hills Golf Club is the place to go. Environmental areas, wetlands, woods and two streams define much of this 6,158-yard, par-70 course, which cuts through several residential areas in the heart of Columbia....

The UMBC women's lacrosse team moved closer to its first NCAA tournament bid yesterday with a dominating 16-4 victory over Sacred Heart in a Northeast Conference tournament semifinal at UMBC Stadium. Sophomore Jen Dragoni scored four first-half goals, and senior Jamie Gerhart added two goals and three assists to send the Retrievers (11-4) into the tournament title game for the fifth straight year. They will play Monmouth, a 13-7 winner over Wagner in the other semifinal, at noon tomorrow.

A police officer was fatally shot and another wounded last night in East Baltimore when a man opened fire with a powerful handgun, apparently without provocation. According to Ragina C. Averella, a police spokeswoman, Officers Michael J. Cowdery and Tiffany Walker, working a plainclothes detail, stopped two men about 10:10 p.m. in the 2300 block of Harford Road for questioning. While they were talking to them, another came around a corner and began firing a .357-caliber Magnum, hitting Cowdery in the head and upper torso, Averella said.

At Timbers at Troy, after you've negotiated rolling hills off the tees, avoided sculpted bunkers and reached a green in regulation strokes, there's no guarantee you can walk away with a two-putt par. Timbers, a county-owned public course off Route 103 in eastern Howard, has bentgrass fairways that make iron shots a joy to hit, intimidating environmental areas and a design that capitalizes on the area's rolling terrain. But the real challenges are the tiered, undulating greens, as friends Tom, Jesse, Bill and I learned when we played there on a recent morning.

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Here's what Tiger Woods had to overcome as he made his way around Augusta National in the third round of the Masters yesterday: A rain delay at the worst possible time. A hacker's drive that dropped on a green in front of him. His own inability to get going in a tournament he was heavily favored to win. That he overcame it all and shot a 68, moving him in front of all but five golfers, sent a clear message to those ahead of him: Guys, better keep an eye on that rearview mirror today.

Junior midfielder Acacia Walker overcome a charley horse and some serious double-teaming to lead the visiting Annapolis High girls lacrosse team to a last-second 8-7 victory over Anne Arundel County rival Severna Park yesterday. The junior phenom was working the clock for a final shot when she was fouled by a pair of Severna Park defenders with 2 seconds remaining. On the ensuing free-position shot, she quickly snapped a low bouncer into the goal to propel the two-time defending state champs to victory.

Editor's note: Marcus is a star basketball player on his school team, but he's terrible at foul shots. His sister Bree drives him to practice at night in the school gym where his father is principal. Despite his efforts, Marcus isn't getting any better... until Mr. Dunn the custodian steps in. "Hi, Mr. Dunn," Marcus said as the tall, thin man pulled open the heavy metal door. Mr. Dunn smiled. "You two come in quick," he said. "Your dad doesn't want me heating the outside." Marcus and Bree stepped into the dark hallway.

Five hundred and ninety-eight basketball fans showed up at Loyola's Reitz Arena yesterday to watch what most figured would be a non-league breather against Division I newcomer Stony Brook. However, when the final buzzer sounded, it was the Stony Brook Seawolves who were doing all the celebrating, thanks to a buzzer-beating, 10-foot follow bank shot by freshman center Joakim Eriksson that lifted the unsung visitors from Long Island, N.Y., to a 51-50 victory. Eriksson went crashing to the floor as he pushed the ball toward the basket off a missed 16-foot jumper by senior forward Pablo Porras, who came close to being the hero when his shot with two seconds left bounced off the backboard and nearly went in. But Porras' jumper caromed hard off the front of the rim and bounced into Eriksson's hands.