Dennis Passa

COOLUM, Australia -- Not since the heady days of regular appearances by Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Arnold Palmer have so many top players decided to travel Down Under to play in three Australasian PGA tour events spread over six weeks.

Credit the Presidents Cup at Royal Melbourne in mid-November for having a large part to do with it. The challenge for Australian golf officials will be to find a way to entice stars like Tiger Woods, British Open champion Darren Clarke and top-ranked Luke Donald to return next year.

The Australian Open at Sydney from Nov. 10-13, in particular, reaped the benefit of players who wanted to arrive a week ahead of the Nov. 17-20 Presidents Cup to get over jet lag and familiarize themselves with Australian conditions.

BRISBANE, Australia -- Margo Dydek, a 7-foot-2 former Utah Starzz player who led the WNBA in blocks nine times, died Friday after being placed in a medically induced coma following a heart attack a week ago. She was 37.

MELBOURNE, Australia -- Clutching her side and crying out in pain, Venus Williams lasted just seven points Friday at the Australian Open and withdrew from a Grand Slam singles match for the first time.

After losing the first game of her third-round match to Germany's Andrea Petkovic and trailing in the second, Williams stretched to her right to return a serve. She hit the ball and then reached toward the right side of her stomach. It was soon clear she had to stop.

"Obviously I just couldn't play," the seven-time Grand Slam winner said. "I couldn't move. It was too painful."