Martin Wins First Court Battle

Casey Martin’s fight to ride a cart on the pro golf tour is headed for a trial Feb. 2 after a federal magistrate rejected the PGA Tour’s argument that it is private and exempt from disability laws Monday in Eugene, Ore.

Martin, who has a degenerative circulation problem in his leg, has sued, claiming that the PGA’s “walking-only” tradition violates the rights of the disabled.

His suit contends that the PGA Tour, under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act, must provide reasonable accommodation for someone with a disability.

*

Retired NBA all-star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has settled a lawsuit filed by Jerry Cohen, a Universal Studios music editor, who accused the former Laker center of attacking him in April after a traffic dispute.

Abdul-Jabbar, however, is still scheduled to appear in West Los Angeles Municipal Court on Thursday on misdemeanor false-imprisonment charges brought by the city attorney’s office.

College Football

Sultan McCullough, a tailback from Pasadena Muir High, said he will attend USC. . . . Former Louisville coach Ron Cooper was hired at Alabama A&M.;

Miscellany

Thomas Sykora declared himself a top Olympic favorite after narrowly beating Hans-Petter Buraas in a World Cup slalom that gave Austria its second victory in two days at Kitzbuehel, Austria.

A probe of last June’s election in San Francisco in which voters narrowly approved a $525 million mall and sports stadium showed there were irregularities, but not enough evidence to pursue criminal charges, the secretary of state said.

The Jamaican government announced an end to its two-year athletic boycott of Nigeria, clearing the way for Jamaica’s soccer team to play Nigeria at home in an exhibition game Feb. 22.