July 18

1896 — James Foulis wins the U.S. Men's Open golf championship at Shinnecock Hills, Southampton, N.Y.

1927 — Ty Cobb of the Philadelphia Athletics doubles off the glove of Harry Heilmann for his 4,000th hit.

1951 — Jersey Joe Walcott, at 37, becomes the oldest fighter to win the world heavyweight title with a seventh-round knockout of Ezzard Charles at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh.

1970 — San Francisco's Willie Mays gets his 3,000th career hit, off Montreal's Mike Wegener in the second inning.

1975 — The trial of Dave Forbes, the first pro athlete to be indicted for a crime committed during play, ends in a hung jury. Forbes, of the Boston Bruins, was indicted for excessive force used on an opponent. Forbes' victim was Henry Boucha in a game on Jan. 4 against the North Stars at Minnesota. The prosecution decides not to seek a retrial.

1987 — New York's Don Mattingly ties Dale Long's 31-year-old major league record when he homers for the eighth consecutive game in the Yankees' 7-2 loss to the Texas Rangers.

1993 — Greg Norman shoots a 64 on the final day to set a record with a 13-under 267 that wins the British Open. Norman beats defending champion Nick Faldo by two strokes.

1995 — Britain's Jonathan Edwards breaks the 10-year-old world triple jump record, leaping 59 feet in the Salamanca Provincial meet. Edwards tops the previous mark of 58-11½ set in 1985 by Willie Banks of the United States.

1996 — Shaquille O'Neal signs a seven-year, $121 million contract with the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers' ticket price for the cheapest seats is increased from $9.50 to $21.

1999 — Jean Van de Velde's triple bogey on the 72nd hole sets the stage for Paul Lawrie to become the first Scotsman to win the British Open in his native land since Tommy Armour in 1931. Lawrie, 10 strokes behind when the final round began, wins the four-hole playoff over Van de Velde and Justin Leonard, making birdies on the last two holes to complete the biggest comeback in a major.

1999 — David Cone dazzles the Montreal Expos, throwing the 14th perfect game in modern history to lead the New York Yankees to a 6-0 victory.