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07/18/2010 - St. Andrews, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - South African Louis Oosthuizen rolled in an eagle putt on the ninth hole Sunday to take a four-stroke lead to the back nine in the final round of the British Open Championship.
Oosthuizen, who is in contention for the first time in a major championship, has played a steady round so far in the final pairing with Paul Casey.
The 27-year-old Oosthuizen parred his first seven holes to maintain his lead. However, he stumbled to a bogey on the eighth to slip to 14-under.
Oosthuizen atoned for that mistake by pouring in an eagle effort on the ninth to get to minus-16. His lead could have dipped to two, but instead was four.
Casey came up short of the second green and was unable to save par from there. The Englishman was suddenly five back.
After three straight pars, Casey got that stroke back with a two-putt birdie on No. 6. He parred seven and eight, and was within three after Oosthuizen's bogey at the eighth.
Casey two-putted for birdie on No. 9, but lost a stroke to the leader and made the turn at 12-under par.
Not only was Casey not making a move on Oosthuizen, but the final six players combined for six birdies and an eagle on the front nine.
With three-quarters of the field finished, only seven players posted rounds in the 60s, with Rickie Fowler and Alvaro Quiros both carding 67s for the low round of the day.
<< Indians seek four-game sweep of Tigers
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Indians go for a four-game sweep of the
Detroit Tigers today, as the teams conclude their series at Progressive Field.
Despite being well below .500, the Indians have come out of the All-Star break
with
<< Jays hope to pin another sweep on O's
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Toronto Blue Jays gun for their third consecutive
three-game sweep of the Baltimore Orioles as the teams wrap up their series
today at Camden Yards.
On Saturday, Jose Bautista hit a two-run homer in the t
<< Pitcher's duel on tap between Rays/Yankees
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A pair of All-Star pitchers go head-to-head today, as David
Price and the Tampa Bay Rays conclude a three-game set with Andy Pettitte and
the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium.
The 24-year-old Price recently earned his
<< Boston's Lester takes mound vs. Rangers
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jon Lester goes for his seventh straight home win today, as
he leads the Boston Red Sox into the finale of a four-game series with the
Texas Rangers at Fenway Park.
Lester, who tossed a perfect inning in the All-Star
Indians recall Gomez to make ML debut on Sunday >>
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Indians recalled pitcher
Jeanmar Gomez from Triple-A Columbus on Sunday to make his major league debut
in a spot start against the Detroit Tigers.
Gomez, who pitched a perfect game l
Woods, Mickelson finish well back at St. Andrews >>
St. Andrews, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The top two players in the world were
unable to make a charge Sunday at the British Open.
Tiger Woods, a three-time Open champion, could only muster an even-par 72 in
the final round Sunday. He fini
Montanes takes Stuttgart crown >>
Stuttgart, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Spain's Alberto Montanes won the
Mercedes Cup on Sunday when Gael Monfils of France retired in the second set
of the final because of an ankle injury.
Montanes earned a 6-2, 1-2 triumph for hi
Burnett apologizes to Yankees for outburst >>
NEW YORK (AP) -A.J. Burnett says he has apologized to his New York Yankees teammates for a clubhouse fit that left him with cuts on both hands.Sporting a bandage on each palm, Burnett said he had no trouble playing long toss Sunday and the laceratio
Recently I had an email debate with an angry reader who said I did not understand "the science of oddsmaking", as he called it.
He said I was wrong for suggesting oddsmakers care about who wins or loses games.
"Oddsmakers only care about splitting the betting public 50/50 on both sides of the line and keeping the commission (a.k.a. juice)," he wrote.
He might have been right about not understanding "the science of oddsmaking". After all, I'm not an oddsmaker. That said, I stick to my assertion that oddsmakers (a.k.a. sportbooks) often do care about who wins games.
Granted, as a general rule, sportsbooks try to balance their action so that they're not exposed to big losses. However, there are times when this is difficult to pull off, regardless of how much a line has moved. There are also times when that general rule is ignored and a book pursues risk.
Generally speaking, it's safe to say the books in Vegas are risk-adverse. Unlike in the past when the wise guys ruled the town, Vegas is now corporate and the goal of most casinos is to make as much money as possible with as little risk as possible.
Thus, Vegas sportsbooks try everything in their power to balance the action. They're satisfied simply collecting the juice. But these profits are small, especially compared to the take from other casino games, namely slot machines.
Because the profits at Vegas sportsbooks are so small, you could argue that many casinos operate sportsbooks simply as a novelty to keep the tourists happy.
With a growing aversion to risk, it should come as no surprise that Vegas bookmakers have been panicking this NFL season.
Despite huge pointspreads, a disproportionate percentage of bettors are still laying their money on favorites like the Eagles, Colts, Pats and Vikings rather than the dogs (a common trend for the largely recreational bettors that visit Vegas).
And much to the dismay of the books, those favorites are finding ways to cover the thick chalk. In fact, prior to Week 7, the four teams listed above are a combined 16-2-2 (88 percent) against the spread. (The tables turned dramatically in Week 7, but more on that later.)
The result has been an early-season beating for the books, and a bonanza for bettors.
While Vegas increasingly hates risk, it's no longer a major player in the sports betting world. Most of the betting action now takes place offshore where sportsbooks are not as obsessed about balance. In fact, some books encourage exposure to risk because the rewards can be so much bigger.
Consider MySportsbook.com. On its website, the book has odds pages which actually display the amount of action it's getting on games. In other words, you can see how much action the book is taking on both sides of a pointspread, moneyline or over/under.
One look at these numbers and it's obvious MySportsbook.com does not balance every game. In fact, far from it.
Take last weekend's matchup between St. Louis and Miami. By game time on Sunday, 83 percent of the betting action at MySportsbook.com was on the Rams; only 17 percent was on Miami.
What's interesting is that MySportsbook.com opened the pointspread with Miami at +6 1/2. By game time, the spread had lowered to +5.
That goes contrary to the balancing theory. If MySportsbook.com had wanted to balance the action, it would have given Miami more points; instead, it took away 1 1/2. World Series odds are now up as well.
MySportsbook.com exposed itself to even more to risk, and rolled the dice on the underdog Dolphins. Why? I contacted a representative with the book to find out. His answer was simple.
"The line moved early based on 'smart money' from sharp players," said Jeff Gilroy, a spokesperson for the book. "We also knew from early in the week that we would need Miami, therefore (we dropped) the spread to encourage Rams money.
"At the end of the day, we liked the home team."
So the conclusion is this: MySportsbook.com respected the sharp action, and gambled that the sharp bettors had a better take on the game than the recreational bettors, who were hammering the visiting Rams.
In the end, the gamble paid off. Miami, desperate for a win in front of its home fans, pounded the overrated Rams, who are terrible on the road and even worse on grass. Final score: 31-14 Fish.
MySportsbook.com was also heavily exposed on numerous favorites in Week 7, including Philadelphia, Seattle and Denver. All three failed to cover.
The fact that sportsbooks are exposed to risk on certain games is really nothing new. The fact, that Sportsbook.com is willing to show the public where it's exposed is intriguing.
Armed with this type of information, bettors can make more educated wagers. They can get an idea where the sharp money is going and conversely where the public money is headed.
MySportsbook.com is opening up its cashbox, letting bettors look inside and challenging them to take their best shot at grabbing the cash.
To visit this online football betting got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting odds needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
El Duque expected to throw Tuesday
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- New York Mets pitcher Orlando Hernandez, sidelined at spring training because of arthritis in his neck, is expected to resume throwing on Tuesday.
Hernandez received a cortisone shot Thursday after leaving camp and returning to New York to have his neck examined. The 41-year-old right-hander is penciled in as the team's No. 2 starter behind Tom Glavine.
El Duque's health is a major issue for the Mets, who won the NL East in 2007 and came within one victory of the World Series. Their aging and unsettled rotation is a big question mark this year.
MySportsbook.com has the Mets as -110 favorites to repeat as NL East champions odds.
Hernandez went 11-11 with a 4.66 ERA last season, including 9-7 with a 4.09 ERA in 20 starts after the Mets acquired him from Arizona in late May. But he missed the playoffs because of a torn calf muscle.
New York already is without Pedro Martinez, out until at least midseason following rotator cuff surgery. Among those competing for starting jobs are prospects Mike Pelfrey, Philip Humber and Jason Vargas, plus veterans Chan Ho Park, Jorge Sosa and Aaron Sele.
Notes: Mets manager Willie Randolph is excited about two new utility players he could have on his bench: Damion Easley and David Newhan. ''Their value is really all over the place,'' Randolph said. Easley can play anywhere in the infield and could be used as an emergency outfielder, though Randolph said he would prefer to keep the veteran in the infield. Newhan, meanwhile, can play second base, third or any outfield position for the Mets. ''I love versatility,'' Randolph said. ''I love guys that can give me options when I need them to step in.''
Additional baseball lines and World Series odds can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.
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