Miyazato tops crowded leaderboard in Thailand
Golf Betting Lines
02/16/2012 - Chonburi, Thailand (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ai Miyazato posted a five-under 67 on Thursday to grab a one-stroke lead after the opening round of the Honda LPGA Thailand.
Miyazato, the 2010 winner, won last year at the Evian Masters. She has seven players within two strokes and 16 players within three shots of her lead.
Karrie Webb, who shared third place last year, carded a four-under 68 and was joined in second place by Anna Nordqvist, Se Ri Pak, Amy Yang and Na Yeon Choi.
Christel Boeljon and Numa Gulyanamitta share seventh place on the Pattaya Old Course at Siam Country Club at minus-three.
Women's world No. 1 and defending champion Yani Tseng opened with a one-over 73 and is tied for 36th.
MORE TO FOLLOW.
San Jose, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Andy Roddick was taken to three sets by fellow American Denis Kudla Wednesday before ultimately prevailing 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (7-5), 6-4 in second-round action at the $531,000 SAP Open. Third-seeded Milos
<< Clippers continue dominance of Wizards
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Blake Griffin had 23 points and 15 rebounds
and the Los Angeles Clippers beat the Washington Wizards for the seventh time
in a row, 102-84, on Wednesday night.
Caron Butler added 21 points and Chris Paul s
<< New Mexico downs No. 13 San Diego State
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kendall Williams had 21 points, Drew Gordon
scored 17 with 17 rebounds and New Mexico beat No. 13 San Diego State, 77-67,
on Wednesday night to take sole possession of first place in the Mountain West
Confere
<< Blazers steal one from Warriors
Oakland, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jamal Crawford made the game-winning free
throws in the final minute, as the Trail Blazers survived a seesaw battle with
the Warriors, 93-91, at Oracle Arena.
Gerald Wallace chipped in 24 points, Nico
<< Luongo strong as Canucks top Avs
Vancouver, BC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Roberto Luongo made 29 saves to lift the
Vancouver Canucks to a 3-1 win over the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday.
David Booth, Alexandre Burrows and Jannik Hansen all scored for the Canucks,
who have w
New Delhi, India (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alejandro Canizares and Peter Whiteford posted matching rounds of six-under 66 Thursday to share the lead after the first round of the Avantha Masters. Canizares' lone tour win was at the 2006 Russian Open
Jackson State to open season at Mississippi State >>
Jackson, MS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jackson State will kick off its 2012 football
season against Mississippi State - the Tigers' first game against a FBS
opponent in three years.
The Tigers will travel to Starksville on Sept. 1. They opened their
Top-25 foes square off in Big Ten brawl >>
East Lansing, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 15th-ranked Wisconsin Badgers will try
to keep up their winning ways and be the first team to steal a road victory at
the Breslin Center this season as they head to East Lansing for a Big Ten
Conference b
20th-ranked Seminoles play host to Hokies >>
Tallahassee, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 20th-ranked Florida State Seminoles
will try to stay in the race for the Atlantic Coast Conference's top spot as
they welcome the Virginia Tech Hokies to the Donald Tucker Center for a league
battle.
T
Local rivals duke it out in Durham >>
Durham, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The NC State Wolfpack will try to pick up a
crucial victory tonight as they make the short trip to Cameron Indoor Stadium
to battle the fifth-ranked Duke Blue Devils in an Atlantic Coast Conference
battle.
Duke
Horse Betting
(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).
The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.
"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."
Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.
"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."
When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:
CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.
DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.
PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.
You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.
"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."
Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.
(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)
Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."
But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."
Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."
Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."
All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.
In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.
"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."
To visit this horse betting site go to MySportsbook.com for all your horse racing betting needs.
Albert Pujols to be This Year's Home Run Champ Says Online Sportsbook
Barry Bonds is a 50-1 long shot to be this year's home run champ odds. The favorite to be this year's home run champ is none other than Albert Pujols, however.
Now that Barry Bonds is signed and in Giants camp, it is on to his pursuit of all of sports most prestigious records: the all-time home run mark. Bonds sits just 21 homers shy of tying Hank Aaron for the career mark at 755. Word out of Giants’ camp is that Bonds is the healthiest he has been in a few years. Bonds is just two seasons removed from his injury riddled 2005 campaign where he played in only 14 games and hit only 5 home runs. He did come back last year and had a solid season hitting .270 with 26 bombs. All eyes will be on Bonds this spring and summer not only because of his home run chase but his highly publicized steroid abuse allegations. If and when Bonds breaks the record, he surely will not get the positive attention one should for breaking a record that was once thought of as “unbreakable”. Despite Bonds decent season last year, he is just 50-1 at MySportsbook.com to lead the MLB in long balls this season.
Not surprisingly, the favorites to go deep the most times this season are Albert Pujols 5-1, Ryan Howard 6-1, David Ortiz 8-1 and Alex Rodriguez 12-1. With 49 homers, Pujols finished second in the National League behind Howard (58). Pujols is considered the favorite due to the consistent power numbers that he has posted since breaking into the league in 2001. Also one must consider the fact that he played in 16 fewer games then Howard did due to an injury. Howard smashed 58 homers in his first complete season of big league play en route to the National League MVP odds award. He silenced his critics by successfully hitting left-handed pitching. Howard also displayed the ability to use his power to the opposite field. Two attributes which should keep Howard amongst the league leaders in long balls for years to come. From the American League representatives, David Ortiz leads the field. Ortiz was second in the majors last year with 54 home runs. Except for 1999 when he only played in 10 games, Ortiz has improved on his home run numbers each year he has been in the majors (1997).
Be sure to log onto online sports betting site MySportsbook.com to check out the odds for who will lead the MLB in home runs this season. Below is just a sample of the players listed. With the highest credit card rates in the industry, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on baseball this summer.
World Series odds
Adam Dunn 15-1
Albert Pujols 5-1
Alex Rodriguez 12-1
Alfonso Soriano 15-1
Andruw Jones 25-1
Barry Bonds 50-1
Carlos Delgado 40-1
David Ortiz 8-1
Jermaine Dye 40-1
Ken Griffey Jr. 100-1
Lance Berkman 40-1
Manny Ramirez 20-1
Richie Sexson 40-1
Ryan Howard 6-1
Travis Hafner 20-1
Vladimir Guerrero 40-1
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.