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08/17/2010 - Mason, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Wimbledon runner-up Tomas Berdych reached the third round, while hot American Mardy Fish posted an opening-round victory Tuesday at the $3 million Western & Southern Financial Group Masters, a U.S. Open Series event.
The seventh-seeded Berdych handled Frenchman Paul-Henri Mathieu 6-4, 6-4, while the wild card Fish continued his recent fine play with a 7-6 (7-4), 7-5 victory over France's Gilles Simon on the hardcourts at the Lindner Family Tennis Center. The surging Fish has now won 30 matches this season, including 12 of his last 13, with recent titles coming in Newport and Atlanta.
Fish was the Cincinnati runner-up back in 2003.
Tuesday's other second-round winner was Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis. The former Aussie Open runner-up snuck past Brazilian Thomaz Bellucci 6-2, 4-6, 7-6 (7-4). Baghdatis was a runner-up in Washington, D.C. two weeks ago.
Baghdatis will meet the formidable Berdych in the round of 16.
Opening-round upsets came when former top-10 Frenchman Richard Gasquet grounded 12th-seeded Russian Mikhail Youzhny 2-6, 6-4, 6-1 and Colombian qualifier Alejandro Falla dismissed 16th-seeded Frenchman Gael Monfils.
Fading American James Blake, a wild card this week, continued his recent losing ways with a 6-3, 6-0 first-round setback at the hands of Uzbekistanian qualifier Denis Istomin. Blake was a Cincy finalist in 2007.
Istomin is rewarded with a second-rounder against former top-ranked superstar Roger Federer, this week's third seed and defending champion. The 16-time major titlist Federer, who beat reigning two-time Cincy runner-up Novak Djokovic in last year's finale here, was also the Cincinnati champ in 2005 and 2007.
Talented Latvian Ernests Gulbis erased wild card and once-promising American Donald Young 7-6 (7-5), 6-4.
Additional first-round wins came for German Philipp Kohlschreiber and Frenchmen Julien Benneteau and Jeremy Chardy, who will face last week's Canadian Masters champion Andy Murray in the round of 32. The Aussie Open runner-up Murray, who beat Federer in last week's finale in Toronto, was the Cincy champ in 2008.
The 2010 Cincinnati titlist will claim $443,500.
<< Brett Favre is back in Minnesota
EDEN PRAIRIE (AP) -Brett Favre is back in Minnesota, stirring hope among Vikings fans that he may be ready to play this season.A private jet trimmed in the Vikings' purple and gold carrying the 40-year-old quarterback landed at an airport outside Mi
<< Reds DFA Owings to make room for Grandal
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cincinnati Reds designated pitcher Micah
Owings for assignment on Tuesday, to clear a roster spot for newly-signed
draft pick Yasmani Grandal.
Owings struggled recently in the minors at Triple-A Lo
<< Report: Favre on his way to Minnesota
Hattiesburg, MS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A contingent of Minnesota Vikings' players
sent to Brett Favre's home in Mississippi late Monday have apparently
convinced the indecisive quarterback to at least make a trip to the Twin
Cities
<< Philly's Rodriguez named WPS Player of the Week
Chester, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Philadelphia Independence and United States
forward Amy Rodriguez was named Women's Professional Soccer's Player of the
Week for Week 18 on Tuesday.
Rodriguez led the expansion Independence to the brin
France bans Anelka for 18 matches >>
Paris, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - World Cup rebel Nicolas Anelka was banned for
18 matches by the French Football Federation on Tuesday following his conduct
at the FIFA World Cup in South Africa.
The Chelsea striker was sent home from th
Pedroia returns from broken foot >>
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Boston Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia
was activated from the 15-day disabled list on Tuesday, paving the way for his
return to the lineup for the first time since June 25.
Pedroia had missed almost
Argos WR Copeland out with dislocated elbow >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Toronto Argonauts wide receiver Jeremaine
Copeland will be out indefinitely after dislocating his left elbow.
Copeland suffered the injury during the first drive of Saturday's surprise
37-22 victory
Lightning sign LW Bergenheim >>
Tampa, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Tampa Bay Lightning added depth to the
forward position by agreeing to a one-year contract with free agent forward
Sean Bergenheim on Tuesday.
Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We are happy
(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.
Sportsbook betting odds favor Europe in Ryder Cup
September 19, – Despite holding a decided edge in the all-time series, with 24 wins, 2 ties and 10 losses, Team USA is the underdog again heading into the Ryder Cup in Kidare, Ireland this weekend, according to MySportsbook.com. The Europeans have captured four of the past five editions, including their largest victory ever, an 18 ½ to 9 ½ thumping in Michigan in 2004. Current Ryder Cup betting odds favor the Europeans to continue their winning ways; they are a 4-5 bet to take the title, compared to 6-5 for the Americans.
Despite being knocked out in the first round of World Match play by Shaun Micheel, Tiger Woods is predicted to lead the US charge and be their highest point scorer for the week, with odds listed at 9-4 that he outpoints all other American players, including Jim Furyk, Phil Mickelson and Chris DiMarco to name a few. Team USA has four relatively unknown players on the roster but all four are 2007 tournament winners and have posted some of season’s best performances, each earning over $1.5 million on the PGA TOUR. They include Zach Johnson, Vaughan Taylor, JJ Henry and Brett Wetterich.
The experienced European squad includes the likes of Luke Donald, Sergio Garcia, Padraig Harrington, Jose Maria Olazabal and Darren Clarke, who’s emotions will be tested after the passing of his wife to a battle with cancer. Donald and Garcia are in particularly good form and each is a 5-1 bet to lead the European squad in the points race. Donald has proven he can go head to head with Woods at a major event after a run for the $1.2 million purse at the PGA Championship. Garcia’s Ryder Cup credentials prove he’s ready for battle too.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your golf sportsbook needs.
Ryder Cup Odds| Europe Tie USA |
4-5 10-1 6-5 |
| Tiger Woods Jim Furyk Phil Mickelson Chris DiMarco David Toms Stewart Cink Chad Campbell Scott Verplank Zach Johnson Vaughan Taylor JJ Henry Brett Wetterich |
9-4 4-1 5-1 7-1 8-1 12-1 15-1 15-1 25-1 30-1 30-1 50-1 |
| Sergio Garcia Luke Donald Padraig Harrington Colin Montgomerie Darren Clarke David Howell Lee Westwood Paul Casey Henrik Stenson Jose Maria Olazabal Paul McGinley Robert Karlsson |
5-1 5-1 6-1 13-2 8-1 9-1 9-1 11-1 12-1 12-1 20-1 25-1 |
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com
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