 |
 Basketball Betting |
 |
||||
|
 |
||||
|
||||
Chappell sets 36-hole mark on Nationwide TourGolf Betting Lines07/09/2010 - Clarksburg, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kevin Chappell shot an eight-under 63 to remain in the lead Friday at the Ford Wayne Gretzky Classic, setting the Nationwide Tour's 36-hole scoring record in the process. Chappell finished two rounds at 19-under 124, breaking the old record of 125 by a shot. His 19-under total also matched the tour record for most strokes under par after two rounds. "I've played some good golf this year and I knew it was coming," said Chappell. Keegan Bradley was on a 59 watch after playing his first 15 holes at 10-under, but he finished with three consecutive pars to shoot a 61 and break the course record at the Georgian Bay Club by one stroke. Bradley moved to 16-under 127, three strokes behind Chappell, who also played the Georgian Bay course on Friday. David Branshaw had an eight-under 64 at Raven Golf Club to move into third place at 13-under 130, while 2008 champion Justin Hicks (68) led three players tied at 11-under 132. Both courses were used for the 36-hole pro-am on Thursday and Friday, but only the Georgian Bay Club will be used for the final two rounds. That's unfortunate for Chappell. As well as he played at Georgian Bay on Friday -- he had eight birdies and 10 pars -- Chappell was even better during his first round on the Raven course. He opened with a 61 there on Thursday, tying the course record on his 24th birthday. How good has he been so far? Chappell has made more birdies (19) than pars (17) and is already just one stroke behind last year's winning score. "For me the goal was to not make a bogey. That's always my Achilles' heel," he said. "I always make plenty of birdies and I knew if I could keep the blemishes off the card, things would take care of themselves." Chappell broke the old 36-hole scoring record shared by Jason Gore and Webb Simpson. He is trying to become the first two-time winner on tour this season, having already captured the Fresh Express Classic in April. "The lower you get, the harder it is to keep shooting lower because you've got to hit it closer to the hole," he said. "It's strictly the odds -- the further you are away from the hole the less you have a chance of making it." Bradley has also played his first two rounds without a bogey as he chases his first career victory. "It's definitely one of the best rounds I've ever had," said Bradley, who also carded a 61 in this year's BMW Charity Pro-Am. "The putter got extremely hot. From about number seven to 15 the hole looked as big as a trash can." NOTES: The cut fell at six-under 137...137 matched the lowest score for a cut in tour history...Bobby Gates (67) and James Hahn (69) shared fourth place with Hicks...Chappell also set the 36-hole tournament scoring record...The previous mark of 130 was held by 2009 champion Roger Tambellini...Bradley bested the 62 shot by Garrett Osborn at Georgian Bay in 2008.
<< Clippers ink Cook
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Clippers have signed free agent forward Brian Cook. The 29-year-old has appeared in 349 career NBA games, most recently taking the court for 15 contests for the Houston Rockets last se
<< Former Brewers OF Jenkins retires
<< McMurray grabs third pole of the season at Chicagoland
<< Report: Bulls add Korver with three-year deal
<< Clippers sign free agent Brian Cook
Heat throw party to introduce James, Wade, Bosh >>
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With music blaring, lights glaring and nearly 13,000 fans staring, the Miami Heat put on a party in their home arena for their three stars - LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. Plumes of smoke ros
More power from Dunn paces Nats over Giants >>
Howard's HR in 10th caps incredible comeback win for Phillies >>
Nix leads Indians past Rays >>
Cabrera, Infante hit back-to-back HRs as Braves top Mets >>
SPORTS BETTING - Tennis is an underrated and under-utilized bettors' sport.Ten years ago, at just about this time, I called Alan Boston in Vegas and left him a voicemail that went something like this (abridged version): "Hey Alan, Chad Millman from ESPN The Magazine calling. I want to do a book about wise guys, you in?" A couple weeks later I got a message back (abridged version): "I don't know, maybe," Boston said. "Call me and we'll talk about it. But not later today. I got $1,000 on Andre Agassi to win the French Open at 40-1, and he's in the finals."
Here's what happened next (abridged version): Agassi won his tourney. Boston won his $40,000. I wrote sportsbook. In the ten years since, how much has been wagered on the big-time tennis events? Put it this way: The Nevada Gaming Commission doesn't even track the number year by year because it's so small. "Tennis makes up about one-tenth of one percent of our take," says Lucky's bookmaking boss Jimmy Vaccaro. "The last big golf major we probably had $100,000 worth of bets. In tennis, we might have written two big tickets." But Wimbledon? Doesn't exactly reel in the whales. "Seriously, it's the nuts as an event," says Boston. "But who even knows when it's on?" Here's another reason that helps explain why golf gets traction, something I call "The Bubbe Theory." My Bubbe is pushing 95 and has cataracts so bad that, to her, even the most crystalline Chicago day is mostly cloudy. But she still listens to the Cubs games, and she still calls me in a fit if she disagrees with something Rick Telander writes in the Chicago Sun Times. She's a sports fan. If she doesn't know you, you're just filling a niche. And niche players, even historically good ones like Roger and Raf, don't drive betting volume. Only the highest profile names attract square money, which inflates wagering totals like a shot of saline to the lips. Bubbe, and the public, loved Agassi, tennis' last cross-the-rubicon, mainstream draw. She also has a crush on Tiger. She's given me standing orders to put a sawbuck on the big cat whenever I walk through a sports book (or mistakenly tap into one via my Internet machine.) That explains why the Masters is getting $100K in action at some books while the four tennis majors might not get that combined this year. This isn't a case of tennis being a difficult sport to bet. In fact, in Europe, it's probably the second most popular sport for gambling after soccer. Granted, as the WSJ football betting last week and The Mag's Shaun Assael examined in even greater depth last year, that might be because gamblers across the pond see it as an easy game to fix. But it could also be because, over there it holds the kind of sway the big two do over here. Street corners in Spain are peppered with public courts and kids doing their best Raffy impressions. In some war torn parts of Eastern Europe poverty-stricken kids view tennis as an escape route, like football or basketball here. A couple years ago The Mag's Lindsay Berra wrote a great piece about Belgrade's Jelena Jankovic, Ana Ivanovic and Novak Djokovic. They learned the game as kids while bombs were raining down on their homeland. They practiced in drained swimming pools. Not exactly Nick Bolletierri conditions. In the United States, casual fans think tennis is played four times a year. But on the tightly packed European continent, national interest in homegrown talent runs deep every weekend. Of the ATP's current top 20 players, only two, tennis betting and James Blake, are American. Fourteen are from Europe, representing six different countries. No wonder fans from Lisbon to Bhudapest get jacked up for the net game, whether it's Wimbledon or a low-level tourney like the Estoril Open in Portugal (congrats to Spain's Albert Montanes for winning that one, btw). Chances are good that someone representing their flag will not only be playing, but have a shot at winning. And that's all any bettor can ask for. To visit this sports book go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs. |
|
