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10/21/2009 - Ponte Vedra Beach, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Nationwide Tour has announced a new event for next season, adding the Winn-Dixie Jacksonville Open to the schedule for 2010.
The event will be played in October on the Dye's Valley Course at TPC Sawgrass.
"We are excited to welcome Winn-Dixie to the PGA TOUR family and to work with Peter Lynch and his team to build a community event that showcases the next generation of PGA TOUR stars and the TPC Sawgrass Dye's Valley course," said PGA commissioner Tim Finchem. "We view the Winn-Dixie Jacksonville Open as a strong complement to THE PLAYERS Championship."
Jim Furyk, a former Nationwide Tour member and a 13-time PGA winner, is a Ponte Vedra Beach resident. "This is great news that the Nationwide Tour will be playing at the home of the PGA TOUR next year and Jacksonville-based Winn- Dixie will be the title sponsor," said Furyk. "I've seen the phenomenal growth of this Tour first-hand, originally as a Nationwide Tour member in 1993, and over the last 16 years, competing on the PGA TOUR."
The sister venue to the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass, the Dye's Valley Course was designed by Pete Dye and Bobby Weed, with Jerry Pate as the player consultant, opening in 1987. The course features water hazards on every hole and the par-72 layout can be stretched to 6,864 yards. The course previously hosted the Senior PLAYERS Championship for three years (1988-90).
The tournament, which will be broadcast on the Golf Channel, will feature a purse of $600,000, with $108,000 being awarded to the winner.
<< Kiffin signs contract
Knoxville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The University of Tennessee head football
coach Lane Kiffin has officially signed his contract.
The Knoxville News Sentinel reported Tuesday that Kiffin was delayed in
signing the agreement due to
<< Longhorns and Tigers collide in Columbia
Columbia, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The third-ranked Texas Longhorns make the trip
to Columbia this week to take on the Missouri Tigers in a key Big 12 tussle.
Mack Brown's Longhorns took a huge step toward a Big 12 title, with last
weekend's 16
<< Top-ranked Crimson Tide ready to roll over Volunteers
Tuscaloosa, AL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Taking over the top spot in the national
polls this week, the Alabama Crimson Tide will put their lofty standing in
harm's way, as they welcome the Tennessee Volunteers to Tuscaloosa for an SEC
showdown at Brya
<< Ducks and Huskies clash in Pac-10 tussle
Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Following a week off, the conference-leading
Oregon Ducks get back to work this weekend, when they take on the Washington
Huskies in a Pac-10 tussle in the Pacific Northwest.
Chip Kelly's tenure in Eugene did n
Safin upsets Davydenko in Moscow >>
Moscow, Russia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Unseeded Marat Safin toppled top-seeded
fellow Russian Nikolay Davydenko in opening-round action Wednesday at the
$1.08 million Kremlin Cup tennis event.
The former world No. 1 Safin, who expects
Browns sign TE Gaines >>
Berea, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Browns have signed tight end
Michael Gaines.
Gaines was released by the Bears last week after seeing action in only one
game this season. The sixth-year pro played in 16 games last year
Michigan AD Martin to retire in 2010 >>
Ann Arbor, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - University of Michigan director of
athletics Bill Martin will retire from his position on September 4, 2010, he
announced Wednesday.
Martin notified school president Mary Sue Coleman with a le
Wilkie suffers injury setback >>
Dundee, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dundee United captain Lee Wilkie has been
rocked by suffering yet another injury setback.
The 29-year-old was injured during training, with the Terrors fearing that
Wilkie has damaged his knee as well
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.
Huskers' Lucky hospitalized for undisclosed reason
LINCOLN, Neb. -- Nebraska running back Marlon Lucky was hospitalized Monday for undisclosed reasons after Lincoln police responded to a call at his residence.
The Nebraska athletic department said in a release Monday that Lucky was admitted Sunday night.
MySportsbook.com has the Cornhuskers listed at +2500 to win the BCS National Championship odds.
A nursing supervisor at the hospital said all questions about Lucky were being referred to the athletic department. The athletic department said there would be no further comment from the department or Lucky's family.
A Lincoln Police spokesman said officers responded to a call at Lucky's residence 11:30 p.m. Sunday. The spokesman said he didn't know Lucky's condition at the time he was taken to the hospital.
Lucky, from North Hollywood, Calif., started six games last season as a sophomore and was the team's second-leading rusher, with 728 yards and six touchdowns. He also caught 32 passes for 383 yards. He averaged 19.1 yards on eight kickoff returns.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.
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