Howell's 64 leads Irish Open

Golf Betting Lines

07/29/2010 - Killarney, Ireland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - England's David Howell fired a seven- under 64 on Thursday to take the first-round lead at the Irish Open at Killarney Golf & Fishing Club.

Richard Green and Damien McGrane both posted rounds of six-under 65 and share second place.

Last year's runner-up Robert Rock finished with a 65, but was disqualified after his round. Two of his scores were inverted on the back nine, so he signed for an incorrect scorecard.

"I'm reasonably thorough," said Rock, who lost a playoff last year to then- amateur Shane Lowry. "It's my responsibility to check the card. I actually checked. I know the difference between a three and a four."

The three biggest Irish names in the field are in the mix.

Rory McIlroy, ranked eighth in the world, shot a four-under 67 and is tied for 13th place.

Three-time major winner Padraig Harrington posted a three-under 68 and is part of a group tied for 25th place.

U.S. Open champion Graeme McDowell only managed a one-under 70 and shares 50th place.

"I just need to sharpen up across the board," said McDowell, who earned his first major title last month at Pebble Beach. "I said someone would go super low, but you can defend this course by hiding the pins."

Howell, 35, parred his first three holes, then broke into red figures with back-to-back birdies from the fourth. He tallied his other front-nine birdie at the par-five seventh to make the turn in three-under 32.

Howell once again parred his first three holes, this time on the second nine. He birdied the 501-yard, par-four 13th and two holes later birdied the par- four 15th.

At the par-five 17th, Howell made an eagle to leapfrog over Green and McGrane and into first place on his own.

"That was nice. Haven't done that for a long time but I holed a few bombs today," said Howell. "I chipped in and I think I holed three long ones as well. As it happens, I had a few more chances that I missed but I certainly holed more than my fair share, which in fairness you normally do when you shoot 64."

Howell, a two-time Ryder Cupper, has four European Tour victories, but none since his two-win season of 2006 when he captured the HSBC Champions Tournament and the BMW Championship.

Due to various injuries and inconsistent play, Howell hasn't reclaimed that form. He did some television work when he wasn't on the course, but Howell has yet to record a single top 10 this season with his best finish a tie for 14th at the Open de Espana in early May.

Howell admitted there was a time when he thought about quitting.

"I've never wanted to give up, but it's crossed my mind that if I carry on playing as I did last year I wouldn't have a career to be worried about," said Howell, who made only 10 cuts last year and registered one top-10.

Darren Clarke, Marcel Siem, Jean-Baptiste Gonnet, Anton Haig, Seung-yul Noh, Brett Rumford, Michael Hoey, Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano and 1999 British Open winner Paul Lawrie are knotted in fourth place at five-under 66.

NOTES: Lowry opened with a three-over 74 and is tied for 118th place...Justin Rose, a two-time winner this year on the PGA Tour, also carded a 74 on Thursday.

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Marlins could start season without No. 2 starter Johnson

JUPITER, Fla. -- The Foorida Marlins are preparing for the likelihood that right-hander
Josh Johnson won't be ready when the season starts April 2.

Grapefruit League action starts Wednesday, but Johnson, penciled in as the No. 2 starter, hasn't even thrown off a mound at full speed since September. He's experienced some soreness in his right forearm.

MySportsbook.com have the Marlins listed with baseball betting lines at +800 to win the NL East this season .

''You guys know the math. If he's not on the hill then he becomes an opening day roster issue,'' manager Fredi Gonzalez said Saturday. ''We're borderline now.''

Johnson, who finished 12-7 with a 3.10 ERA in 2007, was supposed to throw on flat ground Saturday. That was canceled when he woke up with pain.

He played catch on Wednesday with no pain but felt discomfort in a throwing session on Thursday. He's expected to try again Sunday.

''Like we always said from the very beginning, we're going to take it easy on him,'' Gonzalez said. ''He didn't feel right, so we shut him down. We're going to take it back to step one and see where we're at.''

Among the candidates to take Johnson's spot in the rotation are left-hander Chris George and right-handers Yusmeiro Petit and Jose Garcia.

Right-hander Sergio Mitre, who missed most of last season with arm and shoulder problems, also is behind.

With Johnson's status doubtful, Gonzalez said right-hander Ricky Nolasco will stay in the rotation and no longer will be considered a candidate for closer.

Additional basbeall odds can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.


College Football Betting Tips From a Pro

While the NFL is the sport wagered on the heaviest, college football betting lines has become more and more popular as people realize it’s a game that can be beat. The NCAA football season gets longer each year with the addition of numerous bowl games and with that comes more opportunities for more money in your pocket, if handled correctly.

Betting on college football is not the same as with the NFL, so make sure you separate the two. Because of the vast number of teams, the parity between college football programs is slight and thus, you are going to see some high numbers in the NCAA. Teams favored by more than 40 points are not uncommon especially early in the season when teams playing their non-conference schedules.

The best advice when trying to tackle these enormous spreads and is to just stay away. A team that is favored by 40 points is favored by that many for a reason while teams getting 40 points are bad enough that they shouldn’t be touched. Set yourself a spread limit. Getting rid of these games will cut down on the number of contests that you need to handicap while staying away from backdoor or front-door covers.

What is a backdoor and front-door cover you ask? A backdoor cover is a team that is getting beat by more than the spread, but scores late to get within that number thus covering the spread. A front-door cover is just the opposite where the favorite scores late and covers the number they are favored by.

These front-door and backdoor covers are common when second and third string players enter games in college football and it can be the worst nightmare for some bettors. These players can also be your best friend, but ask any bettor and he will give you more instances on losing in this situation than winning. It just seems to work out that way even though everything evens out in the end.

College football betting has some of the softest lines of any sport and it’s being able to find these lines that will make you a successful college football handicapper. The NFL and NBA have the tightest lines around and while those sports can be beat by looking at situations and systems, college football doesn’t quite work that way. It’s much more manual, but when done correctly, it’s much more gratifying as well.

Getting into the nuts and bolts of college football means looking at the many stats in order to beat the number. As opposed to pro football, college football is less dependent on situations and angles and more on certain statistics. Rushing offense and defense, pass efficiency offense and defense and turnover margins are huge. These are vital in the NFL, but even more so when it comes to college football.

Being able to run the ball in college football has always been a key factor in the overall success of a team. The same adage also goes for teams who have the ability to stop the run. Putting these two factors together can produce some positive results in a team’s record both straight up and against the spread. These numbers show huge differences in teams and the spread may not take those into effect, which is where the value comes into play.

Passing yardage numbers both for and against can be a misinterpreted statistic. However, pass efficiency has always been one of the best ways to look at a teams’ passing game ability both offensively and defensively. But is it really a true indication of how they perform? I wouldn’t say so since they are raw passing numbers with nothing else taken into consideration.

I use pass efficiency ratings when doing my handicapping but I adjust my numbers based on a number of factors including power ratings, strength of schedules, personnel and injuries. This gives a much better picture of a team’s ability to pass effectively and also being able to defend the pass. Tweaking pass efficiency stats instead of raw passing yards is the key.

Turnovers are the single most frustrating, and at times the most gratifying, aspect of a college football lines, mostly because they are so unpredictable. They are part of the game and most of the time nothing can be done to control them. However, turnovers are contagious and they can carry over from game to game and season to season.

It’s important to know how to forecast these unforeseen events and how to use them to your advantage. You can find ways to give yourself an edge by looking at past histories of teams and coaches and how they have fared in turnover wars in the past. Instead of turnovers hurting you at the wrong times, find ways to use them to your advantage.

As you can see, college football handicapping is very labor intensive and isn’t just based on where teams are ranked in the AP and coaches polls. Experience, coaching and match-ups are all important since unlike the NFL, college teams turn over much more often with new personnel at most positions every single year. Keeping current on this information is vital.

Betting NCAA football can be lucrative if done correctly, but more importantly, it’s just plain enjoyable because it can be beat. College football is one of the best sports to watch with some of the best rivalries taking place in all of sports. The only downfall is that a championship isn’t decided on the field but on a computer-based system that is the Bowl Championship Series. That will change someday and we will all be better off for it.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your NCAA college football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.