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08/18/2010 - Mason, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top seeds Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic and last week's Canadian Masters titlist Andy Murray were a trio of second-round winners Wednesday at the $3 million Western & Southern Financial Group Masters, a U.S. Open Series event.
Roger Federer, a 16-time major titlist and reigning champ here, also advanced when Denis Istomin of Russia retired due to a right foot and ankle injury with the Swiss superstar leading 5-2 in the first set. Federer, seeded third, also won this event in 2005 and 2007.
The world No. 1 Nadal handled oft-injured American qualifier Taylor Dent, 6-2, 7-5, while the second-seeded, but world No. 3, Djokovic doused Serb Viktor Troicki, 6-3, 7-5 on the hardcourts at the Lindner Family Tennis Center. Nadal is now 27-3 in ATP Masters 1000 events this year.
Djokovic, who captured his 100th Masters 1000 victory on Wednesday, has lost in the last two finals here, with Federer getting the best of him last year.
The Wimbledon and French Open champion Nadal will face France's Julien Benneteau in the third round here on Thursday, while Djokovic will battle Argentine star David Nalbandian, a titlist in Washington, D.C. two weeks ago. Nalbandian was trailing John Isner 4-5 in the first set on Wednesday when the 6-foot-9 American retired from their match. The hot Nalbandian has now won 13 of his last 14 matches.
A fourth-seeded Murray held off Frenchman Jeremy Chardy, 6-3, 6-7 (3-7), 6-2 in 2 hours, 9 minutes on Day 4 here. January's Aussie Open runner-up to Federer, Murray beat Federer in last week's marquee finale in Toronto and was the Cincy champ in 2008.
Murray will be opposed by talented Latvian Ernests Gulbis on Thursday.
Ninth-seeded Andy Roddick, who titled here in 2003 and 2006 and was the runner-up in 2005, straight-setted Thiemo De Bakker, 7-6 (7-4), 6-4. while Nikolay Davydenko, seeded sixth, defeated Robby Ginepri, 6-2, 6-7 (5-7), 6-2.
Lleyton Hewitt, a former top-ranked player and runner-up at this event in 2002 and 2004, was ousted by fifth-seeded Robin Soderling, 4-6, 6-3, 7-5 in a little under two hours.
Upsets came when the wild card/surging American Mardy Fish dismissed eighth- seeded Spaniard Fernando Verdasco, and Gulbis knocked out 13th-seeded Austrian Jurgen Melzer, 6-7 (8-10), 6-3, 7-6 (7-5).
Fish, who has won 13 of his last 14 matches, including titles in Newport and Atlanta, was the Cincinnati runner-up back in 2003. He beat Verdasco in two sets, both tiebreakers.
Tenth-seeded Spaniard David Ferrer avoided an upset by handling American Sam Querrey, 7-5, 6-2. Querrey is a four-time champion on the ATP World Tour this season.
In other second-round play, France's Richard Gasquet grounded German Michael Berrer, 6-4, 6-2, German Philipp Kohlschreiber got past Colombian qualifier Alejandro Falla, 6-0, 1-6, 6-3, and Benneteau blitzed Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka, 6-4, 6-2.
The 2010 Cincinnati titlist will claim $443,500.
<< Cardinals release S Rouse
Tempe, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Arizona Cardinals have released safety
Aaron Rouse.
The 26-year-old played in 14 games, eight as a starter, last season for the
New York Giants and compiled 52 tackles and one sack.
He was orig
<< Richard, Padres continue to roll in win over Cubs
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Clayton Richard allowed just one run in 6 2/3
strong innings, leading the San Diego Padres to a 5-1 victory over the Chicago
Cubs in the third of four games at Wrigley Field.
Richard (11-5) yielded seven h
<< VCU extends Smart's contract
Richmond, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Shaka Smart, the head men's basketball coach
at Virginia Commonwealth University, received a two-year contract extension on
Wednesday.
In his first season on the job, Smart led the Rams to a 27-9 record, o
<< Bills safety Byrd out indefinitely with groin injury
Pittsford, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Buffalo Bills safety Jairus Byrd is out
indefinitely after having surgery to repair a nagging groin injury.
Byrd's rookie season in 2009 was cut short by the problem. He was felled after
racking up 45
Rollins keeps Phils rolling vs. Giants >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jimmy Rollins' three-run homer capped a
four-run fourth inning, and the Philadelphia Phillies widened the gap in the
NL Wild Card race with an 8-2 win over the San Francisco Giants.
Rollins fell a d
Tuiasosopo keys Mariners over O's for second straight night >>
Baltimore, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Seattle left fielder Matt Tuiasosopo clubbed
a three-run homer and made a spectacular diving catch to preserve the lead in
the eighth inning, as Mariners beat the Baltimore Orioles, 6-5, in the rubber
match o
Uggla, Johnson get Marlins past reeling Pirates >>
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dan Uggla homered in support of Josh
Johnson, who worked eight effective innings to lead Florida past Pittsburgh,
3-2, in the third of four meetings at PNC Park.
Johnson (11-5) bounced back from
Braves beat Nats on Heyward single in ninth >>
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jason Heyward's line drive base hit up the
middle plated Rick Ankiel with the game-winning run in the ninth, giving the
Atlanta Braves a dramatic 3-2 victory over the Washington Nationals.
In Atlanta's
Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.
Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.
Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.
If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.
Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.
By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.
In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.
So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.
While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.
There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.
In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:
SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.
XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.
XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.
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MySportsbook.com: New College Football Clock Rules Examined
Coaches and bettors alike are desperate to make sense of the new time-keeping rules on the NCAA gridiron. One of the big stories to come out of the Ohio State-Texas clash last weekend was Texas coach Mack Brown's criticism of the NCAA's new clock rules that are intended to shorten the duration of college football games, therefore affecting college football betting.
"They scored with six minutes left and the game was over before we had a chance to do anything," Brown told ESPN.com. "I really hope whoever made these changes will go back and look them over."
Sure, it might be sour grapes; the Buckeyes thoroughly trounced the defending national champion Longhorns 24-7. However, Brown isn't alone in giving the changes their due thought. Bettors are also wondering about them, albeit for a completely different reason. Most experts agree that the changes will result in games being shortened by anywhere from 10 to 20 plays. The obvious consequence is lower scores, with more time rolling off the clock during changes of possession. (The Ohio State-Texas game flew well under the total of 52.)
According to research at the online sportsbook MySportsbook.com, more than 18 plays a game disappeared last weekend into thin air. That's a 10-percent reduction. In 2005, a typical game had 168.58 plays. For 2007 already, it's down to 150.26.
As a result, teams combined to gain an average of about 100 fewer yards a game last weekend versus the 2005 openers. Scoring was also down by about 4.5 points (attention Las Vegas sports lines).
Of course, oddsmakers were able to adjust to the changes before the season started. Proof of that came as the over went a balanced 8-9 at My Sportsbook on Saturday.
Other angles to consider:A shorter game should theoretically result in shorter lines. Whereas Team A might have been a 14-point favorite in a 168-play game (last year), if there are 10 percent less snaps in 2007, the line should also be reduced by 10 percent (to 13 or 12.5). Of course, this is an over-simplification of the matter, but something to keep in mind.
Less possessions means a better chance the game will be decided by three or seven points. For example, what might have been a 20-10 final score in 2005 may end at
17-10 in 2007. Granted, a 24-17 game last year might end at 21-17 these days, but the former - a three- or seven-point advantage being preserved as opposed to created - is the most likely scenario.
*UPDATE* - Sept. 25, 2007
New Clock Rules Boon for online bookmakers
By adjusting the time-keeping rules to shorten the duration of college football games, the NCAA hoped to make its product more enjoyable for the fans. While the NCAA's success in this regard is still up for debate, bookmakers couldn't be happier with the results.
"We are seeing a massive jump in college football betting," noted the MySportsbook.com management team. "With all the early Saturday games (12 a.m. ET) ending before the second wave begins (3:30 p.m. ET) - something that didn't always happen before the changes - bettors are now able to re-invest their winnings from the morning session in the afternoon games."
While not all bettors will choose to roll over their winnings, it doesn't take much for an impact to be seen on the bottom line. "Not all of the millions of dollars in morning payouts get re-bet. In fact, it's probably only 10 to 20 percent," noted the sportsbook management team. "Still, the increased football betting lines window will create a ton of growth for us over the course of the season."
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