Sports Betting News: NFL Team History | NFL Football Betting | College Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | College Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting
07/02/2010 - Wimbledon, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Czech Tomas Berdych upended third- seeded Serbian star Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon on Friday to reach his first career Grand Slam final.
The 12th-seeded Berdych ousted the former Australian Open champion Djokovic 6-3, 7-6 (11-9), 6-3 on Centre Court at the storied All England Club. Djokovic was also a semifinal loser on the grass here three years ago.
The 6-foot-4 Berdych, who stunned defending champion and six-time Wimbledon winner Roger Federer in four sets here on Wednesday, will meet the Rafael Nadal-Andy Murray semifinal victor in Sunday's lucrative men's finale.
Berdych captured the first set rather easily on Day 11 before Djokovic fought back in the second. The Serbian star, however, was unable to get back into the match by taking the second-set tiebreak and smashed his racquet after dropping the crucial stanza.
The third set was all Berdych, who broke Djokovic to grab a 5-3 lead when Djokovic, who was back on his heels throughout the match, came up with an untimely double fault, his eighth of the day.
Berdych, who simply crushed the tennis ball all day on Friday, set-up his first match point with a huge forehand winner, and wound up converting on his second match point by launching an unreturnable serve after 2 hours, 18 minutes of tennis.
The talented Berdych fired 11 aces among his 34 winners and broke Djokovic's serve three times, compared to only one break for the Serbian loser.
Berdych, who has now won 14 of his last 15 matches, was a semifinal loser at the French Open four weeks ago. He's into his first major final, playing in his 27th Grand Slam event.
The 23-year-old Djokovic appeared in his eight career major semi (2-6). He was the Aussie Open champ in 2008 and reached the Wimbledon final four in 2007, but was forced to retire against Nadal due to a foot injury while trailing in the third set that day.
The 24-year-old Berdych will appear in his 11th career ATP-level final, seeking a sixth title. He was a runner-up to Andy Roddick at this year's Miami Masters event and hasn't titled since running the table at a tournament in Munich last season.
The last Czech player to reach the Wimbledon final was the great Ivan Lendl in 1987. The lone male Czech titlist here was Jan Kodes back in 1973.
<< Capitals sign G Sabourin
Arlington, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Washington Capitals have signed free
agent goaltender Dany Sabourin to a one-year contract.
Sabourin, 29, has played in 57 career NHL games over parts of five seasons
with Calgary, Pittsburgh a
<< Hardcore Hoop Talk: The Free Agent Fantasy
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The quickest way to build a championship
contender is through free agency. That was the message delivered by Donnie
Walsh when he replaced Isiah Thomas as president of basketball operations for
the Knicks in Apri
<< Angels rest hopes on Saunders vs. Royals
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Royals haven't presented the Angels with much of an
obstacle over the last two-plus seasons and Los Angeles starter Joe Saunders
hasn't been exempt from that success.
Saunders aims to remain undefeated in his
<< A's hope to slow down LaPorta in opener with Tribe
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A big reason for Cleveland's resurgence has been the hot
bat of Matt LaPorta, who has homered in three straight games and will try to
make it four tonight in the opener of a three-game series versus the Oakland
Athletics at P
Celtics sign first-round pick Bradley >>
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Celtics have signed guard Avery
Bradley, their first-round pick in the 2010 NBA Draft. Terms of the deal were
not disclosed.
The Celtics took Bradley 19th overall in the draft after he played
Okada steps down as Japan coach >>
Tokyo, Japan (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Japan coach Takeshi Okada has stepped down as
manager following the team's exit from the FIFA World Cup on Tuesday.
Okada guided Japan through the group stage, but the Samurai Blue lost in the
opening round
Petulant players, underwhelming teams highlight World Cup >>
Toronto, Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It was supposed to be a celebration of a
beautiful game, a gathering of some of the best soccer players in the world.
The 2010 World Cup, however, has raised concern in regards to some of the
world's best team
Canadian teams make free-agent splash >>
Toronto, Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The last time Alex Tanguay and Olli Jokinen
were in Calgary Flames uniforms, it seems management, fans or the players
themselves, couldn't leave town fast enough.
Times change, especially when your former t
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.
“You play to win the game!”
Those are the words of notoriously intense head coach Herman Edwards. Unfortunately, from a bettors’ perspective, most coaches don’t feel that way about the NFL preseason. August is a time to evaluate young players, finalize the depth chart and pray your star players stay healthy.
The trick to making money during the exhibition schedule is identifying coaches – like Edwards – who can’t stand losing even when there's nothing on the line.
The New York Jets betting won 15 of 21 preseason games and went 14-7 against the spread (ATS) during Edwards’s five-year tenure with the club. In his first season as the Kansas City Chiefs field boss, the team improved from 0-4 to 2-2.
Identifying win-a-holics like Edwards is a good start if you plan betting the preseason – even though most say you shouldn’t ... but what the hell do they know anyway?
Here’s a brief rundown of two teams that have a habit of winning during the second-stringers’ season, and another club that has a good chance of exceeding this year.
Playing in the media hub of North America can be stressful but the press can’t write anything negative about the way Tom Coughlin’s boys play in the preseason. The Giants won and covered all four games last summer, improving their record to 7-1 both straight up (SU) and against the spread over the last two years.
Coughlin has shown he’s not afraid to give his starters more time in the second preseason game than most of his colleagues, no doubt one of the reasons his team has been so dominant.
Bettors can count on America’s team early on. The Cowboys are 14-6 both SU and ATS since 2002 in warm-up contests. Former coach Bill Parcells, the coach of the team the last four years, has an intimidating, in-your-face presence – surely a reason Dallas has had so much early success.
The Big Tuna won’t be strolling the sidelines with looks of disgust, but new coach Wade Phillips will be anxious to make a good first impression for owner Jerry Jones.
Dallas plays the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos before things get serious. They then face the Houston Texans in their third contest (the game starters see most game time) and finish off with the Minnesota Vikings.
Expect a Dallas team able to walk away with another 3-1 preseason record.
This team scored a league-worst 12 offensive touchdowns last season, so the rookies and veterans each have something to prove. There’s a bounty of first-unit jobs up for grabs and plenty of bodies competing for those slots.
First-time head coach Lane Kiffin will be eager to impress an owner who employs the philosophy, “Just win, baby!”
The 32-year-old Kiffin has to command respect from a locker room full of players older than him. All of these factors should lead to purpose in preseason.
Don’t forget: before playing like a team that belonged in NFL Europe, Oakland went 4-1 (both SU and ATS) in exhibition games.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football wagering needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
Sports Betting News: NFL Team History | NFL Football Betting | College Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | College Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting