07/02/2009 - Wimbledon, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The top-seeded American twin Bryan brothers, Bob and Mike, landed in their fourth Wimbledon final on Thursday.
The former champion Bryans handled a ninth-seeded tandem of Wesley Moodie and Dick Norman 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-3), 6-4 at the All England Club. The South African Moodie and Belgian Norman were fresh off their surprise French Open title last month.
The Bryans, this year's Australian Open champs, titled here in 2006 and were the Wimbledon runners-up in 2005 and 2007.
The Bryans' opponent on Saturday will be the reigning champion duo of Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic. The second-seeded team snuck past an unseeded American pairing of James Blake and Mardy Fish 5-7, 3-6, 6-2, 7-6 (7-3), 10-8 in Thursday's other semifinal.
The Canadian Nestor and Serbian Zimonjic defeated Jonas Bjorkman and Kevin Ullyett in last year's Wimbledon finale.
Saturday's winning squad will split $377,000.
<< Parma makes offer for Udinese's Di Natale
Parma, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Parma has tabled an $13 million bid for
Udinese's Italy international striker Antonio Di Natale.
The 32-year-old has been at the Friuli for five years, but has hinted that he
would welcome the oppo
<< Wolverhampton completes Milijas signing
Wolverhampton, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Wolverhampton has completed the
signing of Nenad Milijas after being granted a work permit for the Serbia
midfielder.
Milijas, 26, agreed a four-year contract with the newly-promoted Prem
<< Atletico swoops for Juanito
Madrid, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Atletico Madrid has completed the signing of
central defender Juanito from relegated Real Betis.
The 32-year-old Spain international stopper has been with the Seville-based
club for more than a decad
<< NFL suspends Jets LB Pace for four games
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New York Jets linebacker Calvin Pace has been
suspended without pay for the first four games of the 2009 season for
violating the NFL's policy on performance enhancing substances, the league
announc
Stars sign D Skrastins >>
Frisco, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Dallas Stars signed free agent defenseman
Karlis Skrastins to a two-year contract on Thursday.
The 34-year-old is slated to make $2.75 million on the deal, earning
$1.1 million next season.
S
Leafs re-sign Grabovski to three-year deal >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Toronto Maple Leafs re-signed center
Mikhail Grabovski to a three-year contract on Thursday. Financial terms were
not disclosed.
Grabovski, 25, collected 20 goals and 28 assists for 48 points i
Sounders add Costa Rican left back to fold >>
Renton, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Seattle Sounders FC signed Costa Rican
defender Leonardo Gonzalez, pending receipt of his P-1 work permit and
International Clearance, it was announced on Thursday.
"It's nice to have to hav
Real's De la Red may not play again >>
Madrid, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Real Madrid midfielder Ruben De la Red could
be facing the end of his career as doctors struggle to diagnose a problem which
caused him to collapse during a game last season.
The 24-year-old lost consciou
Oddsmakers have released the odds for the 2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award and Seattle Seahawks linebacker Aaron Curry has been made the opening favorite.
Seattle took Curry with the fourth overall pick in April's NFL draft and plan on inserting him into its starting lineup right away. The Hawks traded linebacker Julian Peterson in the offseason, so Curry is expected to have a significant role in Seattle's defense next year and that's one of the primary reasons he is the favorite to win the NFL ROY Award.
Oddsmakers from online sportsbook MySportsbook.com have made Curry a 5/1 favorite to win this year's NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award. Given that he was the best defensive prospect in this year's draft and how he'll have plenty of opportunities to make plays in '09, Curry offers a ton of value at 5/1.
Another thing working for Curry is the position he plays. A linebacker has won the defensive ROY award six straight times and eight of the last nine years. Jerod Mayo, Patrick Willis, DeMeco Ryans, Shawne Merriman, Jonathan Vilma, Terrell Suggs, Kendrell Bell and Brian Urlacher were the most recent linebackers to take home the award.
Following Curry at 5/1 are Tyson Jackson (Chiefs) at 7/1, James Laurinaitas (Rams) at 8/1, Brian Orakpo (Redskins) at 10/1, Rey Maualuga (Bengals) at 10/1 and Jerry Peria (Falcons) at 10/1.
All the players mentioned above are expected to start for their respective teams, but Jackson and Peria are going to have a tough time being recognized on a national level given they're both defensive linemen. D-linemen rarely put up the numbers that it takes to win an individual award like the ROY.
A couple of players with some value are Clay Matthews (Packers) at 12/1 and Larry English (Chargers) at 15/1. Matthews is expected to start at outside linebacker in Green Bay's new 3-4 defense and could rack up a ton of tackles. English, who was an impressive player at Northern Illinois, is expected to be a situational pass rusher for the Chargers and could rack up a ton of sacks.
For complete odds on the 2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award, see below. And for complete odds for the 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Award, click the link provided.
2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award
Robert Ayers (DEN) 12/1
Ron Brace (NE) 25/1
Everette Brown (CAR) 16/1
Darius Butler (NE) 40/1
Patrick Chung (NE) 30/1
Aaron Curry (SEA) 5/1
Brian Cushing (HOU) 12/1
Vontae Davis (MIA) 30/1
Louis Delmas (DET) 30/1
Larry English (SD) 15/1
Evander Hood (PIT) 25/1
Tyson Jackson (KC) 7/1
Malcolm Jenkins (NO) 25/1
Paul Kruger (BAL) 50/1
James Laurinaitas (STL) 8/1
Sen'Derrick Marks (TEN) 20/1
Clay Matthews (GB) 12/1
Aaron Maybin (BUF) 15/1
Rey Maualuga (CIN) 10/1
Roy Miller (TB) 20/1
Michael Mitchell (OAK) 45/1
Fili Moala (IND) 30/1
Brian Orakpo (WAS) 10/1
Jerry Peria (ATL) 10/1
B J Raji (GB) 7/1
Clint Sintim (NYG) 35/1
Alphonso Smith (DEN) 40/1
David Verkune (CLE) 20/1
Jason Williams (DAL) 30/1
Field (Any Other Player) 6/1
To visit this internet sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.
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 sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting odds needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
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