Nationwide Tour postpones Mexico Open

Golf Betting Lines

04/29/2009 - Ponte Vedra Beach, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The upcoming Mexico Open on the Nationwide Tour has been postponed due to the recent swine flu outbreak, which was announced Wednesday by Tour president Bill Calfee.

"Given the serious circumstances surrounding the swine flu outbreak, the Nationwide Tour has decided it is in everyone's best interests to reschedule the Mexico Open presented by Corona Light and play the tournament later in the season," Calfee said. "A significant number of lives have been lost in Mexico, which is tragic. There are more important things for people to focus on at the moment."

Originally scheduled to be played the week of May 18-24 at El Bosque Golf Club in Leon, Guanajuato, Mexico, the event's new date will be announced in the near future.

"With regard to new dates, we are in a position where we have options and will begin working with tournament personnel in Mexico to decide when the event will be played," Calfee added. "The PGA TOUR is very committed to the Mexico Open and looks forward to playing at El Bosque Golf Club."

Australian Jarrod Lyle captured the 2008 tournament by five shots over Matt Every. Lyle carded an eight-under 63 on the final day to earn his first career Nationwide Tour title.

This is the first time an event has been postponed on the Nationwide Tour since the 2003 Henrico County (VA) Open.

The Mexico Open owns a rich history dating back to 1944, with past winners such as: Roberto De Vicenzo, Lee Trevino, Billy Casper, Ben Crenshaw, Stewart Cink and Eduardo Romero.

Intercaisno Golf Betting News

<< Angels nip Orioles behind Hunter, Morales homers
Baltimore, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Torii Hunter and Kendry Morales hit back-to- back home runs in the seventh to help the LA Angels of Anaheim take a 3-2 win over the Baltimore Orioles and sweep a two-game set at Camden Yards. Morales drove

<< Pistons to stick with Curry as head coach
Auburn Hills, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Pistons president of basketball operations Joe Dumars confirmed in a press conference on Wednesday that head coach Michael Curry will be back in Detroit next season. In his first year leading

<< Different coach, same results for Sharks
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Last year, the San Jose Sharks lost in the second round of the Western Conference playoffs, and disappointment in that result wound up costing Ron Wilson his job as the team's head coach. Todd McLellan cam

<< Jankovic rolls; Azarenka falls in Stuttgart
Stuttgart, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Reigning champion Jelena Jankovic was an easy opening-round winner, while rising Belarusian Victoria Azarenka suffered a second-round setback at the $700,000 Porsche Tennis Grand Prix. The th

<< TFC names Cummins interim head coach
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Toronto FC announced on Wednesday that Chris Cummins has been named interim head coach after the resignation of John Carver. As a result of the promotion of Cummins, Nick Dasovic takes over as fi

Magic's Howard suspended for Game 6 versus Sixers >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard was assessed a one-game suspension by the NBA on Wednesday for his actions in the team's 91-78 win over the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 5 of their Eastern Confere

Gallardo pitches, hits Brewers past Pirates >>
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Yovani Gallardo single-handedly carried the Brewers to their fifth consecutive sweep of the Pirates, throwing eight scoreless innings and providing the only run of the game with his fourth career

2009 Breeders' Cup confirmed for Santa Anita >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Breeders' Cup President and CEO Greg Avioli confirmed Wednesday that this year's Breeders' Cup World Championships will be conducted at Santa Anita Park during the Oak Tree Racing meet. Avioli released a st

Putz blows lead, as Marlins take two-of-three in New York >>
Flushing, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Cody Ross' two-run single in the eighth lifted the Florida Marlins to a 4-3 win over the New York Mets in the conclusion of a three-game series at Citi Field. Jorge Cantu had a solo home run, two walks and

O'Shea's goal provides lead for United >>
Manchester, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - John O'Shea's goal in the 17th minute gave Manchester United a 1-0 win over Arsenal in the first leg of the Champions League semifinals at Old Trafford on Wednesday. O'Shea scored on a half

Sportsbooks to bet on football

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.

How did changes to college football betting rules affect bettors?

The 2007 college football rules changes that were implemented to shorten games are now history. The NCAA rules committee did what they set out to do; games were cut by an average of 14 minutes per game last season. There were also, on average, 14 fewer plays per game. We’ll get into how that did (or didn’t) affect games in regards to the pointspread a bit later.

While the NCAA rules committee may have had the betterment of the game in mind, they'll now “turn back the clock” for next season. Two key rules have now been overturned by the NCAA committee for the 2007 season, something definitely for the better.

For those of you who may not remember what those rules actually were, let us refresh your memory.

1) The first one was actually starting the clock on a kickoff as soon as the kicker touched the ball rather than waiting until the returner touched it. The problem here was near the end of the half (or game), if the team leading was kicking off, they could milk the clock by intentionally running offsides and then re-kicking. They could run 10-15 seconds off the clock each play while taking just five-yard penalties each time. They could run the clock down and simply cause the half (or game) to end on a kickoff, keeping the opposing offense off the field. In 2007, the clock will now start when the returner touches the ball as it had before last season.

2) The second rule dealt with starting the clock after a change of online football betting possession rather than waiting until the ball was snapped. This took a lot of time off the clock throughout the game as teams changed possession, however it caused the most problems late in games (or halves). Rather than huddling up and calling a play, the offensive team would have to rush onto the field as the clock started. This was a definite disadvantage to a team that was trying to come from behind late in the game. This year the clock will start on a change of possession, after the ball is snapped.

How did those rules affect the college game last year and will it make a difference this year when it comes to the pointspread? We commonly heard two theories when it came to these changes. First, it would affect scoring negatively. Second, it would hurt favorites as they would have less time and fewer plays to cover the number.

Did the rules hurt scoring? Yes. It seemed obvious that shortening the game by what amounted to 14 plays would push scoring downward. That was the case last year. Of the 119 Division 1A teams, 69 squads scored fewer points in 2007 than they did in 2005. Just 48 teams had a higher PPG scoring average and two stayed the same. Almost 59 percent of the teams in college football last year had a lower PPG average than they did in 2005. Expect more scoring in 2007 as we revert back to the old rules.

Did the rules hinder favorites from covering the number in 2007? Not really. Last year the favorites posted an overall spread record of 336-350-16 (48.9 percent). The year before, favorites were 316-326-13 (49.2 percent). In 2004, the favorites were 316-339-2 (48.2 percent). In fact, college football favorites have been above 50 percent for the season just once in the last seven years (in 2003). Last year’s numbers fell right in line with where they have been historically.

How about big favorites? The rules must have hurt them? Maybe a little bit. Double-digit favorites last year came in at a 47.8 percent clip compare with an average of just over 50 percent over the last seven years. Since 1980, favorites of -10 or more have covered at exactly a 50 percent clip (measured over 6,716 games).

Even bigger favorites must have struggled? Not really. In fact, it was just the opposite. Favorites of three TD’s or more were 59-54-2 last year (52.2 percent). Since 2000, those same favorites (-21 or higher) hit at 51.3 percent and since 1990 came in a clip of 50.3 percent. Stepping it up a notch to four TD favorites or higher, we actually see they've covered at a much better rate last season than before. Last year, favorites of -28 or more were 31-21-1, or almost 60 percent. Historically, four-TD-or-higher favorites have come in at a 50.7 percent spot since 2000 and only 48.9 percent since 1990. The “perceived” problem with the favorites covering at a reduced rate really never came to fruition.

Bottom line is, there might be some more scoring in 2007, but no real revelations when it comes to finding any pointspread golden nuggets.

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