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
07/30/2010 - White Sulphur Springs, WV (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jeff Overton fired an eight-under 62 on Friday to take four-shot lead midway through The Greenbrier Classic.
Chasing his first PGA Tour win, Overton had eight birdies in a flawless round and finished 36 holes on The Old White Course with a 14-under 126.
He moved past Boo Weekley, who collected seven birdies for a 63 earlier in the day to post a 10-under 130.
First-round co-leader Erik Compton, the two-time heart transplant recipient, followed his 63 with a 68 on Friday and slipped into a tie for third place with Jimmy Walker (64) at nine-under 131.
Chris Stroud had a 63 and was tied with Aaron Baddeley (65), Briny Baird (65) and Charles Howell III (67) at eight-under 132, while Jim Furyk (65) led a large group at 133.
Overton parred his last four holes after going eight-under through the first 14 to briefly raise the possibility of shooting a 59.
Not that he was thinking about it.
Learning from two prior experiences this season where he allowed the thought of shooting a 59 to creep into his head -- he missed the cut in both tournaments -- Overton just concentrated on the shots in front of him.
"To be honest, as soon as I hit my driver on the first hole and I hit a good wedge shot in there, I knew that I was gonna have a good round," he said. "I was very confident with the way I was swinging my driver, and I knew if I could continue just to put the ball in play and to keep balls in fairways, I knew I was gonna have a good shot at a low number today."
He was the latest among a sudden surge of players who have flirted with carding golf's magic number.
Paul Goydos had the fourth 59 in PGA Tour history on July 8 during the first round of the John Deere Classic. Steve Stricker shot a 60 the same day, nearly holing out for a 59.
Carl Pettersson shot a 60 during the third round of the Canadian Open last Saturday, just missing a long birdie putt at the 18th hole that would have given him a 59.
Overton's bid was all but stopped when he missed an eight-foot birdie putt at No. 6 -- his 15th hole -- to leave him needing birdies on each of his last three holes.
He parred all of them, settling for a career-low score on the PGA Tour.
"I don't really know when the last time I was playing with this much confidence, I guess you could say," said Overton. "I'm also feeling very comfortable."
Overton did most of his damage on the back nine -- his front nine -- by collecting five birdies for a 31.
He made back-to-back birdies at the 11th and 12th, holing an 18-foot putt for the first. But his real charge came with four consecutive birdies around the turn, beginning with a three-foot putt at the 16th.
Overton got up-and-down from a bunker for birdie at the 17th, rolled in a five-footer at the 18th and finished off the run with an approach inside three feet at No. 1, taking a two-shot lead.
Even when things didn't bounce his way, Overton was able to escape trouble. His tee shot at No. 3, a 205-yard par three, hit a sprinkler head and bounced into a greenside bunker. But he blasted out to four feet and saved par.
Overton's last two birdies came at the fourth and fifth, on putts from 12 and five feet.
"I'm hitting it well," he said. "If I can continue to drive it well, drive it down the middle of the fairways, I feel like I'm pretty confident with my game."
Although Overton has never won on tour, the 27-year-old has knocked on the door several times already this season.
He was runner-up in New Orleans, tied for second place at the Byron Nelson, shared third place at Colonial and took solo third at the AT&T National earlier this month.
Those finishes -- in less than a three-month span -- have helped Overton earn more than $2.4 million this season, placing him 10th on the PGA Tour money list.
The money is nice, but Overton is looking for more.
"I would take a win over 100 [second-place finishes]. That's what it's all about," he said. "It's about coming out here and playing, and for that given week, being able to say you were the best in the world at something."
NOTES: The cut line fell at two-under 138 and Goydos, David Toms, Kenny Perry and Jeff Maggert are among those who will miss the weekend...Overton's previous career low was a 63 in the first round at Colonial in May...Matt Every, who shared the 18-hole lead with Compton, had a 72 and dropped nine shots back at five-under 135...This is the first year of this event.
<< Cards agree to terms with Blair
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. Louis Cardinals on Friday agreed to
terms with pitcher Seth Blair.
Blair, who was the club's supplemental first round pick, 46th overall, in last
month's draft, will report to Single-A Batavia in th
<< Isles acquire D Wisniewski from Ducks
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Anaheim Ducks traded newly signed
defenseman James Wisniewski to the New York Islanders for a conditional third-
round pick in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft.
Earlier Friday, the 26-year-old Wisniews
<< A's sign first-round selection Choice
Oakland, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Oakland Athletics have signed their top
pick of the 2010 First-Year Player Draft, outfielder Michael Choice, to a
minor league contract.
Choice was taken 10th overall in the first round.
He was
<< Yankees appear set to acquire Berkman from Astros
St. Petersburg, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Yankees are reportedly set
to acquire Lance Berkman from the Houston Astros.
A story from MLB.com cites a source in reporting the impending deal, adding
that Berkman gave general manag
Blackhawks ink former first-rounder Leddy >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Blackhawks on Friday signed
defenseman Nick Leddy to a three-year contract.
Leddy came over from Minnesota on February 12 in the trade that sent Cam
Barker to the Wild. He was taken 16
Detroit P Galarraga leaves game >>
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Detroit Tigers starter Armando Galarraga left
Friday's game with the Boston Red Sox due to an apparent right ankle injury.
Galarraga was struck by a line drive off the bat of Boston's Kevin Youkilis
with two o
Habs sign last year's top pick Leblanc >>
Montreal, QC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Montreal Canadiens have signed
forward Louis Leblanc, their first round draft choice in 2009, to a three-year
contract.
Leblanc was the 18th overall choice in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft.
The
Thompson joined by Chappell in Cox Classic lead >>
Omaha, NE (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kyle Thompson carded a six-under 65 Friday to
remain tied for the lead after 36 holes of the Cox Classic.
Thompson, who shared the first-round lead with Steven Bowditch, finished two
rounds at 14-under-pa
“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