Wozniacki, Sharapova advance at Indian Wells; Henin slips

Tennis Betting Lines

03/13/2010 - Indian Wells, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - U.S. Open runner-up Caroline Wozniacki and former world No. 1 Maria Sharapova were among Friday's second-round winners at the $4.5 million BNP Paribas Open tennis event.

The second-seeded Wozniacki, of Denmark, came from behind to beat American Vania King 5-7, 6-2, 6-4 at the beautiful Indian Wells Tennis Garden. Sharapova, seeded 10th, also rallied from a set down to post a 4-6, 7-5, 6-2 victory over fellow Russian Vera Dushevina. Sharapova titled here in 2006.

Belgian Justine Henin came up short in her second-round match as the 31st seed, Gisela Dulko of Argentina, topped the 2004 Indian Wells champ 6-2, 1-6, 6-4.

Meanwhile, fourth-seeded Russian Elena Dementieva held off Belarusian Olga Govortsova 6-4, 4-6, 6-0 and fifth-seeded Pole Agnieszka Radwanska got past former top-10 performer Anna Chakvetadze of Russia 6-2, 5-3, retired.

The highest seeded player to fall on Friday was No. 7 Li Na of China. Brit Elena Baltacha outlasted Li 7-6 (8-6), 2-6. 7-6 (9-7).

Eleventh-seeded Frenchwoman Marion Bartoli was a straight-set winner over Polona Hercog of Slovenia 6-4, 6-2, 15th-seeded Italian Francesca Schiavone bested Kimiko Date Krumm of Japan 6-3, 6-4 and 16th-seeded Russian Nadia Petrova outlasted Swiss Patty Schnyder 6-3, 5-7, 6-4.

Eighteenth-seeded Chinese Zheng Jie handled Romanian Sorana Cirstea 6-3, 7-5, while 19th-seeded Aravane Rezai of France beat lucky loser Tamarine Tanasugarn, Chinese Peng Shuai knocked off 20th-seeded Alona Bondarenko of Ukraine 6-1, 6-4, American Jill Craybas ousted 22nd-seeded German Sabine Lisicki 4-6, 7-5, 2-0, retired, Aussie Alicia Molik took out 29th-seeded Spaniard Anabel Medina Garrigues 6-4, 5-7, 7-6 (7-3), Belgian Kirsten Flipkens upended 30th-seeded Canadian Aleksandra Wozniak 6-1, 6-2 and 32nd-seeded Russian Maria Kirilenko was a 7-5, 6-3 winner over Frenchwoman Virginie Razzano.

This week's 32 seeds all received byes into the second round.

Vera Zvonareva bested 2008 Indian Wells champ Ana Ivanovic in last year's finale here.

The 2010 Indian Wells winner will earn a hefty $700,000.

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Betting Football

NFL Football Betting Online

Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?

I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.

Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.

There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.

Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.

For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.

A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.

The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.

Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.

So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.

Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.

“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.

Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.

“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.

It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.

Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.

The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.

“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.

“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”

Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.

The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.

“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”

Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?

“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”

Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.

FOOTBALL BETTING : Cassel Signs Contract

Kansas City, MO - Kansas City has not officially named Matt Cassel its starting quarterback, but there can be no doubt now.

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After praising his leadership and work ethic through spring workouts, the Chiefs announced Tuesday they had signed the 27-year-old Cassel to a multiyear contract. Terms were not disclosed, but he will almost certainly be one of the highest-paid members of the team.
"We are excited to be able to reach a long-term agreement for Matt Cassel to be a Kansas City Chief for many years to come," owner and board chairman Clark Hunt said in a statement. "His proven leadership on and off the field will be a tremendous asset to the organization."
Patriots made him their franchise player, meaning his salary for this season will be about $15 million.
New head coach Todd Haley, taking over for Herm Edwards after a 2-14 season, refused to name a starter at any position during offseason workouts. But it was obvious to everyone the team belonged to Cassel.
"I go out there each and every day with that focus that I'm the starter," Cassel said during a June minicamp. "Competition brings out the best in everybody."
The signing will come as welcome news to Cassel's new coaches and teammates. Amiable and hardworking, he appeared to win over everyone at minicamp.
"I think he's got some unique leadership qualities. I think his teammates like him and have respect for him. I think he's doing a pretty good job on the field, too," Haley said last month. "He's doing everything that I'm asking him, that our coaches are asking him to do. I don't have one single complaint how he's carrying himself."
After one workout, wide receiver Devard Darling declared Cassel "a breath of fresh air."
"He has a lot of swagger, a lot of confidence. It's good for us," said Darling. "We trust in him that he's going to go out there and lead us all the way."
nse to accommodate his specific abilities.
Trapped on the bench behind Heisman winners Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart at USC and then unable to unseat Super Bowl MVP Brady at New England, Cassel seemed destined to be a backup all his life. As Brady was helped off the field last September, Cassel seized the opportunity he'd been waiting for since high school.
In his only sustained action since his teens, he hit 349 of 555 passes for 3,949 yards at New England. He had 23 touchdown passes and 13 interceptions as the Patriots, who had gone unbeaten through the regular season the year before, finished 11-5 and out of the playoffs.
Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli, who had been Bill Belichick's assistant in New England, engineered the trade after the Patriots became convinced that Brady would recover fully from his knee operation.
"Since Matt arrived in Kansas City, he has embraced the team and the community," Pioli said. "His work ethic, his ability and competitive presence is what we expect from our players."

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