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02/15/2012 - Doha, Qatar (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - World No. 1 Belarusian stalwart Victoria Azarenka was an easy second-round winner, while former top-ranked star Caroline Wozniacki was among Wednesday's second-round losers at the $2.168 million Qatar Open.
The Australian Open champion Azarenka saw her first action as the world No. 1 star and looked very bit the part on Day 3 as she pummeled rising German Mona Barthel 6-1, 6-0 in one hour on the hardcourts at Khalifa International Tennis Complex. The 21-year-old Barthel captured her first-ever WTA title in Hobart last month.
A second-seeded Wozniacki, meanwhile, played her first match since losing the top ranking to Azarenka last month and succumbed to Czech Lucie Safarova 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-3) in the round of 32. The Danish Wozniacki was last year's Doha runner-up to Russian Vera Zvonareva, who also exited the draw here on Wednesday.
Romanian Monica Niculescu was beating a sixth-seeded Zvonareva 7-5, 3-2 when the former Wimbledon and U.S. Open runner-up retired, citing a hip injury.
Zvonareva was also a Doha runner-up in 2008.
Two other top-five seeds reached the third round, as No. 4 Pole Agnieszka Radwanska drubbed British qualifier Anne Keothavong 6-1, 6-2 and No. 5 French slugger Marion Bartoli dismantled Spaniard Anabel Medina Garrigues 6-2, 6-0. The former Wimbledon runner-up Bartoli was a runner-up in Paris last week.
Two more top-eight seeds suffered upsets, as Belgian Yanina Wickmayer doused No. 7 Italian Francesca Schiavone 7-6 (7-4), 6-4 and Israeli Shahar Peer erased No. 8 Serb Jelena Jankovic 7-6 (7-3), 6-2. Schiavone was last year's French Open runner-up and the 2010 Roland Garros titlist. Jankovic is a former No. 1.
In other second-round action involving seeds, rising American Christina McHale overcame No. 12 Chinese Peng Shuai 5-7, 6-3, 6-2; Czech Petra Cetkovska topped No. 13 and former top-ranked Serbian star Ana Ivanovic 6-4, 6-4; No. 14 Svetlana Kuznetsova handled fellow Russian Maria Kirilenko 6-4, 6-4; and American qualifier Varvara Lepchenko upended No. 16 German Julia Goerges 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-5). Kirilenko was a runner-up in Pattaya City last week. The two-time Grand Slam champion Kuznetsova was the Doha runner-up in 2004 and 2007.
Additional second-round wins came for Romanian Simona Halep, Russian Ksenia Pervak, Ukrainian qualifier Kateryna Bondarenko and Bulgarian Tsvetana Pironkova, who cooled off last week's maiden WTA titlist Angelique Kerber 6-4, 6-1. The German Kerber was the champion in Paris last weekend, as she downed the aforementioned Bartoli in the finale.
The 2012 Doha champion will earn a first prize of $385,000.
<< Champion mare Havre de Grace works on Wednesday
New Orleans, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Horse of the Year Havre de Grace took to
the Fair Grounds track Wednesday morning for her second workout of the year.
The five-year-old mare is wintering at Fair Grounds Race Course with the rest
of trai
<< Billups has successful surgery on torn Achilles
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Los Angeles Clippers guard Chauncey
Billups underwent successful surgery to repair a torn Achilles tendon on
Wednesday.
The procedure occurred a little more than a week after he was pronounc
<< Everton signs Junior
Liverpool, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Everton made a swoop on Wednesday for
out-of-contract midfielder Francisco Junior, who joins the Toffees on a two-
and-a-half-year deal.
The 20-year-old Portuguese youngster began his career at Ben
<< Four football players arrested in TCU drug bust
Fort Worth, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Police made a drug bust at Texas Christian
University on Wednesday morning, a sting which included the arrest of four
football players.
The six-month investigation by Fort Worth and TCU Campus Police r
U.S. men head to Florida for key matches >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The United States Men's National Team will be
heading to Florida for two crucial matches in the coming months, it was
announced Wednesday.
The U.S. Soccer Federation revealed that Jurgen Klinsmann'
Sam Houston State hires Ruse as offensive coordinator >>
Frisco, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Doug Ruse helped Western Illinois to a seven-win
improvement and a berth in the FCS playoffs in his first season as its
offensive coordinator in 2010.
It would seem hard to improve much upon Sam Houston State's
The Sixth Man: Pacers fail big test >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A moral victory in professional sports
borders on being a contradiction, at least until you actually see one.
There are no participation trophies when the big boys play, only the cold,
hard reality of wins
Argonauts ink WR Barnes >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Toronto Argonauts inked wideout Jason
Barnes, signing the fleet receiver through 2013.
Barnes, who was plucked from the Edmonton Eskimos, will be reunited with
former Esks quarterback and curren
Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.
Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.
Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.
If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.
Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.
By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.
In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.
So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.
While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.
There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.
In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:
SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.
XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.
XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.
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Sportsbook betting odds favor Europe in Ryder Cup
September 19, – Despite holding a decided edge in the all-time series, with 24 wins, 2 ties and 10 losses, Team USA is the underdog again heading into the Ryder Cup in Kidare, Ireland this weekend, according to MySportsbook.com. The Europeans have captured four of the past five editions, including their largest victory ever, an 18 ½ to 9 ½ thumping in Michigan in 2004. Current Ryder Cup betting odds favor the Europeans to continue their winning ways; they are a 4-5 bet to take the title, compared to 6-5 for the Americans.
Despite being knocked out in the first round of World Match play by Shaun Micheel, Tiger Woods is predicted to lead the US charge and be their highest point scorer for the week, with odds listed at 9-4 that he outpoints all other American players, including Jim Furyk, Phil Mickelson and Chris DiMarco to name a few. Team USA has four relatively unknown players on the roster but all four are 2007 tournament winners and have posted some of season’s best performances, each earning over $1.5 million on the PGA TOUR. They include Zach Johnson, Vaughan Taylor, JJ Henry and Brett Wetterich.
The experienced European squad includes the likes of Luke Donald, Sergio Garcia, Padraig Harrington, Jose Maria Olazabal and Darren Clarke, who’s emotions will be tested after the passing of his wife to a battle with cancer. Donald and Garcia are in particularly good form and each is a 5-1 bet to lead the European squad in the points race. Donald has proven he can go head to head with Woods at a major event after a run for the $1.2 million purse at the PGA Championship. Garcia’s Ryder Cup credentials prove he’s ready for battle too.
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Ryder Cup Odds| Europe Tie USA |
4-5 10-1 6-5 |
| Tiger Woods Jim Furyk Phil Mickelson Chris DiMarco David Toms Stewart Cink Chad Campbell Scott Verplank Zach Johnson Vaughan Taylor JJ Henry Brett Wetterich |
9-4 4-1 5-1 7-1 8-1 12-1 15-1 15-1 25-1 30-1 30-1 50-1 |
| Sergio Garcia Luke Donald Padraig Harrington Colin Montgomerie Darren Clarke David Howell Lee Westwood Paul Casey Henrik Stenson Jose Maria Olazabal Paul McGinley Robert Karlsson |
5-1 5-1 6-1 13-2 8-1 9-1 9-1 11-1 12-1 12-1 20-1 25-1 |
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