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Jimenez outlasts Westwood for Dubai title

Golf Betting Lines

02/07/2010 - Dubai, United Arab Emirates (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Miguel Angel Jimenez didn't play great golf in Sunday's playoff, but did enough to defeat Lee Westwood and win the Dubai Desert Classic.

Jimenez netted three pars in the extra session and the last one was enough to topple Westwood, last year's Race to Dubai winner.

Jimenez and Westwood, two of four third-round co-leaders, headed to the par- four ninth at the Emirates Golf Club for the third playoff hole. Westwood had good looks at victory on both previous holes and Jimenez did his share of scrambling, but they were even on No. 9.

Westwood found the fairway off the tee at the ninth, while Jimenez missed the short grass in the left first cut. Jimenez came up short and right with his approach, but Westwood was almost a club short and nearly met a watery problem.

Jimenez chipped to four feet and Westwood pitched to six feet. Westwood missed his par putt and Jimenez drained his for his 16th European Tour victory and ninth since he turned 40.

"I feel so proud to win this trophy. I like the golf course, I like the ambience and I like the people and I am very happy," said the 46-year-old, who was a runner-up twice in this event.

Thongchai Jaidee, the third of four third-round co-leaders, had a one-over 73 and missed the playoff by a single stroke at minus-10.

Martin Kaymer, who won the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship two weeks ago, posted a two-under 70 and shared fourth place with Edoardo Molinari, who had a 71 on Sunday. The pair finished at nine-under 279.

That wasn't quite enough to get into the sudden-death session between Jimenez and Westwood.

Both playoff combatants had even-par 72s on Sunday and finished regulation tied at 11-under 277. Jimenez birdied the 17th and Westwood the 18th to put the two into a sudden-death playoff.

Westwood appeared to have the advantage on the first playoff trip through the par-five 18th. Jimenez laid up short of the water, while Westwood knocked it just left of the green. Jimenez nearly rolled into the pond with his third, but was safe and actually got up and down for par. Westwood had 10 feet for the birdie and the win, but played too much break and it was back to the tee for the second playoff hole.

If the first extra hole was advantage Westwood, the second time around in sudden death it was absolutely his for the taking. Jimenez drove into the rough and once again had to lay up, only this time he had 200 yards for his third. Westwood's fairway-metal second rolled over the back and Jimenez' third found a bunker.

Westwood hit an average chip and left himself with 15 feet downhill for birdie. Jimenez blasted out to 12 feet, so Westwood stepped over his putt in great shape. He missed, but tapped in for par and had to wait for Jimenez to make his to extend the playoff.

"The Mechanic" poured his par save into the middle of the cup and it was off to the par-four ninth and eventually the winner's circle for the 46-year-old Spaniard.

"I made a very good putt on the second hole of the playoff on the 18th that kept me going then I had a putt to win," said Jimenez. "My last win was in 2008 in the PGA (BMW PGA Championship) and it proves the old guys like me can win."

Jimenez had an average day in windy conditions on Sunday. With several players, including Westwood, Jaidee and Alvaro Quiros, on top of the leaderboard, Jimenez plodded along.

He made bogey at the sixth, then went birdie-bogey immediately after the turn. Jimenez still trailed and didn't move in front until his third birdie in four rounds at the 17th.

Westwood caught him with a birdie on the 18th in the final group.

The final 54-hole leader to finish on Sunday was Quiros, a runner-up last week in Qatar. Quiros owned the lead for a good portion of the back nine until three late bogeys led him to a three-over 75.

Quiros shared sixth place with last year's winner Rory McIlroy, who managed a one-over 73 in the final round. McIlroy and Quiros came in at eight-under-par 280.

Tom Watson, 60, played his first European Tour event since 1993 and was brilliant on Sunday. He shot a four-under 68 and tied for eighth with world No. 10 Henrik Stenson and Gregory Bourdy. Both Stenson and Bourdy had 68s as well on Sunday and the trio was knotted at minus-six.

"I'm obviously very happy with how I played today," said Watson. "It was a good week. I've enjoyed it very much. It was a learning experience here in Dubai.

NOTES: Amateur Matteo Manassero had a one-under 71 on Sunday and tied for 31st at minus-one...Last week's winner in Qatar, Robert Karlsson, struggled to a four-over 76 and fell into a tie for 44th at plus-one...Next week is a new event on tour, the Avantha Masters in India.


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What Is the Point Spread?

What are Sports Betting Point Spreads?

In any football or basketball game (the main sports that use point spreads) there are two teams playing against each other.

Those teams, though, are rarely exactly evenly matched – meaning that typically one team has a better chance than the other to win the game. If bettors were allowed to bet on who was simply going to win the game, smart ones would obviously bet on the better team (likely winning more than 50% of the time in the process).

If winning were that easy the Las Vegas and online sportsbooks would stop taking any bets! This is where the point spread comes in: the basic function of the point spread is to balance the likelihood of each team “winning” by adjusting the final score by the point spread. After this adjustment is made you get the Against The Spread result (ATS result for short).

Let’s look at Super Bowl XXXIX, New England Patriots vs. Philadelphia Eagles. Most people believed the defending champ Patriots to be the better team – so if betting were simply based upon which team would win the game, an uneven majority of people would have wagered on New England. But, by using the point spread, the bookmakers adjusted the terms of the bet, evening the proposition so about half the people believed the Pats to be the smart bet, while the other half considered Philly to be the smart bet.

How to Read Point Spreads

New England Patriots -7 vs. Philadelphia Eagles

The better team, called the Favorite, is expected to win the game and must “give” or “lay” points to the weaker team. The favorite is listed with a minus sign and the number of points they are favored by (e.g., New England -7)

In the case of our example, New England must not only win the game, but they must win by more than 7 points for Pats bettors to have a winning ATS result. An Eagles bettor wins his bet either if:

  • Philly wins the actual game by any amount of points
    OR
  • Philly loses the game by less than 7 points.
  • There was also the possibility that the final score could land exactly on the spread number (for example, the Pats winning 28-21 when -7), which is called a “push” or “no action” and a refund is then issued to bettors of both teams.

    The same game with the same point spread can be considered from the weaker team’s perspective: The Underdog (Philly in the case of our example) is not expected to win the game and thus receives or “gets” points given by the stronger team. When a game is stated from the underdog’s perspective the team is listed with a plus sign and the number of points they are underdogs by:

    Philadelphia Eagles +7 vs. New England Patriots

    Keep in mind that Philadelphia +7 and New England -7 is the same point spread on the same game, simply stated differently. The first is from the underdog’s perspective; the later is from the favorite’s.

    For Those Who Like to Consider Things Mathematically

    Not a must, but for some a mathematical approach is insightful. You can determine the ATS winner by either:

  • Subtracting the point spread from the favorite’s score (thus the minus sign before the number) and then compare to the underdog’s score
    OR
  • Adding the point spread to the underdog’s score (thus the plus sign before the number) and then compare to the favorite’s score

    Who Really “Won” the Super Bowl odds ?

    Let’s look at the actual result of Super Bowl XXXIX: New England 24 Philadelphia 21

    The favorite, New England, won the game but not by more than the point spread they were favored by (7), so the ATS result was a LOSS for Pats bettors.

    Looking at it from the underdog’s perspective, Philly did not win the game, but they lost by less than the point spread (7), so the ATS result was a WIN for Eagle bettors.

    Mathematically considered, 24 for the favorite Pats minus 7 equals 17, which is less than the 20 the Eagles scored, so the underdog Eagles win the ATS result (or you could figure 20 plus 7 equals 27 for the Eagles, which is more than 24 for the Pats).

    Emily’s boyfriend understood the point spread and wagered $100 on the Eagles at +7. The Eagles may not have gotten a Super Bowl ring, but since they won the ATS result Emily’s boyfriend cashed his bet – giving him money to take her out to a nice dinner.

    And now hopefully you understand how to read point spreads, putting you one step closer to joining the fun of sports betting.

To visit this internet sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting and World Series odds.

2007 NFL Football Betting Preview


“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.

New York Giants betting lines

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.

Dallas Cowboys betting lines

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.

Oakland Raiders betting lines

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.