Grace tops stars for 2nd win in a row on European Tour
Golf Betting Lines
01/22/2012 -
George, South Africa (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - South Africa's Branden Grace toppled
two of his home country's golfing icons, Ernie Els and Retief Goosen, in a
playoff Sunday to win the Volvo Golf Champions, his second win in a row on the
European Tour.
Grace birdied the first playoff hole to best Els and Goosen. He earned his
first tour victory a week ago at the Joburg Open and that got him into this
exclusive event, reserved for European Tour players who won European Tour
events in the last year.
Sunday's win at The Links at Fancourt had to be extra special for Grace
considering he came through the Ernie Els and Fancourt Foundation. Perhaps
even more amazing than two wins in the three events on the 2012 European Tour
schedule, is that Grace came through tour Q School just last month.
Grace, a third-round co-leader, overcame a rocky start on Sunday that included
a double-bogey at three and a bogey at four. He tallied five birdies the rest
of the way for a two-under 71.
Els played the last 11 holes in five-under par and signed for a six-under 67
on Sunday. Goosen was alone in the lead until an errant drive at nine led to a
double-bogey and he dropped a shot at 12. He rebounded with an eagle, three
birdies, all in the last four holes, to shoot a three-under 70.
The trio finished regulation at 12-under 280 and headed back to the par-five
closing hole at Fancourt.
Grace and Goosen both found the short grass off the tee at 18, but Els pulled
his drive into the left rough. The Big Easy had to lay up with his second and
both Grace and Goosen landed in the front right portion of the green.
Els' third stopped 15 feet from the flagstick, giving him a decent chance at
birdie. Goosen stubbed his chip, while Grace lagged his eagle try close.
Goosen failed to make birdie, and with Grace in close, the pressure belonged
to Els.
His birdie putt stayed above ground and Grace tapped in for birdie and his
second win in as many weeks and a healthy, albeit early, lead in the Race to
Dubai.
"I'm really ecstatic," said Grace. "It's a dream come true to win such a big
event - pretty much the best tournament I've played in so far."
Third-round co-leader Nicolas Colsaerts bogeyed the last to fall out of a
possible playoff. He managed a one-under 72 and finished fourth at 11-under
par.
Masters champion Charl Schwartzel also had a 72 on Sunday and came in fifth at
minus-10.
European Ryder Cup captain Jose Maria Olazabal enjoyed a nice showing this
week. The Hall of Famer shot an even-par 73 on Sunday and was sixth at eight-
under 284.
"At certain moments in the round it looked a little bit like the old days,"
said Olazabal.
NOTES: This event was reserved not just for winners on last year's schedule,
but also current tour members under the age of 50 with more than 10 victories
are also invited...That is how Goosen and Olazabal got into the field...Next
week is the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship in the United Arab Emirates,
where Martin Kaymer has won the last two years...Luke Donald, Lee Westwood,
Rory McIlroy, Kaymer and Tiger Woods are expected to make their season debuts.
<< Wizards, Celtics clash in D.C.
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Washington's only two wins this season have come at home.
The Wizards hope that trend continues today versus the Boston Celtics at
the Verizon Center. They will close out a five-game homestand Sunday and fell
to 1-3
<< Clippers entertain Raptors at Staples Center
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The suddenly-dangerous Los Angeles Clippers could be
without two of their top playmakers when they wrap up a three-game homestand
this afternoon versus the Toronto Raptors at Staples Center.
Newcomer Chris Paul is
<< Heat resume homestand vs. Bucks
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - While it's unknown if Heat star guard Dwyane Wade will play
tonight versus the Milwaukee Bucks in the continuation of a five-game
homestand, Miami hasn't missed a beat without him.
Wade has missed the last three
<< Nets play host to Bobcats
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two of the worst teams the Eastern Conference has to offer
get together tonight at the Prudential Center, where the New Jersey Nets will
host the Charlotte Bobcats.
The Bobcats will close out a three-game road trip toni
<< Lakers aim to rebound with Pacers in town
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Lakers can't worry about their struggles on
the road because they have the Indiana Pacers coming to town tonight for a
showdown at Staples Center.
Los Angeles has dropped three in a row on the road
United edges Arsenal to keep pace in title race >>
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Manchester United kept itself within
touching distance of first-place Manchester City on Sunday with a 2-1 defeat
of Arsenal at the Emirates.
City edged Tottenham earlier in the day to see the Cit
NFL Inactives (Sunday, January 22, 2012) >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The following is a list of inactive
players for today's AFC Championship Game.
BALTIMORE RAVENS AT NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS, 3:00 P.M. (ET)
Ravens - WR Tandon Doss, CB Chykie Brown, RB Anthony Allen, LB Josh
Dortmund thumps Hamburg to go level atop the Bundesliga >>
Hamburg, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Borussia Dortmund moved into a tie with
Bayern Munich and Schalke for the Bundesliga lead on Sunday with a resounding
5-1 win over Hamburg at the Imtech Arena.
Kevin Grosskreutz put the visitors in f
PSV held to a draw by Utrecht >>
Utrecht, Netherlands (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - PSV missed a golden opportunity to
jump ahead of first-place AZ Alkmaar as it was held to a 1-1 draw by Utrecht
at the Stadion Galgenwaard on Sunday.
With AZ Alkmaar playing to a 1-1 draw with A
Indiana uses strong second half to top Penn State >>
Bloomington, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Cody Zeller had 18 points on 7-of-8
shooting and tallied four blocks, leading 11th-ranked Indiana to a 73-54 win
over Penn State at Assembly Hall.
Jordan Hulls scored all 14 of his points in the
MySportsbook.com: New College Football Clock Rules Examined
Coaches and bettors alike are desperate to make sense of the new time-keeping rules on the NCAA gridiron. One of the big stories to come out of the Ohio State-Texas clash last weekend was Texas coach Mack Brown's criticism of the NCAA's new clock rules that are intended to shorten the duration of college football games, therefore affecting college football betting.
"They scored with six minutes left and the game was over before we had a chance to do anything," Brown told ESPN.com. "I really hope whoever made these changes will go back and look them over."
Sure, it might be sour grapes; the Buckeyes thoroughly trounced the defending national champion Longhorns 24-7. However, Brown isn't alone in giving the changes their due thought. Bettors are also wondering about them, albeit for a completely different reason. Most experts agree that the changes will result in games being shortened by anywhere from 10 to 20 plays. The obvious consequence is lower scores, with more time rolling off the clock during changes of possession. (The Ohio State-Texas game flew well under the total of 52.)
According to research at the online sportsbook MySportsbook.com, more than 18 plays a game disappeared last weekend into thin air. That's a 10-percent reduction. In 2005, a typical game had 168.58 plays. For 2007 already, it's down to 150.26.
As a result, teams combined to gain an average of about 100 fewer yards a game last weekend versus the 2005 openers. Scoring was also down by about 4.5 points (attention Las Vegas sports lines).
Of course, oddsmakers were able to adjust to the changes before the season started. Proof of that came as the over went a balanced 8-9 at My Sportsbook on Saturday.
Other angles to consider:A shorter game should theoretically result in shorter lines. Whereas Team A might have been a 14-point favorite in a 168-play game (last year), if there are 10 percent less snaps in 2007, the line should also be reduced by 10 percent (to 13 or 12.5). Of course, this is an over-simplification of the matter, but something to keep in mind.
Less possessions means a better chance the game will be decided by three or seven points. For example, what might have been a 20-10 final score in 2005 may end at
17-10 in 2007. Granted, a 24-17 game last year might end at 21-17 these days, but the former - a three- or seven-point advantage being preserved as opposed to created - is the most likely scenario.
*UPDATE* - Sept. 25, 2007
New Clock Rules Boon for online bookmakers
By adjusting the time-keeping rules to shorten the duration of college football games, the NCAA hoped to make its product more enjoyable for the fans. While the NCAA's success in this regard is still up for debate, bookmakers couldn't be happier with the results.
"We are seeing a massive jump in college football betting," noted the MySportsbook.com management team. "With all the early Saturday games (12 a.m. ET) ending before the second wave begins (3:30 p.m. ET) - something that didn't always happen before the changes - bettors are now able to re-invest their winnings from the morning session in the afternoon games."
While not all bettors will choose to roll over their winnings, it doesn't take much for an impact to be seen on the bottom line. "Not all of the millions of dollars in morning payouts get re-bet. In fact, it's probably only 10 to 20 percent," noted the sportsbook management team. "Still, the increased football betting lines window will create a ton of growth for us over the course of the season."
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