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06/20/2007 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Over the next few weeks, Roger Federer will try to match Bjorn Borg's amazing Wimbledon feat, as the super Swiss seeks a fifth straight title at the 121st edition of the Championships.
Borg is the only man in the Open Era (since 1968) to capture the Wimbledon championship five years in a row, which he did from 1976 to 1980. The iconic Swede rattled off 41 consecutive match wins at the storied All England Club before lefthanded legend John McEnroe finally derailed him in the 1981 final. Even the great Pete Sampras failed to capture five straight Wimbledon crowns, as the seven-time champ corralled tennis' most prestigious event four years in a row from 1997-2000 and three straight years from 1993-95.
Only four men have won at least four Wimbledon titles over the last 45 years -- Sampras, Borg, Rod Laver and Federer.
Decent company.
The world No. 1 Federer held off Spanish star Rafael Nadal in last year's Wimbledon finale, while the Mallorcan southpaw topped the sublime Swiss in the last two French Open finals. Nadal might have Federer's number on the slow red clay, but the Swiss is indeed one of the greatest grass-court performers of all-time, as evidenced by his four Wimbledon titles and a torrid 48-match winning streak (which includes 20 straight victories in Halle) on the swift surface.
The last player to prevail at the AEC not named Federer was Aussie Lleyton Hewitt, back in 2002. The Fed's last loss there came at the hands of serve- and-volleying Croat Mario Ancic in the opening round in '02.
The reigning women's champion at SW19 is former world No. 1 Amelie Mauresmo, who dropped currently top-ranked Justine Henin in last year's marquee finale. The French star also bested the steady Belgian in last year's Aussie Open title bout.
Mauresmo, who has struggled with her health for a good portion of this season, will try to become the first repeat women's champ since Serena Williams turned the trick in 2002 and 2003. Serena tried for a third straight title in 2004, but was stunned in the final by tall Russian Maria Sharapova.
And Serena's big sister and fellow former world No. 1, Venus, is no slouch at the AE Club, having won the title on three occasions and finishing as the runner-up two other times, succumbing to Serena in the 2002 and 2003 finals. At one point, Venus reached the Wimbledon final four straight and five-of-six years.
That's pretty consistent.
Between 2000 and 2005, the mighty Williams sisters accounted for four straight and five-of-six Wimbledon titles.
Henin, meanwhile, still needs Wimbledon to complete a career Golden Slam. The reigning three-time (and four-time overall) French Open titlist also owns Aussie Open, U.S. Open and Olympic hardware and is a two-time runner-up at Wimby. In addition to her title bout setback there last year, the gritty Belgian gave way to Venus in the 2001 finale.
FYI, Steffi Graf is the only woman to complete a career Golden Slam, while her fellow tennis legend husband Andre Agassi is the only player to do so on the men's side.
Is there anyone who can challenge Federer on the Big W grass? Well Andy Roddick comes to mind (I know...insert joke here).
The world No. 3 Roddick is fresh off his title at Queen's Club and a two- time Wimbledon runner-up (2004-05) to Federer. Unfortunately for the 2003 U.S. Open champ and former world No. 1 American, the massive-serving star is a pathetic 1-13 lifetime against Federer, including an 0-3 mark on the lawns at Wimbledon. The Swiss star also topped Roddick in the 2003 semis. Federer's won nine of their 10 sets at SW19 and the Swiss is a perfect 5-0 in their all-time major matchups.
The word lopsided comes to mind.
Too bad for Roddick that Federer's on the tour, otherwise the brash American would probably own multiple Wimbledon titles by now.
What about Nadal? Can he push Federer again this year? I'm doubtin' it.
Aside from Roddick and Nadal, Federer's stiffest competition figures to come from the likes of Serbian Novak Djokovic, Czech Tomas Berdych and the always- dangerous Hewitt. The French Open semifinalist Djokovic can play on any surface, while Berdych was this year's grass-court champion in Halle and lost to the "Fed" in last year's Halle finale, and the two-time Grand Slam champion and former No. 1 Hewitt is pesky on just about any surface, with an exception being dirt.
Heavy British crowd favorite Andy Murray is slated to play, even though he's been sidelined for the past several weeks due to a wrist injury. He'll try to give the hosts their first male champion here since Fred Perry way back in 1936.
By the way, top men with no shot would include the likes of Russian Nikolay Davydenko, Chilean Fernando Gonzalez, Spaniard Tommy Robredo, American James Blake and German Tommy Haas. "Gonzo" was January's Aussie Open runner-up to Federer, but I wouldn't expect a deep run from him at the AEC, although he did reach the quarters there two years ago.
Back on the women's side, it would appear as though there are several contenders.
The six-time Grand Slam champion Henin, the two-time major titlists Sharapova and Mauresmo, the eight-time Grand Slam champion Serena and the five-time major titlist Venus will all take their shots, while rapidly-rising Jelena Jankovic should also figure into the equation.
Jankovic soared all the way to the French Open semis earlier this month and just captured her first-ever grass-court title last week by upsetting Sharapova in a final in Birmingham. The Serbian star is all the way up the No. 3 in the world and co-leads the WTA with four titles already this season, equaling the high-flying Henin.
Henin has performed in the final in her last five Grand Slam events (going 2-3). She missed this year's Aussie Open due to personal reasons after reaching all four major finales (1-3) in 2006.
A determined Henin has said that she wants to secure a career Slam for her family and friends.
Look out field.
The hard-hitting Sharapova has appeared in two of the last three major finals, winning the 2006 U.S. Open by beating Henin and losing badly to Serena in Melbourne back in January. Another world-class Serb, Ana Ivanovic, smoked the Russian superstar in a semifinal at Roland Garros two weeks ago.
Does Svetlana Kuznetsova have a chance at Wimby? A slight one, but I wouldn't make plans to watch her in the final.
How 'bout the French Open runner-up Ivanovic?
Sure. The surging Serb, last year's surprise US Open Series winner, went as far as the round of 16 at the AEC a year ago and has demonstrated the ability to play on all surfaces.
A darkhorse could come in the form of tall Czech Nicole Vaidisova.
Former champion Martina Hingis (1997) will be on hand, but the five-time Grand Slam winner will head to Wimbledon with some rust, having been sidelined for over a month due to injury.
The 10-time Grand Slam champion Federer has appeared in a record eight straight major finals, winning six. His next Grand Slam title would tie him with Borg and Laver at 11. Sampras holds the all-time record with 14 major championships.
Only six men have won at least 10 Grand Slam titles -- Sampras, Roy Emerson (12), Borg, Laver, Bill Tilden (10) and Federer.
FYI, the awesome Borg was a combined 11-1 in his French Open (6-0) and Wimbledon (5-1) finals.
That deserves a wow!
For the first time ever this year, stodgy Wimbledon will pay out equal prize money to both the men and the women and Hawk-Eye technology will be utilized on the famed Centre Court and Court 1 to view disputed line calls.
There will also be a roof-less Centre Court (for the first time since 1922), as construction is underway to install an all-weather retractable roof in time for the 2009 edition of the Championships.
On the prediction front, you have to like Federer, who's only conceded a mere three sets in his four Wimbledon finals, to come out on top once again this year, while the wide-open women's draw could see any number of players prevail, even though I'm going with Serena to hoist the Venus (not Serena) Rosewater Dish.
FYI, there's been a different ladies Wimbledon champion the last three years.
Wimbledon '07 will commence Monday and the formidable Federer, of course, will be on the Day-1 schedule. As per tradition, the reigning men's champ is always first up on the venerable Centre Court on opening day.
<< Astros disable Lidge
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Houston Astros have placed pitcher Brad
Lidge on the 15-day disabled list because of a strained left oblique muscle.
Lidge was hurt in his last outing on Friday, June 15 against the Seattle
Marine
<< Clark, Young lift D-Backs over D-Rays
Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chris Young's two-run homer in the bottom of
the 10th inning capped a late rally and sent Arizona to a 10-8 victory over
Tampa Bay in the middle contest of a three-game interleague set.
Conor Jackson beg
<< Predators ink Smithson
Nashville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Nashville Predators made a move to
replace a pair of players traded on Monday by signing center Jerred Smithson
to a two-year contract. The deal will pay him $475,000 for next season and
$525,00
<< Lee leads Astros over Angels in LA
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Carlos Lee homered and knocked in four runs
while Hunter Pence had three hits including a tie-breaking two-run homer, as
the Houston Astros downed the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, 9-5, in the
second
Bonderman leads Tigers in finale at D.C. >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jeremy Bonderman will try for his eighth straight winning
decision tonight when his Detroit Tigers wrap their three-game series with the
Washington Nationals at RFK Stadium.
Bonderman opened the season with five straigh
Streaking Red Sox wrap set with Braves >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Red Sox are back in the swing of things and will
shoot for another win this evening in the finale of a three-game interleague
series with the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field.
Boston has won four of its last five
Pettitte toes the rubber as Yanks clash with Rockies >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Andy Pettitte tries to win back-to-back starts for the
first time all season and stretch his unbeaten streak to four games in the
process when the New York Yankees continue their three-game series with the
Colorado Rockies th
Blue Jays turn to Halladay versus Dodgers >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Toronto Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay gets the nod this
evening against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the second test of a three-game
interleague series at Rogers Centre.
Halladay is 7-2 with a 4.37 ERA in 12 starts this season
Recently I had an email debate with an angry reader who said I did not understand "the science of oddsmaking", as he called it.
He said I was wrong for suggesting oddsmakers care about who wins or loses games.
"Oddsmakers only care about splitting the betting public 50/50 on both sides of the line and keeping the commission (a.k.a. juice)," he wrote.
He might have been right about not understanding "the science of oddsmaking". After all, I'm not an oddsmaker. That said, I stick to my assertion that oddsmakers (a.k.a. sportbooks) often do care about who wins games.
Granted, as a general rule, sportsbooks try to balance their action so that they're not exposed to big losses. However, there are times when this is difficult to pull off, regardless of how much a line has moved. There are also times when that general rule is ignored and a book pursues risk.
Generally speaking, it's safe to say the books in Vegas are risk-adverse. Unlike in the past when the wise guys ruled the town, Vegas is now corporate and the goal of most casinos is to make as much money as possible with as little risk as possible.
Thus, Vegas sportsbooks try everything in their power to balance the action. They're satisfied simply collecting the juice. But these profits are small, especially compared to the take from other casino games, namely slot machines.
Because the profits at Vegas sportsbooks are so small, you could argue that many casinos operate sportsbooks simply as a novelty to keep the tourists happy.
With a growing aversion to risk, it should come as no surprise that Vegas bookmakers have been panicking this NFL season.
Despite huge pointspreads, a disproportionate percentage of bettors are still laying their money on favorites like the Eagles, Colts, Pats and Vikings rather than the dogs (a common trend for the largely recreational bettors that visit Vegas).
And much to the dismay of the books, those favorites are finding ways to cover the thick chalk. In fact, prior to Week 7, the four teams listed above are a combined 16-2-2 (88 percent) against the spread. (The tables turned dramatically in Week 7, but more on that later.)
The result has been an early-season beating for the books, and a bonanza for bettors.
While Vegas increasingly hates risk, it's no longer a major player in the sports betting world. Most of the betting action now takes place offshore where sportsbooks are not as obsessed about balance. In fact, some books encourage exposure to risk because the rewards can be so much bigger.
Consider MySportsbook.com. On its website, the book has odds pages which actually display the amount of action it's getting on games. In other words, you can see how much action the book is taking on both sides of a pointspread, moneyline or over/under.
One look at these numbers and it's obvious MySportsbook.com does not balance every game. In fact, far from it.
Take last weekend's matchup between St. Louis and Miami. By game time on Sunday, 83 percent of the betting action at MySportsbook.com was on the Rams; only 17 percent was on Miami.
What's interesting is that MySportsbook.com opened the pointspread with Miami at +6 1/2. By game time, the spread had lowered to +5.
That goes contrary to the balancing theory. If MySportsbook.com had wanted to balance the action, it would have given Miami more points; instead, it took away 1 1/2. World Series odds are now up as well.
MySportsbook.com exposed itself to even more to risk, and rolled the dice on the underdog Dolphins. Why? I contacted a representative with the book to find out. His answer was simple.
"The line moved early based on 'smart money' from sharp players," said Jeff Gilroy, a spokesperson for the book. "We also knew from early in the week that we would need Miami, therefore (we dropped) the spread to encourage Rams money.
"At the end of the day, we liked the home team."
So the conclusion is this: MySportsbook.com respected the sharp action, and gambled that the sharp bettors had a better take on the game than the recreational bettors, who were hammering the visiting Rams.
In the end, the gamble paid off. Miami, desperate for a win in front of its home fans, pounded the overrated Rams, who are terrible on the road and even worse on grass. Final score: 31-14 Fish.
MySportsbook.com was also heavily exposed on numerous favorites in Week 7, including Philadelphia, Seattle and Denver. All three failed to cover.
The fact that sportsbooks are exposed to risk on certain games is really nothing new. The fact, that Sportsbook.com is willing to show the public where it's exposed is intriguing.
Armed with this type of information, bettors can make more educated wagers. They can get an idea where the sharp money is going and conversely where the public money is headed.
MySportsbook.com is opening up its cashbox, letting bettors look inside and challenging them to take their best shot at grabbing the cash.
To visit this online football betting got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting odds needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
Two playoff teams from 2007 take center stage on the NFL Network Sunday night in a Week 2 NFL betting match-up when the (0-1) New England Patriots betting head south to Florida for a contest with the (1-0) Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
New England HC Bill Belichick couldn’t care less about the way his team plays in the preseason. With a chance to tie last week’s game with the Baltimore Ravens betting, He elected to go for the two-point conversion and outright victory. The conversion failed, and the Pats ended up falling to the Ravens by a 16-15 final count.
New England rolled off twelve unanswered points to give it a chance at securing the victory, but it never threatened to cover the 3.5-point spread. NFL bettors saw this one coming, as they bet the Ravens down from +6 to +3.5 as the week progressed. QB Tom Brady didn’t take part in the Patriots first preseason clash, but could see action this weekend.
His three replacements all put up embarrassing numbers. They went a combined 17 for 33, and threw three interceptions and no touchdowns. The New England defense was encouraging, as they held the Ravens to 2/12 third down conversions and surrendered just ten first downs. That ‘D’ should be bolstered with the addition of former Bucs and Denver Broncos betting safety John Lynch, who could make his Patriots debut on Sunday against his former mates.
HC Jon Gruden had to be impressed with the way his Bucs played on both sides of the ball in their dominating 17-6 victory over the Miami Dolphins in Week 1’s NFL pre-season betting action. Bucs bettors were quite happy with the effort, as they made a mockery of the fact that they were underdogs in the game.
The logjam at the quarterback position didn’t get any easier to separate for Gruden, as all four of his QBs had positive experiences in the first exhibition of 2008. The four combined to complete 28 of their 40 passes for 204 yards and a touchdown, and that was without starting QB Jeff Garcia in the lineup.
RB Michael Bennett had 19 carries and four receptions, totaling 90 yards and a touchdown. Expect to see more of Bennett, Kenneth Darby, and Earnest Graham, as they all compete for playing time with Warrick Dunn in the backfield this season. Defensively, the Bucs recorded four sacks and held the Fins offense in check all day.
First round draft pick Aqib Talib was impressive in the secondary, recording a tackle and two pass defenses in his debut. Don’t be surprised to see Talib in the starting lineup opposite Ronde Barber for the Bucs in ’08.
The betting trends suggest that NFL bettors should be backing the Bucs in this intra-conference exhibition.
These two teams hooked up last year in Tampa Bay, with the Bucs winning that game 13-10. The Buccaneers have only lost one preseason game at home dating back to the beginning of the ’05 preseason. The Patriots have had a mixed bag of results in their recent exhibitions. They have gone 2-2 ATS and SU each of the last three years.
New England currently sits as modest 1-point favorites in this preseason showdown with the ‘total’ now sitting at 34.5.
You can find these lines and all of the NFL betting lines , so be sure to login and get your wagers down before kickoff!
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines .
To visit this sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sports betting
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