McIlroy, Karlsson lead Abu Dhabi; Tiger 3 back

Golf Betting Lines

01/26/2012 - Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rory McIlroy and Robert Karlsson both fired rounds of five-under 67 on Thursday to share the opening- round lead of the Abu Dhabi Championship.

Tiger Woods made his 2012 debut and played decently enough with a two-under 70. Woods, who ended his 2011 campaign with an unofficial win at the Chevron World Challenge, his first anywhere in two years, hit the ball well on Thursday, but the flat stick let him down.

Woods hit 10 of 14 fairways and 17 greens in regulation, but needed 35 putts in round one.

"I just had a hard time getting a feel for these greens. It was difficult and my speed was off," said Woods, who is tied for ninth place.

Woods, despite a fall in the world rankings to 25th, still made headlines with his season debut, but he was not the only big star to open his season in the Gulf.

World No. 1 Luke Donald had a one-under 71 in his first outing of the year. Donald played with McIlroy, also making his first start of 2012, and Woods in round one and will again on Friday.

World No. 2 Lee Westwood managed an even-par 72.

Perhaps the biggest surprise of Thursday's first round was the poor performance of the fourth-ranked player in the world.

Martin Kaymer, the two-time defending champion and three-time winner, struggled badly on Thursday. He went out in 39, came back in 38 and signed for a five-over 77.

The German has won this event three times with a runner-up finish in the last four years.

That's an amazing record, but McIlroy is no slouch at Abu Dhabi. He's tied for fifth, took third and finished second in his last three appearances at this event.

"I feel it suits me really well. Just one problem -- it suits Martin Kaymer even better," said McIlroy.

The reigning U.S. Open champion started on the 10th tee Thursday and went on a great run almost immediately after teeing off. McIlroy ran home a nine-footer for birdie at 11, a 12-footer for birdie at 12 and capped off his run with a three-foot birdie putt at the 13th.

McIlroy dropped a shot at the 14th, then again at No. 17, but rebounded at the par-five 18th, despite hitting a tent with his second shot. The Northern Irishman got back to three-under par thanks to a short birdie putt at the par- five second.

McIlroy inched up the leaderboard late in his second nine. He knocked his tee ball inside four feet to set up a birdie at the par-three seventh, then chipped in for a birdie at the par-five eighth.

It was not a statistically beautiful round for the world No. 3. He missed eight fairways and six greens in regulation, but he scrambled well and is atop the leaderboard.

"It was a good score and a great way to start 2012, but I don't feel I drove the ball particularly well and it's something I've got to work on," said McIlroy. "It was nothing that a good practice session won't fix."

Karlsson also began on the 10th tee in round one, but he endured an up-and- down start. He traded two birdies and two bogeys over his first four holes, then parred his next three.

The tall Swede birdied 17 and 18 to make the turn at two-under par. Karlsson parred his first three holes on his second side, then rattled off three birdies in five holes to join McIlroy in the lead.

Gareth Maybin, Richard Finch and Jean-Baptiste Gonnet are knotted in third place at four-under 68.

Nicolas Colsaerts, Robert Rock and Richie Ramsay share sixth at 69.

Woods was joined in ninth by a large group highlighted by reigning Masters winner Charl Schwartzel and former British Open champion Paul Lawrie.

NOTES: Sergio Garcia recorded his first ace on the European Tour Thursday at the 12th. The Spaniard shot a one-under 71...Branden Grace, who won the last two European Tour events, shot a three-over 75 and shares 89th.

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Elite 8 NCAA Tournament Betting at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com

In what should be an outstanding Saturday of March Madness betting action, the top four teams in the South and West Regions square off in what should be extremely close match-ups. Three of the four teams are coming off extremely close games on Thursday evening, only UCLA won semi comfortably over Pitt 64-55.

Ohio State is coming off their second game in a row where in all reality they should have lost. Of course that doesn’t matter now since the name of the game is “survive and advance” but as the tournament continues, they can’t afford to keep getting down to their opponents early. Kansas also avoided a scare by holding off a scrappy Southern Illinois squad. In the third thrilling game of the evening Memphis pulled off the minor upset (+3.5) despite being the higher seed to Texas A&M.

Although the spreads are fairly small for Saturday’s games, MySportsbook.com continue to bet against the underdogs. Despite OSU’s two scares, 86% of the “betting public” feels the Buckeyes (-1.5) have what it takes to make the Final Four. In fact, so much of the early money is on OSU that the line has already moved from -1 to -1.5. In the second game of the doubleheader, Kansas and their high-powered offense are 2 point favorites as they take on UCLA and their effective defense. About 63% of the early money thus far is once again backing the favorites. If those percentages stay that high, don’t be surprised if this line moves as well. If you like Kansas (-2) you might want to jump on it early.

Memphis vs. Ohio State

Both squads were involved in thrillers on Thursday evening and should come out fired up. OSU can ill afford to get behind early like they did versus their previous two opponents (Xavier, Tennessee). Greg Oden needs to stay out of foul trouble; the Buckeyes are a completely different team when he is on the court. Memphis definitely has the athleticism and length to match-up with OSU. Of Memphis’ five leading minute earners, the shortest of the bunch is 6’5”. Each team has a very effective defense; Memphis surrenders 62.3 PPG whereas the Buckeyes give up only 61 PPG. With those type of numbers, it isn’t surprising that Memphis covered the UNDER almost 69% of the time this season. As a favorite, OSU has covered the UNDER almost 66% of the time over the last three seasons. The major concern for Memphis which is magnifies this time of the year is their brutal foul shooting (62%). This season, OSU is 17-11 ATS versus teams with a winning record and 7-2 ATS in all tournament games. Memphis has been an extremely reliable cover in tournament play in recent years with a 23-8 ATS record over the last three seasons.

UCLA vs. Kansas

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With Friday -105 juice on Basketball betting, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on all of the “March Madness” action.  Don’t forget to monitor who the public is backing at MySportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends”.  By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.

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2007 Academy Award Betting : Oscars odds

The 79th Annual Academy Awards odds , which will air February 25th, is sparking an interest throughout the nation with the announcement of its nominees. As the public chooses their favorites, sportsbooks are creating odds for one of the biggest entertainment betting nights of the year.

Whether its at a “Oscar Party” or in an on line sportsbook, entertainment gambling on award shows represent a huge increase in betting. As the public speculation mounts, MySportsbook.com, the largest and most respected sportsbook on the web, posted odds on who is going home with a “Golden Best Friend.”

“ We see a majority of our entertainment wagers come from the Academy Awards,” said MySportsbook.com spokesperson, Tim Dalton. “This is a competition that applies to everyone. These are the people that entertain us on a daily basis and you want to see them win.”

MySportsbook.com posted the following odds for Academy Awards:

Odds to win the Achievement in Directing:

Alejandro González Iñárritu "Babel": 8/1

Martin Scorsese "The Departed": 2/17

Clint Eastwood "Letters From Iwo Jima: 4/1

Stephen Frears "The Queen": 12/1

Paul Greengrass "United 93": 15/1

Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role:

Leonardo DiCaprio in "Blood Diamond": 11/1

Ryan Gosling in "Half Nelson": 20/1

Peter O’Toole in "Venus": 16/5

Will Smith in "The Pursuit of Happyness": 16/1

Forest Whitaker in "The Last King of Scotland": 1/11

Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role:

Penélope Cruz in "Volver": 18/1

Judi Dench in "Notes on a Scandal": 15/1

Helen Mirren in "The Queen": 1/50

Meryl Streep in "The Devil Wears Prada": 10/1

Kate Winslet in "Little Children": 20/1

Best Animated Feature Film:

"Cars": 1/3

"Happy Feet": 2/1

"Monster House": 20/1

Best Foreign-Language Film of the Year:

"Water" – Canada: 22/1

"The Lives of Others" – Germany: 7/2

"After the Wedding" - Denmark: 24/1

"Days of Glory (Indigenes)" – Algeria: 23/1

"Pan's Labyrinth" - Mexico: 1/10

Odds to win the Best Live-Action Short Film:

"Binta and the Great Idea (Binta Y La Gran Idea)": 6/5

"Eramos Pocos (One Too Many)": 7/2

"Helmer & Son": 5/2

"The Saviour": 6/1

"West Bank Story": 7/2

Odds to win the Best Original Screenplay:

"Babel": 7/4

"Letters From Iwo Jima": 3/1

"Little Miss Sunshine": 21/20

"Pan's Labyrinth": 11/4

"The Queen": 5/4

Best Motion Picture of the Year:

"Babel": 11/4

"The Departed": 1/2

"Letters from Iwo Jima": 15/2

"Little Miss Sunshine": 17/10

"The Queen": 20/1

Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role:

Alan Arkin in "Little Miss Sunshine": 11/10

Jackie Earle Haley in "Little Children": 10/1

Djimon Hounsou in "Blood Diamond": 9/1

Eddie Murphy in "Dreamgirls": 2/5

Mark Wahlberg in "The Departed": 5/1

Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role:

Adriana Barraza in "Babel": 14/1

Cate Blanchett in "Notes on a Scandal": 11/1

Abigail Breslin in "Little Miss Sunshine": 2/1

Jennifer Hudson in "Dreamgirls": 1/8

Rinko Kikuchi in "Babel": 11/1

Film To Win Most Oscars:

Dreamgirls: 2/3

Pans Labyrinth: 6/5

The Departed: 6/1

The Queen: 11/1

Babel: 15/1

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest: 11/1

Little Miss Sunshine: 15/1


Additional sports and entertainment odds can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.