British Open Championship Hole-By-Hole Preview

Golf Betting Lines

07/14/2010 - St. Andrews, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - HOLE ONE - Par 4 - 376 yards: On the opening day of the Millennium Open this seemingly benign hole was rated the second most difficult on the course. A total of 36 players scored bogey or double-bogey against 15 birdies. The Swilcan Burn that curls down the right side of the fairway and across the face of the green is the cause of the problems. Unless the wind blows strongly from the west the approach is seldom more than a wedge and players should avoid the temptation to attack any pin position close to the front.

HOLE TWO - Par 4 - 453 yards: A new tee added 40 yards to this hole for the 2005 Open and brought Cheape's bunker on the left back into play at just over 300 yards. Championship pin positions are often found on the high left side of the green beyond a sharp ridge that can throw the ball left into a deep bunker or right towards the lower level of the green.

HOLE THREE - Par 4 - 397 yards: The ideal tee shot line hugs the right side, but the edge of the fairway is littered with pot bunkers and small gorse bushes. Crescent-shaped Cartgate bunker eats into the left side of the green and the putting surface falls away from a high left side.

HOLE FOUR - Par 4 - 480 yards: There are two choices from the tee: straight at the flag down a narrow strip of fairway hemmed in by dunes and gorse, or over the mounds on the left where the fairway opens out to merge with the 15th hole. But the further left the tee shot the more difficult the approach with a bunker on the left and the green sloping away to the right.

HOLE FIVE - Par 5 - 568 yards: The easiest hole on the course during most championships at St Andrews, reachable in two for today's professionals if the tee shot avoids the clutch of seven bunkers on the right between 270 and 320 yards. Fairway contours and the prevailing westerly wind gather the ball towards these traps and the aiming point is well to the left. The sheer size of the green - 92 yards from front to back - can frustrate many birdie chances.

HOLE SIX - Par 4 - 412 yards: Bunkers left and right are completely hidden from the tee as the hole drops to a lower level beyond a long, gorse-covered ridge. Shorter hitters will have to tiptoe their way through this minefield, but the power players will likely carry the ball beyond danger - unless the wind is strong out of the north-west. A ridge and hollow across the front of the green will do little to prevent a host of birdies.

HOLE SEVEN - Par 4 - 371 yards: The start of the St Andrews' loop of short par fours and two par threes where many winning scores have been forged. Most players will lay up into a flat area beyond a large mound where the seventh and 11th holes cross. From there it is just a short pitch over the vast expanse of Shell bunker to a green that runs downhill sharply from left to right.

HOLE EIGHT - Par 3 - 175 yards: If the wind swings round to the east, as it often does in summer, a simple short-iron shot can become as much as a five- iron. There are subtle contours in the largely flat green and the tough pin position is just behind the vertically-faced bunker on the left side.

HOLE NINE - Par 4 - 352 yards: Well within reach for a large percentage of players, especially with the prevailing westerly wind at their backs, the surprise is that this hole gives up far fewer birdies than it should. Gorse bushes creep close to the left edge of the green, but there is a wide expanse of open fairway between that and two bunkers on the right.

HOLE TEN - Par 4 - 380 yards: Although stretched by nearly 40 yards for the Millennium Open the green is still in reach for the longest hitters. Most players will be happy to avoid the two small bunkers on the right. Leaving a full wedge or sand-wedge approach can give a greater degree of control than chipping or putting from the fringe as the green falls away beyond a raised front.

HOLE ELEVEN - Par 3 - 174 yards: This tee shot can be anything from a nine- iron to a three-iron depending on the strength and direction of the wind. The green slopes dramatically from back to front and left to right. Come up short and the ball will run way back off the green. Too long and it drops 15 feet into a gully. Strath bunker at the front is small. Hill bunker to the left, meanwhile, is long and very deep.

HOLE TWELVE - Par 4 - 348 yards: A short but deceptively tricky par four where the bunkers that threaten the tee shot are all hidden from view. The top level of the two-tier green is only 12 paces deep and requires supreme accuracy with the approach. Many players will try to eliminate that shot by attempting to drive the green.

HOLE THIRTEEN - Par 4 465 yards: A new tee introduced for the 2005 Open brought the Coffins bunkers back into play at 280-310 yards on the left. The approach is over raised broken ground to a huge double green shared with the fifth hole. A shallow hollow filled with clinging rough on the left and a deep bunker on the right guard the entrance to the green at a hole that is consistently strong and often rates as the second most difficult on the course.

HOLE FOURTEEN - Par 5 - 618 yards: An out-of-bounds wall on the right and the group of four Beardies bunkers on the left leave a clearly defined target area off the tee. Then the direct route to the green must carry the huge expanse of Hell bunker 80 yards short. If the wind blows strongly from the east this is a genuine three-shot par five. The face of the green rises steeply before dropping away back and left.

HOLE FIFTEEN - Par 4 - 456 yards: There is little threat from Sutherland bunker in the middle of the fairway unless the wind blows strongly from the east. Beyond the bunker the fairway is pinched from both sides by low dunes and the trio of Rob's bunkers, some 80 yards short of the green, may catch downwind tee shots from the real power players. The wide entrance to the green is mounded on both sides, with sand on the left.

HOLE SIXTEEN - Par 4 - 423 yards: The fence that marks the route of the old railway into St Andrews runs all the way down the right from tee to green and there is only a narrow strip of fairway between the fence and a cluster of three bunkers known as the Principal's Nose. The percentage option is to lay up left of the bunkers, leaving a short-iron to a green that has a sharp ridge curving across the front. The green is bunkered left and behind.

HOLE SEVENTEEN - Par 4 - 455 yards: An extra 40 yards have been added to the hole that already has a reputation as the toughest par-four in championship golf. This means a minimum carry of 260 yards over the replica railway sheds to reach the ideal position on the right edge of the fairway. The green angles away from the player from front right to back left behind the vertically-faced Road bunker. An over-hit second shot will fall off the back of the green on to the road.

HOLE EIGHTEEN - Par 4 - 357 yards: There will be many players in the field capable of driving this green in the right conditions, but for anything that comes up short the choice of second shot can be vital, particularly when the pin is set just beyond the deep Valley of Sin at the front of the green. The traditional links shot, the low pitch and run, has a greater chance of success than a high-flying, fast-spinning wedge that can easily screw back off the green.

Course descriptions provided by www.opengolf.com.

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Pro Football Odds : NFC SOUTH BETTING ODDS

NFL Sports Betting

NFL betting action is back! At MySportsbook, all of the pro football odds are posted for the NFC North. Check out how we see the four teams in this cloudy division stacking up this year in the chase for the playoffs! Green Bay Packers (+125) - With QB Aaron Rodgers leading the offense and DC Dom Capers working his magic on defense, the Packers are a real force to be reckoned with.

Virtually nothing changed on this offense for Green Bay from last year to this year, save for the addition of rookie OT Brian Bulaga to the bunch. Expect more huge numbers from the Pack, and a relatively favorable schedule should get them over the hump and into the playoffs once again this season. My NFL Betting Predictions: 11-5, 1st place in NFC North Minnesota Vikings (+130) - There are still too many unknowns about the Vikes this year. There is a huge difference between QB Brett Favre and either Tarvaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels under center. Plus, is Favre comes back, is he really going to be able to keep his pick total under double digits again? Depth at running back looked like it might have been an issue with RB Chester Taylor fleeing in free agency, but drafting RB Toby Gerhart should pick up the difference. This defense is still suitable, but with a first place schedule, making the playoffs is going to be very tough regardless of whether #4 comes back or not.

There is a huge difference between QB Brett Favre and either Tarvaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels under center. Plus, is Favre comes back, is he really going to be able to keep his pick total under double digits again? Depth at running back looked like it might have been an issue with RB Chester Taylor fleeing in free agency, but drafting RB Toby Gerhart should pick up the difference. This defense is still suitable, but with a first place schedule, making the playoffs is going to be very tough regardless of whether #4 comes back or not. Play this weekly NFL Football Contestto see if you can win.

Chicago Bears (+350) - The Bears are probably a bit of an overhyped team once again this year.No, we don't think it is plausible for QB Jay Cutler to have as bad of a season as he did last year, and we do think the additions of RB Chester Taylor and DE Julius Peppers are going to help immensely, but there's still something in the water in the Windy City that we aren't so sure about. Maybe Chicago finds its way to .500... but then again, maybe it doesn't. If Favre comes back, Cutler might be the worst quarterback in this division this year.

Detroit Lions (+1500) - The Lions are probably once again going to be the whipping boys for the rest of the teams in the NFC North, but they aren't just going to roll over and die once again. There is some real talent amassing on this team offensively, as the combination of QB Matt Stafford, RB Jahvid Best, WR Calvin Johnson, and TE Brandon Pettigrew should put a bunch of points on the board if the offensive line can even remotely hold up. The questions really lie on defense, where it feels like DT Ndamukong Suh is going to be trying to stop opposing teams all by himself. This year should show some marked improvement in the Motor City.

The Patriots will make NFL betting fans a lot of money this season, get in early and enjoy the cash.

NFL Betting

To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs.

College Football Betting Tips From a Pro

While the NFL is the sport wagered on the heaviest, college football betting lines has become more and more popular as people realize it’s a game that can be beat. The NCAA football season gets longer each year with the addition of numerous bowl games and with that comes more opportunities for more money in your pocket, if handled correctly.

Betting on college football is not the same as with the NFL, so make sure you separate the two. Because of the vast number of teams, the parity between college football programs is slight and thus, you are going to see some high numbers in the NCAA. Teams favored by more than 40 points are not uncommon especially early in the season when teams playing their non-conference schedules.

The best advice when trying to tackle these enormous spreads and is to just stay away. A team that is favored by 40 points is favored by that many for a reason while teams getting 40 points are bad enough that they shouldn’t be touched. Set yourself a spread limit. Getting rid of these games will cut down on the number of contests that you need to handicap while staying away from backdoor or front-door covers.

What is a backdoor and front-door cover you ask? A backdoor cover is a team that is getting beat by more than the spread, but scores late to get within that number thus covering the spread. A front-door cover is just the opposite where the favorite scores late and covers the number they are favored by.

These front-door and backdoor covers are common when second and third string players enter games in college football and it can be the worst nightmare for some bettors. These players can also be your best friend, but ask any bettor and he will give you more instances on losing in this situation than winning. It just seems to work out that way even though everything evens out in the end.

College football betting has some of the softest lines of any sport and it’s being able to find these lines that will make you a successful college football handicapper. The NFL and NBA have the tightest lines around and while those sports can be beat by looking at situations and systems, college football doesn’t quite work that way. It’s much more manual, but when done correctly, it’s much more gratifying as well.

Getting into the nuts and bolts of college football means looking at the many stats in order to beat the number. As opposed to pro football, college football is less dependent on situations and angles and more on certain statistics. Rushing offense and defense, pass efficiency offense and defense and turnover margins are huge. These are vital in the NFL, but even more so when it comes to college football.

Being able to run the ball in college football has always been a key factor in the overall success of a team. The same adage also goes for teams who have the ability to stop the run. Putting these two factors together can produce some positive results in a team’s record both straight up and against the spread. These numbers show huge differences in teams and the spread may not take those into effect, which is where the value comes into play.

Passing yardage numbers both for and against can be a misinterpreted statistic. However, pass efficiency has always been one of the best ways to look at a teams’ passing game ability both offensively and defensively. But is it really a true indication of how they perform? I wouldn’t say so since they are raw passing numbers with nothing else taken into consideration.

I use pass efficiency ratings when doing my handicapping but I adjust my numbers based on a number of factors including power ratings, strength of schedules, personnel and injuries. This gives a much better picture of a team’s ability to pass effectively and also being able to defend the pass. Tweaking pass efficiency stats instead of raw passing yards is the key.

Turnovers are the single most frustrating, and at times the most gratifying, aspect of a college football lines, mostly because they are so unpredictable. They are part of the game and most of the time nothing can be done to control them. However, turnovers are contagious and they can carry over from game to game and season to season.

It’s important to know how to forecast these unforeseen events and how to use them to your advantage. You can find ways to give yourself an edge by looking at past histories of teams and coaches and how they have fared in turnover wars in the past. Instead of turnovers hurting you at the wrong times, find ways to use them to your advantage.

As you can see, college football handicapping is very labor intensive and isn’t just based on where teams are ranked in the AP and coaches polls. Experience, coaching and match-ups are all important since unlike the NFL, college teams turn over much more often with new personnel at most positions every single year. Keeping current on this information is vital.

Betting NCAA football can be lucrative if done correctly, but more importantly, it’s just plain enjoyable because it can be beat. College football is one of the best sports to watch with some of the best rivalries taking place in all of sports. The only downfall is that a championship isn’t decided on the field but on a computer-based system that is the Bowl Championship Series. That will change someday and we will all be better off for it.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your NCAA college football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.