Oosthuizen's 62 gives him Africa Open lead

Golf Betting Lines

01/06/2012 - East London, South Africa (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Defending champion Louis Oosthuizen fired a brilliant 11-under 62 on Friday to move atop the leaderboard at the mid point of the Africa Open.

The South African Oosthuizen, who won the 2010 Open Championship, finished 36 holes at 15-under 131 and is two strokes clear at par-73 East London Golf Club.

First-round leader Thomas Aiken managed a four-under 69 on Friday and is tied for second place with two-time U.S. Open champion Retief Goosen (68), Jaco Ahlers (68) and Tjaart van der Walt (64). The group of South Africans finished at minus-13.

Oosthuizen began on the ninth tee Friday, which, instead of the traditional 10th, is used for half of the field due to course logistics. He birdied No. 9, then waited three holes for his next birdie. After a par at 14, Oosthuizen birdied three of his last four to make the turn at nine-under par for the championship.

Oosthuizen did most of his damage on the abbreviated second nine. He birdied the par-five first hole and recorded his next birdie at the next par five, the third. Oosthuizen reached the green in two, but two-putted to get to 11-under par.

At the par-four fifth, Oosthuizen nearly drove the green, then nearly chipped in for eagle. He settled for a birdie and was alone in the lead at 12-under par.

After so many near brushes with eagle, Oosthuizen finally got one at the par- four sixth. He drove the putting surface at the 308-yard hole and drained the 60-footer for eagle.

"It was a lot of concentration on the tee shot because I hit the three-wood in the bush yesterday," explained Oosthuizen. "It was a three-wood again off the tee, and I didn't want to take any other club because I wanted to show myself that I can do it.

"So I hit it on the green at the back. I saw the line of the putt, but I wasn't sure so I asked my caddie and he saw exactly the same line. I hit a perfect putt and it went straight in the middle of the hole. But it was a very long putt, it was probably about 60 feet."

Oosthuizen had one more great putt left in him. At the eighth, his last, the major winner came up 25 feet short with his approach. He holed the curving putt to polish off his 62 and get in with the second-round lead.

"I was aggressive on the putter," said Oosthuizen. "I went about six feet past a few times and I had to make those for par and the last one I made on the eighth would have been eight or 10 foot past, but it hit the middle of the cup.

"But I was aggressive because yesterday I left a few putts short and you're not going to hit it that far past on these greens. I putted brilliantly."

Danny Willett (68), Alastair Forsyth (66), Magnus A. Carlsson (66), Tommy Fleetwood (66) and Craig Lee (67) share sixth place at 11-under 135.

NOTES: Oosthuizen's third European Tour victory after this tournament last year and the Open Championship was the 2010 Open de Andalucia...At 40th, Oosthuizen is the highest-ranked player in the field...The 36-hole cut came at five-under 141 with 82 players making the weekend.

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Super Bowl XLIV Odds

Super Bowl XLIII isn't even a week old yet and oddsmakers have already released Super Bowl XLIV odds.

Despite the Pittsburgh Steelers winning Super Bowl 43, the New England Patriots are 8/1 favorites to win Super Bowl 44.

Bet Super Bowl XLIV Future Odds

With their 27-23 victory over the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII, the Steelers became the latest NFL champion. But believe it or not, oddsmakers from online sports book MySportsbook.com don't have the Steelers the favorites to win Super Bowl XLIV next season.

That honor belongs to the New England Patriots, who are 8/1 favorites to win despite not even qualify for the postseason in 2008. The Pats also have a major decision to make regarding what to do with Matt Cassel, who played well in Tom Brady's (knee surgery) absence last year but is also a free agent this offseason.

Ironically, the Steelers aren't even oddsmakers second choice to win Super Bowl 44, as the Dallas Cowboys are listed right behind the Patriots at 9/1 despite not making the playoffs themselves. Clearly oddsmakers think the public will hop back on the Cowboys' bandwagon considering the immense talent they have and the opening of a brand new stadium.

After Dallas, then comes Pittsburgh at 10/1, but they share those odds with the New York Giants, who won Super Bowl XLII. The Indianapolis Colts and San Diego Chargers round out the top six teams at 12/1, while the Baltimore Ravens (14/1), Tennessee Titans (16/1), Carolina Panthers (18/1) and Philadelphia Eagles (18/1) complete the top 10.

The NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals got no love from oddsmakers as they were established as a 30/1 long shot to win next year's Super Bowl. They share those same odds with the Chicago Bears and Tampa Bay Buccaneers – two teams that didn't even qualify for the postseason. Other long shots are the Kansas City Chiefs (100/1), Detroit Lions (100/1), St. Louis Rams (75/1) and Oakland Raiders (75/1).

To see a complete list of all the team's odds to win Super Bowl XLIV, check below.

NFL TEAM FUTURE ODDS TO WIN SUPER BOWL XLIV

New England Patriots 8/1

Dallas Cowboys 9/1

New York Giants 10/1

Pittsburgh Steelers 10/1

Indianapolis Colts 12/1

San Diego Chargers 12/1

Baltimore Ravens 14/1

Tennessee Titans 16/1

Carolina Panthers 18/1

Philadelphia Eagles 18/1

New Orleans Saints 20/1

Atlanta Falcons 25/1

Denver Broncos 25/1

Green Bay Packers 25/1

Jacksonville Jaguars 25/1

Minnesota Vikings 25/1

New York Jets 25/1

Arizona Cardinals 30/1

Chicago BearS 30/1

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30/1

Buffalo Bills 35/1

Houston TexaNS 35/1

Miami Dolphins 35/1

Washington Redskins 35/1

Seattle SeahawkS 50/1

Cleveland Browns 55/1

Cincinnati Bengals 60/1

San Francisco 49ers 60/1

Oakland Raiders 75/1

St. Louis Rams 75/1

Detroit Lions 100/1

Kansas City Chiefs 100/1

Odds as of: 2/2/09

Bet Super Bowl XLIV Future Odds

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

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.