Stricker fires 63, leads by 5 at Kapalua
Golf Betting Lines
01/07/2012 - Kapalua, HI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Steve Stricker is playing his second straight event as the highest-ranked player in the field.
And it showed on Saturday.
Stricker fired a 10-under 63 in the second round to grab a five-stroke lead after two rounds of the season-opening Hyundai Tournament of Champions.
"It was a good round, a good start. You know, we're halfway through. We've got a long ways to go yet," Stricker said in a televised interview.
The Wisconsin native completed 36 holes at 15-under-par 131.
Stricker, the sixth-ranked player in the world, was also the highest ranked player at the Chevron World Challenge in December. He struggled that week finishing 16th in an 18-player field.
However, Stricker has burst out of the gates in 2012. He missed the Kapalua course record by a single stroke and was two off the tournament's 36-hole scoring mark thanks to a round with an eagle and eight birdies.
Webb Simpson, a two-time winner last year, posted his second straight 68 and is alone in second place at minus-10.
Kevin Na was even-par through 26 holes, but played the next 10 holes in nine- under par, including back-to-back eagles on 17 and 18. His nine-under 64 moved Na into third place at nine-under-par 137.
First-round leader and defending champion Jonathan Byrd (71) and Martin Laird (70) share fourth at minus-eight.
Stricker got his bogey-free round going with a five-foot birdie putt at the third. He two-putted for birdie on the par-five fifth to grab a share of the lead at seven-under.
After Simpson birdied the seventh to move ahead, Stricker matched him with a birdie of his own at No. 7. Simpson slipped one back with a bogey at the eighth, then Stricker took control.
Stricker, who has seven wins over the last three years, tapped in a three- footer for birdie at nine and made it two in a row with a seven-footer at 10.
Armed with a three-stroke lead, Stricker parred the next three holes. After Laird moved within two, Stricker drained a seven-foot birdie try on the 14th. He followed with a 10-foot eagle effort on No. 15 to push his lead to four over Na, who had a stellar finish.
Stricker wasn't finished either. Despite a long delay on No. 17 as Laird, his playing partner, lost his tee shot and had to go back to the tee, Stricker played the hole perfectly.
He found the short grass off the tee, then dropped his second shot within 13 feet of the cup. Stricker ran that putt in for birdie, and closed with a three-foot birdie effort at the last to push his lead to five.
"Golf is never easy, but I had it going today," Stricker said on television. "It's always fun when you get rounds like this going. I felt like I was going to make every putt I looked at for a while. And I gave myself a lot of opportunities, which is key."
Simpson did all of his scoring in bunches. He drained back-to-back birdie tries at two and three. He traded a birdie for a bogey from the seventh.
The 26-year-old Simpson birdied three of the last four holes to jump into second place.
Before Stricker grabbed his big lead, Na was the story with his stellar finish. He bogeyed the fourth, but came right back with a birdie on No. 5. From the ninth to the 15th, he had five birdies in that seven-hole span.
Na, who won in Las Vegas last year, holed out for eagle from over 200 yards on the 17th. He found the green at the long, par-five 18th and poured in a 10- footer for eagle to become the first player to finish eagle-eagle at Kapalua.
"That was exciting. That was a lot of fun," Na said in a TV interview. "I was getting off to a slow start today. I birdied nine to get it under par, and then all of a sudden, the back nine I started getting it together."
NOTES: Byrd is the only previous winner of this event in the field this week...Just three players in 27-man field shot over par in round two...PGA Champion Keegan Bradley, the lone reigning major champ in the field, managed a one-under 72 and is tied for seventh at minus-five, while reigning FedExCup champ Bill Haas is alone in 24th after a pair of even-par rounds...Rory Sabbatini was assessed a two-stroke penalty for being late for his tee time, but rallied for a three-under 70 Saturday.
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brian Elliott made 15 saves to post his fifth shutout of the season, blanking the red-hot Avalanche in a 4-0 victory to cap the Blues' perfect three-game homestand. Patrik Berglund and Kevin Shattenkirk s
<< Dominant second half powers Sixers over Raptors
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Thaddeus Young scored 11 of his 12 points
after halftime, and the 76ers used a huge final two quarters to rout Toronto,
97-62, at the Wells Fargo Center.
Andre Iguodala had 14 points and 10 rebounds f
<< Pacers rout Bobcats
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Roy Hibbert posted 20 points and eight
rebounds to help Indiana dominate the second half in a 99-77 rout of
Charlotte.
The Pacers, who beat the Bobcats for the seventh straight time, held a
<< Canaan goes for 35 as Murray State tops Austin Peay
Clarksville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Isaiah Canaan had 35 points as No. 19
Murray State posted an 87-75 win over Austin Peay.
Ed Daniel had 19 points and 11 rebounds while Donte Poole added 13 points for
the Racers (16-0, 4-0 OVC), who
<< LeBron returns, paces Heat over Nets
Newark, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - LeBron James scored 32 points, dished out nine
assists and pulled down seven rebounds in his return to the lineup, as the
Miami Heat dominated the New Jersey Nets, 101-90.
James (ankle) and Dwyane Wade (
Piscataway, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Freshman guards Eli Carter and Myles Mack combined for 33 points, and Rutgers used a strong defensive effort to hold off No. 8 Connecticut, 67-60, in another big victory for the program. Carter scored 19
Doan's hat trick spurs Coyotes over Islanders >>
Glendale, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Shane Doan recorded his first career hat trick
and Mike Smith made 31 saves as the Phoenix Coyotes took a 5-1 victory over
the New York Islanders.
Taylor Pyatt and Oliver Ekman-Larsson also lit the lamp
Durant's late shot lifts Thunder over Rockets >>
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kevin Durant hit the game-winning jumper with
22 seconds left, sending the Thunder to a 98-95 victory over the Rockets on
Saturday.
Durant scored 13 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter, as the Thunder
Spurs outlast Nuggets in shootout >>
San Antonio, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Danny Green had a career night, scoring 24
points and pulling down seven rebounds to lead the San Antonio Spurs to a
121-117 victory over the Denver Nuggets.
Richard Jefferson made five three-pointe
Predators capitalize on power play to down Hurricanes >>
Nashville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Patric Hornqvist scored two goals, and the
Nashville Predators used the power play to earn a 5-2 victory over the
Carolina Hurricanes.
Four of the Predators' goals came during a power play, in
MySportsbook.com : Fortune Favors Favorites in March Madness betting?
Just like Day 1 of the “Sweet 16”, Friday’s games are chock full of some of the nation’s elite. Unlike Thursday’s games, there is a little bit more of a “Cinderella” feel as #7 seed UNLV and #6 seed Vanderbilt will attempt to move on to the Elite Eight. With powerhouses Florida, UNC and Georgetown looking to continue their momentum against lesser known teams, it isn’t surprising that once again the “betting public” is backing most of the favorites. As the early coin rolls in, 56% of Sportsbook.com bettors prefer Georgetown (-7.5) as they take on Vanderbilt; 84% of the early money is backing Oregon (-3) as they square off against UNLV; and a slight majority (52%) of the early cash is on Florida (-10.5) against Butler as the Gators continue their quest for another National Title. The only favorite the public don’t seem confident in is UNC, as 59% of the cash is backing the underdog Trojans (+8).
Midwest
#1 Florida vs. #5 Butler
The defending National Champs have been on a mission since last April. Joakim Noah and Al Horford turned down millions of dollars for one reason, to REPEAT. After a late season hiccup which saw them lose three out of four, the Gators have won six straight by an average of 20.3 points. More importantly, they covered in five of those six games. Behind their stymie defense that yields only 56.9 PPG, Butler has been a very pleasant surprise this season. As their 20-11 ATS record will indicate, “surprise teams” like Butler are often good bets for gamblers. Playing in an average conference, Butler wasn’t and underdog too often but when they were, they covered (6-0 ATS). Butler’s defense will have its hands full against a Gators offense which averages 80.1 PPG on an amazing 52.9% shooting from the field. With Florida’s tournament experience over the last few years, it isn’t surprising that they are 5-1 ATS this season, 20-4 ATS over the last three seasons and 38-20 since 1997 in tournament action.
#3 Oregon vs. #7 UNLV
As a #7 seed, UNLV is the closest thing to a “Cinderella” we have this year. If you bet on UNLV this season with any regularity, you most likely cashed in. Behind their guard oriented attack, the Rebels are an impressive 20-11 ATS this season. As an underdog they covered in 8 out of their ten games which isn’t surprising since they are 52-30 ATS as a ‘dog since 1997. The Rebels have been a consistent cover during the month of March as well. This March they are 6-0 ATS, 11-3 ATS over the last three seasons and 24-11 since 1997. Their impressive ATS trends don’t end there; versus teams with a winning record they are 15-6 ATS this season and 41-21 over the last three seasons. Although Oregon hasn’t been as generous to gamblers as UNLV this season, they have been covering consistently as of late. There is no question that they are playing their best ball of the season having won their last 8 straight up (SU) by an average of 14.5 points. Not surprising they covered in 7 of those games. It is interesting to note how similar these teams are in regards to scoring and scoring defense. UNLV averages 75 PPG while giving up 66.5 PPG and Oregon scores 75.8 PPG while yielding 65.5 PPG.
East
#6 Vanderbilt vs. #2 Georgetown
“Hoya Paranoia” is officially back! After a decent start, Georgetown has rolled through the second half of the season. Over their last 18 games, they are 17-1 SU. They have definitely improved ATS as the season has progressed as well. After opening the season 1-4-1 ATS, the Hoyas have covered 78.3% of their games. With their great interior play of Jeff Green and Roy Hibbert, the Hoyas as a team shoot 50.5% from the field. Like the Georgetown teams from years ago, they also excel on defense. Hoya opponents averaged only 56.8 PPG on 38.2% shooting from the field and an extremely low 30.4% from beyond the arc. The last stat could be of some concern to Vanderbilt considering they shoot 37.7% from long-range. Ranking second to last in the SEC in rebounding margin, Vanderbilt will have its work cut out for them against the Hoya trees. As far as covering is concerned, Vanderbilt has been almost a “sure thing” (7-1 ATS) versus good defensive teams that allow less than 64 PPG.
#1 UNC vs. # 5 USC
The Tar Heels are as talented and as deep as any team in the country. Going ten deep and chock full of HS All-Americans, UNC averages 86.1 PPG and scored 100+ seven times. Led by All-American forward, Tyler Hansbrough (18.6 PPG 7.9 RPG) UNC has a very balanced attack which can kill you on the inside as well as on the perimeter. UNC only real concern is their youth as eight of their rotation players are either sophomores or freshmen. UNC was a reliable cover this season going 20-13 ATS. An intriguing covering trend for the Tar Heels in recent years has been how they fared after non-conference games. This season they are 11-3 ATS after non-conference games and over the last three seasons they are 31-13 ATS. USC is also a pretty deep team which is loaded with swingman types. An match-up to keep an eye on will be freshman forward Taj Gibson (12.1 PPG, 8.6 RPG) as he squares off against the AA Hansbrough. USC has been a covering machine this season achieving a 21-10 record ATS. They have thrived in the underdog role, having covered 10 out of 12. When playing a team with a winning record, the Trojans are an incredible 20-6 ATS. Keep in mind, USC dedicated their season to former star to Ryan Francis who passed away before the season so as they get closer to the ultimate goal, emotion could definitely be on their side.
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 this sportsbook “Betting Trends”. By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.
To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards
About MySportsbook.com MySportsbook.com is the largest sportsbook and casino on the planet, where millions of adult Americans bet on sports, play poker and enjoy blackjack and other casino games online in a regulated and licensed jurisdiction. Named the "Best US Sports Book" by the industry's top magazine, eGaming Review, MySportsbook.com has been leading the online gaming industry since 1996. Dwarfing its nearest competitors in the US, MySportsbook.com has been the first to achieve every significant industry milestone, from record turnover to active users to number of bets--achieving a peak of fifteen bets per second. As the US online gaming leader, the firm and it's products have been featured on CBS 60 Minutes, CNN, ESPN, Wall Street Journal, Barrons, Financial Times, USA Today and in every major newspaper in the US.