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07/15/2010 - St. Andrews, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rory McIlory has gone lower in his career, just not in a major championship.
On Thursday at the British Open, McIlroy matched the lowest round in major championship history with a nine-under 63 to take a two-shot lead after the first round on the Old Course.
McIlroy admitted that the thought crept into his head on No. 17 that he could set or match the low round in a major.
He missed his four-footer for birdie there, but closed with a three-foot birdie putt at the last to post 63.
"I was thinking going up 17, 'What's the lowest score for a major?'" said McIlroy, who closed with a 62 to win this year's Quail Hollow Championship by four strokes over Phil Mickelson.
"I didn't know [the record]. I know there's been a few 63s, but wasn't sure if there were any 62s. That might have crept into my mind a little bit hitting that putt on 17."
South African Louis Oosthuizen, who won the Open de Andalucia earlier this year, fired a seven-under 65 and is alone in second place.
John Daly, the 1995 Open champion at St. Andrews, shares third place with Peter Hanson, Andrew Coltart, Bradley Dredge and Steven Tiley at minus-six. Hanson had the best score for those in the latter part of Thursday's draw.
Three-time Open champion and world No. 1 Tiger Woods posted a five-under 67, carding six birdies and a lone bogey on the 17th. He hasn't played a bogey- free round all year.
Woods is tied for eighth place with 2009 U.S. Open champion Lucas Glover, Sean O'Hair, Lee Westwood, 2009 PGA Championship winner Y.E. Yang and four others.
World No. 2 Phil Mickelson never got anything going on Thursday. The Masters winner's scorecard would have looked better at a different major, the U.S. Open.
Mickelson parred the first 12 holes before stumbling to a double-bogey on the 13th. He parred the next four holes, but at the last, he finally rolled in a birdie putt to end at one-over 73.
"I fought hard today," Mickelson said. "I drove it poorly with the driver, but still salvaged a lot of pars."
McIlroy didn't look like he'd be near the top of the leaderboard at the start of the round.
The 21-year-old from Northern Ireland birdied the third to go with seven pars in his first eight holes. His run up the leaderboard started with an eagle on the par-four ninth.
Around the turn, he poured in three consecutive birdie chances from the 10th to jump to six-under. McIlroy knocked his second shot on the par-five 14th onto the forward tee of No. 15.
He chipped to 10 feet and drained that to take the lead at seven-under. McIlroy knocked in an eight-footer for birdie at the 15th to push his lead to two strokes.
McIlroy parred 16 and 17, where his four-footer for birdie lipped out. At the last, he pitched his third to three feet and knocked that in for a closing birdie.
"I made up for it and made birdie at the last," said McIlory of missing his birdie try on 17 while thinking about matching the low score in a major. "I'm not complaining about my score, but I'm sure it could have been a couple more if a few more putts had fallen."
It was the 24th time a player has posted a 63 in a major championship, but just second time it has happened on the Old Course at St. Andrews.
The only other man to shoot 63 at St. Andrews in the Open Championship was Paul Broadhurst, who did it in the third round in 1990.
Woods had a steady round that started with a birdie on the second. After four pars in a row, he two-putted for birdie on the seventh and moved to three- under with a 22-foot birdie putt at the ninth.
On the back nine, Woods made his run and it started with a two-putt birdie on the 12th. He poured in a 20-footer on 13 and made it three straight with another two-putt birdie at 14.
He was two back at the time, but his deficit doubled late. After McIlroy closed with a birdie, Woods missed a four-foot par putt at 17 to slide four back. That bogey means Woods still hasn't played a bogey-free round all year.
Woods' drive at the last got close enough to the green for him to putt his second. He played a big-breaking putt within seven feet, but missed the birdie try on the left edge.
"I played pretty good today, I just missed two short putts there at 17 and 18," said Woods, who won two of his three Open titles on the Old Course. "It could have been a pretty special round. We had good weather. It felt like we were playing in a dome. The course could be had."
In his three British Open titles, Woods either led or trailed by one stroke after the first round. That wasn't the case when Thursday's opening round finished.
Oosthuizen made back-to-back birdies from the fourth. After a par on six, he ran off four straight birdies from No. 7 to get to six-under.
The South African got within one of McIlroy with birdies on 14 and 15. However, he bogeyed the 17th to slip two back.
"The last three holes were very tough, so I'm happy with my 65," Oosthuizen said. "I think the win earlier in the year on the European Tour made a big change. I feel very confident the way I'm playing."
The other four players tied at minus-five are Fredrik Andersson Hed, Marcel Siem, Nick Watney and Alejandro Canizares.
Defending champion Stewart Cink posted a two-under 70 with three birdies and a bogey. Cink is tied for 46th. The man Cink defeated in a playoff last year at Turnberry, Tom Watson, managed a one-over 73.
Watson bogeyed three straight holes from the second, but birdied the fifth and got another back at the 14th.
NOTES: U.S. Open champion Graeme McDowell managed a one-under 71...Reigning British Amateur champion Jin Jeong carded a four-under 68 and is the leading amateur by three strokes over Eric Chun...The Old Course at St. Andrews is hosting the championship for the 28th time...The Open Championship is being played for the 139th time, but is celebrating its 150-year anniversary.
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In terms of sports wagering, the NFL is "the most popular game in town." The explanation behind that is easy.
It is called the "pointspread."
Many years ago, NFL games, as well as the more popular college games, used straight odds as a vehicle for betting. For example, if the Bears were playing the Giants, and it shaped up as a competitive contest, the Bears might be, say, a 7/5 favorite. If they were playing an also-ran, it might be 10/1. Well, there is a point where a line becomes prohibitive, as far as betting the favorite. And who would waste money betting an underdog that has virtually no chance? Such a setup did not contribute to promoting betting action.
But in modern sports betting, a "pointspread" is used.
A NFL pointspreads are exactly that, a pre-established point difference between the two sides that will, for all intents and purposes, create a handicap that evens things out, and in doing so, produces comparable wagering activity on both sides of that proposition. So in lieu of a odds figure in which to bet the team to win outright, the Bears might be a three-point favorite over the New York Giants, and a 17-point favorite over the also-ran. Now that the team that is the underdog can "get" points, there can be equal action on both sides.
In sportsbooks, this is usually done with efficiency by charging the losing bettors 10% extra - in effect, bettors are laying 11/10 on those games. So they are actually betting $110 to win $100. If they lose, they pay the "vig." If they win, they simply collect.
The establishment of the pointspread as the corner stone around which team sports like football can be wagered upon was truly what brought gridiron betting into the stratosphere for online football betting .
Don't believe it? Just take a look at what happens around the Super Bowl.
Stay with us here as we take you through the best in NFL action on a consistent basis, with advice columns as well as handicapping selections. If you're looking for college football betting, that's in our NCAA section, which you can reach by clicking here. And if you're looking for a different kind of football, such as the Canadian Football League, which we'll deal with occasionally, or the Arena Football League, which we really like, you can find it in our Miscellaneous section by clicking
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Mayweather picked to beat De La Hoya
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA -- Golden Boy Oscar De La Hoya and his rival Floyd Mayweather Jr. arrived at the MGM Grand here Wednesday amid the pomp and pandemonium befitting two of the biggest stars in the sport who are about to duke it out for the WBC super welterweight crown this Saturday (Sunday in Manila).
As of Wednesday, MySportsbook.com closed its book with Mayweather a favorite to defeat De La Hoya at -170 (a $100 bet wins $70), while De La Hoya is a +140 underdog (a $100 bet wins $140).
Mayweather arrived at about 11:30 a.m. on a big truck with his face and a big "World's Best Pound-for-Pound" sign scribbled across the vehicle. He was accompanied by his entourage made up of rappers and his training team.
A crowd of close to 3,000 eager fans packed the MGM Grand lobby, with their cameras in tow, all trying to vie for position to get a good angle at Mayweather, who is acknowledged as the world's best fighter pound-for-pound.
Eric Gomez, Golden Boy Promotions vice-president, described the fan turnout as "amazing" and swore he had never seen anything quite like this event.
"The crowd was fantastic. Everybody was just too eager to see the two fighters," said ALA manager Michael Aldeguer, who was among those who waited at the lobby together with his ward Rey "Boom Boom" Bautista and AJ Banal.
De La Hoya made his own grand entrance at the hotel lobby at around 12:30 p.m. accompanied by GBP chief executive officer Richard Schaefer and trainer Freddie Roach.
The same group of fans who trooped to see Mayweather also lingered around to get a close look at De La Hoya, who has been secretly working out at a Las Vegas gym for days after arriving from his main training camp in Puerto Rico.
The golden boy then took part in a closed-door afternoon workout with Bautista and Banal. The two, along with Aldeguer and wife Christine, as well as an HBO crew were the only ones allowed inside the gym.
De La Hoya and Mayweather take part in today's final press conference before the official weigh-in this Friday.
Ring Magazine, the acknowledged bible of boxing, reported in its June 2007 issue that 12 out of 20 boxing experts it interviewed have favored Mayweather to defeat De la Hoya, with only 8 favoring the latter.
But Filipino ring icon Manny Pacquiao said in a recent interview with The Freeman's Emmanuel Villaruel that De La Hoya will win by unanimous decision over Mayweather.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on boxing needs.
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