Nadal tops Querrey; Spain leads U.S. 1-0 in Davis Cup semi

Tennis Betting Lines

09/19/2008 - Madrid, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The best-of-five Davis Cup semifinal between host Spain and the defending champion United States commenced Friday, as Rafael Nadal got the Spaniards out to a 1-0 lead with a victory over Sam Querrey.

The Wimbledon, reigning four-time French Open and Olympic champion Nadal dropped the first set against Querrey before rebounding for a 6-7 (5-7), 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 decision in the first of Day 1's opening singles rubbers.

Nadal prevailed in 3 hours, 17 minutes on a temporary clay court at Madrid's Plaza de Toros Las Ventas. The five-time major champion broke Querrey's big serve on four occasions, while the American could manage only one break throughout the match.

The 39th-ranked Querrey tallied 17 more winners (76-59), including 17 aces, against Nadal, but also piled up 74 unforced errors to help the world No. 1 Spaniard along.

Querrey, making his Davis Cup debut on Friday, is filling in this week for James Blake, who helped the U.S. win its first Davis Cup title in 12 years last year, but pulled out of this semifinal last week, citing exhaustion.

Friday's other singles bout pits Spain's David Ferrer against America's best, former No. 1 Andy Roddick.

On Saturday, the doubles rubber here will pit a Spanish team of lefthanders Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco against an American duo of Mike Bryan and Mardy Fish, who joined the draw this week when it was announced that Bob Bryan would be unable to play for the U.S. due to a shoulder injury.

Sunday's reverse singles currently call for Nadal to meet Roddick and Ferrer to take on Querrey.

The Spaniards are captained by Emilio Sanchez, while Patrick McEnroe is guiding the underdog U.S.

The United States and Spain are meeting for the ninth time in their history and for the fifth time this decade. The Americans are 5-3 against the Spaniards, winning the last meeting in a World Group quarterfinal last year in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

The Spain-USA winner will visit the Argentina-Russia victor in the final in November. The Argentines are playing host to the Russians in Buenos Aires.

The U.S. leads all nations with 32 Davis Cup titles and beat a visiting Russian squad in last year's finale in Portland. Spain owns two championships, including a 3-2 victory over the Americans in the 2004 final in Seville.

Eltienpo Tennis Betting News

<< CFL Previews - Week 13 (September 19-21)
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBERS (3-8) AT HAMILTON TIGER-CATS (2-9) DATE & TIME: Friday, September 19th, 7:30 p.m. (et). GAME NOTES: Suddenly, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers are back in playoff contention in the East

<< Jankovic, Dementieva ousted in Tokyo
Tokyo, Japan (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top-seeded Serbian Jelena Jankovic and Olympic gold medalist Elena Dementieva of Russia were a pair of quarterfinal upset victims Friday at the $1.34 million Pan Pacific Open tennis event.

<< Zvonareva, Zheng, Peng reach Guangzhou semis
Guangzhou, China (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top-seeded Russian Vera Zvonareva and Chinese crowd favorites Jie Zheng and Shuai Peng led the charge into the semifinals at the $175,000 Guangzhou International Women's Open. The Olympic bronz

<< Jankovic ousted in Tokyo
Tokyo, Japan (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top-seeded Jelena Jankovic fell to fifth-seeded Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova in quarterfinal action Friday at the $1.34 million Pan Pacific Open. Jankovic, of Serbia, seemed to be on track to mov

<< Hawkins, Buffaloes down No. 21 West Virginia
Boulder, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Cody Hawkins threw for 179 yards and two touchdowns, with an interception, on 22-of-33 passing, and Aric Goodman booted the game-winning field goal in overtime, as the Colorado Buffaloes edged No. 21 West

New York opens final series at Yankee Stadium vs. O's >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The final series at historic Yankee Stadium gets underway this evening, when the Bronx Bombers hold the first of three consecutive meetings with the Baltimore Orioles. The current Yankee Stadium, a building that w

Tigers invade Cleveland's Progressive Field >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fresh off a notable sweep of one of the American League's postseason contenders, the Cleveland Indians will try to keep the momentum going when the Detroit Tigers invade Progressive Field tonight for the opener of a th

Byrd leads Red Sox into Toronto >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Red Sox haven't had much luck when visiting Toronto this season, but the defending world champions hope to reverse their fortunes behind a pitcher who's been quite successful in enemy ballparks lately.

Angels open series at Rangers Ballpark >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Angels continue to tune up for the postseason this evening, as they start a three-game series with the Texas Rangers at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. The Angels, who are the only team to

Rays try to inch closer to first-ever playoff berth versus Twins >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sixth-year right-hander Edwin Jackson can all but finish off one of history's most unlikely turnarounds when the Tampa Bay Rays host the Minnesota Twins tonight in the second test of a four-game weekend series at Tropicana Fi

Betting Football

NFL Football Betting Online

Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?

I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.

Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.

There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.

Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.

For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.

A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.

The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.

Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.

So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.

Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.

“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.

Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.

“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.

It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.

Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.

The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.

“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.

“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”

Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.

The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.

“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”

Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?

“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”

Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.

MySportsbook.com: NFL draft - The NFC South


In part two of MySportsbook.com’s draft preview, we’ll take a look at a division that was extremely disappointing last season: the NFC South.  Many “experts” predicted the Panthers to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, of course they could not even make the playoffs in an extremely weak NFC.  The Saints definitely made up for the disappointing seasons of their NFC South brethren by exploding out of no where en route to the NFC Championship game.  For the avid NFL gambler, it is imperative to pay attention to the NFL draft.  Although free agency gets a ton of publicity, the successful franchises build their teams around the draft.

1. New Orleans Saints
Who would have thought this time last year that the Saints would be the favorites to win the NFC South for the 2007 campaign?  New Orleans is loaded with firepower on the offensive side of the ball but with the exodus of Joe Horn they will most likely look to draft a WR on Day 1.  Despite having the NFL’s 3rd ranked pass defense last season, the Saints will most likely upgrade their CB’s with one of their first two picks. Other possibilities for the Saints will be TE and DT.  Because of where they will be selecting (27th), the Saints could go the “best available player” route which could net a LB.

Key additions: Eric Johnson TE, Troy Evans LB, David Patten WR
Key loses: Joe Horn WR,
Team needs: CB, WR, TE, LB, DT
Possible draftees: Aaron Ross CB Texas, Darrelle Revis CB Pitt, Ted Ginn Jr. WR OSU, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Chris Houston CB Arkansas, Greg Olsen TE Miami

2. Carolina Panthers
Carolina was one of the biggest disappointments in the NFL last season.  With the signing of David Carr, expect the very first quarterback controversy to come out of Carolina if Jake Delhomme doesn’t rebound quickly from an average 2007 season. With veteran safety Mike Minter getting up there in age, they will look to draft a safety on Day 1 but probably not in the first round.  LB is another need with the loss of Chris Draft to go along with Dan Morgan’s concussion problems.  If TE Greg Olsen is still on the board, he might be too good to pass up despite their needs on the defensive side of the ball.

Key additions: David Carr QB
Key loses: Chris Draft LB
Team needs: LB, TE, S, OT
Possible draftees: Greg Olsen TE Miami, Patrick Willis LB Ole Miss, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Levi Brown OT PSU

3. Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons were another NFC South team to have a disappointing 2007 season.  The Falcons have been plenty busy during the off season with plenty of players coming and going including a new head coach.  The Falcons were able to improve their draft position with the trade of coveted backup QB Matt Schaub.  High on the list of Day 1 needs will be a defensive end to replace Patrick Kerney and a hard hitting safety since Lawyer Milloy is nearing the end of his career.  With an additional 2nd round pick, the Falcons could attempt to trade up to acquire local product WR Calvin Johnson. 

Key additions: Joey Harrington QB, Toniu Fonoti OG, Joe Horn WR
Key loses: Justin Griffen RB, Patrick Kerney DE, Matt Lehr OG, Ashley Lelie WR, Matt Schaub QB
Team needs: DE, S, OT, WR, DT
Possible draftees: LaRon Landry S LSU, Amobi Okoye DT Louisville, Levi Brown OT PSU, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas, Alan Branch DT Michigan

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Age really caught up to the Bucs last season.  The Bucs still have plenty of household names on defense in Ronde Barber, Simeon Rice and Derrick Brooks but the one thing those three have in common is unfortunately age.  It is imperative for the Bucs to get much younger, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Despite having bigger needs on the defensive side of the ball, WR Calvin Johnson is the most likely pick if he is still available when the Bucs pick at the four spot.  This would suit Bucs’ faithful just fine as Johnson is widely considered the top talent in the draft and it is a position of need for the Bucs.

Key additions: Jeff Garcia QB, Kevin Carter DE, Torrie Cox CB, Cato June LB
Key loses: Dewayne White DE, Sean Mahan OG
Team needs: WR, LB, DE, CB (Youth on defense!)
Possible draftees: Calvin Johnson WR Georgia Tech, Gains Adams DE Clemson, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas

It is never too early to start betting on the NFL. Log on to MySportsbook.com to checkout all of the NFL futures for the upcoming season.  On the clock: the NFC North

Odds to win the NFC South:
New Orleans Saints 8-5
Carolina Panthers 2-1
Atlanta Falcons 12-5
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-2    

Odds to win the NFC:
New Orleans Saints 13-2
Carolina Panthers 7-1
Atlanta Falcons 20-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25-1

Odds to win the Super Bowl:
New Orleans Saints 18-1
Carolina Panthers 20-1
Atlanta Falcons 50-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75-1

To visit this sportsbook get to MySportsbook.com for all your online sportsbook needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.