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02/02/2012 - Scottsdale, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan Palmer fired a seven-under 65 Thursday to grab a one-stroke lead with the first round of the Phoenix Open suspended due to darkness.
Palmer earned his third PGA Tour title at the 2010 Sony Open. However, he missed the cut at this event last year.
Webb Simpson, a two-time winner last year, carded a six-under 65 and is alone in second place. Harrison Frazar, Kevin Na, Chez Reavie, Derek Lamely and Jarrod Lyle are tied for third after posting five-under 66s.
They were joined there by Bubba Watson, Spencer Levin and Jason Dufner. Watson and Levin both finished 15 holes, while Dufner is through 13.
The start of the first round at TPC Scottsdale was delayed one hour by frost. The round was suspended by darkness at 8:05 p.m. (et) and will resume Friday 9:30 a.m. (et). The second round will start as scheduled at 9:30 a.m.
Palmer and Simpson both started their rounds on the back nine. Palmer poured in a 14-footer for birdie on the 10th. He birdied both par-fives, 13 and 15, to move to minus-three.
The 35-year-old dropped his approach within 10 feet at the 18th and converted that birdie effort to get within two of Simpson.
Palmer made it two in a row with a birdie on the first. A 13-foot birdie putt on the fourth gave Palmer a share of the lead. He followed with a 12-footer for birdie on five and made it three in a row with a 10-foot birdie effort on the No. 6.
That run of three straight birdies gave Palmer a two-stroke lead. His run ended on the seventh, where he tripped to a bogey to cut his margin to one. Palmer two-putted for par on the final two holes to cap his round.
"I had two great days preparing on Tuesday and Wednesday," said Palmer, who missed the cut in his first two events this year. "Getting the old putter back out, and getting the old feelings I've had in the past, the way the swing feels and the way the body feels, it was set up for a good day today."
Simpson opened with four pars in a row. He flew up the leaderboard with six birdies in the next seven holes. That spurt started with a 13-footer at 14 and kick-in birdie on the 15th.
After making par at the raucous par-three 16th, Simpson drained a 22-footer birdie on 17 and followed with a six-foot birdie putt on 18.
Around the turn, Simpson sank a 12-footer for birdie on one and moved atop the leaderboard as he stuffed his approach inside a foot on the second.
Simpson climbed to minus-seven when he sank a 16-foot birdie try on the fifth. His drive landed in the rough on the sixth and that led to Simpson's only bogey of the day.
"I really didn't feel like I hit a bad shot. I hit a chip that released a lot more than I thought it would, but other than that it was solid," Simpson said. "I think the thing that kind of held me in there all day was my putting. I made a bunch of putts, so I'm excited about that."
Two-time winner Phil Mickelson posted a three-under 68 and is tied for 19th. That was his first sub-par opening round of the year.
NOTES: This event needed a Monday finish last year after frost delays pushed everything back...Defending champion Mark Wilson is tied for 50th at minus- one...Former British Open champion Stewart Cink struggled to seven bogeys, three double-bogeys and a birdie in a round of 12-over 83...Forty-two of the 132 players that started did not finish their rounds.
<< Magic's Howard to start All-Star Game in Orlando
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dwight Howard of the Orlando Magic was the
leading vote-getter with 1,600,390 votes and will start for the Eastern
Conference in front of his home crowd at Amway Center in this month's All-Star
Game.
The star
<< Packers promote Clements to offensive coordinator
Green Bay, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Green Bay Packers have promoted Tom
Clements from quarterbacks coach to offensive coordinator, the team announced
on Thursday.
Former offensive coordinator Joe Philbin left two weeks ago to become
<< Indians have deal in place with 1B Kotchman
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Indians reportedly have a one-
year deal in place with free-agent first baseman Casey Kotchman.
The deal is worth $3 million plus incentives, according to MLB.com.
The Indians have not confir
<< Bobcats' Henderson out 2-4 weeks
Charlotte, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Charlotte Bobcats guard Gerald Henderson is
expected to miss 2-4 weeks after an MRI on Thursday confirmed a right
hamstring strain.
Henderson suffered the injury during the third quarter of Wedn
Maryland routs Boston College >>
College Park, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Laurin Mincy and Brene Moseley netted 16
points apiece as No. 9 Maryland routed Boston College, 86-44.
Alyssa Thomas added 14 points and eight rebounds for Maryland (19-3, 6-3 ACC),
which snapped a two-g
Bellucci bows out in Chile >>
Vina del Mar, Chile (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Third-seeded Thomaz Bellucci was
upset on Thursday as Federico Del Bonis of Argentina knocked off the 2010 VTR
Open champion in straight sets, 6-2, 7-5.
Del Bonis broke Bellucci four times from
Gamecocks down Lady Vols for first time in 32 years >>
Knoxville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Markeshia Grant had 27 points as South
Carolina defeated No. 8 Tennessee for the first time since 1980 in a 64-60
victory.
La'Keisha Sutton had 12 points and six rebounds for the Gamecocks (18-5,
Parise scores twice as Devils down Canadiens >>
Newark, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Zach Parise scored his second goal of the game
with 2:44 to play to give the New Jersey Devils a 5-3 win over the Montreal
Canadiens.
David Clarkson had two goals and an assist while Dainius Zubrus added
El Duque expected to throw Tuesday
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- New York Mets pitcher Orlando Hernandez, sidelined at spring training because of arthritis in his neck, is expected to resume throwing on Tuesday.
Hernandez received a cortisone shot Thursday after leaving camp and returning to New York to have his neck examined. The 41-year-old right-hander is penciled in as the team's No. 2 starter behind Tom Glavine.
El Duque's health is a major issue for the Mets, who won the NL East in 2007 and came within one victory of the World Series. Their aging and unsettled rotation is a big question mark this year.
MySportsbook.com has the Mets as -110 favorites to repeat as NL East champions odds.
Hernandez went 11-11 with a 4.66 ERA last season, including 9-7 with a 4.09 ERA in 20 starts after the Mets acquired him from Arizona in late May. But he missed the playoffs because of a torn calf muscle.
New York already is without Pedro Martinez, out until at least midseason following rotator cuff surgery. Among those competing for starting jobs are prospects Mike Pelfrey, Philip Humber and Jason Vargas, plus veterans Chan Ho Park, Jorge Sosa and Aaron Sele.
Notes: Mets manager Willie Randolph is excited about two new utility players he could have on his bench: Damion Easley and David Newhan. ''Their value is really all over the place,'' Randolph said. Easley can play anywhere in the infield and could be used as an emergency outfielder, though Randolph said he would prefer to keep the veteran in the infield. Newhan, meanwhile, can play second base, third or any outfield position for the Mets. ''I love versatility,'' Randolph said. ''I love guys that can give me options when I need them to step in.''
Additional baseball lines and World Series odds can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com
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Michael Vick is back, Brett Favre isn't and the NFC East remains the best division in the NFC, maybe in all of football.
As players start to gather for the start of another season, some things change and some stay the same in the world of the NFL.
The NFC East has been the dominant division in the National Conference for a while, despite limited playoff success, save for the New York Giants surprise Super Bowl win two seasons ago.
Hell, there's a generation of kids in Texas who have never seen the Cowboys win a playoff game (last win was in 1996).
But collectively, the Giants, Eagles, Cowboys and Redskins (well, maybe not so much the Redskins) are as good as a division gets in an NFC conference that has struggled to stay competitive with the AFC side.
Sports bettors have both acknowledged the NFC East's dominance, as one glance at the NFL future odds menu will show.
Looking over the NFL betting odds at online sports book MySportsbook.com we see the top three teams listed to win the NFC Championship are all from the NFC East:
Dallas Cowboys - 7 - 1
Philadelphia Eagles - 13 - 2
New York Giants - 9 - 2
Slotting in behind these three are two teams from the NFC North: the Minnesota Vikings (15-2) and the Chicago Bears (10-1).
Again, despite the lack of recent playoff success, the Dallas Cowboys are popular with the sports betting community, as they hold 14% of all the money wagered on who will win the NFC Championship.
So far, the New York Giants are the bettors' favorite to represent their conference in the Super Bowl, as they have 24% of the overall NFC Championship betting volume.
And what about the Philadelphia Eagles? For the most part, the Eagles had a very productive offseason, the kind that could bring them back to the top.
They had a good draft adding the likes of WR Jeremy Maclin and RB LeSean McCoy.
Unfortunately, the team received a blow when long-time defensive coordinator Jim Johnson passed away on Tuesday.
But this team will make a real run at the division title this year. Going into the regular season, Philly is listed at +240 to win the division.
Last season the Eagles were 9-6-1 SU and 10-6 ATS.
Teams from the NFC East will play teams from the AFC West in the regular season and the Eagles haven't really been a good bet in the last 20 games against the likes of San Diego, Oakland, K.C. and Denver, only going 8-12 ATS.
Two seasons removed from that Super Bowl title, the New York Giants see themselves listed as the odds-on favorite in NFC East championship futures at +162.
Plaxico Burress is gone and with him all the bad publicity surrounding the gun in the sweatpants incident, but can they replace him in the offense?
Last season the Giants were a very reliable bet going 12-4 ATS.
In the Giants' last 20 games against fellow teams from the NFC East; they are 13-7 ATS.
Dallas is listed at +240 to win the division.
Dallas went 9-7 SU and 7-9 ATS last season and with the amount of talent the Cowboys have, a similar performance won't do.
The Cowboys have been atrocious against divisional rivals, going 6-14 ATS in their last 20.
The Washington Redskins are longshots to win the division at +550.
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