Derksen goes low for lead in Paris

Golf Betting Lines

07/01/2010 - Paris, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Robert-Jan Derksen fired an eight-under 63 on Thursday to take the opening-round lead of the Open de France at Le Golf National.

Defending champion Martin Kaymer, Alejandro Canizares and Frenchman Jean van de Velde, famous for blowing the 1999 British Open, are knotted in second place at five-under 66.

Van de Velde's presence on the leaderboard is something of a shock. The 44- year-old is no longer an active player with any status on the European Tour. He is playing on a sponsor's exemption this week and despite the great start, is still cautious.

"I have no expectations whatsoever, even now. Especially now," said Van de Velde, who is ranked 1,175th in the world. "But we will see -- you never know with a Frenchman."

It's a Dutchman the field will have to worry about.

Derksen began on the 10th tee Thursday and collected his first birdie of the round at the par-three 11th. He parred his next two, then caught fire starting at the par-five 14th.

Derksen knocked his third shot to a foot to set up the easy birdie putt. He played his approach to five feet to set up his second birdie in a row and polished off his third consecutive birdie from four feet at the par-three 16th.

The two-time European Tour winner poured in a 15-footer for birdie at the 18th to make the turn in just 30 strokes.

"It was great, starting out it's never too easy," said Derksen. "I birdied 11 and made a very good par on 13, that was important, and birdied most of the holes coming in. Difficult holes, but played them very well."

Derksen continued his fine form with a birdie at one, which gave him a one- shot lead over the players at five-under.

Derksen closed his round with birdies at six and the nine to move three clear after just one round.

"I hit fairways and hit them very close," said Derksen. "Didn't make any mistakes and played good, gave myself chances and made a few putts.

"I've been playing really good actually. At the start it was very difficult -- I didn't have the confidence and now I do have the confidence. If I can keep this up I can definitely be in contention."

Danny Lee, Scott Strange, Marcel Siem, Robert Rock and Jyoti Randhawa are tied for fifth place at four-under 67.

The tournament got a boost on Thursday just by the fact that two top-10 players in the world teed off.

Lee Westwood, ranked third in the world, had what doctors thought might have been a blood clot. He was cleared and shot a one-under 70, which is good for a share of 30th.

Ian Poulter, who is No. 8, developed an infection after a bug bite, but he posted a one-over 72.

NOTES: Jose Maria Olazabal played for the first time since last October. The two-time Masters champion was battling rheumatic pains and shot an 11-over 82 on Thursday...Kaymer beat Westwood in a playoff last year...Louis Oosthuizen withdrew on Thursday.

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Betting the NFL preseason

Rule No. 1 in the gamblers' handbook states, "Avoid sports betting on meaningless games."

When you're drowning in a sea of baseball monotony, however, things change. Even a hint of pro football betting can persuade the most disciplined bettor to break a few rules. 

The NFL preseason is around the corner, with a tempting Hall of Fame match kicking off on Sunday. But bettors must stay vigilant. Wagering on NFL exhibition games is an entirely different beast than the regular season. Most fans don't recognize the players on the field because starters get as much action in August as Warcraft fans get on Prom night.

The only certainty about the NFL this time of year is uncertainty – and yet there are some who say betting in August can be a gold mine.

“I actually feel the NFL preseason presents solid profit opportunities for sharp bettors and handicappers,” Sports Expert Steve Merril explains. “My experience has been that the sportsbooks fear the preseason, which is evident by lower limits and massive moves.”

The line moves are attributed to the limited knowledge available regarding playing-time distribution. One team’s top unit out on the field for one more series has an impact on the pointspread. Setting lines in the preseason often is a shot in the dark.

“We base the betting lines mostly on public perception,” Pete Korner, founder of the Sports Club in Las Vegas, says. “It’s very tough to predict, almost a guessing game.”

The preseason is all about figuring out who’s in and for how long.

“It becomes a race between bettors and oddsmakers to find out how long the quarterbacks are going to stay in,” Korner admits. “If a sharp gets the information first, he could exploit an early line. I’m a full believer in moving the line in the preseason if the books find out something late in the week.”

Determining what each team’s motive is can help bettors handicap. To do this you must pay close attention to the philosophies head coaches employ in exhibition play.

“You need to know what a coach is trying to accomplish,” says Covers Expert Bryan Leonard. “Sometimes a new coach will want to instill a winning attitude. Others just want to make sure their starters don’t get hurt."

So how do you distinguish who’s playing scared and who’s playing for keeps?

“Head coaches on the hot seat or new coaches trying to implement a winning attitude usually try harder to win in the preseason,” Merril says.

Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel fits this criteria. He’s entering his third season as the sideline boss and has yet to lead the Browns to more than six wins.

Cleveland is an enticing bet as well because of the unresolved quarterback situation. General manager Phil Savage sacrificed the Browns’ first-round pick in next year’s draft for Brady Quinn, but the former Notre Dame quarterback hasn’t signed or reported to training camp yet.

Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson split time at QB last season and it looks like either player (or even Quinn) could be the opening-day starter.

“If a team has quarterback depth and the pecking order hasn’t been decided, it’s a big advantage,” Leonard says.

Even in the third week of the preseason when starters generally play the most, the final outcome of the game is in the hands of fringe players. A team's talent, all the way down to the last man on the roster, is something to consider.

The New England Patriots have long been considered one of the deeper teams in the NFL and coach Bill Belichick has said in the past he’s unafraid of stars getting hurt in games with nothing on the line. He shocked his colleagues in 2003 by playing some of his starters on special teams in the preseason.

“We want to have the team ready to play a tough, physical game and preparation has to go into that and I imagine a certain amount of injuries go with it,” Belichick told the Providence Journal in August 2003.

Bettors can only hope to find more teams that share the Pats' business-like approach to the preseason (New England is 17-9-3 against the spread since 2000) and take advantage of teams who detest the exhibition schedule.

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

Kurt Warner to start, Matt Leinart to watch

Despite the debate that's swirling , Kurt Warner will remain the starting quarterback for the Arizona Cardinals, coach Dennis Green said today. The Arizona Cardinals are the +7 point underdog at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com for this Sunday's game.

Green's comment came in a statement released by the team following an ESPN report that Green decided that rookie Matt Leinart would replace Warner as starter for Sunday's game at Atlanta.

"Generally talking about the starting lineup is not something we do," Green told the AP. "However, given the speculation that was out there we want to make it clear. We're disappointed after last week, but we still expect to be a playoff football team and we fully expect Kurt Warner to be the quarterback that leads us. That has not changed."

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on football needs.