10/21/2008 - Lyon, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former champions Andy Roddick of the United States and Richard Gasquet of France were among Tuesday's first-round winners at the $860,000 Lyon Tennis Grand Prix. Australian Open runner-up Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of the host nation also advanced on Day 2.
The top-seeded Roddick erased French crowd favorite Nicolas Mahut 7-6 (7-5), 6-4, while a second-seeded Gasquet fought back to beat Colombian qualifier Santiago Giraldo 5-7, 6-3, 7-6 (7-3) on the indoor carpet at Palais des Sports Lyon Gerland. The former top-ranked Roddick titled here in 2005, while Gasquet ran the table in 2006.
Roddick will face fellow American Robby Ginepri, while Gasquet will battle Belgian Steve Darcis in the round of 16. Ginepri drove out defending Lyon champion Sebastien Grosjean, a wild card this week, 6-7 (4-7), 6-4, 6-4.
In other opening-round play involving seeds, a No. 3 Tsonga topped last year's Lyon runner-up and fellow Frenchman Marc Gicquel 7-5, 4-6, 6-3, while Ecuador's Nicolas Lapentti toppled sixth-seeded Croat Ivo Karlovic 7-6 (7-4), 6-3. Gicquel gave way to Grosjean in last year's popular all-French finale here.
First-round wins also came French veteran Fabrice Santoro and Italian Andreas Seppi. The 35-year-old Santoro, who titled here 11 years ago, subdued Italian Fabio Fognini 6-4, 6-1.
Santoro should have his hands full with Tsonga in the second round.
On Wednesday, last week's Madrid Masters runner-up Gilles Simon of France will face Argentine Juan Monaco in a first-rounder. Simon, seeded fourth this week, is all the way up to No. 10 in the world.
<< Blue Jackets activate Malhotra; place Modin on IR
Columbus, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Columbus Blue Jackets activated forward
Manny Malhotra from injured reserve Tuesday, while placing forward Fredrik
Modin on IR.
Malhotra was injured in the club's final preseason game on Octobe
<< Ducks place Klee on waivers
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Anaheim Ducks placed defenseman Ken Klee on
waivers on Tuesday.
Klee, 37, was acquired by the Ducks from the Thrashers in a trade before the
season that saw defenseman Mathieu Schneider head to Atlanta.
<< Post positions drawn for 25th Breeders' Cup
Arcadia, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Post positions and morning-line odds have been
set for the 25th running of the Breeders' Cup World Championships, which will
be held this Friday and Saturday at Santa Anita Park.
Defending Breeders' Cup Cla
<< NFC North: Bears' offense covers for injured defense
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It's not surprising that the Chicago Bears' defense gave up
a lot of points in this past Sunday's clash with the Minnesota Vikings, since
the team was playing without three of its top defensive backs. What was
surprising, how
Newcastle appeals Beye's red card >>
Newcastle, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Football Association has confirmed
they received a claim for wrongful dismissal from Newcastle United for defender
Habib Beye.
The Senegal international's appeal will be heard on Thursday after he
Browns suspend disgruntled Winslow one game >>
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Browns handed Kellen Winslow a
one-game suspension on Tuesday as a result of the tight end's negative
comments toward the organization and, specifically, team vice president and
general
Tottenham's Dawson charged with misconduct >>
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tottenham Hotspur defender Michael Dawson
has been hit with an FA misconduct charge relating to the aftermath of his
sending-off against Stoke City.
Dawson was dismissed in the final minutes of t
Portsmouth's Redknapp denies inciting crowd >>
Portsmouth, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp has
denied suggestions that he incited the crowd before the coin-throwing incident
that marred the goalless draw at Aston Villa.
A linesman was struck on the head
Recently I had an email debate with an angry reader who said I did not understand "the science of oddsmaking", as he called it.
He said I was wrong for suggesting oddsmakers care about who wins or loses games.
"Oddsmakers only care about splitting the betting public 50/50 on both sides of the line and keeping the commission (a.k.a. juice)," he wrote.
He might have been right about not understanding "the science of oddsmaking". After all, I'm not an oddsmaker. That said, I stick to my assertion that oddsmakers (a.k.a. sportbooks) often do care about who wins games.
Granted, as a general rule, sportsbooks try to balance their action so that they're not exposed to big losses. However, there are times when this is difficult to pull off, regardless of how much a line has moved. There are also times when that general rule is ignored and a book pursues risk.
Generally speaking, it's safe to say the books in Vegas are risk-adverse. Unlike in the past when the wise guys ruled the town, Vegas is now corporate and the goal of most casinos is to make as much money as possible with as little risk as possible.
Thus, Vegas sportsbooks try everything in their power to balance the action. They're satisfied simply collecting the juice. But these profits are small, especially compared to the take from other casino games, namely slot machines.
Because the profits at Vegas sportsbooks are so small, you could argue that many casinos operate sportsbooks simply as a novelty to keep the tourists happy.
With a growing aversion to risk, it should come as no surprise that Vegas bookmakers have been panicking this NFL season.
Despite huge pointspreads, a disproportionate percentage of bettors are still laying their money on favorites like the Eagles, Colts, Pats and Vikings rather than the dogs (a common trend for the largely recreational bettors that visit Vegas).
And much to the dismay of the books, those favorites are finding ways to cover the thick chalk. In fact, prior to Week 7, the four teams listed above are a combined 16-2-2 (88 percent) against the spread. (The tables turned dramatically in Week 7, but more on that later.)
The result has been an early-season beating for the books, and a bonanza for bettors.
While Vegas increasingly hates risk, it's no longer a major player in the sports betting world. Most of the betting action now takes place offshore where sportsbooks are not as obsessed about balance. In fact, some books encourage exposure to risk because the rewards can be so much bigger.
Consider MySportsbook.com. On its website, the book has odds pages which actually display the amount of action it's getting on games. In other words, you can see how much action the book is taking on both sides of a pointspread, moneyline or over/under.
One look at these numbers and it's obvious MySportsbook.com does not balance every game. In fact, far from it.
Take last weekend's matchup between St. Louis and Miami. By game time on Sunday, 83 percent of the betting action at MySportsbook.com was on the Rams; only 17 percent was on Miami.
What's interesting is that MySportsbook.com opened the pointspread with Miami at +6 1/2. By game time, the spread had lowered to +5.
That goes contrary to the balancing theory. If MySportsbook.com had wanted to balance the action, it would have given Miami more points; instead, it took away 1 1/2. World Series odds are now up as well.
MySportsbook.com exposed itself to even more to risk, and rolled the dice on the underdog Dolphins. Why? I contacted a representative with the book to find out. His answer was simple.
"The line moved early based on 'smart money' from sharp players," said Jeff Gilroy, a spokesperson for the book. "We also knew from early in the week that we would need Miami, therefore (we dropped) the spread to encourage Rams money.
"At the end of the day, we liked the home team."
So the conclusion is this: MySportsbook.com respected the sharp action, and gambled that the sharp bettors had a better take on the game than the recreational bettors, who were hammering the visiting Rams.
In the end, the gamble paid off. Miami, desperate for a win in front of its home fans, pounded the overrated Rams, who are terrible on the road and even worse on grass. Final score: 31-14 Fish.
MySportsbook.com was also heavily exposed on numerous favorites in Week 7, including Philadelphia, Seattle and Denver. All three failed to cover.
The fact that sportsbooks are exposed to risk on certain games is really nothing new. The fact, that Sportsbook.com is willing to show the public where it's exposed is intriguing.
Armed with this type of information, bettors can make more educated wagers. They can get an idea where the sharp money is going and conversely where the public money is headed.
MySportsbook.com is opening up its cashbox, letting bettors look inside and challenging them to take their best shot at grabbing the cash.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting odds needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
Anybody who knows about online sports betting knows MySportsbook.com! They are probably the most famous offshore sports gambling website located on the web! After nearly 10 years of online sportsbook service, MySportsbook.com is still impressing their visitors with great customer service, live odds, fast payouts, and an easy-to-use website. MySportsbook.com has everything that die-hard sports fans want. For those looking to bet on all major sporting events, look no further. Make MySportsbook.com your one-stop shop for NFL football, college football, baseball, baseketball, boxing, and horseracing.
MySportsbook.com has one distinct advantage over all other online sportsbooks: They have been in the football gambling industry the longest and have served the most satisfied customers. So if you're in the market for a new online sportsbook for the next upcoming season, be sure to check out MySportsbook.com today! We are absolutely positive that you will not be disappointed with this company.
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