Burris leads Stampeders over Winnipeg
Football Betting Lines
08/01/2010 - Calgary, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Henry Burris threw for 340 yards and a pair of touchdowns, and the Calgary Stampeders held on to defeat the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, 23-20, at McMahon Stadium
Burris converted 28-of-38 pass attempts and added 55 rushing yards for Calgary (4-1), which won its second game in a row to remain in a tie with Saskatchewan for the top spot in the Western Conference. Nik Lewis hauled in 10 balls for 160 yards, while Ken-Yon Rambo made six catches for 86 yards and a score in his first game back since suffering a torn knee ligament against the B.C. Lions last July.
Steven Jyles, starting his second consecutive game in place of the injured Buck Pierce, threw for 227 yards and a score on 17-of-30 tosses, as Winnipeg (2-3) suffered its third loss in the past four games. Terrence Edwards grabbed six passes for 162 yards and a score in the defeat, while Fred Reid rushed for 75 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries.
It didn't take long for Rambo to make his impact felt, as he hauled in a 20- yard touchdown pass from Burris to give Calgary the lead after one quarter of play. The catch, which came after a holding penalty that made it second-and- goal from the 20-yard line, capped a five-play, 74-yard drive.
Calgary added to its lead early in the second quarter when Rob Maver connected on a 45-yard field goal.
A response from Winnipeg came midway through the second quarter, with Reid breaking off a 46-yard touchdown run. A 66-yard punt by Winnipeg's Alexis Serna then resulted in a single to make it a 10-8 game.
The Stamps answered on the ensuing drive, as Burris connected with Deon Murphy from four yards out for a touchdown with 32 seconds left in the half. The drive took less then two minutes and spanned 75 yards on eight plays.
After Winnipeg forced and recovered a Burris fumble to stall a promising Calgary drive midway through the third quarter, the Bombers moved into scoring position courtesy of a 45-yard pass interference call. The Bombers would settle for a 33-yard field goal by Serna, and they now trailed just 17-11 heading into the fourth quarter.
Calgary wasted little time extending its lead early in the final frame, as Maver snuck in a 37-yard field goal just minutes into the period.
The Bombers though, responded less then two minutes later when Jyles hit a wide open Terrence Edwards on a 61-yard touchdown pass.
With 3:22 remaining, Maver knocked through a 45-yard field goal to give Calgary a little cushion at 23-18.
Following a quick two-and-out, Winnipeg's defense came up with a big stand and forced Calgary into a punt.
The Bombers, who had the ball at their own 24-yard line with 1:40 remaining, moved right down to the Calgary 30-yard line courtesy of a 43-yard pass from Jyles to Edwards.
Winnipeg, however, was unable to convert on any of the next three downs, twice going for it all with passes to the end zone. Brock Ralph had a shot at the first toss to the end zone, but the pass went off his shoulder, and Jyles overthrew Edwards on the third down.
Calgary then took a safety while running out the final seven seconds of the game.
Game Notes Rambo's touchdown was his first since October 18th, 2008..Burris has thrown for over 300 yards in four of the last five meetings against Winnipeg...The Stamps are now unbeaten in their last nine contests at home, going 8-0-1 in that span...Calgary has now won three of the last four meetings in the series...The Bombers remain winless in Calgary since 2002...These teams are set to finish off the 2010 regular season against each other in Winnipeg, their only other scheduled meeting of the campaign.
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Sportsbook betting odds favor Europe in Ryder Cup
September 19, – Despite holding a decided edge in the all-time series, with 24 wins, 2 ties and 10 losses, Team USA is the underdog again heading into the Ryder Cup in Kidare, Ireland this weekend, according to MySportsbook.com. The Europeans have captured four of the past five editions, including their largest victory ever, an 18 ½ to 9 ½ thumping in Michigan in 2004. Current Ryder Cup betting odds favor the Europeans to continue their winning ways; they are a 4-5 bet to take the title, compared to 6-5 for the Americans.
Despite being knocked out in the first round of World Match play by Shaun Micheel, Tiger Woods is predicted to lead the US charge and be their highest point scorer for the week, with odds listed at 9-4 that he outpoints all other American players, including Jim Furyk, Phil Mickelson and Chris DiMarco to name a few. Team USA has four relatively unknown players on the roster but all four are 2007 tournament winners and have posted some of season’s best performances, each earning over $1.5 million on the PGA TOUR. They include Zach Johnson, Vaughan Taylor, JJ Henry and Brett Wetterich.
The experienced European squad includes the likes of Luke Donald, Sergio Garcia, Padraig Harrington, Jose Maria Olazabal and Darren Clarke, who’s emotions will be tested after the passing of his wife to a battle with cancer. Donald and Garcia are in particularly good form and each is a 5-1 bet to lead the European squad in the points race. Donald has proven he can go head to head with Woods at a major event after a run for the $1.2 million purse at the PGA Championship. Garcia’s Ryder Cup credentials prove he’s ready for battle too.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your golf sportsbook needs.
Ryder Cup Odds| Europe Tie USA |
4-5 10-1 6-5 |
Ryder Cup Top US point scorer
| Tiger Woods Jim Furyk Phil Mickelson Chris DiMarco David Toms Stewart Cink Chad Campbell Scott Verplank Zach Johnson Vaughan Taylor JJ Henry Brett Wetterich |
9-4 4-1 5-1 7-1 8-1 12-1 15-1 15-1 25-1 30-1 30-1 50-1 |
Ryder Cup Top European scorer
| Sergio Garcia Luke Donald Padraig Harrington Colin Montgomerie Darren Clarke David Howell Lee Westwood Paul Casey Henrik Stenson Jose Maria Olazabal Paul McGinley Robert Karlsson |
5-1 5-1 6-1 13-2 8-1 9-1 9-1 11-1 12-1 12-1 20-1 25-1 |
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com
Sportsbooks to bet on football
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 football betting got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting odds needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.