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03/11/2010 - Orlando, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Masters truly will be a tradition unlike any other this April, as several media outlets have reported that Tiger Woods will make his highly anticipated return to competitive golf at the season's first major championship.
Refuting an earlier New York Post report that targeted Woods' return at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in two weeks, FOXSports.com led a pack of media outlets pointing to a season debut at Augusta National instead, where Woods would be playing for the first time since the fall of 2009.
A source close to Palmer told FOXSports.com earlier Thursday that they had not heard anything about the possibility of Woods teeing up at Bay Hill, a course Woods loves, in a tournament he has won six times -- including last year.
His early morning accident the day after Thanksgiving led to Woods admitting marital infidelity. He has been in a self-imposed break from golf.
Woods held a 14-minute press session on February 19, at which he didn't answer any questions. That figures to not be the case upon his return to the PGA Tour, but Woods could find a gentler crowd at the Masters, where only accredited media will be permitted and galleries are among the most respectful in golf.
According to the earlier New York Post report, Woods has sought out the professional advice of Ari Fleischer, the former press secretary to President George W. Bush, to craft the game plan of his return to the game.
If Augusta is the intended destination for a return, Woods will face a course he dominated earlier in his career, but also one he has not won on since a playoff victory in 2005. He has gone four years without capturing a green jacket, the longest streak of his career.
<< Ganassi, Penske drivers set to battle for 2010 IndyCar title
Sao Paulo, Brazil (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The IndyCar Series -- with new title
sponsor IZOD -- kicks off its 2010 season this weekend in Brazil, marking the
first time the series competes in a South American country. With 17 races on
the schedule, t
<< Clark found guilty in murder of Broncos CB Darrent Williams
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Willie Clark has been found guilty in the fatal
drive-by shooting of Denver Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams.
A Denver jury convicted Clark of the crime Thursday. He was convicted on all
21 charges, inclu
<< Schwartzel finds himself alone in front at Doral
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - South Africa's Charl Schwartzel posted a
brilliant, bogey-free, five-under 67 on Thursday to take the first-round lead
of the WGC-CA Championship.
Schwartzel braved tough, windy conditions at the TPC Bl
<< Raiders cut ties with DT Warren
Alameda, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Oakland Raiders released defensive tackle
Gerard Warren on Thursday.
The Raiders acquired Warren from the Broncos prior to the 2007 season, but the
6-foot-4, 330-pounder registered just 97 tackles and 10
Heat's Wright charged with DUI >>
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Miami Heat forward Dorell Wright has been charged
with driving under the influence and driving with a suspended license.
The Miami Herald reported Wright was arrested in South Beach and was stopped
early Thurs
Bulls' Rose leaves with sprained wrist >>
Orlando, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chicago Bulls All-Star point guard Derrick
Rose left Thursday's game against the Magic with a left wrist injury.
Rose was driving the lane in the first quarter and ran into Orlando center
Dwight Howard
UC Irvine hoops coach will not return >>
Irvine, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The University of California-Irvine announced
on Thursday that head men's basketball coach Pat Douglass will not return next
season.
Douglass, who had been at the helm of the Anteaters for the last 13 seaso
Capitals clinch Southeast Division >>
Columbus, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Thanks to Atlanta's 2-1 loss to Columbus on
Thursday, the Washington Capitals clinched the Southeast Division crown.
The Capitals had Thursday off, but were able to win the Southeast Division for
the third str
In any football or basketball game (the main sports that use point spreads) there are two teams playing against each other.
Those teams, though, are rarely exactly evenly matched – meaning that typically one team has a better chance than the other to win the game. If bettors were allowed to bet on who was simply going to win the game, smart ones would obviously bet on the better team (likely winning more than 50% of the time in the process).
If winning were that easy the Las Vegas and online sportsbooks would stop taking any bets! This is where the point spread comes in: the basic function of the point spread is to balance the likelihood of each team “winning” by adjusting the final score by the point spread. After this adjustment is made you get the Against The Spread result (ATS result for short).
Let’s look at Super Bowl XXXIX, New England Patriots vs. Philadelphia Eagles. Most people believed the defending champ Patriots to be the better team – so if betting were simply based upon which team would win the game, an uneven majority of people would have wagered on New England. But, by using the point spread, the bookmakers adjusted the terms of the bet, evening the proposition so about half the people believed the Pats to be the smart bet, while the other half considered Philly to be the smart bet.
New England Patriots -7 vs. Philadelphia Eagles
The better team, called the Favorite, is expected to win the game and must “give” or “lay” points to the weaker team. The favorite is listed with a minus sign and the number of points they are favored by (e.g., New England -7)
In the case of our example, New England must not only win the game, but they must win by more than 7 points for Pats bettors to have a winning ATS result. An Eagles bettor wins his bet either if:
There was also the possibility that the final score could land exactly on the spread number (for example, the Pats winning 28-21 when -7), which is called a “push” or “no action” and a refund is then issued to bettors of both teams.
The same game with the same point spread can be considered from the weaker team’s perspective: The Underdog (Philly in the case of our example) is not expected to win the game and online football betting thus receives or “gets” points given by the stronger team. When a game is stated from the underdog’s perspective the team is listed with a plus sign and the number of points they are underdogs by:
Philadelphia Eagles +7 vs. New England Patriots
Keep in mind that Philadelphia +7 and New England -7 is the same point spread on the same game, simply stated differently. The first is from the underdog’s perspective; the later is from the favorite’s.
Not a must, but for some a mathematical approach is insightful. You can determine the ATS winner by either:
Let’s look at the actual result of Super Bowl XXXIX: New England 24 Philadelphia 21
The favorite, New England, won the game but not by more than the point spread they were favored by (7), so the ATS result was a LOSS for Pats bettors.
Looking at it from the underdog’s perspective, Philly did not win the game, but they lost by less than the point spread (7), so the ATS result was a WIN for Eagle bettors.
Mathematically considered, 24 for the favorite Pats minus 7 equals 17, which is less than the 20 the Eagles scored, so the underdog Eagles win the ATS result (or you could figure 20 plus 7 equals 27 for the Eagles, which is more than 24 for the Pats).
Emily’s boyfriend understood the point spread and wagered $100 on the Eagles at +7. The Eagles may not have gotten a Super Bowl ring, but since they won the ATS result Emily’s boyfriend cashed his bet – giving him money to take her out to a nice dinner.
And now hopefully you understand how to read point spreads, putting you one step closer to joining the fun of sports betting.
To visit this internet sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting and World Series odds.
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