Castroneves upsets AGR for Mid-Ohio pole

Autoracing Betting Lines

07/21/2007 - Lexington, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brazilian Helio Castroneves beat out five other drivers, including all four Andretti Green Racing teammates, in the "Firestone Fast Six" to capture the pole for Sunday's inaugural The Honda 200 at Mid-Ohio IndyCar race. The No.3 Penske Racing Honda driver circled the 2.258-mile road course in one minute, 06.8375 seconds.

The pole victory was Castroneves' sixth of the season and 23rd of his IndyCar career.

"This team is fantastic, they never let me down," said a happy Castroneves. "We've been struggling a little bit."

Starting alongside Castroneves will be Danica Patrick who posted a second-best time of 1:07.1257.

"This is by far the best that I've done on a road course," said Patrick. "I'm really proud of the team. It feels good to have the Motorola car in the front row, not on an oval, but on a road course."

Tony Kanaan (1:07.1757) and Marco Andretti (1:07.3931) will start in row two.

Andretti was quickest in the one-lap preliminary qualifying session and led Dario Franchitti, Kanaan, Scott Dixon, Patrick and Castroneves in the six- person "Firestone Fast Six" shootout.

But it was Castroneves who laid down the best lap and though everyone took a shot at the time, no one could surpass it.

Dixon, starting sixth, so far this year has a win (Watkins Glen) and a second place (St. Petersburg) in two road course starts. It's not a fluke either. In 2006 Dixon earned a first, second and fourth in the three road course events.

Dixon seeks to improve on last year's fourth-place overall finish. In 2006 he collected two wins and nine top-fives. He already has those numbers in 2007 with still six races left on the schedule and is working on a two-race win streak.

"To come back and repeat at both (Watkins Glen and Nashville) is fantastic," said Dixon. "To be honest, things seem to come a little easier for me. I think it is a confidence level. Coming into these two races that were back to back, we've proven ourselves (at Nashville) last year, so you do come into a race weekend with more confidence."

Series points leader Franchitti has made the most starts at Mid-Ohio, but has little success to show for it. In six starts, Franchitti has just one top-10 (third in 1999) and finished 16th or lower four times.

The IndyCar driver with the most success on the 2.258-mile circuit is Castroneves. In four CART starts between 1998-2001 the Brazilian collected three top-10s including back-to-back wins in 2000 and 2001.

The race is set to drop the green flag on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. (et).

Wwwmysteries Autoracing Betting News

<< Mi Hyun Kim, Miyazato head to quarters in Match Play
New Rochelle, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mi Hyun Kim carded a 3 & 2 win over Rachel Hetherington in Saturday's third round at the HSBC Women's World Match Play Championship at Wykagyl Country Club. Kim, who is the highest remaining seed at N

<< Mets place Valentin on DL
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Mets placed Jose Valentin on the 15-day disabled list Saturday, one day after the second baseman suffered a fractured right tibia. Valentin suffered the injury in the fourth inning of Frid

<< Reds place Gonzalez on restricted list
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cincinnati Reds transferred shortstop Alex Gonzalez from the bereavement list to the restricted list on Saturday. Gonzalez had been on the bereavement list since last Saturday. In 83 games this seas

<< Tiger shoots a 69 in third round
Carnoustie, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tiger Woods shot a two-under 69 on Saturday and finished 54 holes at one-under-par 212 at the British Open Championship at Carnoustie. Woods currently trails Sergio Garcia by six shots as th

<< Red Sox clash with White Sox, possibly without Ortiz
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Still with the largest cushion of any American League division leader heading into play on Saturday, the Boston Red Sox shoot for their second straight victory as they contend with the Chicago White Sox in the third game of a

Nadal moves into Stuttgart final >>
Stuttgart, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top-seeded Rafael Nadal advanced to the final at the Mercedes Cup after posting a victory in the semifinals on Saturday. Nadal, who won this title in 2005, defeated fellow Spaniard Feliciano L

Report: Colts' Glenn to retire >>
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Indianapolis Colts offensive tackle Tarik Glenn is reportedly set to retire from the National Football League. According to a report in the Indianapolis Star, several sources close to Glenn have to

Phils' 2006 first-round pick to undergo Tommy John surgery >>
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Phillies announced that pitcher Kyle Drabek, the team's 2006 first-round draft pick, will undergo season- ending Tommy John surgery on Wednesday. The surgery will be performed in Ne

Garcia stays on top at Carnoustie >>
Carnoustie, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sergio Garcia's quest for his first major championship is very much on track. He shot a three-under 68 on Saturday to remain on top of the leaderboard after three rounds of the British Open Champi

British Open Third Round News & Notes >>
Carnoustie, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Any golf fan who went to Carnoustie would dream of an opportunity to meet the two-time defending champion and world No. 1, Tiger Woods. A 60-year-old woman had that chance on Saturday at the si

Mens NCAA Basketball Tournament odds  
As of February 9, MySportsbook.com has released its coveted 2007 Mens NCAA Basketball Tournament betting odds. “March Madness betting ” only a month away, the top ranked Florida Gators are favorite at 7-2 to win it all. The defending champs have not disappointed at all this season and currently have a 22-2 record and are undefeated (9-0) in SEC play. The Gators’ thrive off of their extremely balanced, experienced and versatile attack. All five starters started in last seasons National Championship game. What is most impressive with this group is their balance; the five starters all average between 10.7 and 13.6 PPG. The Gators have been on an absolute roll having won 15 straight by an average of 16.4 PPG.

Right behind the Gators are the 5th ranked UNC Tar Heels at 9-2. The Heels (21-3, 7-2) are absolutely loaded with top notch talent and are as deep as any team in the country. A concern for the Tar Heels might be inexperience. Of their top four scorers/ minute earners, three are freshmen and the other is a sophomore. The rest of the regular season, the Tar Heels play only one team that is currently ranked (Duke). Their remaining opponents do combine for an impressive 107-58 record though.

Other teams that the MySportsbook.com members seem to believe will win it all include the west coasts’ top team #2 UCLA (6-1), #3 OSU behind man-child Greg Oden (8-1), and #4 Wisconsin (10-1) behind their defense which has given up 70+ points only three times all season.

Below is a list of some of the favorites to win the 2007 Men’s NCAA Basketball Championship lines. For the full list of teams and March Madness odds be sure to log onto MySportsbook.com. If you want to use your credit card to bet on college hoops or any other event, MySportsbook.com has the highest credit card acceptance rate in the industry.

Arizona 20-1

Butler 20-1

Duke 30-1

Florida 7-2

Georgetown 30-1

Indiana 35-1

Kansas 15-1

Marquette 25-1

Maryland 40-1

Memphis 50-1

Nevada 50-1

UNC 9-2

OSU 8-1

Oregon 30-1

Pittsburgh 15-1

Texas 30-1

Texas A&M 18-1

UCLA 6-1

Wisconsin 10-1

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook betting needs.

MySportsbook.com: New College Football Clock Rules Examined

Coaches and bettors alike are desperate to make sense of the new time-keeping rules on the NCAA gridiron. One of the big stories to come out of the Ohio State-Texas clash last weekend was Texas coach Mack Brown's criticism of the NCAA's new clock rules that are intended to shorten the duration of college football games, therefore affecting college football betting.

"They scored with six minutes left and the game was over before we had a chance to do anything," Brown told ESPN.com. "I really hope whoever made these changes will go back and look them over."

Sure, it might be sour grapes; the Buckeyes thoroughly trounced the defending national champion Longhorns 24-7. However, Brown isn't alone in giving the changes their due thought. Bettors are also wondering about them, albeit for a completely different reason. Most experts agree that the changes will result in games being shortened by anywhere from 10 to 20 plays. The obvious consequence is lower scores, with more time rolling off the clock during changes of possession. (The Ohio State-Texas game flew well under the total of 52.)

According to research at the online sportsbook MySportsbook.com, more than 18 plays a game disappeared last weekend into thin air. That's a 10-percent reduction. In 2005, a typical game had 168.58 plays. For 2007 already, it's down to 150.26.

As a result, teams combined to gain an average of about 100 fewer yards a game last weekend versus the 2005 openers. Scoring was also down by about 4.5 points (attention Las Vegas sports lines).

Of course, oddsmakers were able to adjust to the changes before the season started. Proof of that came as the over went a balanced 8-9 at My Sportsbook on Saturday.

Other angles to consider:A shorter game should theoretically result in shorter lines. Whereas Team A might have been a 14-point favorite in a 168-play game (last year), if there are 10 percent less snaps in 2007, the line should also be reduced by 10 percent (to 13 or 12.5). Of course, this is an over-simplification of the matter, but something to keep in mind.
Less possessions means a better chance the game will be decided by three or seven points. For example, what might have been a 20-10 final score in 2005 may end at

17-10 in 2007. Granted, a 24-17 game last year might end at 21-17 these days, but the former - a three- or seven-point advantage being preserved as opposed to created - is the most likely scenario.

*UPDATE* - Sept. 25, 2007

New Clock Rules Boon for online bookmakers

By adjusting the time-keeping rules to shorten the duration of college football games, the NCAA hoped to make its product more enjoyable for the fans. While the NCAA's success in this regard is still up for debate, bookmakers couldn't be happier with the results.

"We are seeing a massive jump in college football betting," noted the MySportsbook.com management team. "With all the early Saturday games (12 a.m. ET) ending before the second wave begins (3:30 p.m. ET) - something that didn't always happen before the changes - bettors are now able to re-invest their winnings from the morning session in the afternoon games."

While not all bettors will choose to roll over their winnings, it doesn't take much for an impact to be seen on the bottom line. "Not all of the millions of dollars in morning payouts get re-bet. In fact, it's probably only 10 to 20 percent," noted the sportsbook management team. "Still, the increased football betting lines window will create a ton of growth for us over the course of the season."

About MySportsbook.com Sports Casino Poker
Since opening in 1997, MySportsbook.com Sports Casino Poker has been a leader in Internet wagering, providing single account access for sports and casino play. This sportsbook has a revolutionary payment method, Direct Bank Transfer, gives players a faster and more secure transaction option for both deposits and withdrawals. This Internet Sportsbook takes pride in offering an aggressive VIP rewards program, along with seasonal reduced juice specials and high parlay payout odds. MySportsbook.com has set new standards in the sports betting industry, from their fantastic customer service, industry leading bonuses, extensive selection of wager types and props, to the fastest payouts anywhere... MySportsbook.com is America's Sportsbook! Open an account today at MySportsbook.com Sports Casino Poker, or call toll-free 1-866-238-6648

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Master Card needs.