Eschauer, Darcis to meet in Dutch Open final

Tennis Betting Lines

07/21/2007 - Amersfoort, Netherlands (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Werner Eschauer of Austria and Belgian Steve Darcis posted semifinal victories on Saturday at the Dutch Open.

Eschauer, who upset third seed Carlos Moya in the quarterfinals, whipped Dutchman Robin Haase 6-4, 6-4 to advance to his first-ever final that will take place Sunday.

Haase was worn out after completing his quarterfinal matchup against Frenchman Florent Serra on Saturday after it was suspended in the first set because of rain on Friday. When play resumed on Saturday, Haase battled from behind to take out Serra 4-6, 7-5, 6-4.

Eschauer's opponent in the final will be Darcis, who came from behind and stunned second seed Mikhail Youzhny 4-6, 6-0, 7-5.

Wwwmysteries Tennis Betting News

<< Towers, Blue Jays blank Mariners
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Josh Towers pitched 6 2/3 shutout innings as the Toronto Blue Jays edged the Seattle Mariners, 1-0, in the second contest of a three-game set. Towers (5-6) gave up just three hits while striking out four

<< Tampa's Crawford exits with ankle injury
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tampa Bay Devil Rays outfielder Carl Crawford left Saturday's game against the New York Yankees in the fifth inning with a sprained left ankle. Crawford legged out an infield single in the third and began

<< Marlins' Olsen arrested
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Florida Marlins pitcher Scott Olsen was reportedly arrested Saturday morning after he did not pull over his car during a traffic stop. According to the Miami Herald, Olsen was charged with driving

<< 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

<< 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

Muller, Szavay to meet in Palermo final >>
Palermo, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Martina Muller and Agnes Szavay will meet in the final of the Palermo Open after both were victorious in their semifinal matches on Saturday. Muller, the second-seed from Germany, needed three

Drew, Diamondbacks edge Cubs >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Stephen Drew hit a go-ahead home run in the eighth inning and the Arizona Diamondbacks held on to beat the Chicago Cubs, 3-2, in the middle contest of a three-game set at Wrigley Field. Orlando Hudson we

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Carson, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - David Beckham is not expected to start for Los Angeles on Saturday night when the Galaxy host English Premiership power Chelsea in a friendly at The Home Depot Center. The international superstar has be

Power wins Champ Car pole in Edmonton >>
Edmonton, AB Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Will Power won Saturday's final qualifying session for the Rexall Grand Prix Edmonton at the Rexall Speedway. The No.5 Team Australia driver circled the 1.973-mile, 14-turn,temporary course

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New Rochelle, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With no big names left entering the quarterfinal round, a local favorite breathed life into the HSBC Women's World Match Play Championship. But not for long. Meaghan Francella's run as the 33rd

Big 12 Conference betting odds

Work left to do: Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Kansas State

Texas joins Texas A&M and Kansas as locks after getting league win No. 11. Texas Tech greatly helped its own hopes and crippled OK State's with the two-point win Saturday. Is K-State the last reasonable hopeful? Could be an elimination match in Stillwater on Tuesday, at least for the Cowboys.

Work left to do:

Texas Tech [18-11 (7-7), RPI: 44, SOS: 12] A critical two-point win over OK State leaves the Red Raiders with Baylor and at Iowa State left. Get both and the Red Raiders likely are good to go. Get one and there could be some interesting comparisons with a K-State team that could finish two or three games "ahead" of them in the standings but doesn't have any of the quality wins Texas Tech has. Not a lot in nonconference play (against Arkansas in Little Rock being the best win, by far) to lean on.

Oklahoma State [18-9 (5-8), RPI: 50, SOS: 35] Still without a road win, the Cowboys now need to win two on the road just to get to .500 in conference play. It's hard to recall a team (OK, other than Clemson) falling so precipitously from lock status to almost certainly out of the NCAAs at this point. There are wins to be had in the last three, including a very big home game against K-State on Tuesday, but this team is reeling. Can you tell the pressure to win is getting to them with the way the final possession played out at Texas Tech? There are some good nonconference performances to lean on, specifically beating Missouri State and Syracuse on neutral floors and Pitt in OK City, but if the Pokes don't right this very, very soon, that won't be enough.

Kansas State [20-9 (9-5), RPI: 56, SOS: 96] It pays to be in the Big 12 North. The nine league wins are Colorado (twice), Missouri (twice), Iowa State (twice), Baylor, Nebraska and (a good one against) Texas. That helps explain the middling computer profile. The win over USC is nice, but the nonconference leaves a lot to be desired. The game at OK State in Stillwater on Tuesday is huge, as it could KO the Cowboys and leave K-State with a home date against Oklahoma with which to work.


Betting Football

NFL Football Betting Online

Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?

I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.

Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.

There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.

Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.

For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.

A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.

The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.

Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.

So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.

Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.

“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.

Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.

“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.

It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.

Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.

The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.

“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.

“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”

Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.

The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.

“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”

Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?

“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”

Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.