This Week in Golf - July 12th through July 18th

Golf Betting Lines

07/12/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - BRITISH OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP, The Old Course at St. Andrews, St. Andrews, Scotland - The season's third major championship is on deck and it's being contested at the home of golf, The Old Course at St. Andrews.

All of the greats have won there, like Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods. In fact, the younger of those two stars has hoisted the claret jug the last two times St. Andrews hosted the Open Championship in 2000 and 2005.

Woods' game is in tatters at the moment. (Tatters for him anyway.) Phil Mickelson, the Masters champion, can overtake Woods for the No. 1 spot in the world rankings, but Mickelson's British Open record is spotty at best.

Last year, the world missed out on probably the greatest golf story in history. Tom Watson, then 59, held the lead on the 18th hole Sunday in his quest for a sixth Open title. He bogeyed the hole, appeared to run out of gas and lost a playoff to Stewart Cink.

The year before that, it was 50-year-old Greg Norman who had the lead on Sunday. Unfortunately, the two-time British Open winner didn't have it down the stretch and Padraig Harrington blew by him.

Several Europeans not named Harrington come into this week with some momentum. Ten of the top-20 ranked players in the world come from Europe, including Harrington.

He's the one of two European major winners of the group. Will it be a Westwood or a Poulter or a Rose or a McIlroy to break through? Rose has two wins in a little over a month, so he makes sense.

U.S. Open champion Graeme McDowell had a decent showing at the Scottish Open over the weekend. He could try to win majors at St. Andrews and Pebble Beach in the same year, much like Tiger in 2000.

What about world No. 4 Steve Stricker? His impressive victory at the John Deere Classic on Sunday would put him in good shape to make a run at that first major victory.

Perhaps the most famous hole in golf, the Road Hole, 17th at St. Andrews has been lengthened by almost 40 yards. The hole will now play at 490 yards come Thursday.

ESPN and ABC have the coverage all week, including 4:00 a.m. (et) start times on Thursday and Friday. Coverage starts at 7 a.m. on Saturday and 6 a.m. Sunday.

Next week on the PGA Tour is the Canadian Open, which was won last year by Nathan Green. The European Tour features the Scandinavian Masters, which was captured by Ricardo Gonzalez.

PGA TOUR

RENO-TAHOE OPEN, Montreux Golf & Country Club, Reno, Nevada - The Biggest Little City in the world hosts the PGA Tour stop for those not qualified for the British Open.

The field is about as good as can be expected with a nice mix of young players trying to get that first win, or veterans trying to reclaim some youthful magic.

Last year, John Rollins mixed three bogeys, a double-bogey, an eagle and three birdies in an even-par round of 72 on Sunday to get his third PGA Tour victory.

Rollins won by three over Jeff Quinney and Martin Laird. Rollins didn't make it into the British Open field, so he'll be back on Thursday to defend his title.

The 2009 event was staged opposite the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational and was played the first week of August. The now defunct U.S. Bank Championship in Milwaukee played opposite the Open Championship.

The Golf Channel has the broadcast all week.

Next week is the Canadian Open.

NATIONWIDE TOUR

CHIQUITA CLASSIC, TPC River's Bend, Cincinnati, Ohio - This is a new event on the Nationwide Tour this year, per an announcement in early March of this year.

The TPC River's Bend was designed by Arnold Palmer and opened in 2001.

The Golf Channel broadcasts all four rounds.

Next week the Nationwide Tour stays in Ohio for the Nationwide Children's Hospital Invitational at The OSU Golf Club. Derek Lamely won the title last year.

CANADIAN TOUR

THE PLAYERS CUP, Pine Ridge Golf Club, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada - One of two major Canadian Tour major championships, the Players Cup, takes center stage this week.

Well, after one of the four big major championships.

For the third consecutive year, Pine Ridge Golf Club is host. The winner of this championship gets a first-place check for $48,000 and a spot in next week's Canadian Open on the PGA Tour.

Graham DeLaet shot a 69 on Sunday and came from behind to win for the second time on the Canadian Tour in 2009. He won the ATB Financial Classic earlier in the year.

DeLaet won't be on hand to defend his title. He reached the PGA Tour through Q School and is scheduled to compete at the Reno-Tahoe Open.

There is no television for this tournament.

The Canadian Open is technically on the Canadian Tour schedule, but the next tournament is the Jane Rogers Championship on Aug. 9. Ryan Yip visited the winner's circle last year.

UNITED STATES GOLF ASSOCIATION

U.S. AMATEUR PUBLIC LINKS CHAMPIONSHIP, Bryan Park Golf & Conference Center, Greensboro, North Carolina - One of golf's oldest amateur tournaments starts on Monday.

There's two days of stroke play on Monday and Tuesday. That determines the low 64 players and then it's match play. The first round is Wednesday, followed by the second and third rounds on Thursday, the quarterfinals and semifinals on Friday and the 36-hole final on Saturday.

Brad Benjamin won last year's title, but is not back to defend.

Ryan Moore, former Masters champion Trevor Immelman and reigning Players Champion Tim Clark highlight a group of former winners.

Next week there are two USGA events, the U.S. Junior Amateur and the U.S. Girls' Junior.

Wwwflalottery Golf Betting News

<< Canucks sign D O'Brien, three others
Vancouver, BC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Vancouver Canucks on Monday announced the signing of defenseman Shane O'Brien. O'Brien, 26, had two goals and six assists with a plus-15 rating in 65 games for the Canucks last season. He has

<< NL Notebook: Better late then never for Reds' Rhodes
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - There may not be a more random All-Star on this year's National League squad than left-handed specialist Arthur Rhodes. Then again, there may not be a more deserving player either. Forget the moonball he served up to Ryan

<< AL Notebook: Cano finally starting to 'get it' with Yankees
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It wasn't long ago that there were some people inside the New York Yankees organization who wanted to deal Robinson Cano. Some felt he was too lazy in the field. Others didn't like his approach at the plate. His harshest c

<< ESPN's Berman honored with Pete Rozelle Award
Canton, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - ESPN host Chris Berman has been recognized as the 2010 recipient of the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Pete Rozelle Radio- Television Award. The award recognizes long-time exceptional contributions t

<< Henry to New York exactly what MLS needs
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - In one of the worst-kept secrets in soccer, French striker Thierry Henry will be announced as Red Bull New York's second designated player at a press conference on Thursday at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, N.J. What

The 'wow' factor in horse racing >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - This past Saturday had three stakes races that were the equal of any last-second result in the more popular sports in the world. The word 'wow' had to be shouted by anyone who watched the races as they hap

Montana's Wilson to play after murder acquittal >>
Missoula, MT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jimmy Wilson plans to rejoin the University of Montana football team after the NCAA granted him another year of athletic eligibility following his acquittal on murder charges. Wilson was tried in Southern Cali

Blackhawks to match San Jose's offer sheet for D Hjalmarsson >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Despite noted salary cap problems, the Chicago Blackhawks announced Monday that the club will match San Jose's offer sheet for restricted free agent defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson. The Sharks signed the 2

Canada well-represented at 2010 MLB All-Star Game >>
Toronto, Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Toronto Blue Jays will send three of their starting nine to the 81st MLB All-Star Game, after hitting a major-league leading 136 home runs in the first half. Toronto's All-Star representatives of Verno

Cavs owner defends stance on LeBron >>
CLEVELAND (AP) -Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert says he ``strongly'' disagrees with Jesse Jackson's criticism of his recent comments about LeBron James.Following James' announcement last week, Gilbert fired off an incendiary letter to Cleveland's fans,

Matt Kenseth And Kevin Harvick Favorites To Take NASCAR Nextel Cup Championship

(September 15)—The NASCAR season has hit the homestretch with the opening event on this year’s Chase for the Cup taking place this weekend at the Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway. With 10 races remaining to determine the Cup Series champion, leading online sportsbook MySportsbook.com today announced odds on all 10 Chase qualifying drivers capturing the NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship.

One of the largest sportsbook sites on the Internet, MySportsbook.com currently lists the top two drivers in the point standings as the early favorites to win the Nextel Cup. Entering the Chase for the Cup with a slim five-point lead in the point standings, 2003 NASCAR champ Matt Kenseth has been made a slight favorite to win his second Cup at 7/2 betting odds. 2001 Cup Rookie of the Year Kevin Harvick has betting odds listed at 5/2 and four-time NASCAR champion Jeff Gordon is listed at 6/1 to capture the Nextel Cup this year.

Hoping to follow in the footsteps of his legendary father who won six NASCAR titles, Dale Earnhardt Jr. stands at 8/1 to breakthrough with his first Cup victory. Staying with the family theme, MySportsbook.com lists 2005 Rookie of the Year Kyle Busch at 14/1 to succeed big brother Kurt’s 2004 NASCAR title. While Kasey Kahne was the final driver to qualify for the Chase with a third place finish last week, the oddsmakers give him a fighting chance at 10/1 mainly due to several mile-and-a-half tracks remaining on the schedule. Despite going winless on the NASCAR circuit this season, Jeff Burton enters the Chase at 5/1 to capture the Cup title. Meanwhile, rookie Denny Hamlin is 4/1 to win the championship, while veteran driver Mark Martin enters the Chase for the Cup as a 15/1 long shot to win his first NASCAR title in his 24th and final season.

MySportsbook.com will offer comprehensive Nascar betting lines on every race remaining on the Nextel Cup series including driver match-ups, props and odds to win each race. For a complete list of NASCAR odds, please visit www.MySportsbook.com.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts US credit cards needs.

MySportsbook.com is a must-have for the smart veteran sports investor who enjoys following the odds almost as much as betting them. Simply put, no one offers more betting options and offers them faster than MySportsbook. This football sportsbook is known for its ability to set the early market odds on events without having to worry about weak lines. Professional players are well aware that getting a crack at the early betting line is worth as much as, and sometimes more than, huge bonuses or reduced prices. MySportsbook's fearless, yet smart bookmaking style is what keeps everyone watching, including most other sportsbooks.

This is also a great choice for those who just want to have a worry free, fun experience. The ownership’s motto is “Sweat the game, not the payout”. These are not just decorative words used to fill space on the homepage. MySportsbook aims to give their customers the fastest withdrawals in the industry. Payouts are processed within 24 hours by an online sportsbook that carries our A+ financial rating.

Those who enjoy proposition and future wagers consider MySportsbook.com a top choice. Smaller players who seek large bonuses would do better at their sister book, Sportsbooks.com.

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