Edwards tops in qualifying at Watkins Glen

Autoracing Betting Lines

08/07/2010 - Watkins Glen, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Carl Edwards claimed his first Sprint Cup Series pole in two years by winning Saturday's qualifying for the Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips at The Glen at Watkins Glen International.

Edwards turned a lap of 124.432 m.p.h. around the 2.45-mile road course in Upstate New York for his fifth career Sprint Cup pole, but his first since August 2008 at Bristol (69 races ago).

"It feels good; I feel like I won the race just having that fast of a lap here," Edwards said. "It will be different to start up front, and I think that will be something good for us on Sunday."

Edwards qualified 0.35 seconds ahead of Jamie McMurray, who will start on the outside pole.

"I really love road racing, and I feel like there's a lot of pressure on me when I come here, because I always talk about going go-karting, and most of the karters give me a hard time if I don't do well, so it makes me feel good for the go-karters in America that I qualified well," McMurray said.

McMurray's Earnhardt Ganassi Racing teammate, Juan Pablo Montoya, took the third starting spot, while A.J. Allmendinger and Kurt Busch rounded out the top-five.

Tony Stewart, who leads all drivers with five wins at Watkins Glen, including a victory here one year ago, qualified sixth

"It's going to be a lot better of starting spot than where we were last year," said Stewart, who won last year's race at Watkins Glen from the 13th starting spot. "I'm pretty happy with it, and that will give us the starting spot that we need."

Greg Biffle, who was fastest in both practices on Friday, qualified eighth, followed by Jimmie Johnson, who won his first road course race earlier this season at Sonoma, CA, and Kyle Busch, the 2008 race winner at Watkins Glen.

Kevin Harvick, the current points leader, will start 20th. Harvick holds a 189-point advantage over Jeff Gordon, who will roll off 16th.

Dale Earnhardt Jr., making his 500th career Cup start this weekend, qualified 40th.

J.J. Yeley, Dave Blaney and Tony Ave failed to qualify.

Sunday's 90-lap race at Watkins Glen is scheduled to start shortly after 1:00 p.m. (et).

Wwwdallasnews Autoracing Betting News

<< Woods on pace for historically bad finish
Akron, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tiger Woods shot a five-over 75 on Saturday and is now 11-over par through three rounds of the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational. Woods, a seven-time winner of this championship, is in 78th place out of 80 player

<< A-Rod struck with liner in batting practice
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez was reportedly struck by a Lance Berkman line drive in batting practice and limped off the field. According to the New York Post, he was tended to by a team trai

<< Reds place Springer on DL
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cincinnati Reds placed relief pitcher Russ Springer on the 15-day disabled list Saturday with a strained left hip. The team replaced him on the roster with pitcher Carlos Fisher, recalling him from Triple

<< Mets make several moves, promote two prospects
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Mets shook up their roster on Saturday, releasing infielder Alex Cora, optioning outfielder Jesus Feliciano to the minors and promoting two prospects to the major league club. Outfielder Fer

<< Wozniacki, Zakopalova to battle for Copenhagen title
Copenhagen, Denmark (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top-seeded Danish favorite Caroline Wozniacki will face off against Czech Klara Zakopalova in the final of the $220,000 e-Boks Sony Ericsson Open after each won her respective semifinal match o

Red Sox ink Delgado to minor league deal >>
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Red Sox agreed to a minor league contract with former New York Mets first baseman Carlos Delgado. Delgado has yet to play this season while he recovers from offseason hip surgery. He tried

Baghdatis advances to final in D.C. >>
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Eighth-seeded Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis defeated Xavier Malisse in straight sets to reach the final of the $1.402 million Legg Mason Tennis Classic, a hardcourt U.S. Open Series event. Baghdatis r

Nets sign F May >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New Jersey Nets have agreed to a one- year, non-guaranteed contract with forward Scott May, according to the New York Post. Charlotte made May the 13th overall selection in the 2005 NBA Draft af

Power continues road course domination with Mid-Ohio pole >>
Lexington, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Will Power edged defending IZOD IndyCar Series champion Dario Franchitti in Saturday's qualifying to capture the pole for the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Power lapped the 2.258-mile,

Stubbs hits key HR, Reds hold on to top Cubs despite shaky ninth >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Drew Stubbs hit the tie-breaking home run in a two-run eighth inning that carried Cincinnati past Chicago, 4-3, in the middle matchup of a three-game set. Stubbs launched Randy Wells' second pitch of the innin

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.

Pacific-10 Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Stanford

Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.

Should be in:

Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.

Southeastern Conference odds
Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State

It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it.

Work left to do:

Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney.

Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson.

Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable.

Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile.

For more College Basketball betting lines go to MySportsbook.com

Additional sports lines can be found at: www.Sportsbooks.com

To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards.