Verplank on top at Southern Hills

Golf Betting Lines

08/10/2007 - Tulsa, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Oklahoma State graduate Scott Verplank shot a four-under 66 on Friday to take the lead during the second round of the PGA Championship at Southern Hills.

Verplank, considered a favorite before the tournament due to his straight hitting, completed 36 holes at four-under-par 136.

He is one ahead of Stephen Ames, who posted a one-under 69 on Friday. Camilo Villegas and Arron Oberholser are also three-under par in the middle of their second rounds.

Tiger Woods birdied his first hole on Friday and is even-par for the championship. The defending champion is gunning for his first major title of the year. Since his breakthrough Masters win in 1997, Woods has only had three seasons without a major title.

Woody Austin managed an even-par 70 in round two and is in the clubhouse at two-under-par 138. Sergio Garcia and 2006 U.S. Open winner Geoff Ogilvy are also at that number on the course.

John Daly, the 1991 PGA Champion, bogeyed his first two holes and dipped to minus-one for the tournament.

Phil Mickelson carded a one-under 69 on Friday to move to plus-two for the championship. The 2005 winner was not satisfied despite an under-par round at this demanding track.

"It just feels like I'm leaving four, five shots out there, is all," said Mickelson, who has missed the cut in his last two majors. "I feel like I'm playing a lot better than I'm scoring. That's what's been frustrating."

Mickelson played a practice round with Verplank this week and saw something in his Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup teammate.

"He spent a lot of time in Oklahoma and Texas with this Bermuda rough," Mickelson said. "He's able to get up-and-down on the greens. If he hits a poor shot, he can salvage par. I think he'll be the guy to beat this week."

Verplank parred his first eight holes, then rolled in a 12-foot birdie putt at the ninth. He birdied the par-three 11th and added birdies at 15 and 17 to grab the lead.

At the 18th, Verplank had 20 feet for a birdie, but missed. Seeking his first major title, he still has the lead with half of the field in the clubhouse.

"Other than the heat, I feel pretty good," said Verplank. "It would be more than a dream come true (to win a major), particularly to have it here close to where I live. It would be probably unbelievable to me."

Ames was tied with Verplank at minus-four on the 18th hole, but hit a tree with his approach. He could not hole a long par putt, but did convert a five- footer for bogey to stay one behind.

John Senden carded an even-par 70 and is in the clubhouse at minus-one. Adam Scott (68) and Paul McGiney (66) finished 36 holes at even-par 140.

Overnight leader Graeme Storm struggled to a six-over 76 Friday and tumbled plus-one for the championship.

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Elite 8 NCAA Tournament Betting at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com

In what should be an outstanding Saturday of March Madness betting action, the top four teams in the South and West Regions square off in what should be extremely close match-ups. Three of the four teams are coming off extremely close games on Thursday evening, only UCLA won semi comfortably over Pitt 64-55.

Ohio State is coming off their second game in a row where in all reality they should have lost. Of course that doesn’t matter now since the name of the game is “survive and advance” but as the tournament continues, they can’t afford to keep getting down to their opponents early. Kansas also avoided a scare by holding off a scrappy Southern Illinois squad. In the third thrilling game of the evening Memphis pulled off the minor upset (+3.5) despite being the higher seed to Texas A&M.

Although the spreads are fairly small for Saturday’s games, MySportsbook.com continue to bet against the underdogs. Despite OSU’s two scares, 86% of the “betting public” feels the Buckeyes (-1.5) have what it takes to make the Final Four. In fact, so much of the early money is on OSU that the line has already moved from -1 to -1.5. In the second game of the doubleheader, Kansas and their high-powered offense are 2 point favorites as they take on UCLA and their effective defense. About 63% of the early money thus far is once again backing the favorites. If those percentages stay that high, don’t be surprised if this line moves as well. If you like Kansas (-2) you might want to jump on it early.

Memphis vs. Ohio State

Both squads were involved in thrillers on Thursday evening and should come out fired up. OSU can ill afford to get behind early like they did versus their previous two opponents (Xavier, Tennessee). Greg Oden needs to stay out of foul trouble; the Buckeyes are a completely different team when he is on the court. Memphis definitely has the athleticism and length to match-up with OSU. Of Memphis’ five leading minute earners, the shortest of the bunch is 6’5”. Each team has a very effective defense; Memphis surrenders 62.3 PPG whereas the Buckeyes give up only 61 PPG. With those type of numbers, it isn’t surprising that Memphis covered the UNDER almost 69% of the time this season. As a favorite, OSU has covered the UNDER almost 66% of the time over the last three seasons. The major concern for Memphis which is magnifies this time of the year is their brutal foul shooting (62%). This season, OSU is 17-11 ATS versus teams with a winning record and 7-2 ATS in all tournament games. Memphis has been an extremely reliable cover in tournament play in recent years with a 23-8 ATS record over the last three seasons.

UCLA vs. Kansas

In the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader, UCLA will play in a role which they are very unfamiliar with that of the underdog. Only twice this season have they been getting points from the handicappers and both times they covered. Over the last three seasons UCLA is a reliable 23-7 ATS in this unfamiliar role. UCLA has not fared well against Big 12 opponents recently going 1-7 ATS since 1997. Giving up only 59.6 PPG, UCLA will definitely look to do what they do best: keep this game as low scoring as possible. Their defense has been especially tough during the tournament. UCLA opponents have been able to muster up only 48.7 PPG while shooting a combined 34.5% from the field. UCLA definitely has a challenge at hand with a Kansas team that is capable of putting points on the board in bunches. As a team, they average 79 PPG and shoot an impressive 49.6% from the field and 39.4% from beyond the arc. During the tournament Kansas has been “lights out” from the field having shot 56.2%.

With Friday -105 juice on Basketball betting, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on all of the “March Madness” action.  Don’t forget to monitor who the public is backing at MySportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends”.  By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.

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