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07/23/2010 - Bad Gastein, Austria (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Second-seeded Timea Bacsinszky of Switzerland and Austrian veteran Yvonne Meusburger were among the quarterfinal winners Friday at the Gastein Ladies tennis tournament.
Bacsinszky, the highest-remaining seeded player after top seed Andrea Petkovic was eliminated on Thursday, rolled to a 6-0, 6-4 victory over Sandra Zahlavova of the Czech Republic.
Next up for Bacsinszky will be Meusburger, who advanced with a 7-5, 6-4 win over eighth-seeded Anastasija Sevastova of Latvia. The 26-year-old Meusburger has never won a WTA title and reached her lone final at this event in 2007.
Bacsinszky has just one WTA crown, winning in Luxembourg last year. She will play in her first semifinal of 2010, as her best previous result this year was a quarterfinal loss to Roberta Vinci at the Barcelona Ladies Open in April.
Meusburger beat the 21-year-old Bacsinszky in the first round of the Australian Open this year for her first win in three lifetime matchups.
Saturday's other semifinal will feature France's Alize Cornet against Julia Goerges of Germany.
Cornet, who knocked off Petrovic on Thursday, needed three sets to dispose of Austrian wild card Patricia Mayr, 6-2, 6-7 (5-7), 6-1, while Goerges also went the distance in a 6-4, 6-7 (4-7), 6-4 triumph over Russia's Anastasia Pivovarova.
The 20-year-old Cornet has just one WTA Tour title, taking the Budapest crown in 2008. She will appear in her second semifinal of 2010, having lost to Iveta Benesova in Morocco this spring.
Goerges, trying for her first WTA crown, also reached the semifinals last week in Palermo. She has never played Cornet.
<< Canucks D Sami Salo tears Achilles' tendon
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) -Vancouver Canucks defenseman Sami Salo has torn his Achilles' tendon and is out indefinitely.The team said Friday that Salo was hurt ``while training'' and would not comment further. But a report in his native Finla
<< Browns make it official with McCoy
Berea, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Browns made it official on Friday
and signed quarterback Colt McCoy to a multi-year contract.
Terms of the deal for the former University of Texas star were not disclosed,
but the Cleveland Plai
<< Blanc suspends French World Cup squad
Paris, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New France manager Laurent Blanc has decided
to suspend the entire 23-man team that took part in this summer's World Cup
for their friendly match against Norway next month.
Under the direction of former
<< New England Patriots 2010 Training Camp Preview
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) -
REPORT DATES: July 25th (Rookies), July 28th (Veterans)
SITE: Gillette Stadium, Foxboro, MA
CAMP OBJECTIVES: Apart from Randy Moss, the men Tom Brady will be throwing to
on Week 1 are unknown. Wes Welker is unlikely t
Dallas puts road unbeaten run on line at Toronto >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - FC Dallas has not lost on the road since April
and puts its six-match road undefeated streak on the line Saturday at Toronto
FC, which is one of three Major League Soccer teams still unbeaten at home.
FC Dall
Cowboys ink second-round pick LB Lee >>
Irving, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Dallas Cowboys have agreed to terms with
linebacker Sean Lee on a four-year contract.
The deal for the second-round draft choice is reportedly worth $1.7 million
guaranteed.
Dallas moved up four
Steelers ink Tomlin to extension >>
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Pittsburgh Steelers extended the
contract of head coach Mike Tomlin through at least 2012, the team announced
on Friday.
In addition, the deal calls for an option year for 2013.
"Mike Tomli
Orioles activate Roberts from DL >>
Baltimore, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Baltimore Orioles have reinstated second
baseman Brian Roberts from the 60-day disabled list.
He had been sidelined since April 10 because of an abdominal strain suffered
while stealing second base in
Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.
Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.
Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.
If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.
Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.
By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.
In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.
So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.
While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.
There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.
In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:
SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.
XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.
XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.
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