Fabulous Federer: Swiss great wins fifth straight U.S. Open title

Tennis Betting Lines

09/08/2008 - Flushing Meadows, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Swiss superstar Roger Federer defeated Scotland's Andy Murray in Monday's men's final at the U.S. Open to become the first man in the Open Era to capture the event five straight years.

The second-seeded former world No. 1 Federer straight-setted the sixth-seeded Murray 6-2, 7-5, 6-2 on Day 15 on the hardcourts at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. The final was pushed from Sunday into Monday after inclement weather from Tropical Storm Hanna wreaked havoc on Saturday's schedule here.

Federer cruised in an uneventful first set, as the super Swiss broke the Brit for a 4-2 lead and broke him once again to close out the stanza in routine 6-2 fashion.

In the second set, Federer broke for a 2-0 lead, only to see Murray break right back and then hold for a 2-2 deadlock. Murray appeared to break Federer once again for a possible 3-2 lead, but a Federer shot that sailed long was called in, Murray did not challenge the call, played it and wound up losing the crucial point. Federer would go on to win the game for a 3-2 edge.

Federer closed out the second set at 7-5 by striking a running forehand winner, his fourth winner of that game.

In set number three, Federer broke Murray for a 2-0 lead, broke again for a 4-0 advantage and then held his serve for a commanding 5-0 lead.

Murray broke Federer, who was serving for the match, to pull within 2-5, but it was all over in the next game, as the Swiss broke the Brit once again by converting on his second championship point when the Scot netted one final forehand after 1 hour, 51 minutes of tennis at a packed Arthur Ashe Stadium.

"This is a very special moment in my career," Federer said during the on-court trophy presentation. "To take this one home is incredible. It means the world to me."

Federer struck 20 more winners (36-16) than Murray, who had his serve broken a whopping seven times by the mighty Swiss. Murray could manage only two breaks over three sets.

The 21-year-old Murray, who is now up to No. 4 in the world rankings, was playing in his first-ever Grand Slam final. He was trying to give Britain its first U.S. Open titlist since Fred Perry way back in 1936.

"I've got a lot of improving to do if I want to win one of these tournaments," Murray said after the setback.

Federer is now 2-2 lifetime against Murray, including 1-1 this year. The Brit upset the Swiss on a hardcourt in Dubai for a second straight win earlier this season.

The 27-year-old Federer now owns 13 career major titles, leaving him just one shy of Pete Sampras' record haul of 14. Federer beat reigning Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic in last year's final here and also topped the Serb in this year's semifinals two days ago.

Federer has won 34 straight matches here in Flushing.

The last man to win five straight U.S. Open titles was the legendary "Big" Bill Tilden, who tallied six in a row from 1920-25.

Federer is also the first man ever to win five straight championships at two different majors. He was the Wimbledon champ from 2003-07.

Only two other men have won five U.S. Open titles in the Open Era (since 1968) -- Jimmy Connors and Sampras.

The Basel native Federer, this year's Wimbledon and French Open runner-up to Rafael Nadal, has won at least one major title in the last six years. A weary world No. 1 Nadal lost to the surging Murray here on Sunday.

Federer is now 13-4 in his major finals, with all four losses coming against Nadal. He's beaten five different men in the last five U.S. Open finales.

The amazing Federer halted a three-major winless drought, his longest such drought since the middle of 2003.

Federer is now 56-21 in his overall career finals, including 3-4 this year, with all four losses coming against Nadal. Surprisingly, this marked his first hardcourt title of the year.

Murray dropped to 6-5 in his career finals, including 3-1 this season.

The Olympic doubles gold medalist Federer pocketed $1.5 million and was awarded a Lexus automobile, while Murray settled for $1 million. Federer's career prize money is now up over $43 million. Sampras is the only other player to reach $43 million in prize money.

Only five men reached the four major finals this year -- Federer, Nadal, Djokovic, Murray and Aussie Open runner-up Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.

Vwgas Tennis Betting News

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American Idol Betting Odds: Season 6  

The online gambling websites are in the process of deciphering each American Idol contestant and his or her chances of winning Season 6 to come up with the early American Idol betting lines.

Tim Dalton of MySportsbook.com has been locked away in a soundproof room coming up with all the latest tallies, we are told. "American Idol has become one of the most significant betting events of the year," claims Jack Black of MySportsbook.com.  "Last year, millions were bet during the season across the globe, not just in America.

It's tough early on since we really do not have a glimpse as to how well each of these individuals will perform solo on a week-to-week basis.  It's like Week 1 of the NFL.  Pre-season means nada!

We do know the 24 finalists however.

Sanjaya Malakar is the young man whose sister failed to make it into the Top 24.  He's very low key but - unless he totally flubs - will probably win over the young girlie vote for a few weeks anyway.  He's too young to go all the way, according to Payton O'Brien. 

Brandon Rogers - Who?

Phil Stacy is the military guy who missed his daughter's birth because of the Memphis audition.  He should go a good distance.

Chris Sligh - He's got the humor and in many ways he's the Anti-American Idol much like last year's winner Taylor Hicks was.  And this is why he'll probably get pretty far in this competition.  He's chubby, white with a big curly afro....but more importantly, a great voice!  People love "real", not "real cute" to go all the way. 

"Blake Lewis should go far because of his uniqueness and looks.  He's the boy next store with a twist - he beat boxes.  But on top of this, he's a great singer, and I adore him," Payton O'Brien relayed.

A talented beat-boxer Blake Lewis was a hit during the group sing in Hollywood but Simon explained that this is a singing contest just before he told him he was “in.”

Paul Kim has caught our own roving reporter, Jenny Woo's eyes. 

"I love the fact that there is a Korean American on the show and he is bound to get more Asians tuning into the show," Woo said from her Miami Beach estate.  "There has never been a major presence of Asian-Americans on American Idol in the past.  He's a hottie with a nice voice so that should help to take him far.  Expect heavy betting action from the Asian community."

Sundance Head - He's not perfect, but he's got the personality that will take him through a few weeks, plus he's got the lineage (son of Roy Head - whose 1965 single, "Treat Her Right," hit No. 5 in the charts) 

And the others:

Rudy Cardinas
AJ Tabaldo - the 5th time is the charm
Nicolas Pedro
Chris Richardson
Jared Cotter

The girls

"Melinda Doolittle has one of the best voices," says MySportsbook.com Reporter and an acclaimed dancer in her own right, Destiney Lewis.  "It is great to see a back up singer step out like she has.  The girl needs to gain more confidence but that can also be a positive.  I think she will go far."

Alena Alexander - Those tears (she never seems to stop bawling) should get her far.

"Single mom Lakisha Jones I suspect will be a pretty big favorite entering Week 1 of the competition," says Destiny Williams.  Jones is an excellent singer and down to earth.  "She'll have a wide appeal," echoed O'Brien.

Nicole Trellis - Seems to exert confidence.

Amy Krebs - a powerful singer.

Antonella Barba
Gina Glocksen
Hailey Scanardo
Jordan Sparks
Stephanie Edwards
Leslie Hunt
Sabrina Sloan

MySportsbook.com is offering a 20% signup bonus with an initial deposit (i.e. open your American Idol betting account with $300, receive another $60 in which to bet with). 

Last two contestants will be?

1 Male/1 Female +100 (a $10 bet pays $10 plus your initial $10)

2 Males +170 (a $10 bet pays $17 plus your initial $17)

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MySportsbook.com: New College Football Clock Rules Examined

Coaches and bettors alike are desperate to make sense of the new time-keeping rules on the NCAA gridiron. One of the big stories to come out of the Ohio State-Texas clash last weekend was Texas coach Mack Brown's criticism of the NCAA's new clock rules that are intended to shorten the duration of college football games, therefore affecting college football betting.

"They scored with six minutes left and the game was over before we had a chance to do anything," Brown told ESPN.com. "I really hope whoever made these changes will go back and look them over."

Sure, it might be sour grapes; the Buckeyes thoroughly trounced the defending national champion Longhorns 24-7. However, Brown isn't alone in giving the changes their due thought. Bettors are also wondering about them, albeit for a completely different reason. Most experts agree that the changes will result in games being shortened by anywhere from 10 to 20 plays. The obvious consequence is lower scores, with more time rolling off the clock during changes of possession. (The Ohio State-Texas game flew well under the total of 52.)

According to research at the online sportsbook MySportsbook.com, more than 18 plays a game disappeared last weekend into thin air. That's a 10-percent reduction. In 2005, a typical game had 168.58 plays. For 2007 already, it's down to 150.26.

As a result, teams combined to gain an average of about 100 fewer yards a game last weekend versus the 2005 openers. Scoring was also down by about 4.5 points (attention Las Vegas sports lines).

Of course, oddsmakers were able to adjust to the changes before the season started. Proof of that came as the over went a balanced 8-9 at My Sportsbook on Saturday.

Other angles to consider:A shorter game should theoretically result in shorter lines. Whereas Team A might have been a 14-point favorite in a 168-play game (last year), if there are 10 percent less snaps in 2007, the line should also be reduced by 10 percent (to 13 or 12.5). Of course, this is an over-simplification of the matter, but something to keep in mind.
Less possessions means a better chance the game will be decided by three or seven points. For example, what might have been a 20-10 final score in 2005 may end at

17-10 in 2007. Granted, a 24-17 game last year might end at 21-17 these days, but the former - a three- or seven-point advantage being preserved as opposed to created - is the most likely scenario.

*UPDATE* - Sept. 25, 2007

New Clock Rules Boon for online bookmakers

By adjusting the time-keeping rules to shorten the duration of college football games, the NCAA hoped to make its product more enjoyable for the fans. While the NCAA's success in this regard is still up for debate, bookmakers couldn't be happier with the results.

"We are seeing a massive jump in college football betting," noted the MySportsbook.com management team. "With all the early Saturday games (12 a.m. ET) ending before the second wave begins (3:30 p.m. ET) - something that didn't always happen before the changes - bettors are now able to re-invest their winnings from the morning session in the afternoon games."

While not all bettors will choose to roll over their winnings, it doesn't take much for an impact to be seen on the bottom line. "Not all of the millions of dollars in morning payouts get re-bet. In fact, it's probably only 10 to 20 percent," noted the sportsbook management team. "Still, the increased football betting lines window will create a ton of growth for us over the course of the season."

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