Creamer still tied for lead at SBS Open

Golf Betting Lines

02/17/2007 - Oahu, HI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Paula Creamer and Sherri Steinhauer both shot two- under 70 Friday to remain tied for the lead after two rounds of the SBS Open.

Creamer and Steinhauer, part of a three-way tie for the lead after the first round, were joined by Morgan Pressel at seven-under-par 137. Pressel tied for the round of the day with a four-under 68.

Hee-Won Han had a three-under 69 and was alone in fourth place at six-under 138. Pat Hurst (68), Julieta Granada (71) and Janice Moodie (70) were tied for fifth at five-under 139.

One shot further back were the No. 2 and 3 players in the world: Lorena Ochoa and Karrie Webb. Ochoa shot a 69 and Webb had a 70 at Turtle Bay Resort. They were joined in eighth place by Janice Moodie (70).

In all, there are 16 players within five shots of the lead heading into Saturday's final round.

Creamer got to seven-under par with an 10-foot birdie putt at No. 9, her second birdie on the front nine. She ran into trouble with back-to-back bogeys from the 11th, but got both shots back with strong wedge shots.

At the 14th, she knocked a 54-degree wedge within four feet to set up birdie, and at the 18th she hit a 58-degree wedge to six feet for a closing birdie.

"It is difficult with all of the wind," Creamer said. "You have to land balls short."

After going winless last season, the eighth-ranked Creamer is looking for her first title since breaking through for a pair of victories in 2005, when she was the LPGA Tour Rookie of the Year.

"I think that I've kind of overcome that whole let's try to win and win and win. I just need to let it come to me," said Creamer.

"Last year was a lot of...trying to force things to do it. I just need to go out and play like I've been playing. That is what I've realized, so we'll see what goes on tomorrow."

Steinhauer, the reigning Women's British Open champion, mixed six birdies with four bogeys in her second round. She was at eight-under after posting back- to-back birdies at the 13th and 14th, but dropped back with a bogey on the 15th.

The highlight of her round was a 15-foot birdie putt at No. 9, which came two holes after she three-putted from 60 feet for bogey at No. 7.

"I would have liked to eliminate the bogeys, but I played a lot of solid holes," said Steinhauer.

Pressel, the 2005 U.S. Women's Amateur champion, is still looking for her first LPGA Tour win. She came within inches of holding the lead alone when a chip for birdie at the 18th ended at the edge of the cup.

"I never put myself into too much trouble today, which was nice," said Pressel, who had five birdies with just one bogey.

Because the tournament runs Thursday-Saturday, the 36-hole cut came at the end of Friday's round and fell at four-over 148. World No. 4 Cristie Kerr (149) and defending champion Joo Mi Kim (151) were among the players missing the weekend.

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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

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MySportsbook.com and Kentucky Derby Offer Bonuses
The 2008 Kentucky Derby has announced a $1-million bonus for this weekend’s 134th ‘Run for the Roses’ and MySportsbook.com is doing the same.

Well, not quite $1 million, but MySportsbook.com is offering a 75% rebate for Kentucky Derby lines. Check out the exclusive horse racing bonus for all the details.

According to MySportsbook.com, the favorites for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky are: Curlin (+250); Street Sense (+500); Scat Daddy (+700); Circular Quay (+750); and Nobiz Like Shobiz (+800).

Derby organizers announced this week that there will be a $1-million bonus at the 2007 Kentucky Derby odds if the first-place horse wins by more than 6 1/2 lengths – the margin of Barbaro's victory last year. The bonus would be divided Saturday among the winning trainer, jockey, owner and a charity, with each receiving 25 percent. The designated charity is the Barbaro Memorial Fund.

''It's certainly creative, it's certainly fun and it has something for the horsemen, which we always want to embrace,'' Churchill Downs president and chief executive Robert Evans said at a news conference. ''What's really cool is it will force us to remember Barbaro.''
    
Meanwhile, the Derby favorite – Curlin – is going against the odds this year. It's been 125 years since Apollo won after skipping his 2-year-old season, and not since Regret in 1915 has such a lightly seasoned horse worn the blanket of red roses.

Arkansas Derby winner Curlin – unbeaten in three career races – tries to overcome both those obstacles in Saturday's 133rd Derby.

''We're not running against history,'' trainer Steve Asmussen said Monday. ''We're running against who they load up.''

Six other horses have run in the Derby without benefit of 2-year-old races and with three or fewer starts. The best any of them managed was a sixth-place finish by Showing Up last year.
   
Asmussen dismissed suggestions that Curlin's lack of racing experience could keep him from the winner's circle.

”He exudes confidence and he's got a great presence about him,'' the trainer said. ''I feel great about the position we're in. He's not worried about anything, why should you be?''
   
The Kentucky Derby is at 4:04 p.m., ET Saturday.

For complete odds on the Kentucky Derby, visit MySportsbook.com. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.