11/22/2008 - Motherwell, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hibernian's scoring troubles evaporated in a big way on Saturday at Fir Park Stadium as the team put together a comprehensive 4-1 win over Motherwell.
Hibs entered the match having gone scoreless in 300 minutes, but John Rankin put an end to that trend six minutes into the game with a fine strike from 20 yards.
The hosts leveled the match before halftime when Chris Porter drew a foul just outside the box and Robert Malcolm curled a free-kick into the upper corner, sending the teams into halftime at 1-1.
However, Hibs took over the match in the second half, going in front just five minutes after the restart.
Steven Fletcher dropped the ball off for Dean Shiels inside the box and the Hibs striker lashed the ball into the bottom corner, handing his team a 2-1 lead.
Fletcher then put his name on the scoresheet with a fantastic 30-yard strike that gave the visitors a two-goal cushion, while Derek Riordan added a fourth goal in stoppage time to cap the scoring.
Celtic maintained its four-point lead at the top with a 3-1 win over St Mirren, while Rangers got goals from Jean Claude Darcheville and Kris Boyd in the second half to get past Aberdeen, 2-0.
Brian Easton's own-goal in stoppage time denied Hamilton three points as the last-place side had to settle for a 1-1 draw with Dundee United, Hearts stayed in third place with a 2-1 victory against Falkirk and Inverness moved into the middle of the table by beating Kilmarnock, 2-1.
<< Chicago finalizes Blanco's loan to Santos
Bridgeview, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Fire finalized an agreement for
the loan of Fire midfielder Cuauhtemoc Blanco on Friday to play with Santos of
the Mexican Primera Division for the 2008 Apertura playoffs.
"The Chicago Fire is
<< Avs place C Guite on IR; recall RW Willsie
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Colorado Avalanche placed center Ben
Guite on injured reserve Saturday, retroactive to November 10, with a rib
injury.
Guite has played in nine games this season, notching two goals and
<< Thunderstruck: Carlesimo fired as head coach
Oklahoma City, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Oklahoma City Thunder have fired head
coach P.J. Carlesimo after just 13 games and a league-worst 1-12 record.
"This was a very difficult decision to make," said Thunder executive vice
president
<< Ducks try to solve Morrow-less Stars in Dallas
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Anaheim Ducks have had their troubles with the Dallas
Stars as of late. They will try to knock off the last-place club tonight in a
matchup between the Pacific Division residents at American Airlines Center.
Though the
Bears put T Miller on IR >>
Lake Forest, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Bears placed offensive tackle
Fred Miller on injured reserve Saturday with a shoulder problem.
Miller appeared in six games this season for Chicago, playing mostly on
special teams. T
U.S. to play Brazil, Italy in Confederations Cup >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The United States men's national team was drawn
into Group B on Saturday along with reigning World Cup winners Italy, five-time
World Cup winners Brazil and African Cup of Nations winners Egypt for the 2009
FIFA
Arminia Bielefeld upsets Bayer; Hoffe takes lead >>
Bielefeld, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Artur Wichniarek and Daniel Halfar scored
as Arminia Bielefeld knocked Bayer Leverkusen out of first place on Saturday in
the German Bundesliga with a 2-1 win at Schuco Arena.
Hoffenheim took advantage o
Canucks G Luongo leaves game vs. Pittsburgh >>
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Vancouver Canucks goaltender Roberto Luongo
left Saturday's game against the Pittsburgh Penguins with an apparent left leg
injury.
With 15:06 left in the first period, Luongo made a pad save but immediately
Recently I had an email debate with an angry reader who said I did not understand "the science of oddsmaking", as he called it.
He said I was wrong for suggesting oddsmakers care about who wins or loses games.
"Oddsmakers only care about splitting the betting public 50/50 on both sides of the line and keeping the commission (a.k.a. juice)," he wrote.
He might have been right about not understanding "the science of oddsmaking". After all, I'm not an oddsmaker. That said, I stick to my assertion that oddsmakers (a.k.a. sportbooks) often do care about who wins games.
Granted, as a general rule, sportsbooks try to balance their action so that they're not exposed to big losses. However, there are times when this is difficult to pull off, regardless of how much a line has moved. There are also times when that general rule is ignored and a book pursues risk.
Generally speaking, it's safe to say the books in Vegas are risk-adverse. Unlike in the past when the wise guys ruled the town, Vegas is now corporate and the goal of most casinos is to make as much money as possible with as little risk as possible.
Thus, Vegas sportsbooks try everything in their power to balance the action. They're satisfied simply collecting the juice. But these profits are small, especially compared to the take from other casino games, namely slot machines.
Because the profits at Vegas sportsbooks are so small, you could argue that many casinos operate sportsbooks simply as a novelty to keep the tourists happy.
With a growing aversion to risk, it should come as no surprise that Vegas bookmakers have been panicking this NFL season.
Despite huge pointspreads, a disproportionate percentage of bettors are still laying their money on favorites like the Eagles, Colts, Pats and Vikings rather than the dogs (a common trend for the largely recreational bettors that visit Vegas).
And much to the dismay of the books, those favorites are finding ways to cover the thick chalk. In fact, prior to Week 7, the four teams listed above are a combined 16-2-2 (88 percent) against the spread. (The tables turned dramatically in Week 7, but more on that later.)
The result has been an early-season beating for the books, and a bonanza for bettors.
While Vegas increasingly hates risk, it's no longer a major player in the sports betting world. Most of the betting action now takes place offshore where sportsbooks are not as obsessed about balance. In fact, some books encourage exposure to risk because the rewards can be so much bigger.
Consider MySportsbook.com. On its website, the book has odds pages which actually display the amount of action it's getting on games. In other words, you can see how much action the book is taking on both sides of a pointspread, moneyline or over/under.
One look at these numbers and it's obvious MySportsbook.com does not balance every game. In fact, far from it.
Take last weekend's matchup between St. Louis and Miami. By game time on Sunday, 83 percent of the betting action at MySportsbook.com was on the Rams; only 17 percent was on Miami.
What's interesting is that MySportsbook.com opened the pointspread with Miami at +6 1/2. By game time, the spread had lowered to +5.
That goes contrary to the balancing theory. If MySportsbook.com had wanted to balance the action, it would have given Miami more points; instead, it took away 1 1/2. World Series odds are now up as well.
MySportsbook.com exposed itself to even more to risk, and rolled the dice on the underdog Dolphins. Why? I contacted a representative with the book to find out. His answer was simple.
"The line moved early based on 'smart money' from sharp players," said Jeff Gilroy, a spokesperson for the book. "We also knew from early in the week that we would need Miami, therefore (we dropped) the spread to encourage Rams money.
"At the end of the day, we liked the home team."
So the conclusion is this: MySportsbook.com respected the sharp action, and gambled that the sharp bettors had a better take on the game than the recreational bettors, who were hammering the visiting Rams.
In the end, the gamble paid off. Miami, desperate for a win in front of its home fans, pounded the overrated Rams, who are terrible on the road and even worse on grass. Final score: 31-14 Fish.
MySportsbook.com was also heavily exposed on numerous favorites in Week 7, including Philadelphia, Seattle and Denver. All three failed to cover.
The fact that sportsbooks are exposed to risk on certain games is really nothing new. The fact, that Sportsbook.com is willing to show the public where it's exposed is intriguing.
Armed with this type of information, bettors can make more educated wagers. They can get an idea where the sharp money is going and conversely where the public money is headed.
MySportsbook.com is opening up its cashbox, letting bettors look inside and challenging them to take their best shot at grabbing the cash.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting odds needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
MySportsbook.com Week 1 odds:
Saints +6 @ Colts -6
Falcons @ Vikings (pick ‘em)
Panthers @ Rams (pick ‘em)
Broncos -3.5 @ Bills +3.5
Chiefs -1 @ Texans +1
Dolphins +3 @ Redskins -3
Patriots -5 @ Jets +5
Eagles -3.5 @ Packers +3.5
Steelers -4 @ Browns +4
Titans +6 @ Jaguars -6
Bears +6 @ Chargers -6
Lions +3 @ Raiders -3
Bucs +6.5 @ Seahawks -6.5
Giants +4 @ Cowboys -4
Ravens +3 @ Bengals -3
Cardinals +3 @ 49ers -3
Super Bowl line (2008)
NFC +6.5 vs. AFC -6.5
MySportsbook is a large, publicly traded company with strong financial backing. You will find their customer service is second to none and their web site is extremely user friendly and easy-to-use. All major professional sports games are available. Once you signup with MySportsbook, you may never use another online sportsbook again.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football sportsbook needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
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