Fernandez-Castano, Brown share Ballantine's lead

Golf Betting Lines

04/23/2009 - Jeju Island, South Korea (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano and Mark Brown shot matching seven-under 65s Thursday to share the first-round lead at the Ballantine's Championship.

Kyung-Nam Kang led the Korean contingent with a six-under 66 to share third place with Thongchai Jaidee and Robert-Jan Derksen.

Jason Knutzon of the United States shot a five-under 67 to lead a three-way tie for sixth place with Robert Dinwiddie and Alessandro Tadini.

Top stars Ernie Els (68), Henrik Stenson (68), Fred Couples (69) and Lee Westwood (71) were also in the mix.

Fernandez-Castano -- and much of the field, for that matter -- played catch-up after Brown posted the score to beat in an early group. Beginning on the first hole at Pinx Golf Club, Fernandez-Castano compiled a nearly flawless round.

The 28-year-old Spaniard birdied the fourth and sixth holes, then stumbled to his only bogey at the seventh. He birdied the ninth hole, then made an eagle at the 10th to climb within three shots of the lead.

Fernandez-Castano tied Brown with three birdies in a four-hole stretch ending at the 16th. But he parred his last two holes, missing an opportunity to take sole possession of the lead.

A four-time winner on the European Tour, Fernandez-Castano is coming off two consecutive runner-up finishes, including at last week's China Open.

"It's always important to start with a good round," said Fernandez-Castano. "But, still, it's 54 holes to go, so it's still a long way."

Brown, a 34-year-old from New Zealand, is also fresh off a good showing in China, having tied for third place last week. It marked his best finish since he claimed his only win at the 2008 Johnnie Walker Classic.

On Thursday, Brown started his round by holing his third shot for an eagle at No. 10. He bogeyed the 14th, but collected back-to-back birdies at the 16th and 17th to make the turn at three-under par.

Consecutive birdies at the first and second hole moved Brown close to early leaders, and further birdies at Nos. 7 and 9 gave him sole possession of first.

Until Fernandez-Castano caught up to him.

"I didn't play here last year, so it's my first real look at it. But I just played nice and steady," said Brown. "The last two or three tournaments I've started to play a little bit better and get my confidence up a little bit."

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Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?

I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.

Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.

There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.

Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.

For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.

A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.

The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.

Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.

So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.

Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.

“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.

Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.

“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.

It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.

Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.

The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.

“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.

“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”

Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.

The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.

“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”

Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?

“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”

Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.