Forsman takes early lead in Alabama

Golf Betting Lines

05/15/2009 - Hoover, AL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dan Forsman, who earned his first Champions Tour win earlier this year, carded a seven-under 65 Friday to take a one-stroke lead after the opening round of the Regions Charity Classic.

Larry Mize, who hasn't won a PGA Tour-sponsored event since 1993, posted a six-under 66 and was joined in a share of second place by former U.S. Ryder Cup captain Hal Sutton and Cap Cana Championship winner Keith Fergus.

Forsman, who won the AT&T Champions Classic, had a pair of hot stretches that carried him to the top of the leaderboard. He posted his first birdie, on a four-foot putt, at the par-three second and followed with birdies on three and four from 15 and 12 feet, respectively.

The 50-year-old moved to minus-four with a two-putt birdie on the sixth, but gave that stroke back when he bogeyed the par-three ninth at the Ross Bridge Golf Resort & Spa.

Forsman atoned for that mistake with a birdie on the 11th that got him back to minus-four. He birdied the next par-three, No. 14, then birdied 15 and 16 to jump into the lead at seven-under. Forsman parred the final three to end there.

"I am very pleased to shoot 65 on this course. The greens are really good here and receptive too," Forsman said. "A lot of good things happened today. I knew it was going to be a good day after my birdie at No. 6."

Mize poured in three birdies in a four-hole span from the third. Around the turn, the 1987 Masters winner collected three more birdies to close out a bogey-free round.

"No fives on the card; I played really solid," Mize said. "It was a good day to score."

Sutton did most of his damage on the back nine. After a birdie on 11, his second hole, Sutton converted four straight birdie chances from the 14th to head to the front nine at minus-five.

After tripping to a bogey on the fifth, Sutton birdie six and nine to share second place.

"I thought the golf course played great today," Sutton acknowledged. "I didn't leave any shots out there."

Fergus birdied 13 and 14 to get his round going. He birdied 16, but gave that shot back as he bogeyed the 17th. On the front nine, Fergus birdied four of the first six holes to jump to six-under. He finished there as he parred his final three holes.

Toshiba Classic winner Eduardo Romero carded a five-under 67 to share fifth place with two-time runner-up Gil Morgan, Jim Thorpe, Tom McKnight and Chris Starkjohann.

ACE Group Classic champion Loren Roberts was joined in 10th place at minus- four by 2004 winner Bruce Fleisher, 2003 champ Tom Jenkins and nine other players.

Defending champion Andy Bean carded a two-under 70 and is tied for 31st.

Bob Tway made his tour debut and it wasn't a good one as he shot four-over 76. He is tied for 73rd place.

Mrgambling Golf Betting News

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Betting Football

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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.