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04/05/2009 - St. Petersburg, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan Briscoe passed Justin Wilson with 13 laps remaining and never looked back en route to capturing the inaugural race of the 2009 IndyCar Series on the streets of St. Petersburg. The No. 6 Team Penske driver crossed the finish line 0.4619 seconds ahead of Ryan Hunter-Reay of Vision Racing.
The victory was Briscoe's third of his IndyCar Series career. Briscoe's win gave Team Penske their 30th win in the series.
This was the first time in the history of the series that the opening race has been held on a street course. It was also the first time that the inaugural race of the season was on the Streets of St. Petersburg, Florida. After holding down the number two stop on the schedule the past three years, St. Petersburg became the third Florida venue to host the opener.
The 2008 IndyCar Series champion, Scott Dixon, crashed in turn three with just 19 laps remaining. Dixon wasn't having a good day prior to the crash and settled for a disappointing 16th-place finish.
Wilson led Briscoe, Hunter-Reay, Dario Franchitti, and Tony Kanaan to the restart with 13 laps to go. Briscoe made the eventual race-winning pass as he used the outside lane to get around Wilson in turn one. Hunter-Reay also got by Wilson, dropping him to third.
Just moments later, Dan Wheldon, Robert Doornbos, and Hideki Mutoh were involved in a multi-car wreck to bring out the caution.
Briscoe led Hunter-Reay, Wilson, Franchitti, and Kanaan to the green flag with eight laps left. Briscoe opened up a one-second gap before Marco Andretti and Alex Tagliani crashed with four laps to go.
The race went back to green flag conditions with just two laps remaining. Briscoe had a solid restart and maintained around a half-second margin over Hunter-Reay for the remainder of the race to secure the victory.
Wilson, Franchitti, and Kanaan rounded out the top-five.
After becoming the youngest pole winner in the IndyCar Series, Graham Rahal led the 22-car field to the green flag for 100 laps of racing.
Rahal, the defending race winner, failed to make it through the first turn cleanly. The 20-year-old Rahal was hit from behind and went spinning onto the infield grass to bring out the first caution flag of the afternoon. Rahal dropped to 21st, ahead of rookie Mike Conway, who also spun during the accident.
It was last year at this race when Rahal became the youngest race winner in the series at age 19 when he took the checkered flag. But Rahal never really recovered from his early wreck this year, giving him a seventh-place finish.
Wilson, Franchitti, Briscoe, Will Power, and Kanaan assumed the top-five spots following the incident.
Wilson was still the race leader when Raphael Matos collided with Danica Patrick on lap 33 to bring out the caution. Dixon and Power had an incident on pit road under the caution.
Briscoe, Wheldon, E.J. Viso, Hunter-Reay, and Doornbos rounded out the top- five following a round of pit stops. Wilson found himself in the seventh position.
After the restart, Briscoe built around a two-second gap over Wheldon. Meanwhile, Wilson eventually made his way into the third spot and Rahal settled into the seventh position.
Briscoe led Wheldon, Wilson, Hunter-Reay, and Franchitti after a Stanton Barrett crash on lap 55. Briscoe and Wheldon started a final round of green flag pit stops on lap 68.
Once all the stops were complete, it was Wilson that held onto the first position. Briscoe, Wheldon, Hunter-Reay, and Franchitti followed behind.
Ed Carpenter's hard crash brought out the caution flag with 27 laps to go. The caution period was lengthy because the tire barrier that caught Carpenter had to be repaired. And Dixon's accident shortly followed.
The next race is scheduled for Sunday, April 19, at Long Beach, CA.
<< Rangers finalize roster
Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Texas Rangers made a bevy of moves on
Sunday, finalizing the roster in preparation for Monday's regular-season
opener against Cleveland.
Texas purchased the contracts of pitchers Kris Benson,
<< Marseille tops St. Etienne to keep pace with Lyon
Saint Etienne, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mamadou Niang scored a pair of goals
to help Marseille shutout St. Etienne, 3-0, on Sunday to move back within one
point of first-place Lyon.
Marseille entered the weekend one point off the top sp
<< Juve falls nine points back
Turin, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sergio Pellissier scored three times,
including the game-tying goal in stoppage time, to help Chievo earn a
thrilling 3-3 draw with Juventus at the Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino on
Sunday.
<< Mavs' Kidd passes "Magic" for third on NBA assists list
Dallas, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dallas point guard Jason Kidd passed Hall of
Famer Earvin "Magic" Johnson for third place on the NBA's all-time assists
list in the Mavericks game versus the Phoenix Suns on Sunday.
The 14-year veteran a
Luck 17: Gordon finally wins at Texas >>
Fort Worth, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jeff Gordon snapped a career-long 47-race
winless streak in the Sprint Cup and scored his first victory at Texas Motor
Speedway in 17 attempts here as he took Sunday's Samsung 500. Gordon held off
his He
Villa's double leads Valencia over Getafe >>
Valencia, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - David Villa had two goals to lead Valencia
to a 4-1 win over Getafe on Sunday at the Estadio Mestalla and to within four
points of a Champions League berth.
Villa scored in the 25th and 60th minutes to
Lincicome eagles 18, wins 1st major at Kraft Nabisco >>
Rancho Mirage, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brittany Lincicome didn't need much
prompting.
"That absolutely was the best shot of my life," she said.
Lincicome eagled the 18th hole at the Kraft Nabisco Championship on Sunday
following a
Misun Cho wins first Duramed Futures title >>
Daytona Beach, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - South Korea's Misun Cho shot a two-under
70 on Sunday to win her first Duramed Futures Tour title at the iMPACT
Invitational.
The 21-year-old Cho finished at six-under-par 210 for a four-shot vic
“You play to win the game!”
Those are the words of notoriously intense head coach Herman Edwards. Unfortunately, from a bettors’ perspective, most coaches don’t feel that way about the NFL preseason. August is a time to evaluate young players, finalize the depth chart and pray your star players stay healthy.
The trick to making money during the exhibition schedule is identifying coaches – like Edwards – who can’t stand losing even when there's nothing on the line.
The New York Jets betting won 15 of 21 preseason games and went 14-7 against the spread (ATS) during Edwards’s five-year tenure with the club. In his first season as the Kansas City Chiefs field boss, the team improved from 0-4 to 2-2.
Identifying win-a-holics like Edwards is a good start if you plan betting the preseason – even though most say you shouldn’t ... but what the hell do they know anyway?
Here’s a brief rundown of two teams that have a habit of winning during the second-stringers’ season, and another club that has a good chance of exceeding this year.
Playing in the media hub of North America can be stressful but the press can’t write anything negative about the way Tom Coughlin’s boys play in the preseason. The Giants won and covered all four games last summer, improving their record to 7-1 both straight up (SU) and against the spread over the last two years.
Coughlin has shown he’s not afraid to give his starters more time in the second preseason game than most of his colleagues, no doubt one of the reasons his team has been so dominant.
Bettors can count on America’s team early on. The Cowboys are 14-6 both SU and ATS since 2002 in warm-up contests. Former coach Bill Parcells, the coach of the team the last four years, has an intimidating, in-your-face presence – surely a reason Dallas has had so much early success.
The Big Tuna won’t be strolling the sidelines with looks of disgust, but new coach Wade Phillips will be anxious to make a good first impression for owner Jerry Jones.
Dallas plays the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos before things get serious. They then face the Houston Texans in their third contest (the game starters see most game time) and finish off with the Minnesota Vikings.
Expect a Dallas team able to walk away with another 3-1 preseason record.
This team scored a league-worst 12 offensive touchdowns last season, so the rookies and veterans each have something to prove. There’s a bounty of first-unit jobs up for grabs and plenty of bodies competing for those slots.
First-time head coach Lane Kiffin will be eager to impress an owner who employs the philosophy, “Just win, baby!”
The 32-year-old Kiffin has to command respect from a locker room full of players older than him. All of these factors should lead to purpose in preseason.
Don’t forget: before playing like a team that belonged in NFL Europe, Oakland went 4-1 (both SU and ATS) in exhibition games.
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BILLS (+10) at Steelers SPORTSBOOK LINES
It's impossible to gauge how a team will react after something like the Steve Everett situation, and it probably doesn't matter. That being said, the Bills are going to lose several games this year where they keep things close but fall short in the end to superior teams. Ben Roethlisberger and company could have a field day against Buffalo's decimated defense, but I like the Bills to cover.
BENGALS (-7) at Browns SPORTSBOOK LINES
All you can ask out of your NFL team is that it has a plan. You may not always agree with it as a fan, but as long as it appears the organization is going in some sort of direction, you have to go with it. Which brings us to the Cleveland Browns. You flip a coin to determine whether Chuck Frye or Derek Anderson should start the preseason opener. You start Frye in Week 1, but pull him in the first half. And then you deal him to the Seahawks for a sixth-round pick? Hmm... the Bengals could get six turnovers again this week.
COLTS (-7) at Titans SPORTSBOOK LINES
Tennessee signed ex-Colts cornerback Nick Harper in the offseason so that should help slow down Peyton Manning. Just ask Jason David and the Saints. Oh wait... One of these weeks, I'm going to learn to not pick against Tennessee, which has won seven of its last eight games. But it's not happening against Indy.
TEXANS (+6.5) at Panthers SPORTSBOOK LINES
Houston's Mario Williams, the first pick in the '06 draft, has more touchdowns than Reggie Bush after one week. Somehow I don't see that lasting. Meanwhile, Carolina bottled up what was expected to be a pretty high-octane offense in St. Louis in Week 1. Could this be the Panthers' defense everyone expected last year? Maybe. This feels like a 20-16 Carolina win.
RAMS (-3) vs. 49ers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Absolutely love this game. Everyone's favorite pick for this year's surprise team -- the 49ers -- laid an egg on Monday night (not that anyone was watching with the game ending in the middle of the night for those of us on the East Coast). St. Louis wasn't much better, delivering a lackluster effort against the Panthers that included two Steven Jackson fumbles and panic from his fantasy owners. Jackson rebounds this week, and the Rams get their first win.
PACKERS (+1.5) at Giants SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Do you really trust this guy to win an NFL game if Eli Manning can't go? I say no. I'd feel alot better about this Packers team if it had any semblance of a running game, but I still think Green Bay's defense is good enough to give it a 2-0 start.
JAGUARS (-10) vs. Falcons SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Does it scare me to pick Jacksonville to cover a double-digit spread after it scored just 10 points last week against the Titans? Absolutely. But can I bring myself to pick Atlanta under any circumstances? No. Check out this poll on ajc.com. It asks what Atlanta's most urgent deficiency is: offense, defense, specials teams or all of the above. "All of the above" has 57 percent of the votes. Ouch.
SAINTS (-3) at Buccaneers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
I'm picking way too many road teams this week. Oh well. New Orleans has had some time to reflect on its lackluster showing in the opener, and the Buccanneers just aren't a very good football team. Anyone else surprised Tampa Bay hasn't made a move to sign Byron Leftwich? I thought that's what they do.
VIKINGS (+3) at Lions SPORTS BETTING LINES
Run the ball and stop the run. Minnesota can do both, and that will keep them in a lot of games this season. Even though it was only one week, Adrian Peterson looks like he was a steal at No. 7 in last year's draft. Not only will he produce, but Peterson delivers excitement to what otherwise would be one of the league's most boring teams.
DOLPHINS (+3.5) vs. Cowboys SPORTS BETTING LINES
Lost in the Tony Romo lovefest is just how bad the Cowboys' defense was last week. I know they're banged up, but Dallas' 'D' allowed 438 yards to the Giants' offense, and backup running back Derrick Ward averaged 6.8 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Cam Cameron's decision to split carries between Ronnie Brown and Jesse Chatman sounds about as can't-miss as Larry David's plan to show up to Marty Funkhouser's party a night late. Still, gotta go with Miami to cover at home.
SEAHAWKS (-2.5) at Cardinals SPORTS BETTING LINES
I'm probably missing something, but this game seems too easy. Arizona blew Monday night's game against the 49ers in typical Cardinals fashion, and the Seahawks beat Tampa Bay by two touchdowns. Love Seattle in this one.
BRONCOS (-9.5) vs. Raiders SPORTS BETTING LINES
Special teams was a major story line in Week 1. Take a look at the Broncos. They had to rush on to the field to get a Jason Elam field goal as time expired against the Bills. Denver drove into Buffalo territory on eight of 10 drives but came away with just a pair of field goals and a touchdown. Look for more scoring from the Broncos this week against an Oakland defense that gave up 36 points to Detroit in Week 1.
BEARS (-12) vs. Chiefs SPORTS BETTING LINES
Everyone talks about Rex Grossman when dissecting the Bears' offense, but Chicago's quarterback got no help in last week's loss to the Chargers. Meanwhile, Kansas City confirmed what we all thought while watching Hard Knocks: The Chiefs are going to stink this year. It could be a rough first month for Larry Johnson fantasy owners. Kansas City's RB was limited to 43 yards on 10 carries in Week 1, and the Chiefs face the Bears, Vikings and Chargers the next three weeks, all formidable run defenses.
RAVENS (-10) vs. Jets SPORTS BETTING LINES
A big dose of Willis McGahee and a usual sound defensive effort will give the Ravens their first win. According to Football Outsiders, no team in the NFL rushed only three defenders on pass plays last year more than the Jets. And according to my special Jets correspondent Ben Stauber, New York did the same in Week 1. Whoever starts at quarterback for the Ravens should have all day to throw.
PATRIOTS (-3) vs. Chargers
Friends and I were discussing how Bill Belichick goes about paying his $500,000 fine for cheating. Does he just write one check to the NFL? Do you need some sort of clearance to make such a monstrous financial transaction? I guess I shouldn't complain about the security deposit I have to put down on my new apartment. Anyway, two of the league's best teams square off in what should be a good one Sunday night. The Patriots always respond well just when you think they're in trouble. And their offensive attack was the story in Week 1.
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting.
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