Havre de Grace headed to Oaklawn Park
Horseracing Betting Lines
02/22/2012 - New Orleans, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Reigning Horse of the Year Havre de Grace will start her 2012 racing season at Oaklawn Park in the Azeri on March 17. The champion mare won the 1 1/16-mile stakes last year to begin her four-year- old campaign.
"Larry (trainer Larry Jones) and I have mapped out some possible races for the next few months for Havre de Grace and Joyful Victory. We decided that the best choice for Havre de Grace's first race of the year is The Azeri at Oaklawn on March 17th," owner Rick Porter announced on his farm's website. "Joyful Victory will run at The Fair grounds in The New Orleans Ladies Stake on the same day. We felt these are the best opportunities for our two fillies. Ramon Dominquez will come in to ride Havre de Grace and Robbie Albarado will be aboard Joyful Victory. This will be a big day for Fox Hill."
Harve de Grace has been stabled this winter at the Fair Grounds where she has been working out over the last several weeks.
Havre de Grace won five of seven starts in 2011 for more than $1.6 million. She won the Apple Blossom and Azeri at Oaklawn Park followed by the Obeah, Woodward and Beldame. She lost the Delaware Handicap by a nose to arch rival Blind Luck and was fourth in the Breeders' Cup Classic.
For her accomplishments Havre de Grace was voted 2011 champion older female along with Horse of the Year.
Rome, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - For the second time this season, Lazio has reportedly rejected Edy Reja's offer to resign as coach, with the latest incident coming Wednesday ahead of his team's Europa League clash with Atletic
<< Stars' Dowell placed on IR
Frisco, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Dallas Stars place Jake Dowell on injured
reserve Wednesday.
The 26-year-old center is expected to miss one week with an upper-body injury.
He has one goal and four assists in 43 games this season.
To
<< Fiorentina's Olivera receives three-match ban
Florence, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fiorentina midfielder Ruben Olivera has
been banned for three games by the Italian football league for violent
conduct.
Olivera received a red card in Tuesday's 2-0 defeat at Bologna after
<< Rounding Third: Five AL storylines to watch in spring training
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - There is no better phrase for a baseball
fan than, "Pitchers and catchers report." Although the weather here in the
Northeast has resembled spring for much of the winter, the fact that baseball
is starting is
<< Utah's Evans replacing Knicks' Shumpert in Slam Dunk contest
Orlando, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Utah Jazz forward Jeremy Evans will replace New
York Knicks guard Iman Shumpert in Saturday's Slam Dunk contest.
Shumpert withdrew from the event because of left patella tendinitis.
Evans will vie for the ti
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The North Carolina Central-South Carolina State football game has been rescheduled as the Circle City Classic on Oct. 6 at Lucas Oil Stadium. Previously, the game between Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference me
Terry to undergo knee operation >>
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chelsea captain John Terry looks set to be
out for up to six weeks after undergoing a knee operation.
Terry has been out of the Chelsea lineup for over three weeks, and it has been
decided by the club's me
Queen's Plate highlights Woodbine stakes >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 153rd edition of the $1 million Queen's
Plate headlines the 2012 Woodbine Race Course stakes schedule. The historic
track will offer 102 stakes worth a total of $23 million.
The 1 1/4-mile Queen's Plate for
Flames' Butler out with lacerated thigh >>
Calgary, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Calgary Flames announced Wednesday that
defenseman Chris Butler is expected to miss three weeks with a left thigh
laceration.
Butler 25, has posted two goals and 13 points in 60 games this seas
Blokhin extends stay with Ukraine >>
Kiev, Ukraine (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Oleg Blokhin will remain coach of Ukraine
beyond Euro 2012, it was announced by the Ukraine Football Federation on
Wednesday.
Blokhin led Ukraine to a place in the quarterfinals of the 2006 World Cu
Sportsbooks to bet on football
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 football betting got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting odds needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
MySportsbook features easy-to-use online betting software that’s the most reliable in the industry. If you’re looking to bet underdogs, then this Sportsbook is the place - we have the best betting lines in the business. MySportsbook is your one-stop shop for all your betting needs - sports betting, poker, casino, and horse betting . MySportsbook offers every bet type with lightning fast settlement of wagers. Take advantage of free statistical analysis - including against-the-spread and straight-up trends - in MySportsbook’s game previews section. With MySportsbook there are unlimited free deposits and payouts - and no transaction fees!
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football sportsbook needs.