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01/16/2012 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Aloha is Hawaiian for either hello, or goodbye.
The PGA Tour should bid a permanent goodbye aloha to opening the season in Hawaii.
The tour heads to the mainland of the United States this week after a fortnight in the 50th state. The Hyundai Tournament of Champions and Sony Open in Hawaii are things of the past; hopefully, the permanent past.
Hawaii seems lovely. Never been myself, but "The Descendants" sure looked nice in the background. This is nothing against Hawaii itself. I've never been on a honeymoon, and I'm not "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," but the time for professional golf in the Aloha State has passed.
The season has opened in Hawaii since 1999 and with each passing year, the tour's top stars have skipped it more frequently than an 8:30 Friday morning class.
The tournament is reserved for the previous year's winners. It's an exclusive event and the intention is to reward golfers with a week in paradise and an enormous paycheck. (Jhonattan Vegas finished dead-last this year and pocketed $64,000.)
This year, Phil Mickelson, Masters champion Charl Schwartzel, world No. 1 Luke Donald, U.S. Open winner Rory McIlroy, Open champion Darren Clarke, Martin Kaymer, Adam Scott and Dustin Johnson all passed.
The biggest star in the field was Steve Stricker. Granted, he won the tournament, but that's not exactly what you should be looking for from the "Tournament of Champions."
Tiger Woods, back when he won official PGA Tour events, made it acceptable to withdraw before the tournament. He hasn't played in Hawaii since the 2005 season-opener.
Hawaii is beautiful, but who wants to travel that far? Players could make a two-week stay of it in Hawaii and play the Sony, but most of them don't want to make such a commitment that early in the season.
Do I think more stars would play if they didn't have to take a five-hour flight from California? Yes, that is my contention.
Few golfers speak out publicly why they don't want to play in this event, and there's zero evidence to suggest that a change to Los Angeles or even Las Vegas would enhance the star power.
The only thing backing up this theory is the years-long absence of golf's biggest names. We'll never know until the plug is pulled on the Hawaii experiment.
Aside from the fact the Hawaii swing is getting dimmer, there are other logistic problems.
The five-hour time difference on the east coast puts the championships squarely in prime-time. It's on against the NFL playoffs. You don't need to waste your time checking the ratings. Brady v. Tebow did better than Maggert v. Every.
Why try and compete against that? If the tour played in the western time zone, the rounds could still be over before 8:00 p.m. (et) and thus not have to fight for sports viewers.
Is this an east-coast bias? You bet it is, but remember, this is the media capital of the world. We don't owe Hawaii a blessed thing, other than a hearty thank you for Don Ho and embarrassing shirts for middle-aged men.
The LPGA Tour is headed to Hawaii in April with the LPGA LOTTE Championship. It's been wildly heralded as a huge move for the tour, although Dottie Pepper in last week's "Sports Illustrated" illustrated some unmentioned problems with this event.
"Three months before the event there's still no plan to get it on TV," wrote Pepper. "The equipment that brings us golf and football from Hawaii in January and February is back on the mainland by April. Those trucks may have to float west after the Kraft Nabisco, which will cost a lot but be well worth it. Last year Golf Channel aired more hours of live coverage and showed features about many of the players, and the LPGA's ratings grew 30 percent. Will it last?"
Events in Hawaii aren't bringing much more to the pig roast than some gnarly surfing opportunities for those involved. What was once a great perk has become a chore and it's not working.
Send everybody to Vegas or L.A. and it will work out better for all involved.
RANDOM THOUGHTS
- PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem got a four-year extension and will be on the job through 2016. He gets a lot of credit for keeping the tour thriving through choppy economic times. Finchem will be close to 70 when that extension runs out. There is no clear successor for the gig, so the tour has four years to find one.
- I'm available for aforementioned position.
- If Hawaiian events are outdated, so were five-round tournaments, so good news this week's Humana Challenge was trimmed to four. Pres. Clinton is heavily involved, thus the appearance of Greg Norman, a good buddy of the former President.
- According to ESPN, a poorly-kept secret may be reality. ESPN is reporting that Tiger Woods will team with Tony Romo at the Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Doesn't make pro-ams any more interesting.
- Movie moment - Normally I try to catch Oscar nominated films before the awards and nominations are around the corner. Which would I like to see less - a French silent film, or a movie about a horse? In its defense, it is a "War Horse."
<< Rose sidelined because of toe injury
Memphis, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose will sit out
Monday's game against Memphis because of a lingering toe problem.
Rose was initially hurt during a January 10 game against Minnesota and missed
the following night'
<< Zumaya headed to Minnesota
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Minnesota Twins and reliever Joel
Zumaya have reportedly agreed to a one-year contract.
According to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, the deal will pay the oft-injured
right-hander $800,000 with
<< Ragan signs with Front Row Motorsports
Statesville, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - David Ragan will drive the No.34 Ford for
Front Row Motorsports during the 2012 Sprint Cup Series season, the team
announced on Monday.
Ragan drove the No.6 car for Roush Fenway Racing in Sprint C
<< Tigers avoid arbitration with Porcello, Coke
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Tigers have avoided arbitration
with Rick Porcello and Phil Coke, agreeing to one-year contracts with both
pitchers on Monday.
Porcello made 31 starts for the Tigers last season, going 1
Syracuse remains top team in men's hoops poll >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Syracuse is again the top team in the latest
Associated Press men's college basketball poll.
The Orange, after double-digit wins over Villanova and Providence last week,
again earned 60 first-place vote
Anderson, Stalberg, Malkin named NHL's 'Three Stars' >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ottawa Senators goalie Craig Anderson,
Chicago Blackhawks left winger Viktor Stalberg, and Pittsburgh Penguins center
Evgeni Malkin have been named the NHL's 'Three Stars' for the week ending
January
Stars' Ribeiro lands on IR >>
Frisco, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Dallas Stars placed center Mike Ribeiro on
injured reserve Monday.
The move is retroactive to January 7, when he suffered a lower-body injury
against the Edmonton Oilers.
In 40 games this season, Ri
Wagner makes huge leap in world rankings >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Johnson Wagner's victory Sunday at the
Sony Open in Hawaii eared him a huge leap in this week's world rankings.
Wagner rocketed up 106 spots to No. 92 this week after his two-stroke victory.
Luke Do
American Idol Betting Season 6 Strategies
It's that time of year folks. Betting on American Idol Season 9. And we have plenty of American Idol Season 6 strategies appearing below. With the Top 24 finalists revealed, online gambling sites will be offering betting odds on each of them, including MySportsbook.com.
No other “event” has been growing as fast as wagering on American Idol. It has turned into a huge betting event with reasonably high limits and all sorts of profit-making potential for sharp bettors. Last year, MySportsbook.com experienced unprecedented traffic as a result of the American Idol betting craze.
Every week there will be odds to win American Idol, various elimination props and contestant versus contestant match-ups at the MySportsbook.com website.
Whether a fan of America’s top-rated show or watching only because of a wife or girlfriend, here are some of basic strategies to use when betting American Idol.
Odds to Win
There are a few things to consider when looking for the right win bet. First off, remember that this bet is for the long haul. Many people make the mistake of picking the performer who sang the best the previous week. This strategy leads to an underlay situation – betting a price, which is less than what it should be.
All Idol contestants struggle at some point in the competition, so you should always look for value. In last year’s competition alone, two performers who had some of the best performances early in the series were subsequently bet down to low prices - Lisa Tucker and Ace Young. After just a few weeks, Tucker had already been eliminated, while Young quickly became a huge long shot to win America’s largest talent search.
A better strategy is to look for performers who don’t necessarily get the praise from the judges, but show flashes of the talent necessary to go the distance.
Another important thing to remember when betting any contestant to win is the demographic breakdown of the voters, the viewing public and potential future CD purchasers. Unlike sporting events, American Idol is not decided on the field of play – it’s decided by the American public under the guiding influence of the shows producers.
Understand that the great state of Alabama has a mighty edge when it comes to American Idol.
Therefore, to be successful betting on American Idol, put any personal opinions or prejudices aside and think like the majority of the voting public. Remember that the typical voter is young, female and quite often, Southern.
If a contestant cannot appeal to this demographic, no matter how much talent he or she possesses, they’ll struggle for votes. Looks, demeanor and charisma are extremely important. And it’s no coincidence that every Idol winner so far has hailed from a Southern state.
Elimination Props
Every week MySportsbook.com anticipates offering a prop on who’ll be eliminated from the show each Wednesday night. A suggestion to handicap this is to gauge an overall feel for who’s the least popular contestant left in the competition. Generally the least popular performers have recently appeared in the bottom three and will have been the target of repeated criticism from the judges.
Last year, resources included dialidol.com and votefortheworst.com. Dialidol.com measures the volume of each contestant’s voting line. While by no means a perfect science, it does give a good indication of who is generating votes and who isn’t. Meanwhile, votefortheworst.com is a site that attempts to build support for the worst competitor to keep them in the competition for ‘entertainment’ value. The site has a proven track record of keeping performers around who most feel should have been voted off a long time ago.
Contestant vs. Contestant Match-ups
The best strategy for doing well on match-ups is to assess how close either of the contestants is to being eliminated. If neither is expected to be voted off of the show in the coming weeks, the value is almost always on the underdog. If both are expecting an imminent exit in the near future, the favorite in the match-up might offer value.
Watch for American Idol betting odds on each of the contestants shortly and good luck with these American Idol betting strategies.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.
Sports Betting News: NFL Team History | NFL Football Betting | College Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | College Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting