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11/22/2011 - Mooresville, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Steve Addington will not return as crew chief for Kurt Busch's No.22 Dodge at Penske Racing in 2012, the team announced Tuesday.
Addington had served as Busch's crew chief since the start of the 2010 Sprint Cup Series season. The two won four races and claimed five poles together. They also made the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship last year and this season. Busch finished the 2011 season 11th in points, one spot ahead of his younger brother, Kyle.
"Steve Addington is no longer with our organization," Penske Racing president Tim Cindric posted on the team's Twitter account. "We appreciate the successes we experienced together and wish him well in his future endeavors."
Addington paired with Kyle Busch at Joe Gibbs Racing prior to his arrival at Penske.
There is wide speculation that Addington will join Stewart-Haas Racing as crew chief for Tony Stewart's championship-winning No.14 team. Stewart clinched his third Sprint Cup title with a win in Sunday's season-ending 400-mile race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
<< Braun captures NL MVP Award
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Ryan Braun has
been named the National League's Most Valuable Player, as voted on by the
Baseball Writers' Association of America.
Braun placed first on 20 of the 32 ballots cas
<< Lum, Schaetzke headline Patriot League honors
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Lehigh senior quarterback Chris Lum and
Georgetown senior defensive end Andrew Schaetzke were named the Patriot League
offensive and defensive players of the year, respectively, on Tuesday.
Georgetown adde
<< Baseball announces new labor deal
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - There continues to be labor peace in baseball.
After the NFL survived its brief labor tiff during the summer and the NBA
currently wallows through its acrimonious lockout, Major League Baseball will
continue w
<< Princeton's Dibilo is Ivy rookie of the year
Princeton, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Princeton freshman running back Chuck Dibilio
was named Ivy League Rookie of the Year on Tuesday.
Dibilo is a finalist for the Jerry Rice Award, which is presented by The
Sportsbook Betting Lines, sponsored by Fathead.
Georgia Southern grabs SoCon honors >>
Spartanburg, SC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Georgia Southern won or shared in three of
the Southern Conference's major coaches' awards that were announced on
Tuesday.
Junior defensive lineman Brent Russell was named defensive player of the year,
Jef
Coyotes ink Turris to multi-year deal >>
Glendale, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Phoenix Coyotes signed forward Kyle
Turris to a multi-year contract Tuesday.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed, and the pact is dependent upon Turris
passing a physical.
"We are pleased t
Maysonet, Bethel headline All-Big South team >>
Charlotte, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Stony Brook junior running back Miguel
Maysonet and Presbyterian senior defensive back Justin Bethel were named the
Big South Conference offensive and defensive players of the year, respectively,
on Tuesday.
Three Lions among CFL weekly winners >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Winnipeg running back Chris Garrett and three
members of the British Columbia Lions have been named the CFL players of the
week for the second round of the playoffs.
Garrett earned the offensive honor afte
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.
Academy Award Betting Odds for Best Picture Offer Great Value
If there is any category that is not an obvious win for any one nominee in this year's Academy Awards, it would be for Best Picture. Sure the Departed is a 5/7 favorite, but that's hardly anything when we look at Helen Mirren and her "out-of-reach" 1 to 40 odds (which means you would win a whopping $1 for every $40 bet).
For value, take a look at MySportsbook.com Oscars betting odds on my personal favorite, The Queen - a remarkable 12 to 1 long shot. The film hasn't won any pre-awards for Best Picture (compared to The Departed and Little Miss Sunshine), but there is a tremendous following and it is a strong enough film to warrant a surprise win.
TV Guide advises Oscar watchers should be cautioned not to discount the drama "Babel" with its strong social themes about overcoming communication gaps among people of different cultures.
"While 'Babel' lost several guild awards to 'Sunshine' and 'Departed,' it still enjoys loyal support, and historically Oscar voters favor dramas with social messages over comedies like 'Sunshine' and violent crime movies like 'Departed'."
"It hasn't done well in the guilds, which means there isn't much industry support," said Tom O'Neil of awards site TheEnvelope.com, "But several critics are expecting it to win, and that gets my attention." Babel had 7 to 2 odds at press time.
Who is to say independently produced Little Miss Sunshine won't be this year's Crash. Last year, Crash won for Best Motion Picture, shocking those who bet on gay cowboy flick, Brokeback Mountain, as the favorite to win.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Visa needs.
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