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04/08/2010 - Augusta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fred Couples fired his lowest round ever at The Masters, a six-under 66 on Thursday, and earned the first-round lead at The Masters at Augusta National.
Tiger Woods made his return to golf and it was a triumphant one.
Woods posted a four-under 68, which was the lowest opening-round score in his Masters career.
"I expected to go out there and shoot something under par," acknowledged Woods. "It felt normal. The reception was incredible all day. I was pretty calm all day."
Woods received a strong response from the gallery when he marched to the first tee at 1:42 p.m. (et). It was his first round on the PGA Tour since last year's Tour Championship. He missed the last five months in a self-imposed exile as a sex scandal rocked the four-time winner's world.
Woods posted two eagles on Thursday, a first in his Masters career, and mixed three birdies and three bogeys. He is tied for seventh place.
While Woods dominated the headlines, there were some amazing stories ahead of him on the leaderboard, and not just from the 50-year-old Couples.
Sixty-year-old Tom Watson, two-time champion Phil Mickelson, Woods' playing partner K.J. Choi, world No. 4 Lee Westwood and reigning PGA Champion Y.E. Yang are knotted in second place at five-under 67.
But the story, despite the star power atop the leaderboard, was Woods.
He collected his first birdie at the third, but dropped a shot at seven. Woods eagled the eighth from seven feet and birdied the ninth. Woods lost a stroke at 10, but played well on the back nine.
The No. 1 player in the world had nine feet for eagle at 13, but his putt lipped out. Woods settled for birdie, but bogeyed 14 when his approach sailed well left of the green.
Woods responded with a 10-foot eagle putt at the par-five 15th and was four- under for the championship. He could've gotten to five-under, but a short birdie putt at the last stayed above ground.
"It wasn't a day I could slash it all over the place," said Woods. "I'm very pleased. For the most part, I think I hit the ball well. If I putted well, it could've been a very special round."
Woods was joined in seventh by last week's winner in Houston, Anthony Kim, as well as Nick Watney, Ian Poulter and Ricky Barnes.
Woods was upstaged on Thursday by one of his practice-round partners this week.
Couples, who played with Woods on Monday, came into this year's Masters as perhaps the hottest golfer in the world, although it hasn't come on the PGA Tour.
The 50-year-old has dominated the Champions Tour in 2010. He's won his last three starts on the elder circuit and his only non-victory was a second in his debut to none other than Watson.
"The Champions Tour has been a lot of fun, but this is where I really want to play well and today was a very good day for me," said Couples, who has missed the cut the last two years. "The idea that we're all so old, it's also a blessing if you play well."
The 1992 Masters champion started brilliantly on Thursday with back-to-back birdies at one and two. He dropped a shot at five, but Couples reclaimed the lost stroke with a birdie at the par-five eighth.
After the turn, Couples soared up the leaderboard.
He rolled in a 12-foot birdie putt at the 12th and followed with a five-foot birdie putt at the par-five 13th. Couples parred No. 14, but hit a delicate chip from over the green to four feet at the 15th to set up another birdie.
Couples moved to five-under for the championship and tied for the lead, but a seven-foot birdie putt at the 17th gave him sole possession of first place.
He had a chance to extend the cushion at the last. Couples' approach to the 18th rolled to five feet, but the putt slid by the hole. He tapped in for his 66 and the first-round lead in The Masters for the first time since 1998.
"Today was, I think, as good a round as I've ever played here," said Couples. "I didn't shoot a 66 today because of luck. But tomorrow it's a lot of pressure to be leading and we'll see what happens."
The pressure will come, not just from Woods, but from those a stroke behind.
Watson had a bogey-free round on Thursday with five birdies and no bogeys. He finished in fantastic fashion with three birdies in his last four holes, including a 30-footer at 15, a 12-footer at 16 and a fantastic five-footer at the last.
Watson lost an epic playoff to Stewart Cink at last year's British Open and on Thursday proved that despite being 60, he can still contend for major championships.
"It's a longshot for somebody, still, honestly, of our age to do it. But still, they can do it," said Watson, who hadn't broken 70 at The Masters since 1997. "Over the past several years I've had some issues with my ability to play this golf course. It's a tough golf course for me. Today it was favorable."
It's not a longshot for Mickelson to do it.
The 2004 and 2006 winner also made his move on the back nine.
Mickelson was one-under through 12 holes, then hit a spectacular second shot to 25 feet at the par-five 13th. He ran home the eagle try to kick off a great run for the world No. 3.
Mickelson made a long birdie putt at 14 and two-putted for birdie at the par- five 15th.
"It was a little three-hole stretch that made the whole round," said Mickelson.
He had a seven-foot look at birdie on the last, but his putt snuck past the hole.
Yang, who became the first player to topple Woods when Woods had a third-round lead at a major last year at the PGA, and Choi both mixed six birdies and a bogey on Thursday, while Westwood had seven birdies and two bogeys.
NOTES: There were storms forecast for Thursday and while it did rain some, play never stopped...Thirty-one players broke par on Thursday...Defending champion Angel Cabrera wasn't one of them...He had a one-over 73 in the first round.
<< Bayern Munich switches focus to Leverkusen
Leverkusen, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Bayern Munich lost to Manchester United
in the Champions League on Wednesday, but former legend Franz Beckenbauer said
it was "one of the nicest defeats in the history of Bayern."
Bayern lost to United
<< Nationals hold off Phillies to avoid sweep
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Willie Harris smacked a two-run homer, and
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to salvage a game in this season-opening three-game set.
Cristian Guzman and Ryan
<< Woods cheered in return to golf
Augusta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tiger Woods took one last practice putt and
began the short walk to Augusta National's first tee, the most anticipated
golf shot in recent memory just minutes away.
Just 18 days earlier, in one of his televised
<< Vanderbilt C Ogilvy entering NBA Draft
Nashville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Vanderbilt center A.J. Ogilvy has chosen to
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Ogilvy also plans to hire an agent, which will officially end his collegiate
career.
"W
MLS increases roster size from 24 to 26 per team >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Major League Soccer announced Thursday it has
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and developed by the team.
MLS made the adjustment as part of its ongoing efforts
Real signs Beckerman to four-year deal >>
Sandy, UT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Real Salt Lake signed captain Kyle Beckerman to
a new four-year contract Thursday.
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Chipper leaves Braves-Cubs game, day-to-day with sore side >>
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Atlanta Braves third baseman Chipper Jones
left Thursday's game against the Chicago Cubs with a sore right side.
Jones had walked in the bottom of the third and raced to second on Brian
McCann's gro
Rays P Niemann leaves game >>
St. Petersburg, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Jeff Niemann left
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Miguel Tejada lined a pitch off
MySportsbook.com : Fortune Favors Favorites in March Madness betting?
Just like Day 1 of the “Sweet 16”, Friday’s games are chock full of some of the nation’s elite. Unlike Thursday’s games, there is a little bit more of a “Cinderella” feel as #7 seed UNLV and #6 seed Vanderbilt will attempt to move on to the Elite Eight. With powerhouses Florida, UNC and Georgetown looking to continue their momentum against lesser known teams, it isn’t surprising that once again the “betting public” is backing most of the favorites. As the early coin rolls in, 56% of Sportsbook.com bettors prefer Georgetown (-7.5) as they take on Vanderbilt; 84% of the early money is backing Oregon (-3) as they square off against UNLV; and a slight majority (52%) of the early cash is on Florida (-10.5) against Butler as the Gators continue their quest for another National Title. The only favorite the public don’t seem confident in is UNC, as 59% of the cash is backing the underdog Trojans (+8).
Midwest
#1 Florida vs. #5 Butler
The defending National Champs have been on a mission since last April. Joakim Noah and Al Horford turned down millions of dollars for one reason, to REPEAT. After a late season hiccup which saw them lose three out of four, the Gators have won six straight by an average of 20.3 points. More importantly, they covered in five of those six games. Behind their stymie defense that yields only 56.9 PPG, Butler has been a very pleasant surprise this season. As their 20-11 ATS record will indicate, “surprise teams” like Butler are often good bets for gamblers. Playing in an average conference, Butler wasn’t and underdog too often but when they were, they covered (6-0 ATS). Butler’s defense will have its hands full against a Gators offense which averages 80.1 PPG on an amazing 52.9% shooting from the field. With Florida’s tournament experience over the last few years, it isn’t surprising that they are 5-1 ATS this season, 20-4 ATS over the last three seasons and 38-20 since 1997 in tournament action.
#3 Oregon vs. #7 UNLV
As a #7 seed, UNLV is the closest thing to a “Cinderella” we have this year. If you bet on UNLV this season with any regularity, you most likely cashed in. Behind their guard oriented attack, the Rebels are an impressive 20-11 ATS this season. As an underdog they covered in 8 out of their ten games which isn’t surprising since they are 52-30 ATS as a ‘dog since 1997. The Rebels have been a consistent cover during the month of March as well. This March they are 6-0 ATS, 11-3 ATS over the last three seasons and 24-11 since 1997. Their impressive ATS trends don’t end there; versus teams with a winning record they are 15-6 ATS this season and 41-21 over the last three seasons. Although Oregon hasn’t been as generous to gamblers as UNLV this season, they have been covering consistently as of late. There is no question that they are playing their best ball of the season having won their last 8 straight up (SU) by an average of 14.5 points. Not surprising they covered in 7 of those games. It is interesting to note how similar these teams are in regards to scoring and scoring defense. UNLV averages 75 PPG while giving up 66.5 PPG and Oregon scores 75.8 PPG while yielding 65.5 PPG.
East
#6 Vanderbilt vs. #2 Georgetown
“Hoya Paranoia” is officially back! After a decent start, Georgetown has rolled through the second half of the season. Over their last 18 games, they are 17-1 SU. They have definitely improved ATS as the season has progressed as well. After opening the season 1-4-1 ATS, the Hoyas have covered 78.3% of their games. With their great interior play of Jeff Green and Roy Hibbert, the Hoyas as a team shoot 50.5% from the field. Like the Georgetown teams from years ago, they also excel on defense. Hoya opponents averaged only 56.8 PPG on 38.2% shooting from the field and an extremely low 30.4% from beyond the arc. The last stat could be of some concern to Vanderbilt considering they shoot 37.7% from long-range. Ranking second to last in the SEC in rebounding margin, Vanderbilt will have its work cut out for them against the Hoya trees. As far as covering is concerned, Vanderbilt has been almost a “sure thing” (7-1 ATS) versus good defensive teams that allow less than 64 PPG.
#1 UNC vs. # 5 USC
The Tar Heels are as talented and as deep as any team in the country. Going ten deep and chock full of HS All-Americans, UNC averages 86.1 PPG and scored 100+ seven times. Led by All-American forward, Tyler Hansbrough (18.6 PPG 7.9 RPG) UNC has a very balanced attack which can kill you on the inside as well as on the perimeter. UNC only real concern is their youth as eight of their rotation players are either sophomores or freshmen. UNC was a reliable cover this season going 20-13 ATS. An intriguing covering trend for the Tar Heels in recent years has been how they fared after non-conference games. This season they are 11-3 ATS after non-conference games and over the last three seasons they are 31-13 ATS. USC is also a pretty deep team which is loaded with swingman types. An match-up to keep an eye on will be freshman forward Taj Gibson (12.1 PPG, 8.6 RPG) as he squares off against the AA Hansbrough. USC has been a covering machine this season achieving a 21-10 record ATS. They have thrived in the underdog role, having covered 10 out of 12. When playing a team with a winning record, the Trojans are an incredible 20-6 ATS. Keep in mind, USC dedicated their season to former star to Ryan Francis who passed away before the season so as they get closer to the ultimate goal, emotion could definitely be on their side.
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