Karlsson, Jeev Milkha Singh and Romero lead suspended PGA
Golf Betting Lines
08/07/2008 -
Bloomfield Hills Township, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Robert Karlsson of Sweden and
India's Jeev Milkha Singh both posted rounds of two-under 68 on Thursday and
share the lead with Andres Romero during the suspended first round of the PGA
Championship.
A one-hour, 25-minute weather delay set play back and 18 players still need to
finish their first rounds. They will return to the South Course at Oakland
Hills 8:00 a.m. (et) Friday to finish the first round.
Romero is two-under par through 16 holes.
Sergio Garcia, Sean O'Hair, Billy Mayfair and Ken Duke share fourth at one-
under 69.
"I putted good. I chipped good. I hit a lot of good shots into the greens --
and you know, one-under par on this course, I'm thrilled with it," said
Garcia.
Phil Mickelson, the 2005 PGA Champion, overcame bogeys at his first two holes
to shoot an even-par 70.
"I'm just happy to have shot even-par today," acknowledged Mickelson. "I think
that after the start, bogeying the first two holes, I thought it was pretty
good to hang in there, fight and make some birdies, because there were a lot
of holes that were tough to get to."
Mickelson tallied three birdies and two bogeys the rest of his first nine to
make the turn at plus-one, but perhaps his best shot was a chip-in par at the
par-three 13th.
Mickelson rolled in a 15-footer for birdie at four, then converted a four-
footer for birdie at five to get into red figures for the championship.
Unfortunately for Mickelson, he bogeyed his final hole, the 257-yard, par-
three ninth, but is still pleased.
"I'll gladly take it," said Mickelson.
He is only two behind the co-leaders, one of whom has enjoyed quite a major
season.
Karlsson is the only player to post top-10 finishes in all four majors this
season, but he's not resting on an impressive record in golf's most important
events.
"To forget about those three top eights, that's the most important thing,"
Karlsson said when asked about expectations. "This is a new event. This has
nothing to do with the other three."
Karlsson, like Mickelson, got off to a terrible start on Thursday. He hit a
cart path over the green and walked off the first with a double-bogey six.
That would be one of his last mistakes.
Karlsson birdied three in a row from the second, including a two-putt from 60
feet at two, a four-footer at the third and a 12-footer at No. 4. The tall
Swede drained an 18-foot birdie putt at six and knocked a seven-iron to tap-in
range to set up birdie at the eighth.
A 10-foot birdie putt at 11 got Karlsson to four-under par for the
championship, but back-to-back bogeys from the 14th dropped him into a share
of the lead.
"It was great," said Karlsson. "The greens were absolutely perfect, so once I
rolled a couple in, just keep going, so it was good."
Singh also made a mess early on with a bogey at the first. He atoned for the
error in style with a five-foot eagle putt at the second and Singh got to
minus-two with a nine-foot birdie putt at the fifth.
Singh dropped shots with bogeys at seven and 10 to fall back to even-par. At
the 15th, Singh hit his seven-iron approach to kick-in range and got back
under par for the championship.
He grabbed his share of first with a 20-foot birdie putt at the par-three
17th.
And Singh is doing all of this with a bad ankle.
"Obviously the ankle does hurt at certain positions because it's a hilly golf
course and especially the slopes," said Singh, who has won in Austria and
Japan in the last two months. "I try to watch that whenever I'm walking."
Romero, who was in the hunt for the British Open last year, collected his
first birdie at the par-five second hole. He birdied eight to get to two-
under, but a bogey at the treacherous ninth sent him to the back nine at
minus-one.
He birdied the next par-five, the 12th and parred his last four to finish off
his day in a share of the lead. With a good morning, Romero could get sole
possession of first, but with the 238-yard, par-three 17th and demanding
closing hole, staying in the lead would be a nice feat.
Mickelson was joined in eighth place by two-time winner this year Anthony Kim,
Ryan Moore, Rod Pampling, Charlie Wi, Brian Gay, Michael Allen and 2007 U.S.
Open champion Angel Cabrera.
Padraig Harrington, winner of the last two British Opens, birdied his first
three holes Thursday, but slipped a bit. He finished with a one-over 71 and is
part of a group tied for 16th, with, among others, Ernie Els, Jim Furyk and
J.B. Holmes.
Vijay Singh, a two-time PGA Champion and the winner of last week's WGC-
Bridgestone Invitational, struggled badly on Thursday. He managed a six-over
76 and is tied for 92nd.
Kenny Perry, a pre-tournament favorite with three wins this year, withdrew
after his round due to an eye injury.
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PGA Championship First Round News & Notes >>
Bloomfield Hills Township, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Despite the fact they share a
surname, there is no relation, whatsoever, between Jeev Milkha Singh and Vijay
Singh.
"In the practice rounds I can hear a lot of people say, 'Oh, I think he
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“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.
New York Giants betting lines
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.
Dallas Cowboys betting lines
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.
Oakland Raiders betting lines
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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