Blumenherst leads way through first round of U.S. Women's Amateur

Golf Betting Lines

08/04/2008 - Eugene, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - NCAA Player of the Year Amanda Blumenherst crafted a six-under-par 66 to take the first round lead during the stroke play portion of the 108th U.S. Women's Amateur at Eugene Country Club.

Two days of stroke play will cut a field of 156 to 64 players and sort them by seed for five rounds of match play beginning Wednesday.

Blumenherst knows how this process works, finishing as the runner-up at last year's U.S. Women's Amateur. The decorated three-time reigning NCAA Player of the Year from Duke played her last nine holes at five-under, draining back-to- back snakes for birdie to close out her afternoon.

Westford, Massachusetts star Alison Walshe traveled across the country to post a four-under-par 68. A pair of international amateur stars, Australia's Stephanie Na and Canada's Stephanie Sherlock, each shot rounds of three-under- par 68.

In all, 10 players broke par and 16 posted par-or-better rounds at Eugene Country Club. One of those was Walshe, who starred for the United States at the Curtis Cup and finished a respectable 31st at the United States Women's Open this June.

Wwwnydailynews Golf Betting News

<< Redskins release safety Schweigert
Ashburn, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Washington Redskins released safety Stuart Schweigert on Monday. Originally signed by the Redskins on June 2, Schweigert was late getting over in coverage as Indianapolis quarterback Quinn Gray co

<< Yankees P Chamberlain leaves game
Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New York Yankees pitcher Joba Chamberlain left in the fifth inning of Monday's contest against the Texas Rangers with an apparent right arm injury. After Texas' Marlon Byrd singled with two outs in the bo

<< Brewers continue to struggle in Cincinnati
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Bronson Arroyo threw six strong innings and was a factor at the plate to help the Cincinnati Reds to a 6-3 win over the Milwaukee Brewers in the opener of a three-game set at Great American Ball Park.

<< 'Skins WR Kelly has surgery
Ashburn, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Washington Redskins announced on Monday that wide receiver Malcolm Kelly underwent arthroscopic surgery to remove loose particles in his left knee. The procedure was performed by Dr. James Andrews

<< Halladay pitches Blue Jays past floundering A's
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Matt Stairs finished 2-for-4 with an RBI, and starter Roy Halladay hurled eight solid innings as Toronto topped Oakland, 6-1, in the opener of a four-game set at Rogers Centre. Marco Scutaro, Lyle Overba

Gordon, Royals down Red Sox >>
Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alex Gordon homered to help the Kansas City Royals defeat the Boston Red Sox, 4-3, in the first game of a three-game set at Kauffman Stadium. Mark Teahen collected two hits an RBI and a run scored for the

Lee picks up 15th win versus Rays >>
St. Petersburg, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - David Dellucci hit a go-ahead two-run homer and Cliff Lee became the first AL pitcher to reach 15 wins, as Cleveland topped Tampa Bay, 5-2, in the first of three from Tropicana Field. Kelly Shoppach

Fish advances in first round at Los Angeles >>
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - American Mardy Fish easily won his first round matchup at the $475,000 Countrywide Classic tennis event on Monday. Fish, the sixth seed, had no troubles in advancing past Colombian Alejandro Falla 6-2

Byrd slams Rangers over Yanks; Chamberlain injured >>
Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Marlon Byrd's grand slam with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning lifted the Texas Rangers to a thrilling 9-5 win over the New York Yankees in the opener of a four-game set. Pinch-hitter Milto

Harris, Flores homer as Nats down Rockies >>
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Willie Harris and Jesus Flores each homered and the Washington Nationals rode to a 9-4 victory over Colorado in the opener of a four-game set at Coors Field. One of baseball's worst teams knocked around one

SPORTS BETTING: NFL Football Sportsbook Betting

NFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.


That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal.

A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon."

It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed.

The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha.

So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games."

Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't. Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal.

Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.

Seriously.

The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.

The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.

Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."

The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts MasterCard needs.

Kurt Warner to start, Matt Leinart to watch

Despite the debate that's swirling , Kurt Warner will remain the starting quarterback for the Arizona Cardinals, coach Dennis Green said today. The Arizona Cardinals are the +7 point underdog at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com for this Sunday's game.

Green's comment came in a statement released by the team following an ESPN report that Green decided that rookie Matt Leinart would replace Warner as starter for Sunday's game at Atlanta.

"Generally talking about the starting lineup is not something we do," Green told the AP. "However, given the speculation that was out there we want to make it clear. We're disappointed after last week, but we still expect to be a playoff football team and we fully expect Kurt Warner to be the quarterback that leads us. That has not changed."

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on football needs.