09/07/2008 - St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Camilo Villegas finally collected his first PGA Tour victory on Sunday, when he held on down the back nine to win the BMW Championship.
"I don't know what to say," acknowledged Villegas, who shot a final-round 68 to finish the championship at 15-under 265. "It's just a lot of hard work and a lot of people behind me."
Villegas moved into second place on the FedEx Cup Playoff Points race with the win. With only the Tour Championship remaining in the pursuit of the FedEx Cup, Villegas unfortunately can not make up the difference.
So the title, and $10 million first prize, will go to Vijay Singh.
Singh took home the first two playoff events -- The Barclays and Deutsche Bank Championship. He tied for 44th place Sunday and picked up 2,151 FedEx Cup points.
The Fijian just has to finish four rounds and pick up at least the last-place points in the Tour Championship in three weeks to secure the FedEx Cup title.
Singh left Bellerive Country Club without speaking to the media.
Dudley Hart fired a five-under 65 on Sunday to take a solo second at minus-13. Hart began the season on a medical extension and played his way into the Tour Championship with his big finish.
Jim Furyk (70) and Anthony Kim (67) tied for third place at 12-under 268.
The Tour Championship field will feature the top 30 players on the FedEx Cup playoffs points list. Chad Campbell hung on to the 30th spot despite withdrawing this week due to the birth of his first child.
That knocked Stephen Ames out of the event at East Lake, despite a 66 on Sunday that gave Ames a share of fifth. D.J. Trahan and K.J. Choi both shot 67s to join Ames at minus-11.
But the day belonged to Villegas.
The Colombian played in the final pairing in the final round last week at the Deutsche Bank Championship, but shot a 73 on Monday and fell into a tie for third.
Villegas got the win on Sunday, but let the lead slip at times.
He started the final round with a one-shot cushion over Furyk and extended it with a three-foot birdie putt at the first. Furyk got back within one with a birdie at No. 2, then Villegas fell apart a bit.
At the fifth, Villegas missed the green and pitched his third to four feet. His par putt stayed above ground and he fell into a tie with Furyk, but lost a share of first after a missed eight-footer for par at the sixth.
Villegas drew even with Furyk, who made six straight pars, thanks to a nine- foot birdie putt at the eighth. Furyk missed a par putt at nine and hit a terrible drive at the 10th, which led to another bogey and a two-stroke deficit.
Villegas was back in front, although there were some ominous signs.
At the 10th, Villegas knocked his approach to the back collar and duffed his third. The ball stopped close to 10 feet short of the stick, but he ran the par-saving putt in to keep the two-shot cushion.
Furyk birdied 11 to get within one and Villegas looked shaky at the 12th. His drive landed in a bunker and he could not even reach the green with his second after a poor shot. Villegas' third came to rest 17 feet from the hole and he drained the clutch par save to stay in front.
That par putt might have spurred Villegas on to victory.
Furyk bogeyed the hole and at the par-three 13th, Villegas hit his tee ball to 12 feet. He converted the birdie putt and was three clear with five holes to play.
Villegas rolled in a long birdie putt at the 14th, but so did Kim, who birdied 15 to narrow the gap to two.
At the par-five 17th, Villegas burned the left edge of the cup with his 15- foot birdie effort. Kim had close to 10 feet to get within one, but his putt stayed up and Villegas needed to play one solid hole to clinch his first win.
He did just that.
Villegas hit the fairway off the tee and played a safe approach to 35 feet. He two-putted and headed to the winner's circle for the first time.
"It's awesome to be here," said Villegas, who pocketed $1.26 million for the victory. "Hopefully it's the first of many. I will work even harder to keep doing what I'm doing."
Tim Clark (69) and new American Ryder Cupper Hunter Mahan (66) shared eighth at 10-under 270.
Another captain's pick for the U.S. side, Steve Stricker, shot a 66 on Sunday to tie for 10th with Fredrik Jacobson (65) and Aaron Baddeley (69). The trio finished at nine-under 271.
<< Dukes gives Nats extra-inning win over Braves
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Elijah Dukes' three-run double in the 14th
inning put the Nationals on top, and Washington held on for a 7-4 win in the
finale of a four-game set.
Lastings Milledge homered, and Alberto Gonzalez homered
<< Kenyon cruises to second Futures Tour win
Albany, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sarah-Jane Kenyon shot a two-under 69 on Sunday
to win the ILOVENY Championship for her second career title on the Duramed
Futures Tour.
Kenyon, a 24-year-old Australian who first won on the developmenta
<< Thames, Tigers tackle Twins
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Marcus Thames went 2-for-3 and drove in a
pair of runs and Curtis Granderson knocked in the go-ahead run with a single,
as Detroit upended Minnesota, 7-5, in the rubber match of a three-game set
from th
<< Anderson's sac fly sends Halos to win over ChiSox
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Garret Anderson's pinch-hit sacrifice fly
snapped an eighth-inning tie and lifted the LA Angels of Anaheim to a 3-2
victory over the Chicago White Sox in the finale of a three-game series at
U.S. Ce
Cowboys' Barber leaves with injury >>
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dallas Cowboys running back Marion Barber
III left Sunday's 28-10 win over the Cleveland Browns with an apparent injury
to his ribs.
He was sent to the locker room during the final quarter to have X-rays
Newhan, Astros rally past Rockies >>
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - David Newhan hit a go-ahead RBI triple in a
two-run eighth inning as the Houston Astros came back to edge the Colorado
Rockies, 7-5, in the rubber match of a three-game series at Coors Field.
Jose Cast
Lopez and M's down Yanks >>
Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jose Lopez had a pair of solo homers while
Adrian Beltre went 2-for-3 with a two-run blast to extend his hitting streak
to 13 games, as the Seattle Mariners took the rubber match of a weekend set,
5-2, fr
Last-second score lifts Panthers over Chargers >>
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jake Delhomme found Dante Rosario in the back
of the end zone as time expired to give the Carolina Panthers a 26-24 win over
the San Diego Chargers.
D.J. Hackett caught a seven-yard pass on the first play o
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 | Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting