Woody Austin wins St. Jude

Golf Betting Lines

06/10/2007 - Memphis, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Woody Austin was so good, it didn't matter what anyone else did.

The way he played the final round of the Stanford St. Jude Championship, no one was beating him.

"That was a true round of golf. It was one of those surprises we all get once in a while," Austin said Sunday after firing an eight-under 62 in the final round at TPC Southwind.

"I'm just lucky it happened for me when it really matters."

Austin slammed his foot on the pedal Sunday and never let up, posting six birdies and an eagle for the best round of his 13-year PGA Tour career.

He made five birdies on the back nine -- in stark contrast to overnight leader Adam Scott, who shot a 39 on the back -- and finished the tournament with 49 consecutive bogey-free holes.

In the end, Austin stood at 13-under 267 for a five-shot win over England's Brian Davis. It was the 43-year-old grinder's third PGA Tour win and first since the 2004 Buick Championship.

His first two wins came in playoffs.

"I'm shocked I'm not going into a playoff," Austin joked.

It wasn't even close.

Davis had a four-under 66 and was a distant, if not surprising, runner-up at eight-under 272. David Toms closed with a one-under 69 and finished in third place at seven-under 273.

Brian Gay (70) was fourth at six-under 274, while Brandt Snedeker (68) and Dean Wilson (68) were a shot further back at 275.

Scott entered the final round with a three-shot lead and was tied with Austin at 10-under after making a nine-foot birdie putt at the 12th hole.

But he bogeyed the 13th and made disastrous triple-bogey at the 14th, suddenly falling five back. He made one more birdie and then closed with three straight bogeys to shoot a five-over 75.

Scott finished seventh at four-under 276.

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Betting Football

NFL Football Betting Online

Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?

I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.

Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.

There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.

Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.

For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.

A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.

The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.

Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.

So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.

Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.

“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.

Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.

“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.

It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.

Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.

The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.

“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.

“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”

Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.

The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.

“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”

Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?

“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”

Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.