Levet gets fifth European Tour win

Golf Betting Lines

05/03/2009 - Girona, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - France's Thomas Levet posted a four-under 68 on Sunday to get a two-stroke victory at the Spanish Open at the Stadium Course at PGA Golf Catalunya.

Levet finished at 18-under 270 for his fifth European Tour title. His last win came last year at the Open de Andalucia, but on Sunday, Levet hung through some tough times on the front nine to get the traditional treatment when a Frenchman wins on tour - a champagne bath.

But, as the bubbly was drenching him, Levet was thinking more of a national icon.

"When I won the tournament, I thought of Seve," said Levet of Spanish golf star Seve Ballesteros, who is battling brain cancer. "I dedicate it to you, Seve. He's having a hard time at the moment. He was one of my heroes as a kid."

Fabrizio Zanotti fired a seven-under 65 on Sunday to finish in second place at minus-16.

Last year's winner Peter Lawrie had a good showing in his title defense. He shot a three-under 69 and tied for third place with Thomas Bjorn, who carded a 66, at 14-under 274.

Levet began the final round with a two-shot lead, but that was erased quickly by his playing partner, Stuart Davis. The Englishman birdied his first two holes and Levet made bogey at No. 2 and that gave Davis a one-shot edge.

Both players birdied three, then Levet bogeyed the fourth to fall two back. He reclaimed a share of first when Davis landed in the water en route to a double-bogey at the fifth.

Levet didn't stayed tied in the lead for long. He rolled in an 18-foot birdie putt at six, a tap-in birdie at seven and a 25-footer for birdie at No. 8 to quickly grab a three-stroke cushion.

Zanotti closed the gap to two, but never got closer until later in the round. Levet reached the par-five 12th green in two, but hit a terrible eagle putt that left him with almost six feet for birdie. Levet stepped up and drained the birdie effort to get his three-stroke advantage back.

Zanotti got within two again after a seven-foot birdie putt at 13, but dropped a stroke with a bogey at 14. Levet drove against a tree at the 14th and pitched out instead of attempting a full shot that surely would've snapped the club and maybe injured his arm. Levet hit his third to 18 feet and two-putted for a bogey.

In the group ahead, Zanotti two-putted for birdie at the par-five 15th and that shrunk the margin to a single shot. Levet once again left a long eagle try short at the 15th, but sank a six-footer for birdie to take a two-shot lead into the final three holes.

At the par-four 17th, Levet knocked his approach almost 20 feet from the flagstick. He ran home the birdie putt to take an almost insurmountable lead on to the final hole.

Just in front, Zanotti managed a birdie at 18 to make it a two-shot difference. Levet hit his second on to the putting surface and two-putted for the two-shot victory.

"As long as I made pars and birdies, I knew I wasn't going to be touched today," said Levet. "At the end, I was concentrating on putting the ball on the fairway. One mistake on 14, that's all I did on the back nine. I was very, very pleased."

Charl Schwartzel shot a three-under 69 and took fifth at minus-10, followed by Rafael Cabrera-Bello (68) and Marcel Siem (70), who tied for sixth at nine- under 279.

Gregory Bourdy (66), David Horsey (66) and Jose Manuel Lara (71) finished knotted in eighth at minus-eight.

Davis struggled badly after the double-bogey at five. He tallied six bogeys, a double-bogey and a birdie the rest of the way for a six-over 78 and a shared 15th place at six-under 282.

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Super Bowl 2009 Betting

Super Bowl 2009 Betting propositions

Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.

Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.

Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.

If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.

Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.

By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.

In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.

So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.

While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.

There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.

In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:

SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.

XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.

XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.

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