Levet shoots 67 to grab Spanish Open lead

Golf Betting Lines

05/01/2009 - Girona, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - France's Thomas Levet shot a five-under 67 to take the second-round lead Friday at the Spanish Open.

Levet, who trailed overnight-leader Soren Hansen by a shot entering the round, collected six birdies against just one bogey to move two strokes in front of the Dane at 13-under-par 131.

Hansen followed his course-record 63 in the first round with a two-under 70 on Friday to slip into second place at 11-under 133. He double-bogeyed his last hole to fall out of a tie for the lead.

Defending champion Peter Lawrie of Ireland remained firmly in the mix with a six-under 66 that moved him into third place at 10-under 134.

Alejandro Canizares (69) and Chris Wood (70) are tied for fourth place at eight-under 136, while Thomas Bjorn (67) and Paul McGinley (67) lead a five- way tie at 137.

Levet was the first player to tee off at No. 1 on Friday. He began his charge with three birdies during a five-hole stretch ending at the seventh, but he bogeyed the ninth to give one of those shots back.

Battling Hansen for the lead for most of the day, Levet made three more birdies on the back nine -- at the 13th, 15th and 16th -- to take the clubhouse lead.

He almost holed his tee shot at the par-three 16th.

"I didn't hit the ball as well as yesterday, obviously. Yesterday was a very good day. But I hit some really, really nice shots," said Levet, who had a 64 on Thursday.

The four-time European Tour winner was especially pleased with one aspect of his game.

"I'm very pleased with my short game. And for me that's the most important part," said Levet. "When my short game is on, I'm always dangerous. My long game doesn't vary very much from day-to-day ... and is never going to be a huge difference."

Hansen, after starting his round on No. 10, struck a five-wood to 12 feet at the 12th to make an eagle. He birdied the 15th, then strung together seven straight pars before making his only bogey of the round at No. 5.

He birdied the sixth and seventh and reached the ninth hole (his last) tied with Levet at 13-under. But he made a double-bogey there to drop two strokes off the pace at PGA Golf Catalunya.

Like Levet, Hansen was eager to compare Friday's round to Thursday's.

"I played all right, but not the same sort of golf as yesterday," said the two-time European Tour winner. "I got it sort of going without hitting great shots, but then it crept back on me and I finished -- as they say -- in an ambulance."

The cut line fell at even-par 144 with 71 players moving on to the weekend.

European Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie missed the cut badly after posting a nine-over 81 in the second round. Montgomerie tied for the fourth- worst score in a field of 156 players, finishing at nine-over 153.

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MySportsbook.com: New College Football Clock Rules Examined

Coaches and bettors alike are desperate to make sense of the new time-keeping rules on the NCAA gridiron. One of the big stories to come out of the Ohio State-Texas clash last weekend was Texas coach Mack Brown's criticism of the NCAA's new clock rules that are intended to shorten the duration of college football games, therefore affecting college football betting.

"They scored with six minutes left and the game was over before we had a chance to do anything," Brown told ESPN.com. "I really hope whoever made these changes will go back and look them over."

Sure, it might be sour grapes; the Buckeyes thoroughly trounced the defending national champion Longhorns 24-7. However, Brown isn't alone in giving the changes their due thought. Bettors are also wondering about them, albeit for a completely different reason. Most experts agree that the changes will result in games being shortened by anywhere from 10 to 20 plays. The obvious consequence is lower scores, with more time rolling off the clock during changes of possession. (The Ohio State-Texas game flew well under the total of 52.)

According to research at the online sportsbook MySportsbook.com, more than 18 plays a game disappeared last weekend into thin air. That's a 10-percent reduction. In 2005, a typical game had 168.58 plays. For 2007 already, it's down to 150.26.

As a result, teams combined to gain an average of about 100 fewer yards a game last weekend versus the 2005 openers. Scoring was also down by about 4.5 points (attention Las Vegas sports lines).

Of course, oddsmakers were able to adjust to the changes before the season started. Proof of that came as the over went a balanced 8-9 at My Sportsbook on Saturday.

Other angles to consider:A shorter game should theoretically result in shorter lines. Whereas Team A might have been a 14-point favorite in a 168-play game (last year), if there are 10 percent less snaps in 2007, the line should also be reduced by 10 percent (to 13 or 12.5). Of course, this is an over-simplification of the matter, but something to keep in mind.
Less possessions means a better chance the game will be decided by three or seven points. For example, what might have been a 20-10 final score in 2005 may end at

17-10 in 2007. Granted, a 24-17 game last year might end at 21-17 these days, but the former - a three- or seven-point advantage being preserved as opposed to created - is the most likely scenario.

*UPDATE* - Sept. 25, 2007

New Clock Rules Boon for online bookmakers

By adjusting the time-keeping rules to shorten the duration of college football games, the NCAA hoped to make its product more enjoyable for the fans. While the NCAA's success in this regard is still up for debate, bookmakers couldn't be happier with the results.

"We are seeing a massive jump in college football betting," noted the MySportsbook.com management team. "With all the early Saturday games (12 a.m. ET) ending before the second wave begins (3:30 p.m. ET) - something that didn't always happen before the changes - bettors are now able to re-invest their winnings from the morning session in the afternoon games."

While not all bettors will choose to roll over their winnings, it doesn't take much for an impact to be seen on the bottom line. "Not all of the millions of dollars in morning payouts get re-bet. In fact, it's probably only 10 to 20 percent," noted the sportsbook management team. "Still, the increased football betting lines window will create a ton of growth for us over the course of the season."

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