89th PGA Championship Preview

Golf Betting Lines

08/06/2007 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The last time Tiger Woods failed to win a major in one season was 2004. Sure, it's only three years ago, but since his historic Masters win in 1997, there have only been three seasons without a major for Woods.

We will be looking at another majorless campaign if Woods does not win the 89th PGA Championship, starting Thursday at Southern Hills.

He certainly seems poised for a good week. Amidst the final-round grouping hoopla surrounding Woods and Rory Sabbatini Sunday at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, Woods dominated. Maybe not dominated, but he humiliated not just Sabbatini, but the whole field and Firestone Country Club.

You get the feeling we could be in store for that this week. Aside from his outrageous performance at the WGC event, Woods is a firm believer in history. Majors are what drive the cart and the wagon has been somewhat derailed in the first three majors of '07.

Woods has held a share of the lead on Sunday at both the Masters and U.S. Open. We've become accustomed to Woods running away with it when he has the lead, but so far, 2007 has been a wash.

That gnaws at the greatest player in the game. Woods' pursuit of history (Jack Nicklaus' 18 majors) drives him to greatness, but Southern Hills may not be the best track for him.

Woods, who tied for 12th at Southern Hills during the 2001 U.S. Open, has one hole in his game and that is wayward tee shots. Southern Hills is full of twists and turns, so length will not be necessary for victory.

Not that the design eliminates Woods. There is not an architect out there that has sculpted a course at which Woods could not win. Southern Hills is no different, but the names you are looking for are average-length hitters with sharp iron play and patience.

Masters champion Zach Johnson fits that mold. As does British Open winner Padraig Harrington, but don't sleep on names like Scott Verplank, Luke Donald or Justin Leonard.

Nor should you forget about Angel Cabrera, the U.S. Open champion. Southern Hills hosted the USGA flagship just six years prior, so what's to say he couldn't contend on a similar track to Oakmont? How about the fact that Cabrera tied for seventh in 2001? Starting to look like he could be a perennial on this list.

Retief Goosen won the U.S. Open here six years ago, so obviously the South African would be a favorite. However he is mired in a horrific slump this year which has seen one top 10 on the PGA Tour.

Jim Furyk would be an ideal choice, but a back injury forced him to withdraw from Firestone. If he's healthy, and simply caught one of those "one-week" back injuries, he could compete.

Phil Mickelson has missed the cut in the last two majors and did not play well at the Bridgestone. Is his wrist 100 percent? Can he handle the conditions, which should rival the inner crust of the Earth's core?

Vijay Singh, Ernie Els and any other big-name guy could win here, but the PGA Championship has favored more of the run-of-the-mill player than has any other major championship.

How many had Shaun Micheel or Rich Beem in their office pool? Even further back in tournament history, names like Bob Tway, Jeff Sluman and Wayne Grady are etched on the Wanamaker Trophy.

Who could be that player this year? Joe Durant, Rod Pampling and Hunter Mahan all make a lot of sense. Lucas Glover is trying to hold onto that final automatic Presidents Cup spot. (Both teams are finalized after Sunday's final round.)

No matter what team you are trying to get on, or how many points you can accumulate for the upcoming FedEx Cup playoffs, you have to get past Eldrick Woods.

Trying to get that last major of the year, Woods will be focused, and clearly his game is in shape. It gets boring picking him, but after an eight-shot win at a difficult course, wouldn't you?

Wwwharley-davidson Golf Betting News

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FOOTBALL BETTING : Crabtree's base deal: six years, $32 million

Football Betting

In the wake of the news that the 49ers have signed receiver Michael Crabtree after an extended holdout, there has been not a hint of the dollars to be paid to Crabtree.

And since this means that his agent hasn't leaked the numbers, it means that his agent feels no specific motivation to do so.

Possibly because his agent isn't all that thrilled to have his name on the deal.

So the numbers will come from sources other than Crabtree's agent. And we've gotten our mitts into them.

Per a league source, Crabtree has signed a six-year, $32 million contract. (The total includes guaranteed money, base salaries, and the one-time incentive based on achieving minimum playing time.)

The deal also includes $17 million in guaranteed money.

As reported elsewhere, the deal can void to five years based on performance triggers, wiping out a final year base salary of $4 million. But they won't be easily reached.

The source tells us that, in his first four seasons (including 2009), Crabtree must either qualify for two Pro Bowls, or he must qualify for one Pro Bowl in one year and he must participate in 80 percent of the offensive snaps in a separate year in which the team makes the playoffs.

In other words, if in 2010 he qualifies for the Pro Bowl and the team makes the playoffs and he participates in 80 percent of the snaps, he'll still need to make it to the Pro Bowl or achieve the 80-percent/playoffs in another season.

Since the chances of Crabtree making the Pro Bowl or participating in 80 percent of the offensive snaps this year is roughly zero percent, he'll have three years to get it done.

And it won't be easy. Frankly, he'll be hard pressed to make it to one Pro Bowl in three years with the likes of Larry Fitzgerald, Calvin Johnson, Anquan Boldin, Steve Smith, the other Steve Smith, Hakeem Nicks, DeSean Jackson, Johnny Knox, Percy Harvin, Greg Jennings, Roddy White, T.J. Houshmandzadeh in the same conference for sportsbook betting.

So, by all appearances, it's a six-year deal. And at $17 million in guaranteed money, the per-year guarantee is a tepid $2.83 million per year.

There's another problem with the deal -- it has no mid-tier incentive package. Instead, the additional $8 million that Crabtree can earn (pushing the max value to six years, $40 million) requires the kind of unrealistic, mega-star performances that no rookie is likely to ever achieve.

So while the contract paid to Packers defensive tackle B.J. Raji covers five years and pays $22.5 million, he has the ability (if he's a solid player) to make up the difference between his base deal and Crabtree's five-year, $28 million haul via the mid-tier incentive package in Raji's deal.

And unless Crabtree meets the performance thresholds necessary to void the sixth year, he'll be stuck under contract for another year at a base salary of only $4 million.

There's one other area of concern with the deal. Crabtree, per the source, received no option bonus. Instead, he has significant money tied to a fairly new device known as a "discretionary salary advance," which unlike an opition bonus is subject to forfeiture if Crabtree decides in a year or two that he wants to hold out for a better deal. (We're also told that the 49ers have included language that would make certain escalators subject to forfeiture, too.)

Meanwhile, the deal falls well short of the mark for which Crabtree and agent Eugene Parker were aiming -- the five-year, $38.25 million contract paid by the Raiders to receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey, the seventh overall pick in the draft.

Even if Crabtree successfully voids the final year, he'll make more than $2 million per year less on average than Heyward-Bey.

Thus, as we explained earlier in the day, this is a deal that Crabtree could have done in July, which would have given him a much better chance of making a contribution to the 49ers during his rookie year.

So while the final outcome can be described as win-win, the broader view suggests that it's really a lose-lose situation.

NFL Betting Lines

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Matt Kenseth And Kevin Harvick Favorites To Take NASCAR Nextel Cup Championship

(September 15)—The NASCAR season has hit the homestretch with the opening event on this year’s Chase for the Cup taking place this weekend at the Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway. With 10 races remaining to determine the Cup Series champion, leading online sportsbook MySportsbook.com today announced odds on all 10 Chase qualifying drivers capturing the NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship.

One of the largest sportsbook sites on the Internet, MySportsbook.com currently lists the top two drivers in the point standings as the early favorites to win the Nextel Cup. Entering the Chase for the Cup with a slim five-point lead in the point standings, 2003 NASCAR champ Matt Kenseth has been made a slight favorite to win his second Cup at 7/2 betting odds. 2001 Cup Rookie of the Year Kevin Harvick has betting odds listed at 5/2 and four-time NASCAR champion Jeff Gordon is listed at 6/1 to capture the Nextel Cup this year.

Hoping to follow in the footsteps of his legendary father who won six NASCAR titles, Dale Earnhardt Jr. stands at 8/1 to breakthrough with his first Cup victory. Staying with the family theme, MySportsbook.com lists 2005 Rookie of the Year Kyle Busch at 14/1 to succeed big brother Kurt’s 2004 NASCAR title. While Kasey Kahne was the final driver to qualify for the Chase with a third place finish last week, the oddsmakers give him a fighting chance at 10/1 mainly due to several mile-and-a-half tracks remaining on the schedule. Despite going winless on the NASCAR circuit this season, Jeff Burton enters the Chase at 5/1 to capture the Cup title. Meanwhile, rookie Denny Hamlin is 4/1 to win the championship, while veteran driver Mark Martin enters the Chase for the Cup as a 15/1 long shot to win his first NASCAR title in his 24th and final season.

MySportsbook.com will offer comprehensive Nascar betting lines on every race remaining on the Nextel Cup series including driver match-ups, props and odds to win each race. For a complete list of NASCAR odds, please visit www.MySportsbook.com.

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