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08/22/2009 - Sonoma, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dario Franchitti edged Ryan Briscoe in Saturday's qualifying at Infineon Raceway to take the pole position for the Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma.
Franchitti overcame a mishap during the Fast Six segment - the third and final session in qualifying - when he missed a turn and spun into the dirt. He cleaned the dirt off his tires in the closing minutes before turning in a lap around the 2.303-mile, 12-turn road course in one minute, 16.7987 seconds. Franchitti recorded his fourth pole of the season and the 10th of his IndyCar Series career.
"Sometimes you have to hang on to it as well, and sometimes you have to wheel around," Franchitti said after winning the pole at Sonoma for the second time. "Today I had a pretty good car. In a couple corners I had to commit to them and hang on, but in general the car was really good. I'm very happy to get the Target car on the pole for the race."
Franchitti's first pole here came in 2007, the same year he won the IndyCar championship. The Chip Ganassi Racing driver also denied Briscoe and Helio Castroneves from giving Team Penske a one-two on the front starting grid at Sonoma for the second straight year.
Briscoe finished .05 seconds behind Franchitti to take the outside pole.
"I'm a little bit frustrated," said Briscoe, who also started second in last year's race at Sonoma. "There was a couple of times when I was quicker, but I was having a few braking issues here today. I was struggling a little bit to get some consistency."
Castroneves, who started on the pole and won at Sonoma last year, qualified third, while Marco Andretti and Hideki Mutoh, both from Andretti Green Racing, rounded out the top-five.
Graham Rahal qualified sixth, followed by Tony Kanaan, newcomer Franck Montagny and Mike Conway. Scott Dixon, the current points leader, was a surprising 10th after struggling throughout qualifying.
"It was pretty dismal, actually," Dixon said. "The saving grace was Dario winning the pole, which is fantastic. It helps us keep some points off those Penskes. We'll have to go off-strategy tomorrow and try something a bit different."
Dixon currently holds a three-point lead over Briscoe and a 19-point advantage over his Ganassi teammate Franchitti.
The preliminary 24-car field has been trimmed to 22 entries after Will Power and Nelson Philippe were involved in a serious crash during practice earlier in the day at Sonoma. Power sustained two compression fractures in his lower back, while Philippe suffered an open fracture to his left foot. Both drivers also sustained concussions. They were transported to nearby Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital. They will be hospitalized for at least overnight.
Sunday's 75-lap race is scheduled to start around 5:50 p.m. (et).
<< Massacre in reverse: Youkilis spurs Sox rout of Yanks
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Junichi Tazawa got the win in his first start
against the Yankees and Kevin Youkilis hit a pair of homers while tying a
career-high with six RBI, as the Red Sox crushed New York, 14-1, in the
middle
<< Sim three clear in Kansas
Overland Park, KS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Michael Sim, the Nationwide Tour's
leading money winner, carded a six-under 65 Saturday to take a three-stroke
lead after three rounds of the Christmas in October Classic.
Sim finished 54 holes
<< Mets recall LHP Misch, designate INF Green
Flushing, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Mets have recalled lefty
reliever Pat Misch from Triple-A Buffalo and designated infielder Andy Green
for assignment.
Misch has appeared in 13 games for the Mets this season and holds
<< Rapids burning to start winning streak vs. Fire
Bridgeview, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Fire host the Colorado Rapids on
Sunday afternoon in an important match-up for the Major League Soccer teams.
The Fire (9-5-8) are currently in second in the Eastern Conference table, but
two l
Garcia, Riley lead delayed Wyndham Championship >>
Greensboro, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sergio Garcia and Chris Riley were tied atop
the leaderboard Saturday when the third round of the Wyndham Championship was
suspended due to darkness.
Garcia and Riley are tied at 13-under par through 10 h
Federer reaches Cincy final; Djokovic ousts Nadal >>
Mason, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two-time winner and top-seeded Roger Federer
defeated Andy Murray in straight sets on Saturday to advance to the final at
the $3 million Western & Southern Financial Masters.
The world No. 1 Federer
Solheim Cup tied with singles to go >>
Sugar Grove, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Michelle Wie has proven to be a good
captain's pick for Beth Daniel.
Wie and Cristie Kerr parred the final hole against Maria Hjorth and Anna
Nordqvist, but it was enough for a 1-up victory t
L.A. earns road point with scoreless draw at D.C. >>
Washington, D.C. (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Galaxy earned a valuable
road point at Major League Soccer rivals D.C. United on Saturday night, three
days after earning a road win at Chicago, 2-0.
The Galaxy (8-4-11) are now 4-0-2
“You play to win the game!”
Those are the words of notoriously intense head coach Herman Edwards. Unfortunately, from a bettors’ perspective, most coaches don’t feel that way about the NFL preseason. August is a time to evaluate young players, finalize the depth chart and pray your star players stay healthy.
The trick to making money during the exhibition schedule is identifying coaches – like Edwards – who can’t stand losing even when there's nothing on the line.
The New York Jets betting won 15 of 21 preseason games and went 14-7 against the spread (ATS) during Edwards’s five-year tenure with the club. In his first season as the Kansas City Chiefs field boss, the team improved from 0-4 to 2-2.
Identifying win-a-holics like Edwards is a good start if you plan betting the preseason – even though most say you shouldn’t ... but what the hell do they know anyway?
Here’s a brief rundown of two teams that have a habit of winning during the second-stringers’ season, and another club that has a good chance of exceeding this year.
Playing in the media hub of North America can be stressful but the press can’t write anything negative about the way Tom Coughlin’s boys play in the preseason. The Giants won and covered all four games last summer, improving their record to 7-1 both straight up (SU) and against the spread over the last two years.
Coughlin has shown he’s not afraid to give his starters more time in the second preseason game than most of his colleagues, no doubt one of the reasons his team has been so dominant.
Bettors can count on America’s team early on. The Cowboys are 14-6 both SU and ATS since 2002 in warm-up contests. Former coach Bill Parcells, the coach of the team the last four years, has an intimidating, in-your-face presence – surely a reason Dallas has had so much early success.
The Big Tuna won’t be strolling the sidelines with looks of disgust, but new coach Wade Phillips will be anxious to make a good first impression for owner Jerry Jones.
Dallas plays the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos before things get serious. They then face the Houston Texans in their third contest (the game starters see most game time) and finish off with the Minnesota Vikings.
Expect a Dallas team able to walk away with another 3-1 preseason record.
This team scored a league-worst 12 offensive touchdowns last season, so the rookies and veterans each have something to prove. There’s a bounty of first-unit jobs up for grabs and plenty of bodies competing for those slots.
First-time head coach Lane Kiffin will be eager to impress an owner who employs the philosophy, “Just win, baby!”
The 32-year-old Kiffin has to command respect from a locker room full of players older than him. All of these factors should lead to purpose in preseason.
Don’t forget: before playing like a team that belonged in NFL Europe, Oakland went 4-1 (both SU and ATS) in exhibition games.
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Academy Award Betting Odds for Best Picture Offer Great Value
If there is any category that is not an obvious win for any one nominee in this year's Academy Awards, it would be for Best Picture. Sure the Departed is a 5/7 favorite, but that's hardly anything when we look at Helen Mirren and her "out-of-reach" 1 to 40 odds (which means you would win a whopping $1 for every $40 bet).
For value, take a look at MySportsbook.com Oscars betting odds on my personal favorite, The Queen - a remarkable 12 to 1 long shot. The film hasn't won any pre-awards for Best Picture (compared to The Departed and Little Miss Sunshine), but there is a tremendous following and it is a strong enough film to warrant a surprise win.
TV Guide advises Oscar watchers should be cautioned not to discount the drama "Babel" with its strong social themes about overcoming communication gaps among people of different cultures.
"While 'Babel' lost several guild awards to 'Sunshine' and 'Departed,' it still enjoys loyal support, and historically Oscar voters favor dramas with social messages over comedies like 'Sunshine' and violent crime movies like 'Departed'."
"It hasn't done well in the guilds, which means there isn't much industry support," said Tom O'Neil of awards site TheEnvelope.com, "But several critics are expecting it to win, and that gets my attention." Babel had 7 to 2 odds at press time.
Who is to say independently produced Little Miss Sunshine won't be this year's Crash. Last year, Crash won for Best Motion Picture, shocking those who bet on gay cowboy flick, Brokeback Mountain, as the favorite to win.
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