Every fires 64 to take lead in Hawaii

Golf Betting Lines

01/14/2012 - Honolulu, HI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Matt Every fired a six-under 64 Friday to grab a two-stroke lead after two rounds of the Sony Open in Hawaii.

Every, who is starting his second season on the PGA Tour, completed 36 holes at 10-under-par 130.

Two years ago, Every was a rookie on the PGA Tour when he was arrested in a marijuana related incident. The charges were eventually dropped, but he was suspended by the tour for three months. He also missed six weeks that season due to a broken finger.

"I honestly kind of feel like a rookie out here this year, because I was doing just fine until I got to Hilton Head," Every said of where he broke his finger in 2010. "I (missed) six weeks there, then I get back and I was out for like two weeks, then got in trouble, there's three months. I still almost kept my status and played half the tournaments that everybody else played."

Every's lone professional win was at the 2009 Nationwide Tour Championship. This is second time he will sleep on a lead on the PGA Tour. Every was the first-round leader at the 2010 Greenbrier Classic.

David Hearn (66) and Carl Pettersson (67) are tied for second place at minus- eight. Brendon de Jonge fired the low round of the week with his eight-under 62. He soared into a share of fourth place at seven-under 133. He was joined there by Pat Perez and Doug La Belle II, who both shot 67 on Friday.

PGA Champion Keegan Bradley (67) and Sean O'Hair (67) in round two, are among 10 players tied for seventh at six-under-par 134.

Every had a kick-in birdie on the par-four 12th. He parred the other eight holes on his opening nine at Waialae Country Club.

The 28-year-old started to make his move up the leaderboard with a 24-foot birdie putt on the par-four third. He made it two in a row with a short birdie effort on the fourth.

Every parred two in a row before catching fire at the end of his round. He drained a 22-footer for birdie on No. 7. Every converted a 15-foot birdie chance at eight, then closed with a two-putt birdie at the ninth, his last.

"I just didn't make many mistakes and made some putts, hit some good irons, just kind of normal stuff," Every said.

He went on to add, "I'm not saying I'm going to be on top of the leaderboard every week, but it's not a surprise to me. I know that I can, you know? It's only two rounds, though, so it's not that big a deal."

Every has just one career top-10 finish, a share of eighth at the 2010 Phoenix Open, in 29 previous PGA Tour starts.

Hearn rebounded from bogeys on two and three to shoot 66. He did so with three birdies in a four-hole span from the fifth. He made the turn at minus-seven after making eagle on the par-five ninth. Hearn parred his next eight holes before closing with a birdie at the last.

Pettersson, a four-time winner on the PGA Tour, had a birdie and a bogey on the back nine, his opening nine Friday. Around the turn, Pettersson had birdies on four and five. He finished his round with a birdie at the ninth to share second place.

"I started on the back nine. I played really solid on the back nine," said Pettersson. "Could have made a few more, missed a couple of short ones. Then I made a few longish putts for birdies on four and five and a nice save on eight. It was a solid round."

NOTES: First-round leader Graham DeLaet struggled to two-over 72, which dropped him into a share of 17th at minus-five. He was joined there by among others last week's winner Steve Stricker (69)...The cut line fell at one- under-par 139 with 80 players advancing to the weekend...Among those that missed the cut were 2011 champion Mark Wilson, 2006 winner David Toms, Rocco Mediate, Ryo Ishikawa and U.S. Ryder Cup captain Davis Love III.

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Horse Betting

(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).

The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.

"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."

Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.

"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."

When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:

CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.

DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.

PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.

You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.

"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."

Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.

(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)

Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."

But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."

Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."

Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."

All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.

In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.

"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."

To visit this horse betting site go to MySportsbook.com for all your horse racing betting needs.

Big East Conference odds

Work left to do: Villanova, Syracuse, DePaul, West Virginia, Providence

Notre Dame and Louisville appear to have done enough to make the move, so we'll make them locks. The Cardinals, despite a modest RPI, are trending way up and have clinched at least a tie for third in the Big East, which should be more than enough with their pair of big road wins. Villanova got back to .500 and gets back to more solid footing. Syracuse got a very important road win and crippled a fellow contender in the process. West Virginia's fate could be in its hands Tuesday at Pitt.

Work left to do:

Villanova [18-9 (7-7), RPI: 21, SOS: 5] Pounded Rutgers to get back to .500. If Cats can get their last two (at UConn, vs. Syracuse), that should be enough with strong computer numbers and a host of wins away from The Pavilion. The Cats have beaten Texas and swept the Big 5 (never easy in Philly), but have a couple of losses to bubble teams (Xavier, Drexel), too. I still think they'll be OK, possibly even at 8-8.

Syracuse [20-8 (9-5), RPI: 53, SOS: 62] History says 10 wins will be plenty, but it might be hard for the Orange to get that last one with a final two vs. G'town, which is trying to win the league title, and at Villanova, which will be desperate for a W. The relative lack of nonconference heft and the weak computer numbers are still concerns, but the Orange have won four in a row and got a very, very big win at Providence on Saturday.

DePaul [16-12 (8-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 18] Beat Cincy and should get past South Florida to get to 9-7, but then what? They have beaten Kansas and Cal (right after the DeVon Hardin injury) earlier this season, but also have lost to Bradley and Purdue, among others. They'll likely need a couple of BE tourney wins, too, but we'll see ...

West Virginia [19-7 (8-6), RPI: 58, SOS: 125] The game at Pitt on Tuesday night could decide the Mountaineers' fate (barring a deep tournament run). They can still get to 9-7 in the Big East without it by beating Cincinnati, but the nine wins would be against UConn, Villanova, St. John's, South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall twice and the Bearcats. Beating bubble foes is fine, but where's the beef? Outside of beating PG-less UCLA in nonconference play (still a top quality win), there's not a lot to fall back on (besides maybe NC State). WVU vs. Syracuse would be an interesting debate, as the teams don't play in the Big East regular season. WVU has the best win, but Cuse has played the much better schedule.

Providence [17-10 (7-7), RPI: 70, SOS: 33] The Friars likely saw their at-large hopes die at home in the four-point loss to Syracuse, barring an unexpected run to the Big East semis or more. The RPI, bad already, won't be helped by playing St. John's and South Florida in the final two league games.

For more March Madness odds go to MySportsbook.com

For more College Basketball betting lines go to BettingExpress.com

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.