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06/03/2010 - Dublin, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Justin Rose carded a seven-under 65 early Thursday to grab a share of the lead after the opening round of The Memorial.
Later in the day, Rose was joined atop the leaderboard at Muirfield Village Golf Club by former U.S. Open champion Geoff Ogilvy and Rickie Fowler.
Phil Mickelson, who could overtake Tiger Woods as the top-ranked player in the game with a win this week, posted a five-under 67. He shares fourth place with Michael Letzig, Andres Romero, Rory Sabbatini and Jason Day.
Woods managed two birdies and two bogeys in an even-par round of 72. He parred his final eight holes to finish round one tied for 49th.
Woods, who won his fourth Memorial title last year, opened with a bogey on the first. At the par-four sixth, an unlucky break led to a bogey.
Hitting from the left rough, Woods' approach shot landed on a sprinkler head and bounced well over the green. His third remained in the rough over the green, then he chipped to 10 feet. Woods converted that for bogey.
After a pair of pars, Woods rolled in a 20-footer for birdie on the ninth. He made it two in a row as he converted a 12-foot birdie putt on No. 10. Over the final eight holes, Woods' shortest birdie chance was from 18 feet out. He was unable to convert and parred those eight to end at even-par.
"I played the par-fives terrible today. I played them even-par. Can't play these par-fives even-par," Woods said. "I had a couple good looks today, and just kind of skirted the edge."
Rose played the back nine first and stumbled to a bogey on the 10th. He moved back to even-par with a birdie at 14, then birdied 16 and 18 to turn in minus- two.
The Englishman dropped in back-to-back birdies tries from the second to get to minus-four. Rose ran off three consecutive birdie chances from the fifth to be the first in the clubhouse at seven-under.
"Funny thing is I played at Colonial last week, made the cut and finished close to last, but came away from the week feeling really good about things," said Rose, who has three top-14 finishes at this event since 2004. "That I guess, is a rare state of mind for me. I often tend to be into results too much. Last week for the first time in a while, I felt like I'm not just trying to get results week to week. I feel like I'm trying to get better and better as I go forward."
Ogilvy also started on the 10th. He drained three birdie efforts in a four- hole span from the 12th and made the turn at minus-four after a birdie on 18.
The Australian also birdied one and two to make it three in a row. After birdies on five and seven, Ogilvy was in the lead at minus-eight. However, he faltered to a bogey on the par-three eighth and into a share of the lead.
"It was nice to hole the putts. I think, if anything's been missing in my game the last little month or two, it's been poor putting," admitted Ogilvy. "So it's nice to hole a few."
Fowler tripped to a bogey on the second, but rebounded with a stellar run of golf. He drained three straight birdie tries from the fourth and ended that run with an eagle on the par-five seventh.
The 21-year-old then birdied the eighth to move to minus-five. He cruised around the turn with five pars in a row. Fowler got within one of the lead with a birdie on the 14th. At the 18th, he ran home a 23-footer for birdie to finish alongside Rose and Ogilvy.
Mickelson also played the back nine first and did all of his scoring in two bunches. He connected on birdie chances at 14 and 15 before parring seven in a row. Mickelson drained three straight birdie tries from the fifth to move to minus-five.
"It was a good start. I enjoyed the round. There were a lot of birdies out there," Mickelson said, who has never won The Memorial.
NOTES: Mickelson can overtake Woods atop the world rankings with a win this week and Woods finishing outside the top-four...Mark Calcavecchia, who is making his final PGA Tour start before heading to the Champions Tour, opened with an even-par 72 and is tied with Woods and 16 others in 49th...Among those other 16 is Matt Hill, the 2009 NCAA Champion who turned professional at the start of the week...The first round was completed despite two weather delays that lasted two hours, 28 minutes combined.
<< Chad Cordero back in majors
Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Relief pitcher Chad Cordero returned to the
majors on Thursday as the Seattle Mariners selected the contract of the right-
hander from Triple-A Tacoma.
The 28-year-old hasn't pitched in the big leagues sinc
<< Chargers ink TE McMichael
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Diego Chargers added depth at the
tight end position on Thursday by signing Randy McMichael to a one-year
contract.
The nine-year veteran caught 34 passes for 332 yards in 16 games last s
<< Iconic UCLA coach Wooden in "grave" condition
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Legendary UCLA men's basketball coach
John Wooden is reportedly in "grave" condition at UCLA Medical Center.
CBS-2 in Los Angeles reported that Wooden, 99, hasn't eaten for several days
and is very
<< Falcons' Ojinnaka receives one-game suspension
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The National Football League has suspended
Atlanta Flacons offensive tackle Quinn Ojinnaka for one game for violating the
NFL's Personal Conduct Policy.
Ojinnaka started the final five contests of the 200
Mets' minor leaguer Murphy expected to miss season >>
Buffalo, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Daniel Murphy, a promising fixture of the New
York Mets future before injuries forced him to Triple-A Buffalo, will miss the
next four-to-six months with a high grade MCL tear of the right knee.
Murphy, play
U.S. striker Altidore injures ankle >>
Irene, South Africa (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - U.S. forward Jozy Altidore injured his
ankle in training Wednesday and was forced to sit out practice on Thursday.
Altidore had an X-ray taken Thursday that was negative, and he is considered
day-to-
Rookie Dillon captures Texas pole >>
Fort Worth, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rookie Austin Dillon claimed his first
career Camping World Truck Series pole after winning Thursday's qualifying for
the WinStar World Casino 400k at Texas Motor Speedway.
Dillon, the 20-year-old gran
Lakers hold edge after physical first half in Game 1 of NBA Finals >>
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kobe Bryant scored 12 points in a first
half best summarized by physical play and foul trouble, as the Los Angeles
Lakers hold a 50-41 halftime edge over Boston in Game 1 of the NBA Finals.
In a championshi
Oddsmakers have released the odds for the 2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award and Seattle Seahawks linebacker Aaron Curry has been made the opening favorite.
Seattle took Curry with the fourth overall pick in April's NFL draft and plan on inserting him into its starting lineup right away. The Hawks traded linebacker Julian Peterson in the offseason, so Curry is expected to have a significant role in Seattle's defense next year and that's one of the primary reasons he is the favorite to win the NFL ROY Award.
Oddsmakers from online sportsbook MySportsbook.com have made Curry a 5/1 favorite to win this year's NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award. Given that he was the best defensive prospect in this year's draft and how he'll have plenty of opportunities to make plays in '09, Curry offers a ton of value at 5/1.
Another thing working for Curry is the position he plays. A linebacker has won the defensive ROY award six straight times and eight of the last nine years. Jerod Mayo, Patrick Willis, DeMeco Ryans, Shawne Merriman, Jonathan Vilma, Terrell Suggs, Kendrell Bell and Brian Urlacher were the most recent linebackers to take home the award.
Following Curry at 5/1 are Tyson Jackson (Chiefs) at 7/1, James Laurinaitas (Rams) at 8/1, Brian Orakpo (Redskins) at 10/1, Rey Maualuga (Bengals) at 10/1 and Jerry Peria (Falcons) at 10/1.
All the players mentioned above are expected to start for their respective teams, but Jackson and Peria are going to have a tough time being recognized on a national level given they're both defensive linemen. D-linemen rarely put up the numbers that it takes to win an individual award like the ROY.
A couple of players with some value are Clay Matthews (Packers) at 12/1 and Larry English (Chargers) at 15/1. Matthews is expected to start at outside linebacker in Green Bay's new 3-4 defense and could rack up a ton of tackles. English, who was an impressive player at Northern Illinois, is expected to be a situational pass rusher for the Chargers and could rack up a ton of sacks.
For complete odds on the 2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award, see below. And for complete odds for the 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Award, click the link provided.
2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award
Robert Ayers (DEN) 12/1
Ron Brace (NE) 25/1
Everette Brown (CAR) 16/1
Darius Butler (NE) 40/1
Patrick Chung (NE) 30/1
Aaron Curry (SEA) 5/1
Brian Cushing (HOU) 12/1
Vontae Davis (MIA) 30/1
Louis Delmas (DET) 30/1
Larry English (SD) 15/1
Evander Hood (PIT) 25/1
Tyson Jackson (KC) 7/1
Malcolm Jenkins (NO) 25/1
Paul Kruger (BAL) 50/1
James Laurinaitas (STL) 8/1
Sen'Derrick Marks (TEN) 20/1
Clay Matthews (GB) 12/1
Aaron Maybin (BUF) 15/1
Rey Maualuga (CIN) 10/1
Roy Miller (TB) 20/1
Michael Mitchell (OAK) 45/1
Fili Moala (IND) 30/1
Brian Orakpo (WAS) 10/1
Jerry Peria (ATL) 10/1
B J Raji (GB) 7/1
Clint Sintim (NYG) 35/1
Alphonso Smith (DEN) 40/1
David Verkune (CLE) 20/1
Jason Williams (DAL) 30/1
Field (Any Other Player) 6/1
To visit this internet sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.
NEW YORK (AP) -By staying away from the cupcakes, Southern California earned itself a slim new ranking.
No. 1 always seems to fit USC.
Southern California jumped two spots to No. 1 in The Associated Press Top 25 on Tuesday, rewarded by voters for opening the season with a dominant performance on the road against a BCS conference opponent.
Georgia and Ohio State, the preseason Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, started their seasons with glorified scrimmages at home against FCS (formerly I-AA) teams. USC, however, traveled across country to face Virginia and could not have been more impressive in a 52-7 victory.
Georgia fell to No. 2 and Ohio State to No 3.
"We realize that rankings so early in a season are certainly fluid. But rankings do help establish a pecking order for things later in the season," USC coach Pete Carroll said in a statement. "As for moving into the No. 1 spot, it's nice to know that people think highly of our team."
Since reaching No. 1 on Dec. 7, 2003, the final-regular season AP poll of that season, USC has been No. 1 in 39 polls, by far the most of any team during that time.
"Some have said the voters are taking our schedule into consideration," Carroll said. "Our philosophy has always been to schedule outstanding opponents. We need to play challenging games like we just did, traveling across the country to open the season at Virginia. Games like that bring out our best and make us stronger as a team."
The latest voting was close. USC received 21 first-place votes and 1,539 points from the 65-member media panel. Georgia had 20 first-place votes and 1,506 points. Ohio State got 15 first-place votes and 1,497 points.
"I'd say we've evolved as pollsters," said Stewart Mandel of SI.com, who moved USC up to No. 1. "In the past, voters just kind of automatically moved teams up and kept teams where they were if they won."
Georgia beat Georgia Southern 45-21 on Saturday and Ohio State opened with a 43-0 win over Youngstown State.
"There's a bit of a growing backlash for the amount of teams that open with I-AA cupcakes," said Mandel, whose book "Bowls, Polls and Tattered Souls" chronicles college football's controversies. "To see a team [USC] go on the road and play a New Year's Day bowl team from last season, and not only play them but destroy them, how could you not reward that team?"
USC also jumped past Georgia to No. 1 in the USA Today coaches' poll, which has the same top five as the AP poll.
"It's definitely a privilege to be No. 1. But it's not heartbreaking to me if we drop," Georgia offensive lineman Josh Davis said. "It doesn't matter right now what we're ranked. What matters is our next game and right now, that's Central Michigan. The only time the polls matter is in December. That's when the polls matter."
While the Bulldogs opened easy, their schedule ultimately should be as difficult as any team's. Georgia's big nonconference test is at No. 15 Arizona State on Sept. 20. The Bulldogs also face six Southeastern Conference rivals that've been ranked in the first two polls.
As for Ohio State, the Buckeyes play at USC on Sept. 13 before getting into the Big Ten schedule.
But of the teams in this week's top 10, USC and Texas are the only ones that don't play an FCS opponent, and the Trojans are the only team that doesn't play a team from a non-BCS conference.
Get the latest 2009 BCS Championship odds at MySportsbook.com.
The last team to drop from No. 1 after a victory was USC last season. LSU jumped from No. 2 to No. 1 when it beat Tulane 34-9, the same week the Trojans edged Washington 27-24 on the road.
The last preseason No. 1 team to lose the top spot after winning its opening game was Florida in 2001. The Gators beat Marshall 49-14, but preseason No. 2 Miami opened with a 33-7 victory over Penn State and the Hurricanes jumped to No. 1 with Florida slipping to second.
The next four teams in the new Top 25 stayed the same: No. 4 Oklahoma (two first-place votes), No. 5 Florida (five first-place votes), No. 6 Missouri (one first-place vote), No. 7 LSU (one first-place vote) and No. 8 West Virginia.
No. 9 Auburn and No. 10 Texas each moved up a spot, taking advantage of Clemson's big drop. Clemson, ninth in the preseason, fell out after losing 34-10 to Alabama on Saturday.
Also falling out after losses were Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh and Tennessee.
Moving into the rankings were No. 21 Fresno State, No. 22 Utah, No. 23 UCLA and No. 24 South Carolina.
Alabama moved up 11 spots after its big victory over Clemson.
The second 10 started with No. 11 Wisconsin, followed by Texas Tech, Alabama and Kansas. BYU and Arizona State were tied for 15th. Rivals BYU and Utah are both ranked for the first time since 1996.
South Florida was No. 17, ahead of Oregon, Penn State and Wake Forest at No. 20.
The final five were all the teams to move into the ranking, except for Illinois, which dropped four spots and tied South Carolina for No. 24.
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