Proud Spell romps in the Kentucky Oaks

Horseracing Betting Lines

05/02/2008 - Louisville, KY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Proud Spell, second in last year's Breeders' Cup Juvenile Filly race, stalked the pace before running away from the field in Friday's $581,650 Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs. The 134th edition of the companion race to the Kentucky Derby was contested over a sloppy track.

Proud Spell, ridden by Gabriel Saez, broke well from the middle of the 10 horse field. She settled into second to the outside of pacesetter Bsharpsonata. Tracking the leaders were Little Belle and Country Star.

The fillies maintained their positions up the backstretch and into the far turn. Around the turn for home Proud Spell drew even with Bsharpsonata and took the lead at the top of the stretch.

Proud Spell proceeded to run away from her competition to record a five length victory. Finishing second was Ashland Stakes winner Little Belle with highly regarded Pure Clan getting up for third.

The time for the 1 1/8 miles was 1:50.01 on a sloppy Churchill Downs surface.

Rounding out the order of finish was Golden Doc A, Bsharpsonata, Country Star, A to the Croft, Rasierra, Awesome Chic and Absolutely Cindy. Scratched from the race was Elusive Lady and Eight Belles who will start in Saturday's Run for the Roses.

Owned by former Kentucky Governor Brereton Jones, Proud Spell is a stablemate of Eight Belles, as both fillies are trained by Larry Jones. Jones was the trainer of Hard Spun who was second in last year's Kentucky Derby and Breeders' Cup Classic.

Proud Spell pockets $348,930 with her fifth win in eight career starts. Overall, she has lifetime earnings of more than $1.28 million.

This year Proud Spell was second to Indian Blessing in the Silverbulletday Stakes before capturing the Fair Grounds Oaks. Indian Blessing took the 2007 Juvenile Filly. Proud Spell came into the Kentucky Oaks off a third place finish to Little Belle and Bsharpsonata in the Ashland Stakes.

Proud Spell returned $8.80, $4.80 and $3.20. Little Belle paid $6.40 and $4.00, and Pure Clan paid $3.80 to show.

The updated weather forecast for the Kentucky Derby on Saturday, is cloudy in the morning with isolated thunderstorms developing later in the day, 30- percent chance of rain. Winds from the South Southwest at 15 to 25 m.p.h. Post-time temperature: near 70.

Wwwibetcasino Horseracing Betting News

<< Heatley guides Canada past Slovenia
Halifax, Nova Scotia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dany Heatley notched a hat trick, as Canada began defense of its title with a 5-1 trouncing of Slovenia in the preliminary round of the 2008 World Hockey Championships. Canada played a World Cha

<< Marlins' Willingham lands on DL
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Florida Marlins placed outfielder Josh Willingham on the 15-day disabled list on Friday with a sore back. Willingham sat out the Marlins most recent series with the Dodgers. The left fielder w

<< Wild's Gaborik undergoes surgery
St. Paul, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Minnesota Wild forward Marian Gaborik underwent minor arthroscopic surgery on his right hip joint on Friday. The procedure, performed by Dr. Marc J. Philippon at the Steadman Hawkins Clinic in V

<< Kahne captures Nationwide pole at RIR
Richmond, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kasey Kahne won the pole for this evening's Lipton Tea 250 at the Richmond International Raceway. The No.9 Gillett Evernham Motorsports driver circled the 0.750-mile short track in 21.578 seconds

<< Flames ink 2007 first-round pick
Calgary, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Calgary Flames general manager Darryl Sutter announced Friday the signing of the team's 2007 first-round pick, center Mikael Backlund. Per club policy, financial terms of the deal were not disclos

Huggins signs extension with Mountaineers >>
Morgantown, WV (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - West Virginia University and head men's basketball coach Bob Huggins have agreed to a contract extension through the 2018-19 season, the school announced Friday. Financial terms of the agreement will

Hometown favorite wins Cup pole in Richmond >>
Richmond, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chesterfield, VA native Denny Hamlin won the pole for Saturday night's Crown Royal presents the Dan Lowry 400 at the Richmond International Raceway. The No.11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota driver circled

Yankees' Posada expects to miss over a month >>
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New York Yankees catcher Jorge Posada expects to miss at least five weeks because of an injured right shoulder. The veteran catcher was placed on the 15-day disabled list for the first time in his career earl

Freeman leaves Iowa >>
Iowa City, IA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Iowa junior guard Tony Freeman was granted a release from his basketball scholarship on Friday and will not be a member of the Hawkeyes for next season. "Tony informed us of his decision that he will

Bohn leads Wachovia; double-bogeys sidetrack Mickelson >>
Charlotte, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Finally free of the burden that came with worrying about his playing status, Jason Bohn can now focus on other things. Like winning for the first time in three years. Bohn shot a five-under 67 on Frid

MySportsbook.com : Fortune Favors Favorites in March Madness betting?

Just like Day 1 of the “Sweet 16”, Friday’s games are chock full of some of the nation’s elite.  Unlike Thursday’s games, there is a little bit more of a “Cinderella” feel as #7 seed UNLV and #6 seed Vanderbilt will attempt to move on to the Elite Eight.  With powerhouses Florida, UNC and Georgetown looking to continue their momentum against lesser known teams, it isn’t surprising that once again the “betting public” is backing most of the favorites.  As the early coin rolls in, 56% of Sportsbook.com bettors prefer Georgetown (-7.5) as they take on Vanderbilt; 84% of the early money is backing Oregon (-3) as they square off against UNLV; and a slight majority (52%) of the early cash is on Florida (-10.5) against Butler as the Gators continue their quest for another National Title. The only favorite the public don’t seem confident in is UNC, as 59% of the cash is backing the underdog Trojans (+8).

Midwest

#1 Florida vs. #5 Butler

The defending National Champs have been on a mission since last April.  Joakim Noah and Al Horford turned down millions of dollars for one reason, to REPEAT.  After a late season hiccup which saw them lose three out of four, the Gators have won six straight by an average of 20.3 points. More importantly, they covered in five of those six games.  Behind their stymie defense that yields only 56.9 PPG, Butler has been a very pleasant surprise this season.  As their 20-11 ATS record will indicate, “surprise teams” like Butler are often good bets for gamblers.  Playing in an average conference, Butler wasn’t and underdog too often but when they were, they covered (6-0 ATS).  Butler’s defense will have its hands full against a Gators offense which averages 80.1 PPG on an amazing 52.9% shooting from the field.  With Florida’s tournament experience over the last few years, it isn’t surprising that they are 5-1 ATS this season, 20-4 ATS over the last three seasons and 38-20 since 1997 in tournament action.

#3 Oregon vs. #7 UNLV

As a #7 seed, UNLV is the closest thing to a “Cinderella” we have this year.  If you bet on UNLV this season with any regularity, you most likely cashed in. Behind their guard oriented attack, the Rebels are an impressive 20-11 ATS this season.  As an underdog they covered in 8 out of their ten games which isn’t surprising since they are 52-30 ATS as a ‘dog since 1997. The Rebels have been a consistent cover during the month of March as well.  This March they are 6-0 ATS, 11-3 ATS over the last three seasons and 24-11 since 1997. Their impressive ATS trends don’t end there; versus teams with a winning record they are 15-6 ATS this season and 41-21 over the last three seasons.  Although Oregon hasn’t been as generous to gamblers as UNLV this season, they have been covering consistently as of late.  There is no question that they are playing their best ball of the season having won their last 8 straight up (SU) by an average of 14.5 points. Not surprising they covered in 7 of those games.  It is interesting to note how similar these teams are in regards to scoring and scoring defense. UNLV averages 75 PPG while giving up 66.5 PPG and Oregon scores 75.8 PPG while yielding 65.5 PPG.

East

#6 Vanderbilt vs. #2 Georgetown

“Hoya Paranoia” is officially back! After a decent start, Georgetown has rolled through the second half of the season.  Over their last 18 games, they are 17-1 SU.  They have definitely improved ATS as the season has progressed as well. After opening the season 1-4-1 ATS, the Hoyas have covered 78.3% of their games.  With their great interior play of Jeff Green and Roy Hibbert, the Hoyas as a team shoot 50.5% from the field.  Like the Georgetown teams from years ago, they also excel on defense.  Hoya opponents averaged only 56.8 PPG on 38.2% shooting from the field and an extremely low 30.4% from beyond the arc.  The last stat could be of some concern to Vanderbilt considering they shoot 37.7% from long-range.  Ranking second to last in the SEC in rebounding margin, Vanderbilt will have its work cut out for them against the Hoya trees. As far as covering is concerned, Vanderbilt has been almost a “sure thing” (7-1 ATS) versus good defensive teams that allow less than 64 PPG.

#1 UNC vs. # 5 USC

The Tar Heels are as talented and as deep as any team in the country.  Going ten deep and chock full of HS All-Americans, UNC averages 86.1 PPG and scored 100+ seven times.  Led by All-American forward, Tyler Hansbrough (18.6 PPG 7.9 RPG) UNC has a very balanced attack which can kill you on the inside as well as on the perimeter.  UNC only real concern is their youth as eight of their rotation players are either sophomores or freshmen.  UNC was a reliable cover this season going 20-13 ATS.  An intriguing covering trend for the Tar Heels in recent years has been how they fared after non-conference games.  This season they are 11-3 ATS after non-conference games and over the last three seasons they are 31-13 ATS.  USC is also a pretty deep team which is loaded with swingman types.  An match-up to keep an eye on will be freshman forward Taj Gibson (12.1 PPG, 8.6 RPG) as he squares off against the AA Hansbrough.  USC has been a covering machine this season achieving a 21-10 record ATS.  They have thrived in the underdog role, having covered 10 out of 12.  When playing a team with a winning record, the Trojans are an incredible 20-6 ATS. Keep in mind, USC dedicated their season to former star to Ryan Francis who passed away before the season so as they get closer to the ultimate goal, emotion could definitely be on their side.

With Friday -105 juice on Basketball betting, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on all of the “March Madness” action.  Don’t forget to monitor who the public is backing at this sportsbook “Betting Trends”.  By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.

To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards

About MySportsbook.com MySportsbook.com  is the largest sportsbook and casino on the planet, where millions of adult Americans bet on sports, play poker and enjoy blackjack and other casino games online in a regulated and licensed jurisdiction. Named the "Best US Sports Book" by the industry's top magazine, eGaming Review, MySportsbook.com has been leading the online gaming industry since 1996. Dwarfing its nearest competitors in the US, MySportsbook.com has been the first to achieve every significant industry milestone, from record turnover to active users to number of bets--achieving a peak of fifteen bets per second. As the US online gaming leader, the firm and it's products have been featured on CBS 60 Minutes, CNN, ESPN, Wall Street Journal, Barrons, Financial Times, USA Today and in every major newspaper in the US.