05/11/2008 - Williamsburg, VA (Golf Betting) - After a year filled with injury, Annika Sorenstam proved she is back to her old form on Sunday.
Sorenstam fired a five-under 66 to cruise to a seven-shot win at the Michelob Ultra Open at Kingsmill. She ended her third win of 2008 at 19-under-par 265.
"It was a very special one. I love coming here, I think it's a great golf course. I just haven't done well here in the past," said Sorenstam, who picked up $330,000 for the win. "It means a lot to play well here. They've had great winners here in the past and I wanted to do something special this week."
Her total of 265 smashed the old scoring record of 270 that Karrie Webb set in 2006. With her third win this year, she is one of just four winners on tour through 11 events this year.
"I feel great. This season has started very, very well," Sorenstam stated. "It's nice to be back and playing some good golf and feel like I can control the golf ball again. I'm enjoying it very much."
The victory was No. 72 on the LPGA Tour for Sorenstam and she moves within 10 off Mickey Wright and is 16 behind all-time leader Kathy Whitworth.
Former Women's British Open champion Jeong Jang was two back at the turn, but could not keep up down the stretch as she closed with a one-under 70.
Jang tripped to a bogey at the last to drop into a share of second at 12- under-par 272. She ended alongside Allison Fouch (64), Christina Kim (69) and Karen Stupples (66).
Katherine Hull also closed with a 64 to end alone in sixth at 11-under-par 273. Her round included a rare double-eagle at the par-five seventh.
Sorenstam will move closer to world No. 1 Lorena Ochoa in the rankings, but didn't have to worry about Ochoa on Sunday. Ochoa could only manage a one- under 70 in the final round to finish tied for 12th at minus-seven.
"I was a little frustrated. It was a long week," said Ochoa. "I had trouble with the speed of the greens and they also broke more than I thought. It's time to move on to the next one because it wasn't my week."
The duo has combined for 44 wins on the LPGA Tour since this event in 2004. With the win, Sorenstam matched Ochoa with 22 titles apiece in that span.
Sorenstam dropped a shot on the second, but rebounded with a two-putt birdie on the par-five third. She rolled in a seven-footer for birdie on the sixth to move to 15-under.
Jang chipped in for birdie on the ninth to make the turn two behind Sorenstam, but the Swede pulled away on the back nine of the River Course at Kingsmill Resort & Spa.
Sorenstam birdied the 10th from about eight feet to regain a three-stroke lead. She ran off three straight birdies from the 13th, all from inside nine feet, to climb to 19-under.
At the par-three 17th, Sorenstam's tee shot got a perfect bounce off a hill left of the green. Her ball rolled to two feet and she kicked that in for birdie. She three-putted for bogey at the last, but it was only her third bogey of the week.
"I was very pleased," said Sorenstam. "This is a tough golf course in these conditions and J.J. (Jang) was playing well. I felt like I had to do something and I felt very comfortable over the ball. Here on the back nine I said 'let's just play some golf and see what happens.' It was fun."
Jang got to 13-under with her birdies on five and nine, but she did nothing on the back nine. Jang parred the first eight holes around the turn, before dropping a shot at the last.
Fouch birdied five of the first seven holes to fly up the leaderboard. However, she only managed two birdies over the final 11 holes to end at 12- under.
Kim posted four birdies and two bogeys in her round of 69.
Stupples, who won the 2004 Women's British Open, birdied the third and fifth before dropping a shot on six. She bounced back with an eagle on seven.
Around the turn, Stupples tripped to another bogey on the 10th. She ran off three birdies in a four-hole span from the 14th to grab a share of second.
Sophie Gustafson (66) and Candie Kung (68) tied for seventh at 10-under 274.
<< Beltran, Mets blast Reds
Flushing, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Carlos Beltran hit a two-run home run and
an RBI double, and the New York Mets downed the Cincinnati Reds, 8-3, in the
rubber match at Shea Stadium.
Oliver Perez (3-3) went six innings, holding the Re
<< Rockies call up prospect Reynolds, option struggling Redman
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Colorado Rockies sent scuffling pitcher
Mark Redman to the minor leagues on Sunday, while calling up top prospect Greg
Reynolds to start their game against the San Diego Padres.
Reynolds went 1-2 with
<< Uggla slugs Marlins past Nats
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dan Uggla hit a pair of solo homers,
including the game-winner in the eighth inning, as the streaking Florida
Marlins rallied for a 5-4 win over the Washington Nationals, finishing off a
three-g
<< Latvia, Switzerland victorious at Worlds
Halifax, Nova Scotia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Herberts Vasiljevs tallied the go-
ahead goal late in the first period, as Latvia cruised to a 4-1 win over
Norway at the 2008 World Hockey Championships.
Lauris Darzins registered a goal a
KC's Bannister shuts down O's >>
Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brian Bannister was virtually
untouchable through eight innings as the Kansas City Royals avoided a four-
game sweep with a 4-0 victory over the Baltimore Orioles.
Bannister (4-4) took th
Twellman returns to lead New England over Chivas >>
Carson, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Taylor Twellman scored less than 15 minutes into
his season debut Sunday and the New England Revolution defeated Chivas USA 2-1
in Major League Soccer.
Twellman missed New England's first seven matches followi
Braun leads Brew Crew past Cards >>
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan Braun's fourth career multi-homer
game helped the Milwaukee Brewers to a 5-3 win over the St. Louis Cardinals in
the third of a four-game set at Miller Park.
Jeff Suppan (2-2) gave up one run
Crawford's HR carries Rays to sweep of Angels >>
St. Petersburg, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Carl Crawford blasted the go-ahead
three-run homer in the sixth inning, and the Tampa Bay Rays used 15 hits to
beat the Angels, 8-5, completing a three-game weekend sweep.
Crawford had three h
In part two of MySportsbook.com’s draft preview, we’ll take a look at a division that was extremely disappointing last season: the NFC South. Many “experts” predicted the Panthers to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, of course they could not even make the playoffs in an extremely weak NFC. The Saints definitely made up for the disappointing seasons of their NFC South brethren by exploding out of no where en route to the NFC Championship game. For the avid NFL gambler, it is imperative to pay attention to the NFL draft. Although free agency gets a ton of publicity, the successful franchises build their teams around the draft.
1. New Orleans Saints
Who would have thought this time last year that the Saints would be the favorites to win the NFC South for the 2007 campaign? New Orleans is loaded with firepower on the offensive side of the ball but with the exodus of Joe Horn they will most likely look to draft a WR on Day 1. Despite having the NFL’s 3rd ranked pass defense last season, the Saints will most likely upgrade their CB’s with one of their first two picks. Other possibilities for the Saints will be TE and DT. Because of where they will be selecting (27th), the Saints could go the “best available player” route which could net a LB.
Key additions: Eric Johnson TE, Troy Evans LB, David Patten WR
Key loses: Joe Horn WR,
Team needs: CB, WR, TE, LB, DT
Possible draftees: Aaron Ross CB Texas, Darrelle Revis CB Pitt, Ted Ginn Jr. WR OSU, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Chris Houston CB Arkansas, Greg Olsen TE Miami
2. Carolina Panthers
Carolina was one of the biggest disappointments in the NFL last season. With the signing of David Carr, expect the very first quarterback controversy to come out of Carolina if Jake Delhomme doesn’t rebound quickly from an average 2007 season. With veteran safety Mike Minter getting up there in age, they will look to draft a safety on Day 1 but probably not in the first round. LB is another need with the loss of Chris Draft to go along with Dan Morgan’s concussion problems. If TE Greg Olsen is still on the board, he might be too good to pass up despite their needs on the defensive side of the ball.
Key additions: David Carr QB
Key loses: Chris Draft LB
Team needs: LB, TE, S, OT
Possible draftees: Greg Olsen TE Miami, Patrick Willis LB Ole Miss, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Levi Brown OT PSU
3. Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons were another NFC South team to have a disappointing 2007 season. The Falcons have been plenty busy during the off season with plenty of players coming and going including a new head coach. The Falcons were able to improve their draft position with the trade of coveted backup QB Matt Schaub. High on the list of Day 1 needs will be a defensive end to replace Patrick Kerney and a hard hitting safety since Lawyer Milloy is nearing the end of his career. With an additional 2nd round pick, the Falcons could attempt to trade up to acquire local product WR Calvin Johnson.
Key additions: Joey Harrington QB, Toniu Fonoti OG, Joe Horn WR
Key loses: Justin Griffen RB, Patrick Kerney DE, Matt Lehr OG, Ashley Lelie WR, Matt Schaub QB
Team needs: DE, S, OT, WR, DT
Possible draftees: LaRon Landry S LSU, Amobi Okoye DT Louisville, Levi Brown OT PSU, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas, Alan Branch DT Michigan
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Age really caught up to the Bucs last season. The Bucs still have plenty of household names on defense in Ronde Barber, Simeon Rice and Derrick Brooks but the one thing those three have in common is unfortunately age. It is imperative for the Bucs to get much younger, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Despite having bigger needs on the defensive side of the ball, WR Calvin Johnson is the most likely pick if he is still available when the Bucs pick at the four spot. This would suit Bucs’ faithful just fine as Johnson is widely considered the top talent in the draft and it is a position of need for the Bucs.
Key additions: Jeff Garcia QB, Kevin Carter DE, Torrie Cox CB, Cato June LB
Key loses: Dewayne White DE, Sean Mahan OG
Team needs: WR, LB, DE, CB (Youth on defense!)
Possible draftees: Calvin Johnson WR Georgia Tech, Gains Adams DE Clemson, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas
It is never too early to start betting on the NFL. Log on to MySportsbook.com to checkout all of the NFL futures for the upcoming season. On the clock: the NFC North
Odds to win the NFC South:
New Orleans Saints 8-5
Carolina Panthers 2-1
Atlanta Falcons 12-5
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-2
Odds to win the NFC:
New Orleans Saints 13-2
Carolina Panthers 7-1
Atlanta Falcons 20-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25-1
Odds to win the Super Bowl:
New Orleans Saints 18-1
Carolina Panthers 20-1
Atlanta Falcons 50-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75-1
To visit this sportsbook get to MySportsbook.com for all your online sportsbook needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
Sports Betting News: Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting