HOME

NEWS

LIVE ODDS

SITEMAP

LINKS

CALENDAR

Bet PGA Usopen

April 2nd Golf news ... Bet PGA Usopen at betpgausopen.com

2010 U.S. Open Preview
2021-06-18

Ever since Tiger Woods’ legendary performance at the 1997 Masters, he has been the heavy favorite in every major in which he’s played. However, with Woods struggling to regain his customary dominant form since his November car accident and revelations of marital indiscretions, the tide has begun to turn in golf. For the 2010 U.S. Open, the title of favorite must be bestowed on his rival, Phil Mickelson.

Mickelson heads into Pebble Beach with a sense of urgency he has perhaps never felt. For him, there are numerous things on the line. First and foremost is the opportunity to win the title that has forever eluded him, often under painful circumstances. Mickelson has finished second a record five times at the U.S. Open and although he has never sealed the deal, says that he has historically played some of his best golf in his nation’s tournament. With his 40th birthday the Tuesday of U.S. Open week, he knows that his window of opportunity is closing, and golf betting is thinking the same.

A win at the U.S. Open would provide Mickelson with another career first: the number one ranking in the world. He is closer than ever to achieving this, with chances in his last three tournaments to mathematically supplant Woods, the world number one for a staggering 261 consecutive weeks.

Mickelson comes into Pebble Beach with significant momentum after his emotional win in The Masters in April, regarded by many onlookers as his finest performance ever. Although he has not won since, he has shown flashes of brilliance while striving to have his game peak for the U.S. Open. He was in position to win his first post-Masters tournament at Quail Hollow and it took the round of the year by Rory McIlroy to pass him. He made a charge in the third round at The Players Championship, showing his ability to go low at any time. His missed cut at Colonial proved to be a mere aberration as he followed it up with a solid tie for fifth place this past week at The Memorial, which would have been much better if not for some untimely missed putts. Despite the lack of wins, Mickelson provided himself with an infusion of confidence, happy with the state of his game while promising to sharpen his customary stellar putting in time for Pebble Beach.

This is a stark contrast to Woods, whose game is a great unknown right now, having only completed two tournaments since November and still showing significant rust from his lengthy layoff. In addition to the turbulence within his personal life, his swing coach recently quit, leaving only Woods himself to find the answers to a golf swing that looks nothing like the one responsible for his past dominance. Compounding problems is a neck injury that forced him to withdraw from The Players Championship last month. Although he completed all four rounds at this week’s Memorial, he stopped short of saying the neck was 100% recovered. This could prove to be problematic with the torque required to hit from the customary long rough of a U.S. Open, a place Woods may find himself frequently given his recent wayward driving. All of these factors reveal that winning a tournament of this caliber is a tall order for Woods, even after taking his pedigree into account.

Mickelson seems to have begun to thrive off Woods’ presence in tournaments. With Woods out of the game at the beginning of the year, the golf world expected Mickelson to seize control. Although he didn’t right away—in large part due to his wife’s ongoing battle with breast cancer—he asserted his presence at The Masters, Woods’ first tournament of the year. He was steady throughout and proved to be undaunted even by Woods’ furious attempts at a comeback. The intimidation factor once presented by Woods has certainly lost some of its edge on Mickelson.

There are many other factors working in Mickelson’s favor this year. He has had tremendous success at Pebble Beach, previously winning three times at the annual P.G.A. tour stop there. Already a fan favorite, he can expect to receive a significant boost from the fans as a California native himself. Many of the cheers that once would have gone to Woods will undoubtedly be directed Mickelson’s way.

One of Mickelson’s greatest golf attributes, his prodigious distance, will come in handy at Pebble Beach. Since Pebble isn’t one of the longer courses in the U.S. Open rotation, Mickelson can hit 2 iron or 3 wood off the tee and still have relatively short approach shots. He will be hitting these clubs as far as many players hit their driver while reducing the probability of hitting into the penal U.S. Open rough.

The U.S. Open always seems to come down to who can make the most putts. Mickelson made one clutch putt after another in April at The Masters and can feed off the memories and confidence from that unforgettable week. Expect to see him make a putt at the 72nd hole on Sunday to win the U.S. Open that has long eluded him.

Are you ready for some Golf betting? Head over to www.here today and get into the US Open golf betting action.                       

It is always fun to see siblings doing well in a certain sport. Tennis has Venus and Serena Williams. American football has Eli and Peyton Manning. Basketball has Cheryl and Reggie Miller. Boxing has seen its own share of two brothers who are both good at it. Wladimir and Vitali Klitschko and Juan Manuel and Rafael Marquez are two sets of brothers who are both world-class fighters. But does the boxing betting community think these two brothers are that good?

However, in some cases, the disparity between the talent of two siblings is like night and day. In the NBA, there’s Brooke and Robin Lopez. The two were drafted in the same year. Brooke already has an All-Star appearance tucked under his belt while the other is just a marginal player for a good team. Boxing also has examples of such. The most popular of course is Manny and Bobby Pacquiao. The other is the best fighter in the business while the other has a record of 29 wins, 15 losses, and five draws and has never even competed for a world title.

Another example is Ricky and Matthew Hatton. Ricky reached pretty good heights in his career. He was one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in his prime and he dominated the light welterweight division for a long period of time before getting knocked out cold by Manny Pacquiao. Matthew on the other hand is an okay welterweight fighter. He has compiled a record of 39 wins, four losses (only one by knockout), and a draw. He has always been in the background because his brother was a very good fighter. But now that Ricky’s career seems to be over, it may just be Matthew’s time to step into the spotlight, and the boxing betting world is watching.

Matthew Hatton will be fighting Yuri Nuzhnenko on July 10 at the Bolton Arena, in Bolton, Lancashire, United Kingdom for the European welterweight title. Hatton is coming of two wins, including the best win of his life which was a unanimous decision win over Gianluca Branco for the vacant European welterweight title. The other win was against Mikheil Khutsishvili whom he defeated via technical knockout. Before those two wins, Hatton had a draw against the highly-ranked Lovemore N’Dou, which was for the IBO welterweight title.

Nuzhnenko is largely unknown in the world boxing scene. Browsing through the names of the guys he has fought, one would find it hard to find a single one that would ring a bell. Most people would also find it hard to pronounce 80% of the names in his record as Nuzhnenko has fought most of his fights in Poland and Ukraine against fighters of Russian origin. Nuzhnenko has a record 30 wins, with a loss and a draw, 14 of his wins were by knockout. His record is definitely not bad but the quality of the opposition that he has faced is highly questionable.

Nuzhnenko’s biggest win came when he won the interim WBA welterweight title against Frederick Klose. Other than Klose, the only other familiar name in his résumé is Vyacheslav Senchenko who is currently the WBA welterweight champion. Nuzhnenko lost to Senchenko on April 10, 2009. Senchenko went on to be declared the welterweight champion of the WBA when the organization stripped Shane Mosley of the title he held due to his horrible loss at the hands of Floyd Mayweather.

Although Hatton is more well-known compared to Nuzhnenko, the Ukrainian has a real shot at winning the European welterweight title because he is the far better athlete among the two. A win is important for both guys because the European title could be their bargaining chip for a shot at a world title someday.

Get into the boxing betting action today at www.here where everybody bets.

Looking for two players to place atop the list of favorites for next week’s U.S Open? Look no further than the top two finishers at the season’s first major, The Masters. Although Phil Mickelson prevailed in that event and must be considered the overall favorite, don’t be surprised to see Lee Westwood holding the trophy come Sunday, and Golf betting is watching.

Amidst all the attention given to golf’s two preeminent superstars, Mickelson and Tiger Woods, the truth is that Westwood has been the most consistent player in the world of late, especially in the big events. He has been knocking on the door in majors for years now, finishing in the top three in four of the last eight majors contested, twice finishing one shot out of a playoff—at the 2008 U.S. Open and 2009 British Open. The U.S. Open performance was especially sensational given that he was playing in the final group with Tiger Woods and had to contend with the external frenzy that accompanied his improbable victory on one healthy leg. He also played in the final group with Mickelson at this year’s Masters and had a respectable final round amidst all the pro-Mickelson sentiments. Westwood’s ability to focus on his own game and stay in contention on Sunday shows that he will not be moved by the pressure inherent of the U.S. Open, often described as the most mentally taxing of the four majors. Given the difficulty of the course setups, mistakes are bound to happen. Westwood’s steely resolve allows him to mentally recover from mistakes and not compound them, which as all keen people in golf betting know is his weakness.

Westwood is also a proven winner, having won 31 times around the world, including 20 on the esteemed European Tour, which should silence any concerns about his ability to close a tournament. He has shown the ability to sustain this consistency throughout the course of an entire season, winning the vaunted European Tour Order of Merit in both 2000 and 2009. He is habitually in contention and the fact that he hasn’t broken through yet in a major is nothing more than a testament to how difficult they are to win. As stated before, his overall consistency lends credence to the belief that one of the big ones will eventually go his way. After all, it’s not uncommon for it to take longer than expected for a player to break through. It’s easy to forget that for a long time, there were similar fears about Mickelson. His numerous close-calls had many in the media wondering if his day would ever come. Not only has he broken through, he now has four majors to his credit. Thus, Westwood’s previous habit of coming up just short shouldn’t be a negative in handicapping his chances at the U.S. Open. As we have seen, if a player continually puts himself in a position to win, it should be expected that the day will come when everything goes right and they break through.

The aforementioned consistency possessed by Westwood doesn’t merely apply to majors of the past but also to his play thus far this year and current form. A pillar of consistency, he already has seven top-10 finishes in tournaments this year. His last tournament on American soil, The Players Championship, proved that he was not suffering from any Masters hangover. He led the so-called “fifth major” through 54 holes and wound up with a tie for fourth place. He is playing in this week’s PGA Tour event in Memphis so don’t expect any rust come next week.

Westwood can also draw positive memories from the 2000 U.S. Open, the last time it was held at Pebble Beach. Although he didn’t win, he tied for fifth, his highest finish to that point. His game is a very good fit for Pebble Beach, where a premium is placed on ballstriking, one of Westwood’s strengths. His combination of distance and accuracy promises to serve him well.

It can be argued that Westwood is the safest pick. Whereas some of the other elite players can be erratic, the world’s third-ranked player is the picture of consistency. Players often say before majors that their only goal is to have a chance going into the final round. Westwood’s track record has shown that he will very likely have a chance going into Sunday at Pebble. The only question is whether or not he will win.

Are you ready for some Golf betting action? Head over to www.here now and place your US open bet today!

Although many would argue that the Masters and U.S. Open are the two greatest golf events in the world and have tremendous history, which is about where the similarities end.

The Masters has always been marked by an elitist, private attitude. The idea that The Masters is able to do whatever it wants stems from Augusta National’s origins as an exclusive private club for wealthy businessmen. Perhaps the most prominent example of this is the all-male membership, something that has become increasingly controversial over the years and threatened to overshadow the 2003 tournament amidst protests. The club’s exclusivity extends to the tournament itself, which has the most demanding qualification requirements of any tournament in the world. While most tournaments have 144 players in the field, The Masters is always under 100, with no open qualifying.

This is in stark contrast to the U.S. Open, which truly lives up to its title of “open”. Anyone can attempt to qualify provided they have a handicap index of 1.4 or less. This has repeatedly led to unknowns making their mark in America’s tournament, at least temporarily. Since the USGA leaves a lot of slots open to these qualifiers, a high premium is placed on them; the requirements for automatically qualifying are similar to those of the Masters. Thus, many highly accomplished touring pros must go through the same process as everyone else. Numerous winners, including Lucas Glover last year, have had to go this route.

The public/private dichotomy extends to the courses as well. Part of The Masters mystique is that it is played on the same course every year and every golf fan gains a more intimate knowledge of it with each passing year. Nevertheless, it is a private enclave and the vast majority of people will never get to play it for themselves, if they even get to attend the tournament at all. The Masters is considered by many to be “the toughest ticket in sports,” and Augusta National has tight rein over who receives tickets. On the other hand, the U.S. Open venue changes by the year and is determined by the USGA, which has made a concerted effort in recent years to bring the event to public courses to make it more relatable. The 2002 U.S. Open at Bethpage Black was a watershed event in this regard as it was the first time America’s championship was held on a truly municipal golf course, as opposed to a private or resort course. The Open’s presence at Torrey Pines in 2008 and return to Bethpage Black in 2009 reaffirmed this promise, which has proven to be very popular. The USGA also provides many more tickets than Augusta National and the prices are much more affordable, much to the joy of golf fans and golf betting alike.

There are many differences in the way the tournaments are played as well. Augusta National is a long course with very little rough so the long-hitters are considered to be at a distinct advantage. It’s a classic risk-reward golf course that is set up for making birdies but also potential disasters as well. Although par is considered a good score in The Masters, the winner needs to make birdies and usually winds up being double digits under par. Although the US Open changes venues, the USGA has a pretty consistent setup each year. U.S. Open courses are marked by long rough and very fast greens. Like The Masters, it requires stellar putting to win. However, accuracy off the tee is an absolute premium as there is very little margin for error. Since players are bound to make mistakes, par is generally a very good score. It is not uncommon for the winning score to be around even par. Since the Open can be such a grind, it requires players who have superb mental capabilities and can recover from making a mistake which golf betting loves.

One aspect that makes the Masters superior is the universal symbolism of the Green Jacket. It is the most hallowed award in sports and just another part of the rich Augusta National lore. The U.S. Open winner receives a trophy that hasn’t attained such prestige. There is no real name for it and in an odd tradition; the winner has to get it engraved themselves. Nevertheless, this doesn’t put a damper on America’s championship. Whoever holds the trophy aloft this year will know they have just completed the most exacting test in golf.

Where do you do your golf betting? Get over to www.here the home of PGA Golf betting.