Wattel becomes second amateur winner in 2010 on Challenge Tour

Golf Betting Lines

09/05/2010 - La Wantzenau, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Amateur Romain Wattel closed with a five-under 67 Sunday to collect a three-stroke win at the Allianz Europen Strasbourg-Golf de la Wantzenau.

Wattel finished the event at 17-under-par 271. He was the second amateur winner on the European Challenge Tour in three weeks after following Andreas Harto into the winner's circle.

Harto and Wattle were the fourth and fifth amateur winners on the Challenge Tour.

Wattel had four birdies on the front nine at Golf de la Wantzenau, but didn't take the lead until Alvaro Velasco made double-bogey on the par-five 13th.

Wattel had dropped a shot on 12, but ran off three consecutive birdies from the 13th to move to 18-under. The Frenchman was four clear of the field, but stumbled to a bogey at the last to cut his winning margin to three.

Velasco closed with a 73 to share second place with Ryan Blaum (67), Steven Tiley (68) and Lorenzo Gagli (74).

Stuart Davis shot four-under 68 to end alone in sixth at 13-under-par 275.

Soccre Golf Betting News

<< Davies wins for third time in Austria
Wiener Neustadt, Austria (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Laura Davies carded a two-under 70 Sunday to earn a one-stroke win at the Uniqa Ladies Golf Open. Davies, who won this title for the third time, finished at 11-under-par 205. The victory was Davi

<< Orioles recall Tillman to make start
Baltimore, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Baltimore Orioles recalled pitcher Chris Tillman to start Sunday's game against the Tampa Bay Rays. Tillman last pitched in the majors on July 19, when he gave up eight runs in 2 2/3 innings to the Rays

<< King Felix goes for M's in series capper with Tribe
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Felix Hernandez will attempt to atone for a recent loss to the Cleveland Indians and help the Seattle Mariners earn a split of a four- game series with that above-mentioned opponent when the ace pitcher toes the rubber this a

<< Reds, Cards close big series in St. Louis
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It is starting to appear as if the Cincinnati Reds are headed towards their first National League Central title since 1995. Today, they try to put even more distance between themselves and the St. Louis Cardinals, as they

<< Happ goes for Astros in the desert
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Newly-minted Astro lefty J.A. Happ can make it five wins in seven decisions with Houston today when they visit Chase Field to close out a three-game weekend series with the Arizona Diamondbacks. Arizona won Friday's opener

In the FCS Huddle: Major upsets don't make the other games minor >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - There are no ifs, ands or buts about it, when a Football Championship Subdivision team upsets a major-conference team, it deserves to be in the spotlight as much as any other team across the nation. Think

A-Rod in Yankees' lineup >>
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez is in Sunday's lineup, batting fourth against the Toronto Blue Jays. Rodriguez, who last played on August 20 against Seattle, suffered a strained left calf that for

Clijsters breezes into quarterfinals in New York >>
Flushing Meadows, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Defending champion Kim Clijsters needed just 59 minutes to post a straight set victory over former World No. 1 Ana Ivanovic in fourth round action at the 2010 U.S. Open. Clijsters, the second

Rangers' Hamilton sidelined with bruised ribs >>
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Texas Rangers outfielder and AL MVP candidate Josh Hamilton will be sidelined for an undetermined period of time with a bruised left ribcage. Hamilton made a catch in centerfield near the wall in

2010 World Basketball Championship update - September 5th >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Slovenia 87, Australia 58 Turkey vs. France, 2 p.m.

SPORTS BETTING: NFL Football Sportsbook Betting

NFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.


That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal.

A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon."

It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed.

The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha.

So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games."

Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't. Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal.

Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.

Seriously.

The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.

The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.

Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."

The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts MasterCard needs.