Echenique in front in France

Golf Betting Lines

07/03/2009 - Paris, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rafa Echenique was in the news last week for his amazing double-eagle on the 72nd hole of the BMW International Open that almost snatched him the trophy.

On Friday, he made the news for a different reason.

Echenique posted a four-under 67 to take the second-round lead of the Open de France. He finished 36 holes at 10-under 132 and is two clear at Le Golf National.

Overnight leader Martin Kaymer struggled to a one-over 72 on Friday and fell into a tie for second place. Charl Schwartzel (66) and Steve Webster (65) joined Kaymer at eight-under 134.

Richard Green (67) and Peter Hanson (70) share fifth place at seven-under 135.

Echenique, an Argentine, began the second round three shots off Kaymer's lead.

He started poorly on Friday with a bogey at the first. Echenique reclaimed the lost stroke with a birdie at No. 2 and moved to eight-under for the championship with an eagle at the par-five third.

At the par-four sixth, Echenique sank an eight-foot birdie putt to get to minus-nine. He tied for the lead with a 10-footer for birdie at No. 9, then found himself alone atop the leaderboard when Kaymer began to struggle on the back nine.

Echenique missed an eight-foot par save at the 12th, a hole he birdied in Thursday's first round. That momentarily dropped him into a tie for first, but thanks to more Kaymer mistakes and more strong play from Echenique, the leader grabbed sole possession of the lead.

Echenique rolled in a six-foot birdie putt at the 13th for his second birdie in as many days at that hole. Kaymer bogeyed the last and Echenique converted a nine-foot birdie putt at 17 to grab a three-stroke advantage.

The Argentine found some trouble at the last and made bogey. Echenique will take a two-shot lead into the third round in his quest for his first European Tour victory. He has two Challenge Tour titles, but has yet to break through in the major leagues, although with that double-eagle last Sunday, he came close.

Lee Westwood (68) and Paul Waring (70) are tied for seventh place at minus- six.

Seve Benson (67), Francesco Molinari (70) and Scott Strange (72) are knotted in ninth place at five-under 137.

Defending champion Pablo Larrazabal struggled to a two-over 73 and fell into a tie for 18th at minus-two.

The 36-hole cut fell at one-over 143 and Masters champion Angel Cabrera (145) and last year's British Open winner and PGA Champion Padraig Harrington (147) missed the weekend.

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How did changes to college football betting rules affect bettors?

The 2007 college football rules changes that were implemented to shorten games are now history. The NCAA rules committee did what they set out to do; games were cut by an average of 14 minutes per game last season. There were also, on average, 14 fewer plays per game. We’ll get into how that did (or didn’t) affect games in regards to the pointspread a bit later.

While the NCAA rules committee may have had the betterment of the game in mind, they'll now “turn back the clock” for next season. Two key rules have now been overturned by the NCAA committee for the 2007 season, something definitely for the better.

For those of you who may not remember what those rules actually were, let us refresh your memory.

1) The first one was actually starting the clock on a kickoff as soon as the kicker touched the ball rather than waiting until the returner touched it. The problem here was near the end of the half (or game), if the team leading was kicking off, they could milk the clock by intentionally running offsides and then re-kicking. They could run 10-15 seconds off the clock each play while taking just five-yard penalties each time. They could run the clock down and simply cause the half (or game) to end on a kickoff, keeping the opposing offense off the field. In 2007, the clock will now start when the returner touches the ball as it had before last season.

2) The second rule dealt with starting the clock after a change of possession rather than waiting until the ball was snapped. This took a lot of time off the clock throughout the game as teams changed possession, however it caused the most problems late in games (or halves). Rather than huddling up and calling a play, the offensive team would have to rush onto the field as the clock started. This was a definite disadvantage to a team that was trying to come from behind late in the game. This year the clock will start on a change of possession, after the ball is snapped.

How did those rules affect the college game last year and will it make a difference this year when it comes to the pointspread? We commonly heard two theories when it came to these changes. First, it would affect scoring negatively. Second, it would hurt favorites as they would have less time and fewer plays to cover the number.

Did the rules hurt scoring? Yes. It seemed obvious that shortening the game by what amounted to 14 plays would push scoring downward. That was the case last year. Of the 119 Division 1A teams, 69 squads scored fewer points in 2007 than they did in 2005. Just 48 teams had a higher PPG scoring average and two stayed the same. Almost 59 percent of the teams in college football last year had a lower PPG average than they did in 2005. Expect more scoring in 2007 as we revert back to the old rules.

Did the rules hinder favorites from covering the number in 2007? Not really. Last year the favorites posted an overall spread record of 336-350-16 (48.9 percent). The year before, favorites were 316-326-13 (49.2 percent). In 2004, the favorites were 316-339-2 (48.2 percent). In fact, college football favorites have been above 50 percent for the season just once in the last seven years (in 2003). Last year’s numbers fell right in line with where they have been historically.

How about big favorites? The rules must have hurt them? Maybe a little bit. Double-digit favorites last year came in at a 47.8 percent clip compare with an average of just over 50 percent over the last seven years. Since 1980, favorites of -10 or more have covered at exactly a 50 percent clip (measured over 6,716 games).

Even bigger favorites must have struggled? Not really. In fact, it was just the opposite. Favorites of three TD’s or more were 59-54-2 last year (52.2 percent). Since 2000, those same favorites (-21 or higher) hit at 51.3 percent and since 1990 came in a clip of 50.3 percent. Stepping it up a notch to four TD favorites or higher, we actually see they've covered at a much better rate last season than before. Last year, favorites of -28 or more were 31-21-1, or almost 60 percent. Historically, four-TD-or-higher favorites have come in at a 50.7 percent spot since 2000 and only 48.9 percent since 1990. The “perceived” problem with the favorites covering at a reduced rate really never came to fruition.

Bottom line is, there might be some more scoring in 2007, but no real revelations when it comes to finding any pointspread golden nuggets.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on college football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.