Levet gets fifth European Tour win

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05/03/2009 - Girona, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - France's Thomas Levet posted a four-under 68 on Sunday to get a two-stroke victory at the Spanish Open at the Stadium Course at PGA Golf Catalunya.

Levet finished at 18-under 270 for his fifth European Tour title. His last win came last year at the Open de Andalucia, but on Sunday, Levet hung through some tough times on the front nine to get the traditional treatment when a Frenchman wins on tour - a champagne bath.

But, as the bubbly was drenching him, Levet was thinking more of a national icon.

"When I won the tournament, I thought of Seve," said Levet of Spanish golf star Seve Ballesteros, who is battling brain cancer. "I dedicate it to you, Seve. He's having a hard time at the moment. He was one of my heroes as a kid."

Fabrizio Zanotti fired a seven-under 65 on Sunday to finish in second place at minus-16.

Last year's winner Peter Lawrie had a good showing in his title defense. He shot a three-under 69 and tied for third place with Thomas Bjorn, who carded a 66, at 14-under 274.

Levet began the final round with a two-shot lead, but that was erased quickly by his playing partner, Stuart Davis. The Englishman birdied his first two holes and Levet made bogey at No. 2 and that gave Davis a one-shot edge.

Both players birdied three, then Levet bogeyed the fourth to fall two back. He reclaimed a share of first when Davis landed in the water en route to a double-bogey at the fifth.

Levet didn't stayed tied in the lead for long. He rolled in an 18-foot birdie putt at six, a tap-in birdie at seven and a 25-footer for birdie at No. 8 to quickly grab a three-stroke cushion.

Zanotti closed the gap to two, but never got closer until later in the round. Levet reached the par-five 12th green in two, but hit a terrible eagle putt that left him with almost six feet for birdie. Levet stepped up and drained the birdie effort to get his three-stroke advantage back.

Zanotti got within two again after a seven-foot birdie putt at 13, but dropped a stroke with a bogey at 14. Levet drove against a tree at the 14th and pitched out instead of attempting a full shot that surely would've snapped the club and maybe injured his arm. Levet hit his third to 18 feet and two-putted for a bogey.

In the group ahead, Zanotti two-putted for birdie at the par-five 15th and that shrunk the margin to a single shot. Levet once again left a long eagle try short at the 15th, but sank a six-footer for birdie to take a two-shot lead into the final three holes.

At the par-four 17th, Levet knocked his approach almost 20 feet from the flagstick. He ran home the birdie putt to take an almost insurmountable lead on to the final hole.

Just in front, Zanotti managed a birdie at 18 to make it a two-shot difference. Levet hit his second on to the putting surface and two-putted for the two-shot victory.

"As long as I made pars and birdies, I knew I wasn't going to be touched today," said Levet. "At the end, I was concentrating on putting the ball on the fairway. One mistake on 14, that's all I did on the back nine. I was very, very pleased."

Charl Schwartzel shot a three-under 69 and took fifth at minus-10, followed by Rafael Cabrera-Bello (68) and Marcel Siem (70), who tied for sixth at nine- under 279.

Gregory Bourdy (66), David Horsey (66) and Jose Manuel Lara (71) finished knotted in eighth at minus-eight.

Davis struggled badly after the double-bogey at five. He tallied six bogeys, a double-bogey and a birdie the rest of the way for a six-over 78 and a shared 15th place at six-under 282.

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FOOTBALL BETTING : Cassel Signs Contract

Kansas City, MO - Kansas City has not officially named Matt Cassel its starting quarterback, but there can be no doubt now.

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After praising his leadership and work ethic through spring workouts, the Chiefs announced Tuesday they had signed the 27-year-old Cassel to a multiyear contract. Terms were not disclosed, but he will almost certainly be one of the highest-paid members of the team.
"We are excited to be able to reach a long-term agreement for Matt Cassel to be a Kansas City Chief for many years to come," owner and board chairman Clark Hunt said in a statement. "His proven leadership on and off the field will be a tremendous asset to the organization."
Patriots made him their franchise player, meaning his salary for this season will be about $15 million.
New head coach Todd Haley, taking over for Herm Edwards after a 2-14 season, refused to name a starter at any position during offseason workouts. But it was obvious to everyone the team belonged to Cassel.
"I go out there each and every day with that focus that I'm the starter," Cassel said during a June minicamp. "Competition brings out the best in everybody."
The signing will come as welcome news to Cassel's new coaches and teammates. Amiable and hardworking, online football betting he appeared to win over everyone at minicamp.
"I think he's got some unique leadership qualities. I think his teammates like him and have respect for him. I think he's doing a pretty good job on the field, too," Haley said last month. "He's doing everything that I'm asking him, that our coaches are asking him to do. I don't have one single complaint how he's carrying himself."
After one workout, wide receiver Devard Darling declared Cassel "a breath of fresh air."
"He has a lot of swagger, a lot of confidence. It's good for us," said Darling. "We trust in him that he's going to go out there and lead us all the way."
nse to accommodate his specific abilities.
Trapped on the bench behind Heisman winners Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart at USC and then unable to unseat Super Bowl MVP Brady at New England, Cassel seemed destined to be a backup all his life. As Brady was helped off the field last September, Cassel seized the opportunity he'd been waiting for since high school.
In his only sustained action since his teens, he hit 349 of 555 passes for 3,949 yards at New England. He had 23 touchdown passes and 13 interceptions as the Patriots, who had gone unbeaten through the regular season the year before, finished 11-5 and out of the playoffs.
Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli, who had been Bill Belichick's assistant in New England, engineered the trade after the Patriots became convinced that Brady would recover fully from his knee operation.
"Since Matt arrived in Kansas City, he has embraced the team and the community," Pioli said. "His work ethic, his ability and competitive presence is what we expect from our players."

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MySportsbook.com: NFL draft - The NFC South


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

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