Fowler ties 36-hole record, Woods improves at Memorial

Golf Betting Lines

06/04/2010 - Dublin, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rickie Fowler fired a six-under 66 and matched the 36-hole scoring record Friday at the Memorial Tournament.

Meanwhile, Tiger Woods secured his spot on the weekend after missing the cut his last time out.

Playing on Jack Nicklaus' Muirfield course for the first time this week, Fowler moved to 13-under 131 to tie the two-round Memorial scoring record set by Scott Hoch in 1987.

Fowler carded an eagle and four birdies on Friday to surge to a four-shot lead over Tim Petrovic, who also shot a 66, with Australian Jason Day (69) another stroke further back.

The second wave of players, including Phil Mickelson and Justin Rose, was on the course.

"Just being in contention the few times I have over the last eight months or so since I turned pro, this is by far the best that I've felt," said the 21- year-old Fowler. "Game feels good. Putter's working a bit. So we're having some fun."

Woods, the defending champion, scratched out a three-under 69 that included six birdies and three bogeys, moving safely under the projected cut line at three-under 141.

"It was decent today. I hit more good shots today than I did yesterday and really putted well today," said Woods, who opened with a 72 in the first round. "I had five lip-outs today, so it could have been a pretty good number."

It marked Woods' best round since he closed with a 69 in the Masters, his first start since the sex scandal and the only tournament he's finished all season.

In his last two starts, Woods missed the cut at the Quail Hollow Championship and withdrew during the final round of The Players Championship because of an injury that turned out to be an inflamed joint in his neck.

Now, he gets two more competitive rounds -- just his 12th and 13th of the year -- to prepare for his next tournament, the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach in two weeks.

"Usually most guys are at this point in January," said Woods. "Here we are in June, and I'm at the point which most guys are beginning of the year."

The four-time Memorial winner started on the back nine Friday and birdied three of his first five holes, including a 14-foot putt at the 13th. But Woods hit a greenside bunker and made his first bogey at the 18th, dropping eight shots behind Fowler.

Woods took another bogey at No. 3, then rebounded with three birdies in a row beginning at No. 5. Among them was a 170-yard approach shot to four feet at the sixth

Woods couldn't stay out of trouble, though, and he failed to get up-and-down from the rough at No. 9, closing with a bogey to fall 10 shots off the lead.

Of course, Woods wasn't the only one who struggled to keep pace with Fowler, who had every player in the field staring up at his 131 total.

"That's great playing out here," Woods said of the leader. "You know, we all know he's got the talent to [win]. It's just a matter of him doing it."

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Football Betting

NFL Football Betting Online

The San Francisco 49ers (5-11 SU, 5-10-1 ATS in 2007; 1-1 SU & ATS in pre-season) found some offensive life last week, and they will try to build some momentum on Thursday night as they travel to the Windy City to take on the Chicago Bears (7-9 SU & ATS in 2007; 0-2 SU, 0-1-1 ATS in pre-season) in an NFL matchup that is set to get underway at 8 PM ET at Soldier Field (natural turf) in Chicago.

Thursday, August 21

NFL betting odds: CHICAGO -3 (-120), Total 37

NOTABLE STAT: San Francisco was last in points, last in total offense in 2007
KEY NFL BETTING TREND: SF has lost its last seven SU on pre-season road

In the BetUS NFL pre-season football betting odds, the Bears are listed as a three-point favorite (laying -120), with the total posted at 37 points.

Here are some NFL football betting trends as they relate to this matchup (reflecting numbers going into the 2008 season):

* SF has lost 11 of its last 14 games SU
* SF has covered three of its last 11 games
* SF has lost six of its last seven road games SU
* SF has covered one of its last seven road games
* CHI has covered five of its last eight games
* CHI has played five of its last seven games OVER the total
* CHI has covered four of its last 13 home games
* SF has lost its last seven pre-season road games SU
* CHI has covered two of its last seven home pre-season games

Well, I guess we should congratulate the Bears on making their quarterback choice for the season's opening game, as they have designated Kyle Orton the starter against Indianapolis. The Bears obviously have lost patience with Rex Grossman, and what they do with him at this point is anybody's guess. But suffice it to say that there isn't a quarterback competition anymore, at least in training camp.

Meanwhile, the quarterback competition may also be settled in San Francisco, where the Niners bounced back from a lackluster 18-6 loss to the Raiders, in which they turned the ball over four times, to execute a 34-6 rout of the Packers last Saturday. However, coach Mike Nolan has stopped short of saying that, insisting that the job is still open. But J.T. O'Sullivan, the longshot of the trio of Niner signal-callers who opened camp, will start his third straight pre-season game here. Against Green Bay, O'Sullivan was only 8-for-17, and was intercepted, but he also threw for 9.1 yards an attempt, which included a 59-yard TD pass to Josh Morgan. The others struggled.

Some offensive cohesion is badly needed, in light of the Niners' dismal 2007 campaign, in which they were dead last in the NFL in scoring, with just 13.7 points a game. And O'Sullivan is the guy who is most familiar with offensive coordinator Mike Martz's exacting system, because he learned it last year in Detroit. O'Sullivan will go at least the entire first half and may even last longer. He'll be relieved by Alex Smith, with Shawn Hill doing the mop-up work. Three receivers who were out last week - Bryant Johnson, Ashley Lelie and Arnaz Battle - will miss this game too.

That may hurt a little here, especially since the Bears will be using a lot of their defensive starters. And it's the defense that has been keeping the Bears in games thus far. In fact, the defense and special teams were responsible for the first 19 points Chicago scored against Seattle last time out, as the offense really struggled with Grossman at the controls. But maybe the first-team offense has a chance to settle a little bit as it works more with Orton at the helm.

Certainly we have concerns about the Bears' offensive line, but we like the scenario for them here, especially if O'Sullivan doesn't make some bis plays. The Niners may have nowhere else to turn right now, and they have lost seven straight road games in the pre-season. Let's take Chicago, the three-point favorite in the NFL football betting odds.

CHICAGO -3 (-120) **
(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)

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