Monterey is more than Pebble Beach
Golf Betting Lines
06/21/2010 - Monterey, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Most golf nuts are always searching for that ultimate buddy trip. To play 12 rounds of golf in 5 days, visit the local establishments and enjoy the fruitful libation to the wee hours of the morning.
Myrtle Beach, Hilton Head, Bandon Dunes, even Whistling Straits come to mind for the golf junkie seeking such an excursion, but have you ever thought of the Monterey peninsula in California?
The golf enthusiast virtually has no shot at playing Pine Valley or Augusta National, but you can play Pebble Beach Golf Links.
Certainly the granddaddy of golf on the west coast, Pebble Beach has been ranked in the top-10 in the United States for as long as I can remember...and with good reason.
It has hosted five U.S. Opens, four U.S. Amateurs, a PGA Championship and a yearly PGA Tour event since 1947. The views are sensational along the Pacific Coast and when you can walk the fairways where the greats of the game strolled, why not? Yes, it will cost an arm and a leg - a round will cost you $495 - but you only live once.
However, Pebble Beach is just a small part of what the Monterey Peninsula has to offer.
The ultra-exclusive Cypress Point Club is for the most part out of the question, as you'll need to be hosted by a member. But how about Spyglass Hill Golf Course?
Opened for play in 1966, Spyglass Hill was designed by legendary architect Robert Trent Jones Sr. The holes are named after characters from the Robert Louis Stevenson novel, "Treasure Island." Your approach shot on the opening hole plays toward the ocean and doesn't leave the seaside until you head inland on the uphill sixth. A true masterpiece, and Jones' highest rated course in the U.S.
Poppy Hills Golf Course is another outstanding venue near the California coast. Carved inland through the forests of Monterey, Poppy Hills is rated 4 1/2 stars by Golf Digest's Places to Play. It features undulating greens that are guarded tightly by plenty of sand. The back-to-back, risk-reward par fives on holes nine and 10 are quite enticing. For years, the course was part of the AT&T Pro-Am rotation, and its current course conditioning is as good as it gets.
Often overlooked is The Links at Spanish Bay. The trio of Robert Trent Jones Jr., Tom Watson and former USGA president Sandy Tatum put their talents together to create a Scottish-style layout along the coast. Rated as one of the top-25 courses in the state, Spanish Bay is very reminiscent of the wonderful layouts across the pond.
Monterey Peninsula Country Club boasts a pair of wonderful courses, the Shore Course, which was added to the Pro-Am rota in 2010, and the Dunes layout. Both courses boast a celebrated history, as the Dunes was designed by C.B. Macdonald and Seth Raynor in 1925 and the Shore venue was crafted by Pebble Beach co-designer Jack Neville and Robert Baldock, and then redesigned by the late Mike Strantz. It's no wonder that the Shore Course is rated in the top-10 in California.
Designed in 1932, Pacific Grove Golf Club is another gem along the Pacific Coast. Neville and H. Chandler Egan had their hands in this layout that traverses through the trees for nine holes and then along the sand dunes by the coast. Just drop a zero off the cost at Pebble Beach, and Pacific Grove might be the best ticket in town.
Just a few minutes north of the peninsula are two courses that some consider the best 36 holes in the Monterey region, the Bayonet and Black Horse layouts at Fort Ord. Named after the Army's 7th Infantry, the Bayonet stretches over 7,100 yards and features tree-lined fairways. The Black Horse course honors the 11th Cavalry Regiment that was stationed here for over 20 years. The championship tees now possess a slope of 141 and a rating of 73.7, with views of Monterey Bay.
Golf is just a smidgen of what the Monterey region has to offer. First and foremost is the quaint town of Carmel, with its beautiful bed and breakfasts that line the streets and the plentiful shops and restaurants. An artist's haven, Carmel-by-the-Sea boasts some of the most charming galleries on the west coast.
A must attraction is the Monterey Bay Aquarium, located in Pacific Grove. From Pink Flamingos to Seahorses, Penguins and Otters, not to mention the giant Pacific Octopus, the Aquarium is a great way to learn about our ocean friends.
A favorite activity of all visitors is the majestic ride through 17-Mile Drive. This scenic road traverses through some of the most beautiful golf courses in the country, Cypress Point and Pebble Beach among them, as you hug the coastline. The lone Cypress, a symbol of California and the Pebble Beach Company, stands tall as one of the most inspiring spots on the coast.
So boys (and girls), if you're tired of the same old, same old, then it's time for a trip to the west coast and some of the best golf on the planet. Sure, Pebble Beach receives all of the accolades, but the Monterey Peninsula is a golfer's dream.
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FOOTBALL BETTING : Crabtree's base deal: six years, $32 million
In the wake of the news that the 49ers have signed receiver Michael Crabtree after an extended holdout, there has been not a hint of the dollars to be paid to Crabtree.
And since this means that his agent hasn't leaked the numbers, it means that his agent feels no specific motivation to do so.
Possibly because his agent isn't all that thrilled to have his name on the deal.
So the numbers will come from sources other than Crabtree's agent. And we've gotten our mitts into them.
Per a league source, Crabtree has signed a six-year, $32 million contract. (The total includes guaranteed money, base salaries, and the one-time incentive based on achieving minimum playing time.)
The deal also includes $17 million in guaranteed money.
As reported elsewhere, the deal can void to five years based on performance triggers, wiping out a final year base salary of $4 million. But they won't be easily reached.
The source tells us that, in his first four seasons (including 2009), Crabtree must either qualify for two Pro Bowls, or he must qualify for one Pro Bowl in one year and he must participate in 80 percent of the offensive snaps in a separate year in which the team makes the playoffs.
In other words, if in 2010 he qualifies for the Pro Bowl and the team makes the playoffs and he participates in 80 percent of the snaps, he'll still need to make it to the Pro Bowl or achieve the 80-percent/playoffs in another season.
Since the chances of Crabtree making the Pro Bowl or participating in 80 percent of the offensive snaps this year is roughly zero percent, he'll have three years to get it done.
And it won't be easy. Frankly, he'll be hard pressed to make it to one Pro Bowl in three years with the likes of Larry Fitzgerald, Calvin Johnson, Anquan Boldin, Steve Smith, the other Steve Smith, Hakeem Nicks, DeSean Jackson, Johnny Knox, Percy Harvin, Greg Jennings, Roddy White, T.J. Houshmandzadeh in the same conference for sportsbook betting.
So, by all appearances, it's a six-year deal. And at $17 million in guaranteed money, the per-year guarantee is a tepid $2.83 million per year.
There's another problem with the deal -- it has no mid-tier incentive package. Instead, the additional $8 million that Crabtree can earn (pushing the max value to six years, $40 million) requires the kind of unrealistic, mega-star performances that no rookie is likely to ever achieve.
So while the contract paid to Packers defensive tackle B.J. Raji covers five years and pays $22.5 million, he has the ability (if he's a solid player) to make up the difference between his base deal and Crabtree's five-year, $28 million haul via the mid-tier incentive package in Raji's deal.
And unless Crabtree meets the performance thresholds necessary to void the sixth year, he'll be stuck under contract for another year at a base salary of only $4 million.
There's one other area of concern with the deal. Crabtree, per the source, received no option bonus. Instead, he has significant money tied to a fairly new device known as a "discretionary salary advance," which unlike an opition bonus is subject to forfeiture if Crabtree decides in a year or two that he wants to hold out for a better deal. (We're also told that the 49ers have included language that would make certain escalators subject to forfeiture, too.)
Meanwhile, the deal falls well short of the mark for which Crabtree and agent Eugene Parker were aiming -- the five-year, $38.25 million contract paid by the Raiders to receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey, the seventh overall pick in the draft.
Even if Crabtree successfully voids the final year, he'll make more than $2 million per year less on average than Heyward-Bey.
Thus, as we explained earlier in the day, this is a deal that Crabtree could have done in July, which would have given him a much better chance of making a contribution to the 49ers during his rookie year.
So while the final outcome can be described as win-win, the broader view suggests that it's really a lose-lose situation.
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Mens NCAA Basketball Tournament odds
As of February 9, MySportsbook.com has released its coveted 2007 Mens NCAA Basketball Tournament betting odds. “March Madness betting ” only a month away, the top ranked Florida Gators are favorite at 7-2 to win it all. The defending champs have not disappointed at all this season and currently have a 22-2 record and are undefeated (9-0) in SEC play. The Gators’ thrive off of their extremely balanced, experienced and versatile attack. All five starters started in last seasons National Championship game. What is most impressive with this group is their balance; the five starters all average between 10.7 and 13.6 PPG. The Gators have been on an absolute roll having won 15 straight by an average of 16.4 PPG.
Right behind the Gators are the 5th ranked UNC Tar Heels at 9-2. The Heels (21-3, 7-2) are absolutely loaded with top notch talent and are as deep as any team in the country. A concern for the Tar Heels might be inexperience. Of their top four scorers/ minute earners, three are freshmen and the other is a sophomore. The rest of the regular season, the Tar Heels play only one team that is currently ranked (Duke). Their remaining opponents do combine for an impressive 107-58 record though.
Other teams that the MySportsbook.com members seem to believe will win it all include the west coasts’ top team #2 UCLA (6-1), #3 OSU behind man-child Greg Oden (8-1), and #4 Wisconsin (10-1) behind their defense which has given up 70+ points only three times all season.
Below is a list of some of the favorites to win the 2007 Men’s NCAA Basketball Championship lines. For the full list of teams and March Madness odds be sure to log onto MySportsbook.com. If you want to use your credit card to bet on college hoops or any other event, MySportsbook.com has the highest credit card acceptance rate in the industry.
Arizona 20-1
Butler 20-1
Duke 30-1
Florida 7-2
Georgetown 30-1
Indiana 35-1
Kansas 15-1
Marquette 25-1
Maryland 40-1
Memphis 50-1
Nevada 50-1
UNC 9-2
OSU 8-1
Oregon 30-1
Pittsburgh 15-1
Texas 30-1
Texas A&M 18-1
UCLA 6-1
Wisconsin 10-1
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