07/04/2009 - Sylvania, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Korea's Eunjung Yi fired a 10-under 61 and took the third-round lead Saturday at the Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic.
Yi holed out from the fairway for an eagle at No. 10 and collected eight birdies in a flawless round, carding her best score on tour by five shots.
The 21-year-old Korean moved to 18-under 195 and will carry a four-shot lead over Song-Hee Kim (64) and Morgan Pressel (67) into the final round.
Amazingly, Yi's 61 was not a course record on the par-71 Highland Meadows layout. Paula Creamer, who withdrew on Thursday, fired a 60 in the first round last year on the way to winning the tournament.
Annika Sorenstam has the only 59 in LPGA Tour history, a mark Yi could have matched if she holed her final approach shot Saturday into the 18th green for eagle.
Instead, Yi knocked it to four feet. She missed the birdie putt -- it curled around the left side of the cup -- and a chance to tie Creamer's mark of 60.
MORE TO FOLLOW.
<< Mike Smith back on Mine That Bird
Louisville, KY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Eclipse Award winning jockey Mike Smith has
regained the mount on Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird. Smith has a two-
race commitment to ride the gelding starting with the West Virginia Derby on
Saturda
<< Callaspo and KC snap ChiSox winning streak
Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alberto Callaspo went 2-for-3 and hit the
go-ahead two-run single in the sixth inning, as the Kansas City Royals came
back to top the White Sox, 6-4, and snap Chicago's seven-game win streak.
Callaspo
<< Woodward's ninth-inning hit sends M's past Sox
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chris Woodward knocked in the deciding run in
the ninth inning as Seattle clipped Boston, 3-2, in the middle
contest of three at Fenway Park.
Russell Branyan added a pair of RBI for the M
<< Owings homers, pitches Reds over Cardinals
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Micah Owings tossed 6 2/3 strong innings
and hit his third home run of the year, lifting Cincinnati to a 5-2 victory
against St. Louis in the second of three games between these NL Central
rivals.
Nationals recall Bergmann; designate Colome for assignment >>
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Washington Nationals recalled
right-hander Jason Bergmann from Triple-A Syracuse and designated reliever
Jesus Colome for assignment following Saturday's 5-3 win over the Braves.
Bergmann
Briscoe takes Watkins Glen pole for second straight year >>
Watkins Glen, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan Briscoe won the pole at Watkins Glen
International for the second year in a row after dominating Saturday's
qualifying for the Camping World GP at the Glen.
Briscoe posted a new track reco
Woods, Kim share AT&T National lead >>
Bethesda, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tiger Woods managed just an even-par 70
Saturday and will head into the final round at the AT&T National tied for the
lead with Anthony Kim.
Kim, the defending champion, shot a two-under 68 in the third ro
Posada's RBI single in 12th helps Yanks down Jays >>
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jorge Posada's single in the bottom of the 12th
inning lifted the New York Yankees to a 6-5 win over Toronto in the second of
a four-game set from Yankee Stadium.
Posada also hit a homer and finished with two
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.
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