Cabrera leads U.S. Open; Mickelson cut

Golf Betting Lines

06/16/2007 - Oakmont, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Angel Cabrera stuck his final approach shot within inches and made birdie, knocking 19 players out of the U.S. Open by himself.

Oakmont took care of the rest.

Cabrera shot a one-over 71 Friday to take the lead in what was shaping up to be one of the most difficult U.S. Opens ever, finishing his second round with a birdie on Oakmont's ninth hole to get to even-par 140 overall.

The low 60 scores and ties make the cut, as well as anyone within 10 shots of the lead. Cabrera's closing birdie meant all the players at 11-over par missed the weekend.

Phil Mickelson, at 11-over exactly, was among them.

"Carnage," he called the round after shooting a 77.

Bubba Watson had a one-over 71 and was alone in second place at one-over 141. Stephen Ames was one of just two players to shoot under par Friday, carding a one-under 69 to join Aaron Baddeley (70), Justin Rose (71) and Niclas Fasth (71) in third place at two-over 142.

If Oakmont showed its teeth Thursday, it was downright scowling Friday.

Paul Casey hit 13 of 14 fairways and shot a four-under 66 in a morning tee time for the best round of the day -- one of the best rounds of his career, the Englishman said.

But it wasn't an accurate forecast of things to come.

By 5:33 p.m. local time, when Cabrera made a five-foot bogey putt at his 12th hole, there were no players left under par. Cabrera bogeyed his 14th hole at 6:10 p.m., then got back to even-par with his closing birdie at 7:13 p.m.

So, for 63 minutes near the end of the round no one was even playing Oakmont to a push.

The scoring average soared to nearly 77.

"I'll venture to guess that 99 percent of the members can't play this golf course very well or finish in severe conditions," said world No. 3 Jim Furyk, who safely made the cut.

"But they're proud of that fact and that's what this place is about."

Tiger Woods wasn't proud of his round, but a four-over 74 was enough to keep him safe from repeating his missed cut at Winged Foot last year. He was at five-over 145 and tied for 13th place.

"You just really had to keep your patience," Woods said. "The way I hit the golf ball, I could have easily shot myself out of the tournament. But I was able to hang in there."

Cabrera was the first-round leader at the 2004 U.S. Open at Shinnecock, his only other overnight lead at a major championship.

"This tournament really motivates you," Cabrera, an Argentine, said through a translator in a TV interview after his round. "You play with a lot of intensity out there."

Watson's posted a career-best finish at the Houston Open in April, where he was runner-up. His length helped him Friday in places like the 313-yard 17th, a par four where he almost reached the green with his tee shot.

He chipped within three feet there for his last birdie, but wasn't expecting Oakmont to get any easier Saturday -- especially with the added pressure of playing in the final group.

"It's going to be just as hard as it was today," said Watson, who missed the cut in his only other U.S. Open in 2004.

While no one avoided the "How hard was it?" question Friday, Mickelson had one of the funniest answers -- especially from someone who played the tough four- hole stretch from No. 7 at six-over par.

"It's easier than I've seen it, the greens have slowed up and I don't know what we're doing," Mickelson laughed.

Lefty had made 30 consecutive major cuts since missing the weekend at the 1999 British Open, which ranked as the longest such active streak at the four major championships.

His injured left wrist was still affecting his play, but Mickelson wasn't making any excuses.

"It's fine. It's sore, but it's fine," he said.

Furyk played with Mickelson and had a 75 to keep himself safe from the cut line six-over 146. He had back-to-back birdies on the 13th and 14th holes, from 18 and 20 feet respectively.

On the rest of the course, the 2003 U.S. Open champion made seven bogeys and nine pars.

"I don't concern myself with whether the USGA is playing fair or not anymore, I just play it and try to figure out how to get it in the hole," Furyk said of the course.

The third member of the Mickelson-Furyk group, Adam Scott, opened with a triple-bogey at No. 1 and shot an 82. Looking to shake criticism of his play in the majors, the young Australian missed the cut by a mile at 18-over par.

The scores from that trio -- the Nos. 2, 3 and 4 golfers in the world -- made Casey's morning 66 look like an anomaly.

And it was.

"That's probably one of the best rounds I've played in my professional career," said Casey, who equaled his best round at a major and was alone in seventh place at three-over 143.

It was 23 shots better than the worst score turned in Friday.

Englishman Sam Walker, who has missed the cut in nine of his last 10 European Tour starts, carded an 89 in a round that included just four pars and no birdies.

Mickelson and Scott weren't the only big names to miss the cut.

That list also included Justin Leonard, Luke Donald, Trevor Immelman, Padraig Harrington, Sergio Garcia, Davis Love III, Henrik Stenson, Colin Montgomerie and two-time U.S. Open winner Retief Goosen.

"The tournament starts on Saturday," Cabrera said. "Everyone who makes the cut has a chance. You just have to see what happens."

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Big 12 Conference betting odds

Work left to do: Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Kansas State

Texas joins Texas A&M and Kansas as locks after getting league win No. 11. Texas Tech greatly helped its own hopes and crippled OK State's with the two-point win Saturday. Is K-State the last reasonable hopeful? Could be an elimination match in Stillwater on Tuesday, at least for the Cowboys.

Work left to do:

Texas Tech [18-11 (7-7), RPI: 44, SOS: 12] A critical two-point win over OK State leaves the Red Raiders with Baylor and at Iowa State left. Get both and the Red Raiders likely are good to go. Get one and there could be some interesting comparisons with a K-State team that could finish two or three games "ahead" of them in the standings but doesn't have any of the quality wins Texas Tech has. Not a lot in nonconference play (against Arkansas in Little Rock being the best win, by far) to lean on.

Oklahoma State [18-9 (5-8), RPI: 50, SOS: 35] Still without a road win, the Cowboys now need to win two on the road just to get to .500 in conference play. It's hard to recall a team (OK, other than Clemson) falling so precipitously from lock status to almost certainly out of the NCAAs at this point. There are wins to be had in the last three, including a very big home game against K-State on Tuesday, but this team is reeling. Can you tell the pressure to win is getting to them with the way the final possession played out at Texas Tech? There are some good nonconference performances to lean on, specifically beating Missouri State and Syracuse on neutral floors and Pitt in OK City, but if the Pokes don't right this very, very soon, that won't be enough.

Kansas State [20-9 (9-5), RPI: 56, SOS: 96] It pays to be in the Big 12 North. The nine league wins are Colorado (twice), Missouri (twice), Iowa State (twice), Baylor, Nebraska and (a good one against) Texas. That helps explain the middling computer profile. The win over USC is nice, but the nonconference leaves a lot to be desired. The game at OK State in Stillwater on Tuesday is huge, as it could KO the Cowboys and leave K-State with a home date against Oklahoma with which to work.


MySportsbook.com favors Bears, Bengals, Chargers and Colts to remain perfect

LAS VEGAS , Sept. 28 - Two big match-ups of undefeated teams have fans salivating at the Week Four schedule in the NFL. The Chicago Bears stifling defense looks to provide a less than hospitable welcome to the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday night in a battle of two 3-0 teams in the NFC conference. In the AFC, the San Diego Chargers (2-0) head to Maryland to face the surprising Baltimore Ravens (3-0) as both try to keep pace atop the conference standings. Betting Lines makers at MySportsbook.com, online sportsbook and casino, have set the Bears as 3.5 point favorites while the Chargers are a 2.5 point bet.

Of the three remaining undefeated teams, only one, New Orleans, enters this week's game as an underdog. Despite an emotional and resounding win over Atlanta on Monday night, the Saints are a 7.5 point underdog against the struggling Carolina Panthers. Indianapolis looks to stay perfect when they face the New York Jets as a 9 point road favorite while the Cincinnati Bengals are a 6 point favorite at home to the New England Patriots.

Six teams enter the week still looking for their first win, with a seventh, Tampa Bay, on a bye week. The prospect of dropping another game would not bode well for a potential playoff run. Since 1990, just three teams -- the 1992 Chargers, 1995 Detroit Lions and 1998 Buffalo Bills -- have overcome losing their first three games of the season to earn a postseason berth. And only the Chargers managed to accomplish the feat after starting 0-4.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs.