Get In The Game with Nigel Ridgway - Sports handicapping, highlights and tips

Ryder Cup, Oakland Hills
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Su Sep 19 – 12:00 pm EST (NBC)/16:00 GMT
For golf fans it doesn't get any better than the three days of the Ryder Cup. The 35th staging of this event will certainly be compulsive viewing, and anyone who enjoys competition should sit themselves down in front of the TV to watch the action. For betting purposes, the choice is simple; a US side (who undoubtedly have the best players) at odds on, or the 'inferior' (on paper) European side at odds against.

There is no doubt that, in terms, of world rankings, tour wins, and Major successes the Americans have the better side. The average world ranking of the two teams is as follows; America – 18th, Europe – 39th. Such a gap is not unusual, but this has not stopped the Europeans from rising to the occasion in the past. There could be several reasons for this; the fact that the Europeans are more comfortable with the format certainly helps, but integral to the successes over the past twenty years has been their team spirit, and that could just give them the edge again this week. Not that the US side will not bond, it is just that there appears to be more 'natural' partnership options for Bernhard Langer's team. Not only does he have the pairings that have played well in previous Cups - Westwood and Garcia are the most obvious – but there is also the possibility of keeping compatriots together, namely the five English players, the Irish (three) and the Spanish (two). Ryder Cup rookies Luke Donald and Paul Casey were a very successful pairing in the Walker Cup (similar format) during their amateur days and look a natural duo.

Recent form also bodes well for the Europeans chances. Ten of the twelve in the team have secured top ten finishes over the last four weeks, while only six of the Americans have done so in their respective tournaments. With European qualification for the team based on the results of the last twelve months, as opposed to the whole two years between events for the Americans, this has led to a noteworthy advantage, with several members of the US team playing well enough during 2003 to make the team only to struggle for form during 2004 - Jim Furyk and Kenny Perry are prime examples. Of course home advantage counts for a lot, and the course is bound to be set up in the Americans favour, but two of the last four Ryder Cups held in America have been won by Europe. All in all, there is enough in the Europeans favour to recommend a bet at 7/4.

In our 'Top Team Points Scorer' markets, a strong case can be made for Phil Mickelson (7/2) and Luke Donald (8/1). Mickelson, enjoying his best season to date, has a 70% success rate in his Ryder Cup matches on home soil, and looks sure to play all five matches at Oakland Hills. Detroit based Donald has won twice in the past six weeks, and secured seven out of eight points in two Walker Cup appearances in 1999 and 2001. A double on the two pays nearly 40/1!

bet365 Ryder Cup prices... USA 4/7, Europe 7/4, Tie 10/1


RYDER CUP – FREE $40 IN-RUNNING BET
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Whether you're a golf fan or not, you can still take advantage of our fantastic free In-Running bet on the event. Simply place ANY single bet on the Ryder Cup before midnight on Saturday 18th, and we'll give you a Free In-Running bet to the same stake on any other Ryder Cup market, during play on the final day (max. $40).

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NFL - Week 1 Review
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New England showed why they are solid favourites to retain their title with a home win over the Colts. Ex-Bengal running back Corey Dillon returned 86 yards on 15 carries, and his addition to the team looks set to strengthen the squad even further. Philadelphia's offence looked revitalised under Terrell Owens in their home win over the Giants, while the much touted Seahawks also got their campaign off to a flier. The Lions ended their three year drought on the road with a win in Chicago, while there was a surprise victory for San Diego in Houston, belying their tag of the worst team in the NFL. That honour could fall to the Dolphins who were all at sea in their tame 17-7 home defeat to Tennessee. Baltimore were expected to dominate the AFC North, but look to have a fight on their hands after getting thumped 20-3 by three-point underdogs Cleveland.

bet365 Super Bowl prices... Patriots 6/1, Eagles 8/1, Colts, Seahawks 10/1, Broncos 14/1, Vikings 16/1, others on bet365 website. Win only.

NFL - MIN Vikings @ PHL Eagles
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Live betting - Mo Sep 20 – 9:00 pm EST (ABC)/Sep 21 – 01:00 GMT
The Eagles are at home again this week when they take on the Minnesota Vikings in a Monday night battle. Philadelphia has won four of the last match-ups with the Vikings, including a 48-17 thrashing during the 2001 campaign. The Eagles dropped their first seven all-time meetings with the Vikes, but since then have posted a 7-4 record against Minnesota. Monday night's encounter should be a showcase for two of the NFL's best receivers, Terrell Owens, and the Viking's Randy Moss. Both have made excellent starts to the season, and have had no problem finding the end zone. Owens' debut for the Eagles could not have gone any better as he caught three touchdown passes in a 31-17 victory over the New York Giants. He finished with eight receptions for 68 yards. Moss caught just four passes for 27 yards, but two of them went for touchdowns in the Vikings' 35-17 rout of Dallas. He also drew two pass interference penalties and completed a 37-yard pass to Marcus Robinson. Prediction: Philadelphia -3.0 @ 5/6.

bet365 Game Lines:
Point Spread: MIN Vikings (+3.0) @ 1/1, PHL Eagles (-3.0) @ 5/6.
Totals: 49.0 @ 10/11.
Money: Vikings @ 3/2, Eagles @ 10/17.

Join us for live betting on this classic dual, where our markets will include: Point Spread; Game Total; Team To Make Next Score; and Next Score Of The Game.

NCAAF – Florida @ Tennessee
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Sa Sep 18 – 8:00 pm EST (CBS)/Sep 19 – 00:00 GMT
The 11th-ranked Gators look to commence their climb back to the dominance that has eluded them the past two season when take on the 13th ranked Vols at Neyland Stadium, Knoxville, on Saturday night. This SEC opener could define each team's season, and Florida are under no illusions as to what they have to do to beat Tennessee – stop the run. This is the one statistic that has dominated the series between the two teams, with the team that has run the ball better winning 12 of the past 14 meetings. If it starts raining – officials will continue to monitor weather conditions in response to the threat from Hurricane Ivan – Florida may have the edge on the Vols passing game, but Tennessee will try to run over Florida. Their QB Brent Schaeffer is certainly capable of doing that. He started the opener against UNLV and ran for 29 yards and a touchdown and threw for 123 yards and a score. Prediction: Tennessee -3.0.

bet365 SEC Championship prices... Georgia 15/8, LSU 3/1, Florida 4/1, Auburn, Tennessee 5/1, others on bet365 website. Win only.

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MLB – BOS Red Sox @ NY Yankees
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Live betting – Sa Sep 18 – 1:05 (FOX)/17:05 GMT
The New York Yankees' struggling starters are beginning to put it together - just in time for their weekend series against the Red Sox. Javier Vazquez pitched New York to its second straight shutout Wednesday, in a 3-0 victory over the host Kansas City Royals, their first back-to-back shutout since August 27-28th 2002, at Boston. Derek Jeter homered and doubled twice, and former Tiger Tony Clark also connected for the Yankees, who have a four-game lead over Boston in the East. On the same night, Manny Ramirez hit a tie-breaking sacrifice fly, and Kevin Millar and Mark Bellhorn slugged two-run homers for the host Red Sox, in a 8-6 win over Tampa Bay. They now lead the Angels by 5 1/2 games in the wild-card race.

On Friday night the Yankees and the BoSox meet in the first of six games to be contested between the two sides over the next ten days, games that will go a long way toward deciding the American League East championship, which the Yankees have owned for six years. With roughly only 2 ½ weeks left of the season, both teams are in excellent position to make the playoffs, with the Yankees fancied to hold on for the division, and the Red Sox winning the wild card.

Join us here at bet365 for live betting on Saturday's games, where our markets will include: Game Total; Money Line; Run Line; A Score in the Innings; and Most Hits In The Innings.

bet365 American League prices... Yankees 13/10, BoSox 11/5, A's 10/3, Twins 6/1, Angels 10/1, others on bet365 website.

NASCAR Nextel Cup Series – Sylvania 300
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Su Sep 19 – 1:00 pm EST (TNT)/17:00 GMT
The Chase for the Cup kicks off in New Hampshire as the top ten drivers start with zero points to battle it out over the last ten races for the inaugural Nextel Cup. The points collected in the final ten races will determine the title, and with only 35 points separating No.1 and No.10, anyone can win. Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson are the early favorites for this week's race due to their dominance all season, but they may be extremely cautious early on in the knowledge that one slip-up at this stage could severely damage their title chances. This could give a chance to one of the non-contenders to get out in front and give their sponsors some exposure. One driver to keep an eye on is this week is Jeff Burton, who has been very good since his move to the No.30 AOL Childress Chevy, and is the tracks all-time leader in wins with four. Don't know if Burton can win, but Richard Childress certainly knows how to set up a car here after a win in 2001, and a second last year. Be sure to check the practice speeds for this race, especially Happy Hour. At the last race here back in July, Kurt Busch qualified 32nd but won the race. During Happy Hour Busch had the 2nd fastest lap, but had the top average time overall, which is the most key stat you can get out of Happy Hour that will have some real substance in picking the winner. He's bringing back the same car that won that race this week!

Nigel's Checkered Flag... Kurt Busch @ 8/1, Jeff Burton @ 33/1 (Each way).

bet365 Sylvania 300 selected prices... Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson 13/2, Ryan Newman, Tony Stewart 15/2, Kurt Busch 8/1, Jeff Burton 33/1, others on bet365 website. Each way 1/5 1.2.3.

Get in the game and be lucky!

Nigel.