Finalists revealed for 2011 Eclipse Awards

Horseracing Betting Lines

01/05/2012 - New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Breeders' Cup race winners Hansen, Caleb's Posse and Royal Delta have been announced as finalists for 2011 Eclipse Awards.

The 41st Eclipse Awards program will be held Monday, January 16 at the Beverly Wilshire in Beverly Hills, California. The awards are voted on by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA), National Turf Writers And Broadcasters (NTWAB) and Daily Racing Form.

Hansen, winner of the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, is one of three finalists for champion two-year-old male. He is joined by Juvenile runner-up Union Rags and Creative Cause.

Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile champ Caleb's Posse is a finalist in two categories -- three-year-old male and male sprinter. The other finalists for champion three- year-old male are Kentucky Derby winner Animal Kingdom and Preakness victor Shackleford. Joining Caleb's Posse as finalists for champion male sprinter are Breeders' Cup Sprint winner Amazombie and Regally Ready.

Royal Delta, winner of the Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic, is a finalist for three-year-old female honors. The filly is joined by Ladies' Classic runner-up It's Tricky and Kentucky Oaks winner Plum Pretty.

Finalists for Horse of the Year will be announced on the night of the ceremony.

The 2011 Eclipse Awards finalists are:

Horse of the Year: TBA

Two-Year-Old Male: Creative Cause, Hansen, Union Rags

Two-Year-Old Filly: Grace Hall, My Miss Aurelia, Stephanie's Kitten

Three-Year-Old Male: Animal Kingdom, Caleb's Posse, Shackleford

Three-Year-Old Filly: It's Tricky, Plum Pretty, Royal Delta

Older Male: Acclamation, Game on Dude, Tizway

Older Female: Awesome Maria, Blind Luck, Havre de Grace

Male Sprinter: Amazombie, Caleb's Posse, Regally Ready

Female Sprinter: Hilda's Passion, Musical Romance, Sassy Image

Male Turf Horse: Acclamation, Cape Blanco (IRE), St Nicholas Abbey (IRE)

Female Turf Horse: Dubawi Heights (GB), Perfect Shirl, Stacelita (FR)

Steeplechase: Black Jack Blues (IRE), Decoy Daddy (IRE), Tax Ruling (IRE)

Owner: Midwest Thoroughbreds, Kenneth and Sarah Ramsey, Team Valor

Breeder: Adena Springs, Brereton C. Jones, Kenneth and Sarah Ramsey

Trainer: Bob Baffert, Bill Mott, Todd Pletcher

Jockey: Javier Castellano, Ramon Dominguez, John Velazquez

Apprentice Jockey: Ryan Curatolo, Kyle Frey, Rosario Montanez

The Eclipse Awards are presented by the NTRA, NTWAB and Daily Racing Form in recognition of excellence in thoroughbred racing.

Eclipse Awards are bestowed upon horses and individuals whose outstanding achievements have earned them the title of 'Champion' in their respective categories. Awards also are given to recognize members of the media for outstanding coverage of thoroughbred racing.

Wwwlassiters Horseracing Betting News

<< Line of Scrimmage: Ravens ready to rule AFC roost
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After years of being blocked by a treacherous course, the Baltimore Ravens finally have a clear path to a championship, though it's a window of opportunity that may not be wide open for very long. The fir

<< Bombers name Buchko new president and CEO
Winnipeg, MB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Winnipeg Blue Bombers have named Garth Buchko as the team's new president and chief executive officer. Buchko becomes the 39th president in team history and has an extensive background as a s

<< Timbers sign Richards as homegrown player
Portland, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Portland Timbers have signed forward Brent Richards as the club's first homegrown player. Richards, 21, joins the Timbers' first team after three years with the club's development team, the Portland Tim

<< Federer reaches final four in Doha
Doha, Qatar (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The great Roger Federer secured a spot in Friday's semifinals at the season-opening $1.024 million Qatar Open. The three-time overall and reigning champion Federer was tested by eighth- seeded Italian An

<< Columbus signs Chile midfielder Mirosevic
Columbus, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Columbus Crew have signed Chile midfielder Milovan Mirosevic to a multi-year contract, pending receipt of his P-1 work visa. Mirosevic, 31, has played 25 matches for Chile, most recently appearing in

Revolution name Miller assistant coach >>
Foxborough, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New England Revolution named Jay Miller assistant coach on Thursday. Miller is a long-time manager and talent evaluator for U.S. Soccer and at the college level. He has more than 30 years of coachi

Klinsmann adds Evans, Parke to U.S. roster >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jurgen Klinsmann added Seattle Sounders FC duo Brad Evans and Jeff Parke to the roster for the U.S. national team's January training camp. Omar Gonzalez and George John left the camp, as Gonzalez has joined

Preds D Weber cleared to return >>
Nashville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Nashville Predators captain Shea Weber has been cleared to return for Thursday's home game against Dallas. Weber was diagnosed with a concussion following a December 23 matchup with the Stars and missed th

L.A.'s Gonzalez loaned to Germany's Nurnberg >>
Nurnberg, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Los Angeles Galaxy defender Omar Gonzalez was loaned to Germany club Nurnberg on Thursday until at least mid-February. Gonzalez, 23, left U.S. national team camp this week and Nurnberg announced on its we

Yanks can't agree to terms for Japanese SS Nakajima >>
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Yankees were unable to reach an agreement with Japanese shortstop Hiroyuki Nakajima. The Yankees won the rights to negotiate with the Seibu Lions star through the posting process, giving them

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)

The 2008 NFL betting lines season is almost upon us! If you like to bet on the NFL, you are in the best possible place for online betting. The sportsbook has NFL odds up on a ton of futures, and you will also find NFL lines up for early games as well. Join sportbook today and we'll help guide you right through to Super Bowl XLIII and beyond!

Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting odds .

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.