McGrane, Elson lead in stormy South Africa

Golf Betting Lines

01/12/2012 - Johannesburg, South Africa (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Damien McGrane and Jamie Elson posted impressive eight-under 63s on Thursday en route to the clubhouse lead at the opening round of the suspended Joburg Open.

Thunderstorms forced a lengthy delay of nearly five hours before darkness suspended play at Royal Johannesburg and Kensington Golf Club, where golfers are on both the East and West Courses over the first two rounds. For the last 36 holes, only the more difficult par-72 East Course is used.

With some gloomy weather forecasted over the weekend, it remains to be seen if there will be more delays ahead. The second round will resume at 6:45 a.m. local time, 11:45 p.m. (et).

The East Course lived up to its name in its brief usage on Thursday, with 19 of the top 21 players on the leaderboard playing on the par-71 West Course.

McGrane and Elson were two of them, though one of their closest competitors, Desvonde Botes, posted a seven-under 65 on the East Course. Reinier Saxton and Peter Karmis had a seven-under 64s on the West Course and share second, while Joel Sjoholm, David Drysdale, George Coetzee, George Murray, Carlos Del Moral and Shaun Norris posted six-under 65s on the West Course.

The week's storyline is reigning Masters champ Charl Schwartzel, who began his surprising 2011 season with his second straight Joburg Open title. The top- ranked player in the field by a considerable margin at No. 9, Schwartzel is even-par through 15 holes on the East Course.

It was McGrane and Elson, however, who stole the show Thursday. McGrane is looking for his first European Tour victory since the 2008 China Open, while Elson gained his tour card for this year by holing a 40-foot birdie putt on the final hole at qualifying school.

"I am delighted to be in a good position after round one," McGrane said. "For the last three or four years, Irish golf has been quite incredible, and I think we feed off each other. For a small nation, it sure is great to be there or thereabouts."

McGrane's day could have been even better if not for a bogey at the last. He had five birdies in a flawless front nine and added back-to-back birdies from the 11th to get to seven-under.

He moved to nine-under with an eagle at the par-five 15th, but lost a stroke at the last, one that could cost him with Botes hot on his tail.

"I stacked up a few birdies during the round, but that eagle really turned my round," McGrane said.

Elson started with four consecutive birdies and added two more at the sixth and ninth to make the turn at six-under. He began the back nine with two bogeys, but had four birdies in his last seven holes to tie McGrane.

Botes, who has 12 international victories but none on the European Tour, had five birdies and an eagle on the East Course, which means he'll have an opportunity to build on his score on the easier West Course.

His last victory anywhere came at the 2003 Parmalot Classic.

Schwartzel, who has not won since his Masters triumph, got off to a rocky start with bogeys at the first and fourth. His first birdie came at the sixth, but he followed with his third bogey of the day.

A birdie at the ninth put Schwartzel at one-over, but he finally got under par for the first time with birdies at the 12th and 14th. A bogey at No. 15 dropped him to even-par before the round was halted.

NOTES: After Schwartzel, the highest-ranked player is Retief Goosen at No. 50. He shot a five-under 66 on the West Course and is tied for 10th...Schwartzel is attempting to become the sixth European Tour player to win the same tournament three straight times.

Wwwharleydavidson Golf Betting News

<< Red Bulls land Swedish DF Holgersson
Harrison, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After weeks of speculation, Red Bull New York finally secured the services of Swedish defender Markus Holgersson pending the receipt of his P-1 visa approval and his International Transfer Certificate, as well

<< Niners, Giants could be this year's party crashers
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jim Harbaugh has ruffled some feathers during his short and impressively successful time as an NFL head coach, and he and his San Francisco 49ers wouldn't mind irking a few more people this coming weekend.

<< Keane completes loan move to Aston Villa
Carson, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Galaxy confirmed Thursday that striker Robbie Keane will head to the English Premier League to join Aston Villa on loan ahead of the Major League Soccer season. Keane, 31, is in familiar

<< Kings and Stars collide in LA
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Kings have showed that they are a tough team to beat when they score goals in bunches. The problem has been that those efforts have been few and far between. Los Angeles aims to build off an excellent offensive showing

<< Flames try to keep up scoring pace in home test vs. Ducks
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Calgary Flames have found their offense after returning home from a frustrating road trip. The Anaheim Ducks have also picked things up finally despite losing their top two goaltenders to injury. The Flames try to r

Rays sign Luke Scott to 1-year deal >>
St. Petersburg, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Tampa Bay Rays on Thursday signed Luke Scott to a one-year contract with a club option for 2013. The 33-year-old has played in the outfield and at first base while also serving as a designa

PSG scoops up Maxwell from Barcelona >>
Paris, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - PSG continued its spending spree on Thursday as it landed defender Maxwell from Barcelona. The 30-year-old was presented at a news conference Thursday with sporting director Leonardo claiming that the

Montreal selects Wenger with No. 1 pick >>
Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Montreal Impact selected Andrew Wenger from Duke with the No. 1 pick Thursday in the Major League Soccer SuperDraft. Wenger, a forward and defender, was recently honored as the MAC Hermann Trophy winne

N.Y. acquires Cooper from Portland >>
Harrison, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Red Bull New York made a splash on Thursday but not in the 2012 MLS SuperDraft, announcing that it has acquired striker Kenny Cooper from the Portland Timbers in exchange for a pick in the 2013 SuperDr

In the FCS Huddle: Challenges ahead for Payton Award finalists >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A player doesn't become a Walter Payton Award finalist without being able to face a challenge. While this year's finalists try to avoid tackles on the field, Eastern Washington senior quarterba

NFL Football betting

Best Online Sportsbooks NFL football betting promotions

Check out all of the NFL football betting promotions at the best online sportsbook MySportsbook.com. At this Sportsbook they provide the best NFL & College Football betting lines, promotions, and free contests.

NFL & COLLEGE FOOTBALL BETTING PROMOTIONS


More Props Equals More Fun
There is quite simply no one else in the World that offers you more proposition and futures wagers than we do. Player Props, Scoring Titles, Scoring by Quarter and by half. Dozens of daily Golf Matchups. Racing Fans will be in heaven with our selection. There is quite simply only one way to show you.

If Win and If Action Sports Betting
On an NFL Sunday there are less than 15 minutes between the morning games and the afternoon games. How do you get your second bet down? We have just the solution for you, If Bets. Its a simple bet in which you wager a fixed amount on one team and if that team wins, then the same amount as your original wager is placed on a different team.

Football Teasers up to 15 Teams
You can tease together up to 15 teams removing as many as 10 points off the spread. We offer 6, 6.5 and 7 point teasers as well as 3 team 10 point teasers. Click here to see our full Payout Table. You can tease NCAA & Pro games together as well.

Football Parlays up to 12 Teams
 We offer parlays from 2 to 12 teams, paying up to 1,800 to 1. You can parlay teams from different sports, you can parlay totals and sides and you can even parlay together our huge selection of proposition wagers.

Progressive Parlays - Football betting
We were the first to create Progressive Parlays and now the world has followed. Play an 8 team parlay and if 6, 7, or 8 teams win, you win. Play a 4 team parlay, if 3 or 4 teams win, you win. Even if you dont win all the games in your parlay, you can Still Win!

Double Your Money Mondays NFL Football Betting
 Free contest for Members! Double your winnings with our Sportsbook during football season! On specific football games throughout the year, our Sportsbook will have regular contests where you can double your winnings on selected games.

$1,000.00 Weekly Pigskin Payout NFL Football Contest
Make a free football bet on us! We're giving our members a chance to walk away with a part of $1,000.00 in v-chips for free every week this football season. Simply fill out our weekly $1,000 Pigskin Payout entry form and you're eligible to win.

Free NFL Football $10 No Risk Bet
We offer a risk free football prop bet to active members. It is posted on the main page once you login. Make a $10 bet and enjoy the profits if you win and we'll refund the wager if it loses. The refund is credited automatically to your account.

Buy Points - Adjust the spread for Football Betting
We offer you the chance to adjust the odds in your favor. You can now buy up to 3 points off the "spread" and "total" numbers for football and basketball games. Get the advantage in your betting with our Sportsbook.

$100,000 Weekly Football Challenge
As a member you can "log in" and pick 13 teams from our selection of listed games under the heading $100,000 Challenge and when they all win against the spread, you win the ultimate handicapping prize, $100,000.00 CASH. 

Football In Game Betting
We are now proud to bring you LIVE In Game Betting odds. Follow the plays and put a wager down as the game goes. Odds will be posted on our site under "In Game Betting" once the game starts and throughout the whole game. 

NFL Player to Score First Contest
If our randomly selected player scores the first Touchdown in a selected game, we'll refund the wagers on ALL other players in our "Player to Score First" future. 

No Juice College Football Game of the Week
Every Saturday we will pick one afternoon nationally televised game and offer the game at even odds, lay $100 to win $100. No Juice! What better way to kill a Saturday afternoon and make some quick cash. 

NFL Football Betting Shutout Refund
We have to be the only place to bet the Money Lines. If your NFL team is shutout, we will refund All Money Line Bets. It's that simple, a shutout means a Full refund! 

Free Printable NFL Office Pool Sheets
Run your own NFL Football Office Pool. Create your own pool, invite your friends to join. Compete with your with co-workers, friends or family for bragging rights every week.