Clarke pushes lead to three in Scotland

Golf Betting Lines

07/09/2010 - Glasgow, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Darren Clarke carded a four-under 67 in steady rain Friday to extend his lead to three strokes after two rounds of the Scottish Open.

Clarke, who led by one after the first round, completed 36 holes at 10-under- par 132. He is seeking his 13th victory on the European Tour and a spot in next week's British Open.

"It wasn't torrential heavy rain, it was just torrential rain," Clarke said of the weather conditions. "If you're from Ireland there's a difference, a massive difference. We knew it was going to be very hard, but obviously at home in Portrush I've had much worse than this."

The 41-year-old is not yet eligible for the season's third major next weekend. If he were to win this week, he would get one of the last available spots in the field at St. Andrews.

Edoardo Molinari posted a two-under 69 in the afternoon and is alone in second at minus-seven. Molinari, and the rest of the afternoon wave, played in much better conditions than Clarke and the early group at Loch Lomond Golf Club.

Bradley Dredge and Peter Hedblom both carded 69s and are tied for third at six-under-par 136. Francesco Molinari also shot two-under 69 and is one stroke back at minus-five.

Further down the leaderboard, there was plenty of news as well.

Phil Mickelson could have overtaken Tiger Woods for the top spot in the world rankings. However, he was done in by a quintuple-bogey nine on the par-four 18th, his ninth on Friday.

Mickelson got a couple of those strokes back, but not enough as he shot three- over 74 to miss the cut by a stroke at three-over-par 145. Also missing the cut on the number were two-time winner Ernie Els and 2009 champion Martin Kaymer.

Clarke played the back nine first on Friday and three-putted for a bogey on No. 11. That was his first and only bogey of the week. He bounced back with a birdie on the 12th and moved to minus-seven with a chip-in birdie at the 16th.

Around the turn, Clarke poured in three birdies in the first four holes to jump to 10-under. His birdies on one and three came from off the green, before he converted from 20 feet out for birdie at the fourth. Clarke closed with five straight pars to lead by three.

"You have to take what the course gives you and try to grind out a score," Clarke said. "Certainly, I'm very pleased to have ground out four-under. I thought anything around level par was going to be pretty good."

Edoardo Molinari parred his first three holes before dropping in a birdie effort on the fourth. He faltered to a bogey on the par-three eighth, but atoned for that mistake with a birdie at the ninth.

The Italian parred the first four holes of the back nine. Molinari birdied the short par-four 14th, a hole in which he eagled one day earlier. The 2005 U.S. Amateur champion stumbled to a bogey on the 16th, but came back to birdie 17 to end three shots off Clarke's lead.

"I think it was a great round today, it was very windy out there. The wind was hurting a lot," Molinari stated. "I am almost happier today than I was with my 66 [Thursday]."

NOTES: Robert-Jan Derksen (68), Damien McGrane (72) and Graeme Storm (72) share sixth at four-under-par 138...The cut fell at two-over 144 with 68 players moving on to the final two rounds...Y.E. Yang, Vijay Singh, Lucas Glover, 2001 champion Retief Goosen, Robert Allenby, European Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie, 1996 winner Thomas Bjorn and Miguel Angel Jimenez, who has won twice this season, also missed the cut.

Footvall Golf Betting News

<< Stoudemire deal becomes sign-and-trade
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Knicks announced Friday that the deal for Amare Stoudemire is a sign-and-trade agreement with the Phoenix Suns. Stoudemire agreed to join the Knicks earlier this week and a deal was anno

<< Spain must make the most of rare opportunity
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - For countries like Brazil, Italy and Germany, success in the World Cup is passed down from generation to generation, almost like a hereditary trait. The ability to perform at the highes

<< AL Central: Tigers halfway home
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - We are just past the halfway point of the Major League Baseball season and the Detroit Tigers are right where they want to be; atop the American League Central standings. The Tigers have gotten off to a hot start in July,

<< Djokovic, Cilic post wins in Serbia-Croatia tussle
Split, Croatia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Novak Djokovic and Marin Cilic notched opening singles wins Friday in the best-of-five Davis Cup quarterfinal between rival nations Serbia and host Croatia. The world No. 2 Djokovic got Serbia going

<< NL West: Rockies becoming the hitmen of baseball
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It's all about making the 'hits' in organized crime. In Major League Baseball, producing hits is what usually wins games and the Colorado Rockies have been whacking opposing pitchers on their four-game winning st

Tennessee football players involved in bar brawl >>
Knoxville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The University of Tennessee football program had six players reportedly involved in a fight at a Knoxville bar early Friday morning. Two of the six have been arrested thus far, according to the Knoxville

Germany's Klose targets record against Uruguay >>
Port Elizabeth, South Africa (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Miroslav Klose can become the all-time leading scorer in FIFA World Cup history Saturday when Germany plays Uruguay in the third-place match at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium. Klose scored five

France leads reigning two-time champ Spain 2-0 >>
Clermont-Ferrand, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A quality French team, led by Gael Monfils, has a 2-0 lead against reigning two-time champion Spain in their best-of-five Davis Cup quarterfinal in France. The world No. 17 Monfils outlasted g

New York hosts D.C. in Eastern tilt >>
Harrison, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Red Bull New York hopes to inch closer to the top of the Eastern Conference table when it hosts D.C. United in Major League Soccer action at Red Bull Arena on Saturday night. The home side is coming off a 1-

Fish swims into Newport semis >>
Newport, RI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fifth-seeded Mardy Fish was a hard-fought quarterfinal winner Friday at the Hall of Fame Tennis Championships. The American Fish came from behind to dismiss Canada's Frank Dancevic 6-7 (6-8), 6-4, 6-4 on th

MySportsbook.com is operated by Sportingbet, a UK gambling company which is publicly traded on the AIM on the London Stock Exchange.

Sportingbet easily forms the world's largest Internet gaming company, with a truly global outreach. This also provides added transparency and accountability to this online Sportsbook and thus provides more safety and security for our customers. MySportsbook offers betting lines on all major sporting events. Our staff of almost 400 people includes clerks ready 365 days a year, 24 hours a day to care for your needs.

MySportsbook's competent, experienced managerial staff and personnel are backed by a state-of-the art sports wagering software.

We offer a 15% sign-up bonus to new customers who use Neteller for deposit and 10% bonus for all other deposit methods. Casino clients can take advantage of a 5% cash back monthly. Clients are also eligible for a 5% re-up bonus on subsequent deposits and 10% cash back on NFL losses.* Our instant-play flash casino is no-download, just click and go to a wide range of games including online Blackjack, 3-Card Poker, Craps, Baccarat, Roulette and Pai-Gow Poker, as well as a variety of slots and video poker games for the complete online casino Las Vegas experience.

My Sports book accepts all credit cards, online checks, Neteller, Firepay and bank wires. MySportsbook guarantees prompt, hassle-free payouts, as well as unparalleled individual attention from its acclaimed customer service department.

To visit this sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Visa needs.