Hietala wins playoff for Cox Classic title

Golf Betting Lines

08/03/2008 - Omaha, NE (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan Hietala parred the first playoff hole Sunday to defeat overnight-leader David Branshaw and win the Cox Classic at Champions Run.

The win was Hietala's second on the Nationwide Tour. His other victory came at the 2005 Louisiana Open.

Hietala posted a two-under 69 on Sunday to match Branshaw, who tallied four back-nine bogeys en route to a two-over 73. The pair finished regulation at 19-under 265 and headed back to No. 18 for the extra session.

At the first playoff hole, the pair was on opposite sides of the fairway, but Hietala was in a divot. Branshaw played first and clobbered his approach over the green, Hietala mishit a low bullet into the right fringe.

Branshaw had a terrible lie, but pitched four feet past the hole. Hietala ran his third to a foot and tapped in for the par.

Branshaw pulled his four-footer, giving Hietala his first win in almost three years.

"I'm speechless," said Hietala. "God, what a struggle. What a feeling."

Branshaw led Hietala by four shots at the start of the final round. Branshaw only made two birdies on the front versus three from Hietala, so at the turn, the margin was three.

Hietala, playing one group ahead of Branshaw, drained a six-footer for birdie at the par-five 10th. Branshaw drove into a bush and could not save par, cutting the lead to a single stroke.

Hietala bogeyed both 11 and 12. Branshaw three-putted both holes for bogey, his third in a row, but the margin was still one shot. Hietala bogeyed No. 14 and Branshaw had a two-shot lead with three to play.

At the par-five 17th, Hietala drove into the right rough up against a hill. He choked down on his club and somehow reached the green in two. Hietala, the second-round leader, two-putted for birdie.

Behind Hietala, Branshaw hit his tee ball into a greenside bunker at 16. He blasted out to eight feet, but missed the putt and dropped himself into a tie for the lead with Hietala at 19-under par.

Hietala hit a terrible second shot from the fairway at 18 right of the putting surface. He hit a flop-shot to three feet and converted the par save to get in at minus-19.

Branshaw had an eight-iron for his second shot at the par-five 17th, but pulled it long and left. His chip ran 10 feet past the stick and Branshaw failed to hole his birdie effort for the lead.

Branshaw found the right rough off the tee and got a free drop after his feet were on the cart path. His second came up about 45 feet short of the flagstick, giving him an unlikely birdie putt for the win.

A two-putt par and a playoff seemed like the best option for Branshaw, but a pair of three-putts on the back nine may have loomed his mind. He had a difficult ridge to negotiate and left his birdie putt for the win nine feet short.

Branshaw needed the putt and converted it to force the playoff, but the trophy ultimately went to Hietala.

"I didn't know he dropped three or four shots until I looked at the board on 16," admitted Hietala. "I knew that stretch of holes was playing tough. I played with Branshaw yesterday. He played great and hats off to his game this week."

Skip Kendall (67), Garth Mulroy (69) and Alex Prugh (67) shared third place at 16-under 269.

Ricky Barnes (65), Jeff Klauk (66), Casey Wittenberg (67), Gary Christian (68), last week's winner in Ohio Bill Lunde (69) and Vance Veazey (74) tied for sixth at minus-15.

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MySportsbook.com : Fortune Favors Favorites in March Madness betting?

Just like Day 1 of the “Sweet 16”, Friday’s games are chock full of some of the nation’s elite.  Unlike Thursday’s games, there is a little bit more of a “Cinderella” feel as #7 seed UNLV and #6 seed Vanderbilt will attempt to move on to the Elite Eight.  With powerhouses Florida, UNC and Georgetown looking to continue their momentum against lesser known teams, it isn’t surprising that once again the “betting public” is backing most of the favorites.  As the early coin rolls in, 56% of Sportsbook.com bettors prefer Georgetown (-7.5) as they take on Vanderbilt; 84% of the early money is backing Oregon (-3) as they square off against UNLV; and a slight majority (52%) of the early cash is on Florida (-10.5) against Butler as the Gators continue their quest for another National Title. The only favorite the public don’t seem confident in is UNC, as 59% of the cash is backing the underdog Trojans (+8).

Midwest

#1 Florida vs. #5 Butler

The defending National Champs have been on a mission since last April.  Joakim Noah and Al Horford turned down millions of dollars for one reason, to REPEAT.  After a late season hiccup which saw them lose three out of four, the Gators have won six straight by an average of 20.3 points. More importantly, they covered in five of those six games.  Behind their stymie defense that yields only 56.9 PPG, Butler has been a very pleasant surprise this season.  As their 20-11 ATS record will indicate, “surprise teams” like Butler are often good bets for gamblers.  Playing in an average conference, Butler wasn’t and underdog too often but when they were, they covered (6-0 ATS).  Butler’s defense will have its hands full against a Gators offense which averages 80.1 PPG on an amazing 52.9% shooting from the field.  With Florida’s tournament experience over the last few years, it isn’t surprising that they are 5-1 ATS this season, 20-4 ATS over the last three seasons and 38-20 since 1997 in tournament action.

#3 Oregon vs. #7 UNLV

As a #7 seed, UNLV is the closest thing to a “Cinderella” we have this year.  If you bet on UNLV this season with any regularity, you most likely cashed in. Behind their guard oriented attack, the Rebels are an impressive 20-11 ATS this season.  As an underdog they covered in 8 out of their ten games which isn’t surprising since they are 52-30 ATS as a ‘dog since 1997. The Rebels have been a consistent cover during the month of March as well.  This March they are 6-0 ATS, 11-3 ATS over the last three seasons and 24-11 since 1997. Their impressive ATS trends don’t end there; versus teams with a winning record they are 15-6 ATS this season and 41-21 over the last three seasons.  Although Oregon hasn’t been as generous to gamblers as UNLV this season, they have been covering consistently as of late.  There is no question that they are playing their best ball of the season having won their last 8 straight up (SU) by an average of 14.5 points. Not surprising they covered in 7 of those games.  It is interesting to note how similar these teams are in regards to scoring and scoring defense. UNLV averages 75 PPG while giving up 66.5 PPG and Oregon scores 75.8 PPG while yielding 65.5 PPG.

East

#6 Vanderbilt vs. #2 Georgetown

“Hoya Paranoia” is officially back! After a decent start, Georgetown has rolled through the second half of the season.  Over their last 18 games, they are 17-1 SU.  They have definitely improved ATS as the season has progressed as well. After opening the season 1-4-1 ATS, the Hoyas have covered 78.3% of their games.  With their great interior play of Jeff Green and Roy Hibbert, the Hoyas as a team shoot 50.5% from the field.  Like the Georgetown teams from years ago, they also excel on defense.  Hoya opponents averaged only 56.8 PPG on 38.2% shooting from the field and an extremely low 30.4% from beyond the arc.  The last stat could be of some concern to Vanderbilt considering they shoot 37.7% from long-range.  Ranking second to last in the SEC in rebounding margin, Vanderbilt will have its work cut out for them against the Hoya trees. As far as covering is concerned, Vanderbilt has been almost a “sure thing” (7-1 ATS) versus good defensive teams that allow less than 64 PPG.

#1 UNC vs. # 5 USC

The Tar Heels are as talented and as deep as any team in the country.  Going ten deep and chock full of HS All-Americans, UNC averages 86.1 PPG and scored 100+ seven times.  Led by All-American forward, Tyler Hansbrough (18.6 PPG 7.9 RPG) UNC has a very balanced attack which can kill you on the inside as well as on the perimeter.  UNC only real concern is their youth as eight of their rotation players are either sophomores or freshmen.  UNC was a reliable cover this season going 20-13 ATS.  An intriguing covering trend for the Tar Heels in recent years has been how they fared after non-conference games.  This season they are 11-3 ATS after non-conference games and over the last three seasons they are 31-13 ATS.  USC is also a pretty deep team which is loaded with swingman types.  An match-up to keep an eye on will be freshman forward Taj Gibson (12.1 PPG, 8.6 RPG) as he squares off against the AA Hansbrough.  USC has been a covering machine this season achieving a 21-10 record ATS.  They have thrived in the underdog role, having covered 10 out of 12.  When playing a team with a winning record, the Trojans are an incredible 20-6 ATS. Keep in mind, USC dedicated their season to former star to Ryan Francis who passed away before the season so as they get closer to the ultimate goal, emotion could definitely be on their side.

With Friday -105 juice on Basketball betting, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on all of the “March Madness” action.  Don’t forget to monitor who the public is backing at this sportsbook “Betting Trends”.  By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.

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