» February 23rd, 2006

HEAD WEST FOR McMURRAY AT 7/1

Auto Club 500

Su Feb 26 – 3:30 pm ET (FOX)

bet365 latest Auto Club 500 prices...
Greg Biffle 11/2, Carl Edwards 6/1, Jamie McMurray 7/1, Jimmie Johnson 8/1, Tony Stewart 9/1, Jeff Gordon 10/1, others on bet365 website (Each-way 1/4 odds 1.2.3.4)

The NASCAR Nextel Cup Series heads to the West Coast this weekend, with teams gearing up in the Auto Club 500 from California Speedway, the first of this season's so-called cookie cutter tracks.

It's been a gruelling couple of weeks for the drivers at Daytona, but it was all worth it for 500 winner Jimmie Johnson, who was winning his first restrictor plate race, and landing some nice bets for bet365 customers in the process (hope you were on at 8/1?). Johnson also has a very good track record at California Speedway (one win and three top-five finishes in six career starts), but he's not favourite to win this week. That honour falls on defending champion Greg Biffle (11/2), who also finished second in the fall race later in the year. However, he will need to do well after a sub-par 31st finish at Daytona, and that could leave the way for another of the Roush drivers to step up to the plate.

The dominant race team of last season have certainly gone well here in the past. In 20 total starts at California (and its sister track Michigan), Roush Racing have collected two wins and 15 top-seven finishes. In last year's race, the Roush gang had four cars in the top-seven placings (Biffle, Kurt Busch 3rd, Carl Edwards 5th and Mark Martin 7th), and it wouldn't be a surprise to see them in the same positions again, with one important addition – Jamie McMurray – who drives the Kurt Busch entry this week.

McMurray was driving a Ganassi Dodge car in last year's race, but still managed to finish fourth. He was also eighth in the later race on the track so, now that he's got a better ride, he can be expected to improve significantly on that. Throw in the fact that he was one of the better performing Roush drivers last week (top-10 runner for most of the race until an accident sent him home in 37th place), and everything is in place for a trip to Victory Lane for McMurray at a tasty bet365 price of 7/1.

Nigel's Checkered Flag...Jamie McMurray @ 7/1

AVOID MARCH SADNESS – PLACE YOUR PARLAYS WITH bet365!

For all you college basketball aficionado's out there, it will soon be time to fill out your bracket sheets for the NCAA tournament, but serious bettors will be getting excited at the prospect of picking point spread winners. Here at bet365, we'll have lines on all the games as soon as the final 65 teams and match ups are known. At this moment in time, the newly realigned 16-team Big East looks likely to have seven or eight teams involved, while the The Big 10 (which appears to be one of the strongest conferences this season), might get as many as seven. However, it's the presence of the smaller 'local' teams that make March Madness the exciting (and unpredictable!) spectacle that it is.

If you're looking for some value during 'March Madness' season (aren't we all!), it may pay to steer clear of the public teams - like Duke and Kentucky - as they're always likely to be well-backed, and that will be factored into the point spread. Hence, the other team is going to be a value price, in order to attract equal money on both sides.

For example, supporters of last year's North Carolina squad were asked to lay a heavy price to back their team, and they only covered one spread on their run to the Final Four. Meanwhile lesser-known schools provide great value for their backers – who will forget the great run by Wisconsin-Milwaukee last year! Another piece of advice is to check which teams will be playing on close proximity to their home venue and thus have a 'home' crowd advantage. Also, don't ignore teams that have had a poor season. They will generally be up for this final chance to make the 'Big Dance', and will be capable of pulling off an upset or two!

While we'll be backing our picks in singles (as every serious bettor should), it will be hard to resist a speculative parlay wager along the way, especially as we're assured of getting more back with the bet365 Parlay Bonus. Each week, we pay out up to 50% more on successful NBA & NCAAB parlays on the following 6 markets:-

Point Spread, Game Total, First Half Point Spread, Second Half Point Spread, First Half Total, Second Half Total.

CHRYSLER CLASSIC - ROLLINS A WORTHY TUCSON FAVOURITE AT 18/1

Th Feb 23 – 11:00 am ET (USA)

Fr Feb 24 – 11:00 am ET (USA)

Sa Feb 25 – 11:00 am ET (USA)

Su Feb 26 – 11:00 am ET (USA)

No big names playing in this week's back-up tournament to the World Matchplay (see below), which is open to players not ranked in the top-64 in the world. There's no obvious favourite either, but that burden falls on the shoulders of John Rollins, an 18/1 shot here at bet365. He's probably the form horse in this non-televised event after a couple of top-five finishes in recent weeks in much stronger events than this. He's also a Tour winner, which is more than can be said for many of the other players this week, and has previous course experience (26th last year).

However, he's not the only one doing it right now, and the improving Norwegian, Henrik Bjornstad should also be considered at a standout 50/1 with bet365. He has made a tremendous start to his American career with two top ten finishes, and this weaker event should see him challenging again come Sunday. We'll also be sticking a few quid on Justin Rose at 25/1. It was not that long ago since Rose was ranked highly enough to play in the Matchplay, and he's since come close to breaking his duck on the US Tour when finishing 3rd in the Buick Championship at the end of last year. He looks to have carried that form through to this year (top-10 in the Bob Hope), and, with his talent, he really should be up to winning an event like this.

Chysler Classic of Tucson Three Off The Tee...John Rollins 18/1, Justin Rose 25/1, Henrik Bjornstad 50/1. Each-way 1/4 odds 1.2.3.4.5

OPPOSE WORLD MATCHPLAY FAVOURITES

Th Feb 23 – 2:00 pm ET (ESPN)

Fr Feb 24 – 2:00 pm ET (ESPN)

Sa Feb 25 – 10:30 am ET (ESPN)

Su Feb 26 – 10:30 am ET (ESPN)

This week's World Matchplay tees off on Wednesday, but don't worry if you don't manage to get a bet on before the start as we'll have live In-Play betting throughout. Matchplay can be hard to predict. At this level, anyone can get hot over 18 holes, and you could find the player that you've backed on his way home after shooting 66 if their opponent shoots 65. So, don't be afraid to take on the jollies over the course of the five days. Despite winning twice this year, Tiger has not been playing his best golf, while neither Ernie Els nor Vijay Singh have great records here. My player against the field is Chris DiMarco (25/1 pre tournament). Last year's beaten finalist looks to be on his game entering the event, having won the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship in January and finishing in the top-15 twice in three starts on the Tour.

World Matchplay Pick: Chris DiMarco @ 25/1 (oppose Woods, Els and Singh)

Please be aware that prices are subject to change. All times EST (unless otherwise noted) and are subject to change. Check local listings.