High Sierra golf is as good as it gets

Golf Betting Lines

06/25/2010 - Reno, NV (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Twenty-five years and one wife ago, I first discovered the Reno-Lake Tahoe area and was taken by the beauty of the desert, mountains and pine trees. I was also impressed with the variety of golf courses in the region and as a Seattle native, I thoroughly appreciated those abundant blue skies.

Make no mistake, besides the magnificent setting, I was attracted by the casinos - and still am. Where else can you get golf and gaming and great weather in a spot like this? Nowhere. That's why I keep coming back year after year.

In June, I played in a press junket called the High Sierra Media Tour in which writers sampled the area during a weeklong golf bender that included 36 holes every day if you were so inclined, which I was. We stayed at one hotel one night, another the next, playing courses in the morning and afternoon, and doing it all over again and again. It was wonderfully repetitive.

If you can't stand hot and humid weather, this is the place to be in the summertime, especially Tahoe, where the temperatures are typically in the 70s and 80s. And if you somehow still get overheated, take a dip in the lake - it's glacial-fed. If you get out of the lake and are still hot, cool down at the craps table - I found it to be downright frigid.

The golf is glorious. I'd suggest a week or two with three buddies on the same route we took, starting in Reno then heading to Carson City, South Lake Tahoe, North Lake Tahoe and Truckee. They're all jumping-off points for some of the best and more affordable courses you'll ever play.

The drives are mostly spectacular. Take the one up Kingsbury Grade from the Carson Valley on the way from Genoa to South Lake Tahoe, and if you have the time, drive up the west side of Lake Tahoe instead of the east side when going from end of the lake to the other. The west side features a not-to-be-missed view of Emerald Bay.

Here are some more trip tips that will make your golf vacation in Reno and Lake Tahoe a memorable one:

- After playing D'Andrea and marveling at the views of Reno below, stop at the High Sierra Casino on your way to the Arnold Palmer design at Dayton Valley. Have a burger and a malt at Johnny Rockets, make a bet on your favorite team at the sports book and look forward to your $40 round at Dayton Valley, knowing that if you were here last year, the same round would've cost you $80.

- Don't miss, and let me repeat this in bold face and capital letters, DON'T MISS playing at Genoa Lakes in the Carson Valley. You'll never realize how pretty the Carson Valley is until you're there, looking at the mountains that surround every inch of it. And the feeling you get when you play the course is almost mystical.

- If you hit a jackpot on a slot machine or just feel like splurging, play Edgewood at South Lake Tahoe. This is where they hold the annual American Century Championship celebrity tournament in July, and no matter what you shoot, you know you'll have a better score than Charles Barkley.

- Before leaving South Lake Tahoe, visit the Harvey's Casino sports book, but don't bet on Geoff Ogilvy to win the U.S. Open like I did (he missed the cut), and make a point of having breakfast at the Red Hut, a local greasy spoon that's a hangover helper.

- In the Truckee-North Lake Tahoe area, tee it up at Coyote Moon, Gray's Crossing and Old Greenwood, three pine-tree lined layouts that will immediately join your list of best courses you've ever played. Coyote Moon has some unforgettable holes with boulders around the greens, and one, the 13th, that is incredible - a severely downhill par-3 over a cavern that plays two to three clubs less than the yardage. Gray's Crossing used to be a very private club that is now open to the public, and Old Greenwood might be one of Jack Nicklaus' best.

- Put this one in the area of my own personal preference, but it could be yours too - I was dazzled by the Ritz Carlton where we stayed one night at Northstar, a ski area on the Northwest side of Lake Tahoe. But I got more of a kick out of my room at the Truckee Hotel the next night. It's Rustic with a capital R. The original hotel opened in 1873. When you ask for a wake-up call, they'll call your cell phone and have coffee ready for you in the morning, made by the cool guy with the bushy beard behind the desk who will show you a scrapbook and tell you all the stories behind this historic place. The Truckee Hotel, like the golf and everything else in the Reno-Lake Tahoe area, gets five stars from me.

For more information, visit www.golfthehighsierra.com.

Jim Moore is a sports columnist for seattlepi.com. You can reach him at jimmoore@seattlepi.com.

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NCAA Football Betting

Many fans thought it was the best side in the nation by the end of last season. This year, the polls have built on Georgia's momentum and granted it the No. 1 preseason ranking, followed by Ohio State and USC. (The Associated Press has the Buckeyes at No. 2; USA Today took the Trojans.)

"To have people believing we have one of the best teams in the nation going into this thing, it's exciting for us," Bulldogs coach Mark Richt told the AP. "I don't think anything is guaranteed, but we certainly have put ourselves in position where at least the college football world thinks we're pretty good."

Georgia Bulldogs - 9.5 wins

There's no question they're good, but the Bulldogs have one of the toughest 12-game schedules in the nation, mostly because they play in the powerhouse Southeastern Conference. Away games at No. 15 Arizona State, No. 7 LSU and No. 10 Auburn loom large, with contests between the hedges versus No. 24 Alabama and No. 18 Tennessee as well as the World's Largest Cocktail Party in Jacksonville versus No.5 Florida.

Ohio State Buckeyes - 10 wins

Like the Bulldogs, the Buckeyes also have a number of tough road contests in 2008. After two scrimmages dressed up as real games versus Youngstown State and Ohio, it's off to face USC. Other tough away games include No.13 Wisconsin in October and No. 20 Illinois in November. Granted, it should be pretty easy sledding at the Horseshoe. In fact, the only ranked team that travels to Columbus is No. 22 Penn State, in October.

USC Trojans - 10.5 wins

A similarly light schedule awaits the Trojans of Southern California, which is why the oddsmakers' total is one win more and the over is currently commanding -150 odds. Pete Carroll's troops only play three ranked teams in 2008, and all of those games are at home. After what should be an easy trip to Virginia to start things off on Aug. 30, the Trojans get two weeks to prepare for Ohio State in Los Angeles. Their two other ranked opponents, No. 21 Oregon and No. 15 Arizona State, visit in consecutive weeks to start the month of October. After that, the competition eases up. Of course, this is the same highly-touted school that lost to Stanford in 2007 and Oregon State in 2006. And don't discount the fact that USC plays its biggest rivals, Notre Dame and UCLA, back-to-back to close out the regular season. On paper, the Trojans are far superior, but motivation will be high for the Irish and Bruins, especially if their historic foes are in national-title contention.

Odds to Win the Heisman Trophy

Tim Tebow, Florida - 7/2
He won it last year, so it's no surprise he's the favorite to do it again, making him just the second player to go back-to-back. Ohio State's Archie Griffin turned the trick in 1974 and 1975, and Tebow's coach, Urban Meyer, is pretty sure his star quarterback can match the Buckeyes legend.

"There has never been anyone quite like him," Meyer told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "I am very lucky to be his coach."

Chris Wells, Ohio State - 5/1

The man they call "Beanie" was a star recruit out of high school, so it's not like nobody knew who the star tailback was before he rushed for 576 yards as a freshman in 2006 and 1,609 as a sophomore. But perhaps his finest moment came last year versus Michigan when he rumbled for 222 yards and two touchdowns in the Buckeyes' 14-3 victory over the hated Wolverines.

Knowshon Moreno, Georgia - 8/1

If the Bulldogs are to live up to expectations, they'll need a huge effort from their sophomore running back. This might be the last year of college ball for Moreno, who rushed for 1,334 yards and for 14 touchdowns as a freshman, while adding 253 receiving yards on 20 receptions, so expect big things for the man from Belford, N.J.

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MySportsbook.com: NBA Championship Odds

With the playoffs about two months away, the top two teams in the Western Conference are the clear cut leaders to win the NBA Championship. The Dallas Mavericks have the best record in the NBA (44-9) and have been absolutely scorching since the second week of the season.  What makes the Mavs’ record more impressive is the fact that they dropped their first four games of the season.  Currently they have won 17 out of their last 18 and are MySportsbook.com’s favorite (2-1) to win it all.  Right behind the Mavs are the Pacific leading Phoenix Suns (39-13).  Last season, the Suns lost in the Conference Finals to non-other then the Mavericks four games to two.  Of course the Suns were without center Amare Stoudemire who has is averaging 19.9 PPG and 9.5 RPG since coming back from his knee injury.  Unlike the Mavs, the Suns have struggled a bit lately having lost their last three and four out of their last seven.  Of course the main reason for their three straight loses is due to the absence of two time MVP Steve Nash, who is out with a shoulder injury.  Heads-up, the Mavs have beaten the Suns in both of their meetings this season.

In the Eastern Conference, the Pistons (32-19) are the favorites to win it all at 6-1. The addition of Chris Webber seems to have been a good move for the Pistons.  Since coming over from the 76ers, Webber has averaged 13.1 PPG and 7.3 RPG and the Pistons are 11-4.  Even though the defending champion Heat are currently on the playoff making cusp, they are the Eastern Conference team that is getting the most action to win it all (9-1).  The fact that Shaquille O’Neal is back in the starting lineup after missing 39 games probably has something to do with this.  No doubt, Shaq makes a difference when in the lineup as their winning six out of their last seven would indicate.

Just because it is the All-Star break doesn’t mean that you can’t bet on NBA hoops this weekend.  Be sure to log onto MySportsbook.com to bet on who you think will cut down the nets this July. Also, be sure to check out all of the lines and props for All-Star weekend.  With the highest credit card acceptance rate in the industry, there are plenty of ways to cash in on the NBA this weekend.

MySportsbook.com’s NBA Championship odds:

Atlanta Hawks 1000-1

Boston Celtics 5000-1

Charlotte Bobcats 5000-1

Chicago Bulls 20-1

Cleveland Cavaliers 20-1

Dallas Mavericks 2-1

Denver Nuggets 25-1

Detroit Pistons 6-1

Golden State Warriors 250-1

Houston Rockets 12-1

Indiana Pacers 60-1

Los Angeles Clippers 45-1

Memphis Grizzlies 5000-1

Miami Heat 9-1

Milwaukee Bucks 1000-1

Minnesota T-Wolves 200-1

New Jersey Nets 50-1

New Orleans Hornets 150-1

New York Knicks 150-1

Orlando Magic 75-1

Philadelphia 76ers 1000-1

Phoenix Suns 5-2

Portland TrailBlazers 1000-1

Sacramento Kings 250-1

San Antonio Spurs 9-1

Seattle Sonics 5000-1

Toronto Raptors 35-1

Utah Jazz 20-1

Washington Wizards 25-1

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