LPGA Tour founder Danoff dies at 88

Golf Betting Lines

12/22/2011 - Daytona Beach, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Bettye Danoff, who was one of the 13 founding members of the LPGA Tour in 1950, has died. She was 88.

Known by fellow playing pros as "Mighty Mite" for her diminutive stature, Danoff died Thursday in Texas, the LPGA Tour said.

In a statement, LPGA commissioner Mike Whan said the tour was living proof that Danoff made a difference in the world of golf.

"Because of her courage, and the vision/belief of many others that followed our founders, we all get to participate in a fantastic business and game," said Whan.

Danoff began playing golf at the age of six when her parents opened a driving range and a nine-hole golf course. Among her career achievements was beating Babe Zaharias 1-up in the Texas Women's Open, ending Zaharias' 17-tournament winning streak.

Before turning professional in 1949, Danoff played exhibitions as an amateur with rising PGA Tour star Byron Nelson and was the medalist at the 1948 U.S. Women's Amateur Championship.

She traveled with her three daughters while competing on the LPGA Tour in the days before tour childcare.

"I remember traveling for five consecutive tournaments with her while she played," said Debbie Bell, her youngest daughter. "She was often frustrated because she had to find friends and people to help watch us while she competed."

After her husband died suddenly in 1961, Danoff was limited to playing tournaments in Texas and Oklahoma while she raised her family. Later, she was the first grandmother on the LPGA Tour.

Wwwussoccer Golf Betting News

<< 2011-12 Toronto Raptors Preview
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Consider this a fact-finding year North of the Border as Dwane Casey, Rick Carlisle's lead assistant in Dallas, takes over quite a rebuilding project with the Toronto Raptors. Casey plans to focus on defense, historically

<< 2011-12 Detroit Pistons Preview
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It's a new era for the Detroit Pistons. Detroit enters the 2011-12 campaign with a new head coach, as Lawrence Frank takes the helm from John Kuester, who was fired after going 57-107 over two contentious seasons, includin

<< 2011-12 San Antonio Spurs Preview
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Many prognosticators envision an aging club on the decline when they talk about the 2011-12 version of the San Antonio Spurs. That might be a little harsh since the Spurs are coming off a Western Conference-best 61-21 seas

<< Kings' Richards returns from IR
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Kings have activated forward Mike Richards from injured reserve. Richards missed the last eight games with an upper-body injury, which he suffered on a high check by Florida for

<< 2011-12 Sacramento Kings Preview
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After surveying their roster, Kings basketball chief Geoff Petrie and coach Paul Westphal came up with a plan for attacking the upcoming lockout-shortened 66-game season. The franchise decided to accentuate its young legs

2011-12 Utah Jazz Preview >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - For the first time since the 1988-89 campaign, there will be a new sideline boss opening the season for the Utah Jazz. The NBA lockout took precedence over the entire league, but now that the two sides have agreed on a new

2011-12 Washington Wizards Preview >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Washington Wizards are still in the early stages of rebuilding a roster that once revolved around three All-Stars, Gilbert Arenas, Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler. The centerpiece of that rebuilding process remains las

2011-12 Golden State Warriors Preview >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The latest Bay Area basketball reboot kicks off under the auspices of Mark Jackson this season with the highly-touted ex-point guard hoping to turn a team that finished 10 games under .500 last season into a playoff contender

No. 3 Kentucky downs Loyola-Maryland behind balanced attack >>
Lexington, KY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kyle Wiltjer led four Kentucky players in double figures with 24 points, as the third-ranked Wildcats topped Loyola- Maryland, 87-63. Anthony Davis posted a double-double of 15 points and 11 rebounds

Atletico Madrid sacks Manzano >>
Madrid, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Atletico Madrid fired coach Gregorio Manzano on Thursday, ending the 55-year-old's second stop with the club after just six months in charge. Manzano previously coached Atletico in 2003-04, and after departi

MySportsbook.com is one of the most efficient and professional online sportsbook today. While some sportsbooks only excel during the busiest seasons, MySportsbook is an excellent choice for the player who wants year-round quality. From their baseball true dime line to their interactive wagering, MySportsbook makes sure their clients would miss them if they went elsewhere.

Players won’t find any novelties at this sportsbook. The site is clean and simple and most importantly, fast. Customer Service handles matters in an expedient manner and accounting does everything possible to assure players that they have full control of their funds. The online banking center is open 24/7 in which time Neteller payouts are processed.

Management’s background and understanding of sports gambling has helped make them pioneers in the online betting market. MySportsbook was the first betting site to offer sports wagering in the best form. Interactive wagering was first offered in 1997. Players who don’t stop wagering when the game begins consider this sportsbook a true asset.

Players who are looking for outstanding value, extensive wagering options and inexpensive payouts will appreciate what MySportsbook.com offers. Those who are looking for perks and high bonuses would be best suited in a sportsbook geared towards the regular player.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your sports betting needs.

SPORTS BETTING - Tennis is an underrated and under-utilized bettors' sport.

Ten years ago, at just about this time, I called Alan Boston in Vegas and left him a voicemail that went something like this (abridged version): "Hey Alan, Chad Millman from ESPN The Magazine calling. I want to do a book about wise guys, you in?"

A couple weeks later I got a message back (abridged version): "I don't know, maybe," Boston said. "Call me and we'll talk about it. But not later today. I got $1,000 on Andre Agassi to win the French Open at 40-1, and he's in the finals."

Here's what happened next (abridged version): Agassi won his tourney. Boston won his $40,000. I wrote sportsbook.

In the ten years since, how much has been wagered on the big-time tennis events? Put it this way: The Nevada Gaming Commission doesn't even track the number year by year because it's so small.

"Tennis makes up about one-tenth of one percent of our take," says Lucky's bookmaking boss Jimmy Vaccaro. "The last big golf major we probably had $100,000 worth of bets. In tennis, we might have written two big tickets."

Tennis' lack of popularity amongst the American bettoratti is no surprise, really. For starters, the biggest sports betting holidays -- the Super Bowl, the NCAA tourney -- are must see TV. People, at least the degenerates I know, plan vacations around watching those events in Vegas sports books.

But Wimbledon? Doesn't exactly reel in the whales. "Seriously, it's the nuts as an event," says Boston. "But who even knows when it's on?"

Here's another reason that helps explain why golf gets traction, something I call "The Bubbe Theory." My Bubbe is pushing 95 and has cataracts so bad that, to her, even the most crystalline Chicago day is mostly cloudy. But she still listens to the Cubs games, and she still calls me in a fit if she disagrees with something Rick Telander writes in the Chicago Sun Times. She's a sports fan. If she doesn't know you, you're just filling a niche. And niche players, even historically good ones like Roger and Raf, don't drive betting volume. Only the highest profile names attract square money, which inflates wagering totals like a shot of saline to the lips. Bubbe, and the public, loved Agassi, tennis' last cross-the-rubicon, mainstream draw. She also has a crush on Tiger. She's given me standing orders to put a sawbuck on the big cat whenever I walk through a sports book (or mistakenly tap into one via my Internet machine.) That explains why the Masters is getting $100K in action at some books while the four tennis majors might not get that combined this year.

This isn't a case of tennis being a difficult sport to bet. In fact, in Europe, it's probably the second most popular sport for gambling after soccer. Granted, as the WSJ football betting last week and The Mag's Shaun Assael examined in even greater depth last year, that might be because gamblers across the pond see it as an easy game to fix. But it could also be because, over there it holds the kind of sway the big two do over here.

Street corners in Spain are peppered with public courts and kids doing their best Raffy impressions. In some war torn parts of Eastern Europe poverty-stricken kids view tennis as an escape route, like football or basketball here. A couple years ago The Mag's Lindsay Berra wrote a great piece about Belgrade's Jelena Jankovic, Ana Ivanovic and Novak Djokovic. They learned the game as kids while bombs were raining down on their homeland. They practiced in drained swimming pools. Not exactly Nick Bolletierri conditions.

In the United States, casual fans think tennis is played four times a year. But on the tightly packed European continent, national interest in homegrown talent runs deep every weekend. Of the ATP's current top 20 players, only two, tennis betting and James Blake, are American. Fourteen are from Europe, representing six different countries.

No wonder fans from Lisbon to Bhudapest get jacked up for the net game, whether it's Wimbledon or a low-level tourney like the Estoril Open in Portugal (congrats to Spain's Albert Montanes for winning that one, btw). Chances are good that someone representing their flag will not only be playing, but have a shot at winning.

And that's all any bettor can ask for.

To visit this sports book go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.