Will Matt Hasselbeck's total TD passes be over 1 1/2 or under 1 1/2?

Matt Hasselbeck: This Week’s Free $10 Bet at SportingbetUSA

This week, SportingbetUSA.com’s free NFL bet is on Seattle Mariners quarterback Matt Hasselbeck’s touchdown passes in Sunday’s game against Houston.

Every week, SportingbetUSA.com offers one totally free NFL bet to all of its active customers. It’s free to place this special ten-dollar bet so bettors that lose, lose nothing. Those that win, however, bank real cash.

This week’s Free $10 Bet:

Will Matt Hasselbeck's total TD passes be over 1 1/2 or under 1 1/2?
Houston at Seattle
Sunday, October 16, 2005 8:30 PM EST

“Talk about a win-win situation,” said SportingbetUSA.com Manager Tony Delgado, “This is a totally free bet you can make without risking a penny.”

Matt Hasselbeck threw for 316 yards and two touchdowns in last Sunday's 37-31 win over the St. Louis Rams. Like most football players, the Seattle Seahawk quarterback doesn't make too much money off the playing field. But the six-year contract he signed this year could pay him a total of $49 million, including a $16 million signing bonus.

The weekly Free Bet can be placed by any active player at SportingbetUSA.com.

Chicago Bears odds take a hit after Grossman’s injury

Sportsbook.com updates the team’s Super Bowl odds

Sportsbooks are posting new odds on the Chicago Bears’ chances of winning the Super Bowl following the injury to starting quarterback Rex Grossman. The new odds at Sportsbook.com for example list the Bears as a 100-1 long shot. The odds prior to Grossman’s ankle injury were 75-1.

“The Bears were not exactly one of the favorites going into the season, but we already received a substantial number of wagers on Chicago to win the Super Bowl, so the change in odds is significant for people who like to bet on the NFL,” says Peter Childs, Odds Maker, Sportsbook.com. “But with the injury, it’s likely to make a long season that much tougher for Bears fans.”

The favorite to win the Super Bowl is Indianapolis (5-1), followed by New England (15-2), Philadelphia (17-2) and Minnesota (14-1). Only three teams have worse odds of winning the Super Bowl than the Bears: Tennessee (130-1), Cleveland (175-1) and San Francisco (225-1).

Complete odds and propositions on the NFL can be found at www.sportsbook.com.

Super Bowl Odds:

Indianapolis Colts 5-1 Denver Broncos 40-1

New England Patriots 15-2 Seattle Seahawks 42-1

Philadelphia Eagles 17-2 Buffalo Bills 44-1

Minnesota Vikings 14-1 St. Louis Rams 44-1

Atlanta Falcons 15-1 Green Bay Packers 45-1

Baltimore Ravens 15-1 Washington Redskins 45-1

Carolina Panthers 17-1 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 50-1

Pittsburgh Steelers 18-1 Arizona Cardinals 60-1

Kansas City Chiefs 22-1 New York Giants 60-1

New York Jets 26-1 New Orleans Saints 65-1

Dallas Cowboys 27-1 Miami Dolphins 75-1

San Diego Chargers 35-1 Houston Texans 85-1

Cincinnati Bengals 38-1 Chicago Bears 100-1

Detroit Lions 38-1 Tennessee Titans 130-1

Jacksonville Jaguars 38-1 Cleveland Browns 175-1

Oakland Raiders 38-1 San Francisco 49ers 225-1

NFC North Division Champions Odds:

Minnesota Vikings 5-6

Detroit Lions 3-1

Green Bay Packers 4-1

Chicago Bears 13-1

Odds makers like the Leafs chances after Lindros signing

Oilers and Flames have also seen significant improvement in odds with off-season moves

Sportsbooks are posting updated odds on the quest for the 2006 Stanley Cup, with the fortunes of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers looking brighter following some key off-season moves.

The original odds by Sportsbook.com were made after the new collective bargaining agreement between the League and the union was signed. The Toronto Maple Leafs have seen their odds improve from 15-1 to 12-1 following the signings of Eric Lindros, Jeff O’Neill and Jason Allison; this despite criticism from local media. The Canadian team to make the biggest splash has been the Edmonton Oilers. Their odds have improved dramatically to 25-1, from an opening line of 40-1, following the acquisition of Chris Pronger and Michael Peca. The Calgary Flames have also made a big splash, locking up Jarome Iginla and Miikka Kiprusoff and adding Tony Amonte to a line-up that reached the last Stanley Cup Final. Their odds have gone from 25-1 to 20-1.

“The Canadian teams have all been very active in either signing high profile new players or retaining the services of their key players, like Iginla in Calgary, Naslund in Vancouver and Kovolev in Montreal,” said Peter Childs, Odds Maker, Sportsbook.com. “Everyone in Canada is excited about the upcoming season and we’re already starting to see a lot of wagers coming in.”

The Ottawa Senators, perhaps the best Canadian based team in the NHL, has seen its odds drop to 10-1, from an opening line of 8-1. The Montreal Canadiens and Vancouver Canucks remain at 20-1 and 12-1 respectively.

The biggest jump in odds, not surprisingly, has been for the Pittsburgh Penguins, who went from 100-1 favourites to 35-1 after drafting Sidney Crosby and signing Ziggy Palffy and Sergei Gonchar. Their interstate rival, Philadelphia, has the best odds at 5-1, following their acquisition of Peter Forsberg and Derian Hatcher.

“Canada is the hotbed of hockey, but Pennsylvania may give us a run for our money this year. Pittsburgh and Philadelphia are going to be a lot of fun to watch,” added Childs.

Wayne Gretzky’s Phoenix Coyotes are a 75-1 long shot to win the Stanley Cup in the Great One’s first season behind the bench.

Below is a complete list of odds for the 2006 Stanley Cup:

Philadelphia Flyers 5-1

Detroit Red Wings 8-1

Ottawa Senators 10-1

New Jersey Devils 12-1

Tampa Bay Lightning 12-1

Toronto Maple Leafs 12-1

Vancouver Canucks 12-1

Colorado Avalanche 15-1

San Jose Sharks 15-1

Boston Bruins 20-1

Calgary Flames 20-1

Dallas Stars 20-1

Los Angeles Kings 20-1

Montreal Canadiens 20-1

St. Louis Blues 20-1

Atlanta Thrashers 25-1

Edmonton Oilers 25-1

Pittsburgh Penguins 35-1

Anaheim Mighty Ducks 40-1

Minnesota Wild 40-1

Florida Panthers 50-1

Chicago Blackhawks 60-1

Columbus Blue Jackets 60-1

New York Islanders 60-1

New York Rangers 60-1

Buffalo Sabres 75-1

Phoenix Coyotes 75-1

Carolina Hurricanes 100-1

Washington Capitals 100-1

Women Like "Soft Gambling"?

Survey says Online Casinos and Bingo are a Big Hit with Women

The phenomenal success of online gambling seems to have been mirrored by another unpredicted rise, the unprecedented number of women now being drawn to bingo websites. A survey carried out by Hitwise revealed that although fewer women use regular betting sites, bingo website visitors are invariably female in 3 out of every 5 cases. “The industry has enjoyed explosive growth and in order to continue to gain market share, gambling sites will need to lure new audiences,” explained Hitwise Research Director, Heather Hopkins. “Women have traditionally been underrepresented on gambling websites but bingo is changing that. So-called ‘soft-gambling’ opens the doors to a new audience.”

Sportsbook.com presents The Big Ticket, the ultimate sports experience

Win tickets to the SuperBowl, World Series, NCAA Final Four, The Masters and more…

Sportsbook.com has added a new element to sports wagering – the greatest prize a sports enthusiast could ever imagine. Beginning on August 1^st, every ten dollars wagered on Sportsbook.com will earn players an entry into The Big Ticket contest.

The Big Ticket first prize includes two VIP tickets to ten major sporting events, plus $10,000 betting cash on Sportsbook.com. The events include:

• The SuperBowl
• World Series of Poker seat
• MLB World Series
• US Masters Golf
• Stanley Cup game
• NCAA Basketball Final Four
• NBA Finals
• Petit Lemans at Atlanta
• US Open Tennis
• Ringside seats to a Sportsbook.com sponsored Boxing match of your choice

“The Big Ticket is without question the greatest sports promotion anywhere in the world,” says Alex Czajkowski at Sportsbook.com. “Sportsbook.com has the most committed and loyal fans in the industry and we’re thrilled to give them, and new players, a chance to enter this unbelievably exciting promotion.”

Second place winners will be drawn throughout the contest with each receiving two tickets to one of the above events (player’s choice) along with $1,000 in Sportsbook.com betting cash. The entries are unlimited and the contest closes December 31^st, 2005.

MLB Wild Card Odds -- Battle for final playoff spots heating up

Sportsbook.com has posted odds on which team will stake claim to the Wild Card spots in the American League and National League races. With several of the Division pennant races still up for grabs, determining who will qualify directly for the post season and who will claim the Wild Card spots is anyone’s guess.

National League

The leading favorite to capture the Wild Card in the NL is Houston with 6-5 odds. The Astros are well back of St. Louis in the Central Division but have one of the best records among the non division leading teams. The only team with a better record right now, and not leading their division, is the Washington Nationals. However, the Nationals have struggled lately and are only 6-1 favorites to take the Wild Card.

Other teams in the hunt include the Chicago Cubs (5-1) and the Philadelphia Phillies (6-1).

“The Wild Card is likely to go to whoever finishes second in the Central,” says Peter Childs, Odds Maker, Sportsbook.com. “The five teams in the East will really beat each other up over the remainder of the year to see who can take the pennant. It’s hard to see two teams from that division going on a run and keeping up with Houston.”

American League

Though it seemed unlikely a few weeks ago, the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox have picked up steam and are right back in the hunt for both the AL East title and the Wild Card spot in the American league. The Yankees and Red Sox are 8-5 and 9-5 favorites respectively. Other teams with a chance include the Oakland Athletics (5-1) and Minnesota Twins (6-1).

“At the start of the year, everyone assumed the Yankees and Red Sox would have the best records in the League, meaning one of them would be the Wild Card team,” says Childs. “Despite their slow starts, it seems both teams may very well end up in the playoffs after all.”

A complete list of odds and propositions on MLB can be found at www.sportsbook.com.

MLB WILD CARD ODDS

National League Wild Card – Who Will Win

Houston Astros 6-5

Chicago Cubs 5-1

Philadelphia Phillies 6-1

Washington Nationals 6-1

Atlanta Braves 8-1

Florida Marlins 10-1

New York Mets 10-1

Field (any other team) 10-1

American League Wild Card – Who Will Win

New York Yankees 8-5

Boston Red Sox 9-5

Oakland Athletics 5-1

Minnesota Twins 6-1

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 15-1

Baltimore Orioles 18-1

Cleveland Indians 18-1

Texas Rangers 30-1

Toronto Blue Jays 35-1

Detroit Tigers 40-1

Field (any other team) 75-1