The Sports Bookie Blog

NASCAR Allstate 400 Betting Preview (July 27)

The Nascar Allstate 400 betting at top handicap sportsbook, PinnacleSports.com, has Sprint Cup Series points leader Kyle Busch as a +564 (6.640)* favourite to win the Allstate 400 this Sunday at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, which would be Busch’s eighth race win of the season.

As if Busch needed any help cashing wins, the Brickyard presents an ideal venue for his Toyota and his teammates at Joe Gibbs Racing. Indianapolis favours cars with horsepower over handling ability, because the track is flat and turns are narrow.

That’s good news for Tony Stewart (+839, 9.390)* and Denny Hamlin (+1363, 14.630)* backers. Stewart has won at Indy two of the last three years, including last season. Stewart is one of only two drivers in the field who have multiple wins at the Brickyard, the other being Jeff Gordon (+1500, 16.000)*.

Gordon is the sharp pick, because Gordon has owned Indy since the track opened its doors to NASCAR in 1994. Gordon has four wins and the highest average finish at Indy (8.9) of any driver, with 11 top 10s and eight top 5s in 14 starts at the Brickyard. There’s huge value in Gordon at his current price.

If you’re looking to play it safe and lay down cash on a driver that stays on the track, look no further than Jeff Burton (+3500, 36.000)* and Bill Elliott (listed with the field at (+2832, 29.320)*. Burton and Elliott are the only two drivers that have finished all 14 races at the Brickyard. Elliott won it in 2002, while Burton leads the Series in average start-to-finish at +11.5.

It may be prescient to avoid NASCAR betting on the pole sitter: Kevin Harvick (+1918, 20.180)* is the only driver to have taken the checkered flag at Indianapolis from the lead position, turning the trick in 2003.

Do bet on the winner, after the race: If history tells us anything, the winner at the Allstate 400 has a great chance to win the Sprint Cup. The victor at Indy has gone on to win the Series championship six times, most recently in 2006 when Jimmie Johnson (+719, 8.190)* pulled it off.

The green flag will drop at 1 pm ET on Sunday.

*All odds subject to change (so check out the latest on site at PinnacleSports.com)

About PinnacleSports.com
PinnacleSports.com’s underlying philosophy is to educate players and our key principle is simple - always get the best price. PinnacleSports.com was the first online sports book to introduce reduced margin betting, using a pricing model that gives players up to 60% better odds than other bookmakers. With low minimum bet requirements and the highest maximum limits on the Web, PinnacleSports.com has earned an industry leading reputation for providing consistent value to the player, professional customer service and the quickest payouts online.

>>Find a smarter way to bet at PinnacleSports.com
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Ladbrokes Poker is inviting all UK based poker players to try their luck at winning “The Ultimate Silverstone Driving Experience“.

The prize is a day’s racing at Silverstone and sounds a lot of fun. Oh yeah, it’s free to enter, so you’ve really got nothing to lose!

Ladbrokes operates Europe’s busiest online poker room (powered by Microgaming Poker software). It’s very popular with European and UK poker players as Ladbrokes offers some of the best cash games on the net, great tournament poker as well as regular player promotions and competitions. Free sports bets and VIP Sporting Event passes are regular prizes.

In their latest promotion you can win a day of racing at Silverstone (the famous British Grand Prix circuit) in a selection of ‘really cool’ cars. Fancy doing handbrake turns around a purpose-built gravel rally stage? Want top try a unique off-road course in an ATV?.

If you win this free-to-enter poker tournament you’ll experience all of the following*: Ferrari 360 f1™ Modena, Porsche 911 Carrera 4, Formula Silverstone single seater, Lotus Exige, Ford Fiesta Street Group ‘N’ Rally car, Caterham 7, Peugeot 206 GTI rally car, Land Rover Defender, Honda TRX 350 ATV
* N.B. the activity line up may be subject to change, but equally amazing alternatives will be available! This is Ladbrokes, they won’t rip you off!

So how do I enter?

By playing poker in free-to-enter qualifiers!  Each day from 20th July to 31st July, there are free 1 Hour Qualifying Sessions that lead on to the main event on August 3rd – “The Ladbrokes F1 Poker Tournament“. Here’s how it works:

Qualifying Session: Each night at 20:00 BST, from 20th – 31st July, there’ll be a free-to-enter F1 Poker Qualifier tournament. After 1 hour of play, the tournament will be paused, and if your chip stack is within the top 20% of the field at that time, you will qualify for the Main Event. If you don’t make it through the qualifier, don’t worry - you can enter as many qualifiers as you want until you get through!

Main Event: On August 3rd at 12:00 BST, during the Hungary Grand Prix, all successful qualifiers will be able to play in the Ladbrokes F1 Poker main event. Your chip stacks from qualifying will be re-set, and the “race” will not stop until there is a winner. Play poker online while watching all the action from the Hungary Grand Prix on TV!

$5,000 of Prizes!

Win the F1 Poker Main Event and you will win the driving experience of a lifetime (list of activities above). There will also be runner up prizes as follows:

1st: Ultimate Driving Experience at Silverstone PLUS $600 into your poker account!
2nd: $600, 3rd: $400, 4th: $300, 5th: $200, 6th – 10th: $100, 11th – 20th: $50, 21st – 40th: $25

Check out Ladbrokes Poker and register for a F1 Qualifier today!
For more info read the latest Ladbrokes Poker Review 
Compare Ladbrokes Poker to other top rated poker sites popular with UK and European players.

The German Grand Prix takes places this weekend at Hockenheim and Kimi Raikkonen is priced 2.650* favourite on the German Grand Prix betting at top handicap sportsbook PinnacleSports.com, with Lewis Hamilton priced 3.040*.

The pair are tussling in the Drivers’ World Championship, locked on 48 points along with Raikkonen’s Ferrari team-mate, Felipe Massa, suggesting the title race could be as close as last season, which went down to the final race. Kimi Raikkonen is slight favourite to retain his World Championship Drivers’ title priced 2.380* at PinnacleSports.com, with Hamilton 2.780*.

Hockenheim Returns But No Surprises Expected

Though there was a Formula One race in Germany last year, won by McLaren’s Fernando Alonso at the Nurburgring, confusingly there was no German Grand Prix on the calendar. It was agreed by the FIA that an F1 race would take place in Germany from 2007-10 alternating between Nurburgring and Hockenheimring, but since the latter owns the rights to be named ‘German Grand Prix’, the former was known in 2007 as the European Grand Prix. So this year the German Grand Prix returns to the schedule, taking place at Hockenheim from July 18-20, with full German Grand Prix betting available at leading formula one online bookmaker, PinnacleSports.com.

At the last German Grand Prix in 2006, Ferrari scored a one-two, with Michael Schumacher delighting home fans ahead of Felipe Massa. Kim Raikkanonen had qualified in first place (then driving for McLaren) but his chances were ruined as his fuel load was much lower than intended, a mistake which cost him the race after an early forced pit-stop.

In its original configuration Hockenheim was a high-speed blast through the forest, with arguably the best layout on the F1 circuit for overtaking. Rubens Barrichello’s demonstrated this in 2000 winning from 18th on the grid, but a similar last to first scenario is unlikely at the modern incarnation. The circuit was carved up in 2002, with the characteristic long straights through woods consigned to the history books, and a long twisty stadium section becoming the focal point. Lap length has been reduced, consequently increasing lap frequency, giving spectators more drive-byes; but in this context, more is less.

The hairpin at the end of the straight sees its share of action but the new track is tougher to pass on a powerful engine, which was essential for success in its old guise, but it is now a medium down-force circuit. The race relies less on driver skill and more on car set-up so is unlikely to produce shock results, but nothing can ever be taken for granted when cars are travelling in excess of 200mph, so punters should ensure they get the best German Grand Prix odds available, using a low commission bookmaker like PinnacleSports.com, specialising in Formula One betting.

* All odds subject to change (so check out the latest on site)

ABOUT PINNACLESPORTS
Pinnacle Sports has been in operation as an online sportsbook since 1998. They are based in Curaçao and renowned as the bookmaker for the professional gamblers as they accept large stakes and offer very strong odds (especially handicap betting) across most major sports. Sorry, no USA residents can join.

>>Visit PinnacleSports.com for a look around
>>Find out more about PinnacleSports in a detailed Sportsbook Review here at BookieLabRat.com.

Intertoto Betting - Round Three (July 19/20 & 26/27)

The UEFA Intertoto Cup has reached a crucial point as the competition now enters its third and final round with fixtures on the weekends of July 19/20 and 26/27. At this stage some big names appear in the Intertoto betting menu at PinnacleSports.com, such as Aston Villa, VfB Stuttgart, Napoli and Deportivo La Coruna. The current Intertoto betting suggests that all the big guns should comfortably qualify for the UEFA first round, but the minnows should be sharper having been sharpened by the earlier rounds.

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In all there are eleven third round Intertoto ties over two legs, with each providing the winning team with a place in the UEFA Cup, beginning October 23rd. One of the biggest david and goliath Intertoto betting heats sees Israel’s Bnei Sakhnin take on the might of Spain’s Deportivo La Coruna, while Danish side Odense, will have their work cut out against Premiership side, Aston Villa.

The first round of the Intertoto kicked off on June 27th starting the long road to the final of the UEFA Cup, taking place this time around in Turkey at Fenerbahce’s Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium on May 20th, 2009. Last year’s competition - won by Zenit St.Petersburg - showed the increasing strength of Russian clubs, but Italian giants, AC Milan, will the team to beat this year round, having failed to qualify for the Champions League, finishing fifth in Serie A.

The group stages of the 51st UEFA Cup starts on October 23rd with the all important draw taking place on October 7th. As ever PinnacleSports.com will be offering 1.96/1.96 style Asian Handicaps priced to less than 102%, which gives punters up to 60% better UEFA Cup betting odds than traditional bookmakers.

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British Open Golf Betting Preview (Royal Birkdale, July 17-20)

The 2008 British Open has been thrown wide open following the withdrawal of Tiger Woods due to injury, with the market now headed by Sergio Garcia, priced the 11.000* favourite on PinnacleSports.com’s British Open betting. The Spaniard has been a model of consistency at the British Open, with six top ten finishes in the last seven years, including in 2007, when beaten by Padraig Harrington in a play-off. Despite being the defending champion, the Irishman is longer odds then Garcia, priced 17.000* in the British Open betting at PinnacleSports.com.

South African, Ernie Els, another Britsh Open specialist is the 15.000* second favourite at PinnacleSports.com on the strength of his excellent record in the event. The Big Easy has six top five finishes in the last eight years, winning in 2002, but his recent form either side of the Atlantic only ranks him among the top 25 golfers.

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Last year at Carnoustie, Harrington became the first European since Jose Maria Olazabal at the 1999 US Masters, to win a major, but it wasn’t the most stylish of wins. The Irishman fell over the line having gone to 18 with a one-shot lead over Garcia, only to double-bogey, eventually beating the Spaniard in the playoff. Also available at the same price as Harrington in the British Open betting at PinnacleSports.com is Lee Westwood – current leader in the European Tour money standings - and Phil Mickelson, third on the USPGA earnings rankings, but with just one top ten British Open finish in eighteen attempts.

Justin Rose also offers domestic hope priced 26.000* in the British Open golf betting at PinnacleSports.com. Now 27, Rose landed the 2007 European Tour Order of Merit with his thrilling win at the Volvo Masters. However, he has just four European tour titles to his name and none on the USPGA. Though he finished fifth in the 2007 US Masters, his fourth place at Birkdale a decade ago remains his best finish at a major, and bettors will have to judge whether the course will inspire similar heroics a decade on, or the pressure of expectation prove too great.

The British Open, the third golf major of the year, will also be critical in determining the final qualification places for the 2008 Ryder Cup teams. The event carries twice as much weight as regular tour events, giving extra motivation for players desperate to be playing at Valahalla in September. Luke Donald is out of the British Open through injury, so is likely to be one of Nick Faldo’s two captain’s picks, leaving only one other wildcard alongside the top ten ranked players on the European money list.
*All odds subject to change

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(Sorry, no USA residents can wager with PinnacleSports.com)

Liverpool’s new assistant manager Sammy Lee on Sunday said the Anfield outfit can outshine their Premier League rivals and end the club’s 19-year wait for title glory.

“There are three very good teams,” Lee told the club’s website. “We are not that far away and I feel we have proven on many occasions over the past four or five years that we can be better than them. Not as good as - but better.”

Last season Liverpool came fourth in England’s top flight behind champions Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal.

“I feel we are going in the right way. I feel with just a little bit of tweaking here and there we will not be far off,” said Lee, who returned to the club in May as Rafael Benitez’s second in charge. Only time will tell, but everyone is striving and working hard to try and make sure we can close that gap and overhaul it.”

As a player Lee enjoyed nine fruitful years at Anfield, making almost 300 first-team appearances and scoring 19 goals as the club won three first division titles and two European Cups in the early 1980s. After finishing his career at Bolton Wanderers, Lee was invited to join the Liverpool coaching staff by manager Graeme Souness in 1993, going on to help Gerard Houllier steer the club to a Premier League runners-up spot in 2002. He joined Sven-Goran Eriksson’s England national team set-up on a full-time basis in 2004 and was appointed Sam Allardyce’s assistant at Bolton in 2005.

“The attention to detail of Rafa and his staff is fantastic,” said Lee of his new boss and his backroom team. “It’s a joy to watch. They look at every facet of every player and work out how they can maximise and get the best out of every player. That for me is an education. “All the top men have their own ideas, but the best ones are also prepared to listen to other ideas and decide how much of that input they want to implement.”

Photo and blog post courtesy of Paddy Power Bookmaker.

Here’s Paddy’s latest odds on Liverpool to win Multiple Trophies*
- Liverpool to win the Premier League & the F.A Cup  33 - 1  (34.00)
- Liverpool to win the Premier League and the Carling Cup  40 - 1  (41.00)
(*odds subject to change so check them out on site at PaddyPower.com)

>>Review of Paddy Power Sportsbook - compare this top rating Irish bookie to other top online bookmakers here at BookieLabRat.com.

Former England captain David Beckham claimed on Sunday that his ex-Real Madrid team-mate Zinedine Zidane is the best player of all time.

The 33-year-old Englishman told sports daily Marca that it had been a dream come true to play alongside Zidane for three years at Real.

“To train with Zidane for three years (2003-06) was a dream,” confessed Beckham, who has been capped over 100 times by his country. For me he is the greatest player of all time.”

Beckham, who is now playing for Los Angeles Galaxy, also believed that the best Spanish player at the moment is Barcelona’s playmaker Xavi, who inspired Spain to the Euro 2008 title last month and was judged player of the tournament.

However, Beckham also thinks that goalkeeper Iker Casillas, who he knows from his time at Real, should be awarded world player of the year after several outstanding performances at the Euro.

Beckham also denied he wished to become an actor even though he is living in Hollywood but that he would like to return to Madrid - where he still has a house - one day and work with the youth side at Real.

Photo and blog post courtesy of Bodog Sports. Bodog has successfully extended from a highly popular North American sportsbook into offering credible odds and coverage of UK and European betting markets. Check it out!

>>Bodog Sports
>>Bodog Sportsbook Review

A happy family as Serena and Venus set up Wimbledon title clash?
 
Venus and Serena Williams, who boast six Wimbledon titles between them, will clash for the third time in an All England Club final on Saturday.

Venus, the four-time winner and defending champion, booked her place with a 6-1, 7-6 (7/3) win over Russian fifth seed Elena Dementieva to reach her seventh singles final. Serena, the younger of the two sisters, then ended wildcard Zheng Jie’s hopes of becoming the first Chinese player to reach a Grand Slam final with a battling 6-2, 7-6 (7/5) win. The 26-year-old Serena will be looking to complete a hat-trick of Wimbledon wins over her sister having come out on top in the 2002 and 2003 finals.

Venus inists the final will be fully competitive despite scepticism in the past over whether the two perform to the maximum of their ability when they share the same court. “I find the question pretty offensive because I’m extremely professional in everything that I do on and off the court,” said Venus, the holder of six Grand Slam titles. “I contribute my best in my sport, and I also have a ton of respect for myself and my family. So any mention of that is extremely disrespectful for who I am and my family.”

Serena, 11 kilos heavier and more than 11cm taller than Zheng, had too much brawn for the world 133, who had made her mark by knocking out top seed Ana Ivanovic in the third round. “She pushed me and really played a great match,” said Serena of an opponent she had comfortably defeated in the first round here four years ago.

Zheng was left to regret a great opportunity to take the semi-final to a decider when she held set point in the 10th game of the second set but Williams was able to call on her powerful smash to rescue herself. “She played like she had nothing to lose. I was able to hit a smash on that set point. I didn’t really want to go into a third set,” added the American sixth seed who will be facing her sister in a seventh Grand Slam final.
“I’m looking forward to playing Venus in the final. She’ll be the toughest opponent I have faced. “We haven’t played each other in a Grand Slam final for five years but that’s because our rankings fell or we were in the same side of the draw. I guess this is a new start for both of us.”

Serena’s last Wimbledon final appearance was in 2004, when she lost to a teenage Maria Sharapova.

Check out the latest bookie prices on Wimbledon betting live here at BookieLabRat.com.

When this blog was posted BoyleSports and Centrebet had the best odds on a Serena win at 1.85 (5/6), with PinnacleSports offering the best odds at 2.08 (11/10) on Venus beating her sister.

Spain ended their 44-year wait for a major international title with a 1-0 victory over Germany at the Euro 2008 final on Sunday.

Fernando Torres scored the only goal of the game in the first half as football’s perennial underachievers finally banished that unwanted tag to the history books. It was the first time Spain had won the European title since 1964 and their first final since 1984.

For 69-year-old Spanish coach Luis Aragones there was a tinge of bitterness mixed with the moment of glory. “We did things well, we won, period. I will not be staying on as coach because I have been given no possibility to,” said Aragones.

For Spanish midfielder Cesc Fabregas it was a dream come true. “This is great,” said the 21-year-old Arsenal star. “This is the best day of my life as a player. “I don’t think we are conscious yet of what we have achieved….44 years later. “It has been one of my dreams and I made it. “It is true we won it with style. “We were trying to create chances and play beautiful football and we have at last had the success we deserved. “I don’t know why it has taken this long and I don’t want to think about that anymore as we have achieved it and we are a young team and will fight for the World Cup in two years time.”

For Torres too it was a dream realised. “For me, it’s a dream come true,” said Torres. “Victory in a Euro, is almost as big as a World Cup. I think that we have played very good football throughout the tournament and it was justice done when we won the final.”

German coach Joachim Loew professed his admiration for his side, who defied expectations to reach the final. “I have to compliment the team for what they have achieved over the past few weeks,” said the 48-year-old. “It has been fantastic. The players are obviously disappointed, but they have every reason to hold their heads up high.”

For German captain Michael Ballack it was more disappointment in a major tournament. “It is very sad to lose when one has come such a long way,” said the 31-year-old, who missed the 2002 World Cup final because he was suspended and has also lost two Champions League finals. “All the team battled away. This tournament has come at the end of the season and physically it has been tough. However, today (Sunday) we have made too many errors.”

Spain seemed to start tentatively and a mistake from Sergio Ramos gave Miroslav Klose a glorious opportunity after just four minutes, but after taking the ball past Carles Puyol his next touch was too strong and he ran the ball out of play. Spain gradually started to settle but three-time champions Germany still had the next chance, Thomas Hitzlsperger hitting a tame shot straight at Spain captain Iker Casillas.

Just before the quarter-hour mark Jens Lehmann came to Germany’s rescue as a cross from Andres Iniesta deflected off Christoph Metzelder’s boot and only a stunning reaction save from the Arsenal stopper prevented a goal.

Spain were starting to take control and Torres headed a Xavi free-kick over the bar. On 23 minutes Ramos cut in from the right and crossed to the back post where Torres climbed above the considerably taller Per Mertersacker; his downward header beat Lehmann but unfortunately for Spain not the base of the post.

Up the other end Spain’s slightly suspect defence was struggling to cope with the direct running of Bastian Schweinsteiger and Lukas Podolski but Germany created little despite Ballack’s volley being blocked by Ramos. Then on 33 minutes Torres put Spain ahead with a moment of sublime quality. He latched onto a piercing through ball from Xavi, outpaced Philipp Lahm and chipped the ball over the advancing Lehmann with a flicked shot that could have threaded the eye of a needle. Spain were suddenly rampant and Iniesta crossed to the back post where the unmarked David Silva had a rush of blood to the head and lashed a volley wildly over.

Spain seemed brimming with confidence at the start of the second period and both Xavi and Silva went close with long range efforts before Torres again outpaced the German defence but couldn’t quite reach the ball before Lehmann came out to smother. Germany coach Joachim Loew responded by sending on a second forward in Kevin Kuranyi to replace midfielder Hitzlsperger. That immediately shifted the momentum of the game and on the hour a mistake from Puyol was almost punished as Ballack fired just wide; moments later Casillas came storming out of goal to take a cross from Ballack off Kuranyi’s head. Spain remained dangerous and Ramos forced Lehmann into a fine block with a powerful header from a Xavi free-kick before Torsten Frings cleared a shot from Iniesta off the line.

Brazil-born Marcos Senna came within inches of settling the game in the final 10 minutes but he couldn’t quite stretch his leg out far enough to meet substitute Daniel Guiza’s downward header with the goal at his mercy.

Hewitt faces an uphill task 
Lleyton Hewitt will attempt to halt Roger Federer’s charge towards a sixth Wimbledon title on Monday - and he will use Tiger Woods as an inspiration.

Former champion Hewitt faces Federer in the last 16 knowing his opponent has now won 62 consecutive matches on grass. To add to his task, the Australian is struggling with a hip injury which he admits would have ruled him out of any other tournament. But Hewitt hopes he can follow in Woods’ lead - he won the US Open earlier this month despite clearly struggling with a knee problem which has since ruled him out for the rest of the season.

“I love watching Tiger play, he’s one of my favourite sportsmen,” said the 27-year-old from Adelaide. “What he did was incredible. I don’t really know if anyone else would have been able to do it. Not only to play four rounds but then go out and play a fifth day (for the play-off).

“That’s the kind of stage that was set up perfectly for him. It really was. No-one else on this planet, I don’t think, could have got through with the win.”

Woods was very cagey about the extent of his injury during the event and Hewitt is also keen not to talk up his problem. “I don’t complain about injuries too much, I think that comes from a (Australian Rules) football background,” added the 2002 winner. “You don’t show when you’re hurt. It’s the same out on the court. Very rarely do I give away signs if I’m hurting at all. It’s signs of weakness. I try to play the cards pretty close to my chest.”

Federer has a 13-7 win-loss record against Hewitt, including the last 11 in a row. Two of those wins have come at Wimbledon - the 2004 quarter-finals and the 2005 semi-final.

Attractive
But Hewitt does have at least one advantage - he is now coached by the legendary Tony Roche, who also coached Federer for two and a half years until they split in May last year.

“Rochey’s obviously going to know a lot,” Hewitt added. “There’s no doubt about that. But you’ve still got to go out there and execute it as well and not play into Roger’s hands too much. “It can only help but it’s not the absolute key to success. You’ve still got to go out there and do it.”

While Federer-Hewitt is arguably the pick of the fourth-round matches, all of which are due to take place on Monday, there are plenty of other attractive clashes to look forward to.

Second seed Rafael Nadal faces a potentially-tricky clash with Mikhail Youzhny on Court One. The Russian has given Nadal plenty of problems in the past andhas won four of their previous 10 meetings. He was also close to toppling the Spaniard when they met at the same stage here last year when Youzhny led by two sets to love before Nadal stormed back to win in five.

Youzhny amazingly won their last meeting 6-0 6-1 in Chennai earlier this year but has needed five sets to win each of his last two matches here and could pay the price for those exertions against Nadal. That match will be followed by another Russian, Novak Djokovic’s conqueror Marat Safin, up against Switzerland’s 13th seed Stanislas Wawrinka.

On Court Two Janko Tipsarevic, who accounted for Andy Roddick in the second round, takes on his good friend Rainer Schuettler, while former semi-finalist Marcos Baghdatis and Spain’s Feliciano Lopez will fight it out on Court 18.

Croatian fans will be heading to Court 11 to see Mario Ancic take on Spain’s Fernando Verdasco and Marin Cilic up against France’s Arnaud Clement.

Compare LIVE WIMBLEDON TENNIS ODDS across the top online sportsbooks here at BookieLabRat.com