Dougherty's 68 leads Open early; Woods shoots 71

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06/14/2007 - Oakmont, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Nick Dougherty was the early first-round leader at the U.S. Open after finishing off a two-under 68 Thursday afternoon at Oakmont.

Angel Cabrera was a shot further back at one-under 69.

Tiger Woods and defending champion Geoff Ogilvy both shot one-over 71 playing the same group, and a host of other well-known players were in the mix.

Wearing a brace on his left wrist, Phil Mickelson was on the practice green well ahead of his 1:36 p.m. (et) tee time.

Dougherty's number was already one shot better than the leading 18-hole score at Winged Foot last year, when Colin Montgomerie's 69 was the highest first- round score to lead a U.S. Open in 20 years.

Indeed, there were plenty of low scores early Thursday when it looked like the rain Oakmont received on Wednesday might have slowed the greens considerably and given the players some advantage.

"I certainly think it's helped us because it softened up the greens today," said Dougherty, who needed just 11 putts to shoot 32 on the back nine. "You can get putts to stop relatively close to the hole."

Dougherty had four birdies to go along with back-to-back bogeys at Nos. 7 and 8. His last birdie was set up by a 54-degree wedge shot to six feet at the 17th, a 313-yard par four.

The 25-year-old Englishman, who is still looking for his first PGA Tour victory, said he though the course was "easy." Not that he wanted everyone to know he said it.

"I hate saying it ... Especially if a USGA official picks up on that," he commented.

Still, there were only around a dozen players at even-par or better when Woods finished. Bubba Watson and Jose Maria Olazabal were in the clubhouse with even-par 70s.

David Toms started hot and was an early leader, but he made five bogeys on his last six holes and shot a two-over 72. Pablo Martin, a 21-year-old Spaniard, was tied with Woods and Ogilvy at 71.

Oakmont was showing its teeth.

Woods hit his first drive at No. 1 into one of the course's 210 bunkers and opened with a bogey, but came right back with a 15-foot birdie at the second hole to get to even-par. He made par from bunkers at the third and fourth, then rolled in another 15-foot putt for birdie at the sixth.

He was even-par around the turn, though, after making a bogey from a bunker at 288-yard, par-three eighth, then slipped to one-over with a two-putt bogey at the 10th.

Hitting into another bunker at the 12th, Woods made bogey and fell to two- over. But he made a good par after hitting into a bowl-like scoop in the green at the 13th, then later moved back to one-over with a three-foot birdie at the 17th.

It was a grinder's round from the world's top player.

"The golf course is playing hard, and this is with pretty benign conditions and pretty favorable pin positions," Woods said. "You know the U.S. Open is going to be a grind."

Woods missed the cut last year at Winged Foot when he opened with back-to-back rounds of 76, then admitted he wasn't ready to play so soon after his father's death.

Thursday, he did just enough to almost guarantee that wouldn't happen again.

"I hit enough fairways to at least give myself a chance," said Woods, who has won two U.S. Opens and 12 majors overall. "When I didn't, I just put it back in play."

The weather Thursday was overcast and cool with a slight breeze -- perfect playing conditions even if the course toughened steadily as the first round wore on.

"Oakmont probably will never play easier than we had it in the first nine holes," said Ogilvy, whose birdies included a six-foot putt at the 13th.

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FOOTBALL BETTING : Cassel Signs Contract

Kansas City, MO - Kansas City has not officially named Matt Cassel its starting quarterback, but there can be no doubt now.

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After praising his leadership and work ethic through spring workouts, the Chiefs announced Tuesday they had signed the 27-year-old Cassel to a multiyear contract. Terms were not disclosed, but he will almost certainly be one of the highest-paid members of the team.
"We are excited to be able to reach a long-term agreement for Matt Cassel to be a Kansas City Chief for many years to come," owner and board chairman Clark Hunt said in a statement. "His proven leadership on and off the field will be a tremendous asset to the organization."
Patriots made him their franchise player, meaning his salary for this season will be about $15 million.
New head coach Todd Haley, taking over for Herm Edwards after a 2-14 season, refused to name a starter at any position during offseason workouts. But it was obvious to everyone the team belonged to Cassel.
"I go out there each and every day with that focus that I'm the starter," Cassel said during a June minicamp. "Competition brings out the best in everybody."
The signing will come as welcome news to Cassel's new coaches and teammates. Amiable and hardworking, online football betting he appeared to win over everyone at minicamp.
"I think he's got some unique leadership qualities. I think his teammates like him and have respect for him. I think he's doing a pretty good job on the field, too," Haley said last month. "He's doing everything that I'm asking him, that our coaches are asking him to do. I don't have one single complaint how he's carrying himself."
After one workout, wide receiver Devard Darling declared Cassel "a breath of fresh air."
"He has a lot of swagger, a lot of confidence. It's good for us," said Darling. "We trust in him that he's going to go out there and lead us all the way."
nse to accommodate his specific abilities.
Trapped on the bench behind Heisman winners Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart at USC and then unable to unseat Super Bowl MVP Brady at New England, Cassel seemed destined to be a backup all his life. As Brady was helped off the field last September, Cassel seized the opportunity he'd been waiting for since high school.
In his only sustained action since his teens, he hit 349 of 555 passes for 3,949 yards at New England. He had 23 touchdown passes and 13 interceptions as the Patriots, who had gone unbeaten through the regular season the year before, finished 11-5 and out of the playoffs.
Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli, who had been Bill Belichick's assistant in New England, engineered the trade after the Patriots became convinced that Brady would recover fully from his knee operation.
"Since Matt arrived in Kansas City, he has embraced the team and the community," Pioli said. "His work ethic, his ability and competitive presence is what we expect from our players."

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MySportsbook.com and Kentucky Derby Offer Bonuses
The 2008 Kentucky Derby has announced a $1-million bonus for this weekend’s 134th ‘Run for the Roses’ and MySportsbook.com is doing the same.

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According to MySportsbook.com, the favorites for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky are: Curlin (+250); Street Sense (+500); Scat Daddy (+700); Circular Quay (+750); and Nobiz Like Shobiz (+800).

Derby organizers announced this week that there will be a $1-million bonus at the 2007 Kentucky Derby odds if the first-place horse wins by more than 6 1/2 lengths – the margin of Barbaro's victory last year. The bonus would be divided Saturday among the winning trainer, jockey, owner and a charity, with each receiving 25 percent. The designated charity is the Barbaro Memorial Fund.

''It's certainly creative, it's certainly fun and it has something for the horsemen, which we always want to embrace,'' Churchill Downs president and chief executive Robert Evans said at a news conference. ''What's really cool is it will force us to remember Barbaro.''
    
Meanwhile, the Derby favorite – Curlin – is going against the odds this year. It's been 125 years since Apollo won after skipping his 2-year-old season, and not since Regret in 1915 has such a lightly seasoned horse worn the blanket of red roses.

Arkansas Derby winner Curlin – unbeaten in three career races – tries to overcome both those obstacles in Saturday's 133rd Derby.

''We're not running against history,'' trainer Steve Asmussen said Monday. ''We're running against who they load up.''

Six other horses have run in the Derby without benefit of 2-year-old races and with three or fewer starts. The best any of them managed was a sixth-place finish by Showing Up last year.
   
Asmussen dismissed suggestions that Curlin's lack of racing experience could keep him from the winner's circle.

”He exudes confidence and he's got a great presence about him,'' the trainer said. ''I feel great about the position we're in. He's not worried about anything, why should you be?''
   
The Kentucky Derby is at 4:04 p.m., ET Saturday.

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