It's been a while.

It's been a while since my last post, and nothing real significant has happened.  Well Venus and Serena coincidentally got injuries, so now they have an excuse not to play in tournaments and skip Fed Cup.  How convenient that seems to work.

So I've now decided to do something fun.  Odds are good that I will not stick to doing it since I rarely stick to anything on this blog.

But I have come up with the idea to start off with $1000 of FAKE money and randomly bet on matches just to see how much I will have at the end of the year.  I will be using the money lines at betus.com.  This is not a plug for the site, its just the first one I found with tennis odds.  Repeat I will not be placing bets, nor do I advise you to place bets based on my picks.  This is just for fun.  There is a good chance I will bust in the first couple days and this will idea will be gone with the wind.

Let me explain the money line real quick.  Next to a players name there will be a + or a - and a number.  example -400 or +250   The minus number is always the favorite.  And that is how much money you would have to wager to earn $100.  Now if you bet on a underdog who has a +  That dollar amount is how much you would win if you put $100 on that player.  Confusing  I know, but you'll figure it out with time.

So here are my wagers for the matches on Thursday, October 21, 2010:

In Moscow,   Maria Kirilenko -400,  Kateryna Bondarenko +250
I like the value in taking Bondarenko in this one.  Kateryna could easily win this match.  This seems like a pretty even match, and I like the odds that Bondarenko is getting.
$100 on Bondarenko
RESULT:   Maria Kirilenko 6-0, 6-0

In Moscow,  Anna Chakvetadze -450,  Mariya Koryttseva +275
This one baffles me, there is no way Chakvetadze should be that big of a favorite over anyone.  Chakvetadze during the season went a few months without putting back-to-back victories together.  Well she won her first round match, so you know what that means?  That's right, she's losing this one.
$100 on Koryttseva
RESULT:  Anna Chakvetadze 6-1, 6-2.

In Stockholm, Ivan Ljubicic -225,  Arnaud Clement +175
Ljubicic is always hard to read.  He seems to go through the motions a lot, and throw in the towel in smaller tournaments.  He can go through periods of showing a lack of interest, and Clement is just the opposite.  Clement is always in shape and a grinder.  I like how if you take Clement you can double your money, when this is almost a pick'em match.  I'm banking on Ljubicic not caring and trying to get out of town as quick as possible.
$100 on Clement
RESULT:  Ivan Ljubicic 6-3, 6-4.

Now I realize I took 3 underdogs.  These were the 3 matches on tomorrows schedule that looked like a good chance to make some quick $$$.  There was some favorites that were shoe-ins, but putting $900 down on Soderling to beat up on Benjamin Becker isn't the most fun.  Maybe once I get a big bank roll I can put down some money on the big favorites.

Check back tomorrow to see how much money I won or lost, and who I'll be taking for Friday.