Tennis picks at IW

Del Potro @ 3.25 v Federer

Delray Semis/Acapulco Final

Isner @ 1.57 v K Anderson
Verdasco @ 3.25 v Ferrer

Dubai Final

Murray @ 2.3 v Federer

Delray beach

K Anderson @ 2.36 v Roddick

Istomin @ 2.12 v Roddick

Picks for Delray Beach and Acapulco

Delray Beach


Isner @ 1.3 v Sweeting

Acapulco


Ramos @ 3 v Wawrinka

First picks of the day

Not much to report on except that I had a bad day betting on dogs.  I had a list of dogs that I liked that I whittled down to what you see below.  I feel like I robbed myself because also on the list was Chiudinelli,
Youzhny, Cipolla.  Which I did not end up picking and they all ended up winning, but not every day can be a winning day.  Roddick still hasn't won his match yet, although it looks as though he's going to complete a 1 set down comeback.

My first pick tomorrow is (gasp)

F. Lopez @ 14 v Federer - Maybe some of your are thinking that this is a waste of money, but hear me out.  Federer has snuck by some close matches recently (Davydenko in Rotterdam) and although he has won 4/6 tournaments he's played in recently Djokovic, Murray, and Rafa barely had a presence at any of them if at all.  These courts are super fast which will help Lopez more than Roger.  Fed has also been struggling with his return game for awhile and the heavy topspin that Lopez employs from time to time will come into play against Fed's one-handed backhand.  It is going to be much closer than these odds suggest.

This is my only pick in Dubai.  I will have picks up for Delray Beach and Acapulco closer to their start times.

Final picks of the day

Acapulco
Ferrero @ 3.05 v Wawrinka
Volandri @ 2.9 v Verdasco
Montanes @ 2.84 v Nishikori

Delray Beach
Petzschner @ 3.05 v Roddick
 Happy betting.

First picks of the day Delray Beach/Dubai

Nieminen @ 1.6 v Cilic
Isner @ 1.14 v Levine

Tuesday picks

Nothing yet, but I will have something closer to match time. Nothing on Murray or tsonga.

Final matches of the day in Acapulco, Mexico

These are the first major picks I'm making on clay courts.

Andujar @ 2.08 v L Mayer
Chela @ 1.08 v Ramirez
Starace @ 1.31 v Giannessi

Good luck!

Monday in Dubai

Golubev @ 1.1 v M Djokovic - Andrey should have no problem taking care of Novak's little brother in his first match on the regular ATP tour in over a year.

Djokovic @ 1.02 v Stebe

Mannarino @ 2.46 v Rosol

Sela @ 1.55 v Kudla

Sweeting @ 2.1 v Young

Haas @ 3.2 v Tomic

Istomin @ 1.44 v Ebden

Finals Results

My 1 pick for the day on Del Po hit.  His 6-4, 6-4 win over Llodra was about right.  I assumed he wouldn't lose two in a row.  I wanted to take Ferrer and Raonic as well, but for various reasons I didn't.  Although I did bet on Ferrer after he held the 1st game in the second set and traded out at the beginning of the 3rd for a nice 72% profit.

Tomorrow is a new week with tourney's in Dubai, Delray Beach and Acapulco (this is chronological order, not alphabetical).  As always I will try to do better this week.  Even though I'm happy with last weeks performance.

Picks should be up in the next couple of ours.

Marseille Final

Del Potro @ 1.26 v Llodra

Semis Results

Semis picks for today were 2/2.  It was especially nice since Del Po was a dog against Tsonga.  Raonic won with relative ease and it seems like he's in route for back2back titles.

Again I've been very choosy about clay court tourneys as my knowledge of clay courts in general is lacking.  I thought about taking Wawrinka and Nalbandian today which would not have been good as Wawrinka lost in 3 and Nalbandian is down a set as I write this.

I'll have picks up tomorrow before the matches start.  I'm leaning toward DelPo, Raonic, and Ferrer if he wins but I haven't decided yet.

Semis in Memphis

Raonic @ 1.16 v Becker

Semis in Marseille

Del Potro @ 2.12 v Tsonga

Friday, Picks 2&3

Isner @ 1.44 v Melzer
Tipsarevic @ 1.42 v Ljubicic

1st pick Friday Marseille

Llodra @ 1.24 v Olivetti

Tough loss earlier, Western Hemisphere picks

Tough loss on Davydenko v Del Potro.  After Davydenko's performance against Fed last week some would say he's back.  He did look better, and he did take the first set off of Del Po.  I choose to trade out at this point, probably because of how I got burned earlier in the week and secondly because I wasn't sure if Davydenko could take him down in two sets.

Later Bets
Isner @ 1.16 v Young
Rochus @ 3.2 v Harrison
Sweeting @ 3.3 v Stepanek

Thursday's picks

Davydenko @ 3.55 v Del Potro

There will be more picks later.

Results on Wednesday

Today was a great day.  First Melzer beat Istomin on an almost straight pick and Malisse upset Roddick in Memphis.  Gulbis lost, but it was worth a shot.  Raonic had just played a match on Sunday and was going again today against a solid returner in Gulbis, but he didn't.  Malisse finally beat Roddick in straights.  Roddick has been sucking lately and this comes as no surprise.

Picks for tomorrow will be up shortly before matches.

Today's picks

Melzer @ 1.81 v Istomin

Malisse @ 4.3 v Roddick
Gulbis @ 4.1 v Raonic

Happy betting!

Yesterday's Results

Yesterday was somewhat of a tough day.  I won all my picks on Favs and only 1/4 on dogs.  The dog that won was a straight sets victory of Sweeting over Blake.  Why he was a dog against Blake who hasn't had a match in several weeks is nuts.  The other 3 dogs I picked were very close to winning.  Any win by one of these guys would have resulted in a positive day, but I guess it wasn't my joss.  Hopefully today is better.

Marseilles, Memphis, Buenos Aires tournaments

Another week another tourney in Europe, North America, and South America.  Ever the split.  Flurry of picks for tomorrow.  I may add more for Buenos Aires shortly before they start.  Check back close to start time on the other matches.

Favorites
Mahut @ 1.37 v Clement
Davydenko @ 1.18 v Beck
Isner @ 1.16 v Muller

Underdogs

Falla @ 2.18 v Querrey
Starace @ 5.1 v Almagro
Sock @ 4.5 v Harrison
Sweeting @ 2.14 v Blake

SAP Open Final

Raonic @ 1.4 v Istomin

Thursday's picks

Rotterdam


Del Potro @ 1.06 v Beck

I may post picks for SJ and Brazil later.

2/15 picks

Federer @ 1.05 v Mahut

Lack of picks/Davis Cup results

I have yet to come up with any other picks this week.  I lost a tough one on F. Lopez.  And I should've taken Huta Galung def Ljubicic.  I thought about it and I declined.  Ljubicic looked like shit in Zagreb and if you cannot bring it for a tournament in your own country you're not going to win against a hungry Dutchman in his own country.

The Davis Cup picks went as expected, except for Bogomolov.  I shouldn't have taken this pick.  I should've said look, it's his first Davis Cup match for Russia.  He's going to be under a ton of pressure and he hasn't been playing all that well lately.  Irregardless, I lost this only pick, but since the others were sure fire favorites I am down on the week.  I did however, bet on John Isner in the 4th set at 2.88.  Which seemed a ridiculous price given that Federer was having an incredibly difficult time with his serve.  Looking back why Federer was such a huge favorite against Isner is beyond me.  I know it's on clay and at home in Switzerland.  But look at the facts:

1)  Isner is so tall that the kick on his serve actually works well on clay.  Federer has to jump to get several of them and many went over his head.

2)  Federer said it didn't really matter if they won this tie.  He wasn't going to play in the next round and they would've needed him to win.

3)  Federer's return game is much weaker than his other big 4 brethren.  It seems like it used to be much better as he has the highest number of donuts against other players a few years ago.  I believe this is because of a lack of actual tournament matches and bc his serve is so good he doesn't need it.  With Djoko's return game you'd think it'd have been him, but it wasn't.

I like to reflect on bets that I didn't take and why I should've.

Rotterdam Day 1

F Lopez @ 1.35 v Mathieu -- Lopez has been in good form and Mathieu has only had a few matches since his return.

That's my only pick for Rotterdam.  I'll have picks up later for San Jose, and Sao Paolo.  As well as Davis Cup reflection.

DC Day 3

France @ 1.05 v Canada
Tipsarevic @ 1.03 v Ryderstedt

Davis Cup 1st round weekend

Tennis hasn't been on all week and I haven't known what to do with myself.  Should be a fun weekend.  I'm especially looking forward to watching the US team vs Switzerland.  The beauty of betting on Davis Cup is that you a betting on a collective result.  You're betting on not just one player in one match you're betting on the performance of 2-4 players between 4 singles matches and 1 doubles match.

Tie betting

Czech Republic @ 1.08 v Italy - The combination of Berdych and Stepanek at singles will surely be too much for the Italian team

Serbia @ 1.01 v Sweden - This is an utter certainty.  I can't even imagine why someone would bet against Serbia in this one

Spain @ 1.04 v Kazakhstan - Again this would be a real surprise

Rubbers


Haase @ 1.03 v Paukku
Bogomolov @ 1.35 v Haider-Maurer
Berdych @ 1.04 v Bolelli
Tipsarevic @ 1.02 v Prpic
Almagro @ 1.1 v Golubev


I will make updates tomorrow after all the action is settled.  I will likely make some more team picks after the 1st day shakes out.

Results last week.

Last week was overall was a good week.  I made a few bad calls, but overall I was 14/20 with a 7.25% gain on the week.

Since there hasn't been any men's matches this week besides challengers I've decided not to make picks.  I will make picks for the weekends Davis Cup matches though!

Semis Zagreb

Lacko @ 2.88 v Baghdatis

Quarterfinals in Montpellier, Zagreb and Vina del Mar

Gasquet @ 1.41 v Kohlschreiber

That's all for today.

Results day 3 and 4 of Zagreb, Montpellier, and Vina del Mar

The last 2 days have been good and made up for a weak start to the week.

I went 4/5 on Wed and 1/1 on Thursday.  I'm pretty happy with my picks over this period, and feel no need for reflection.

Please let me know if you have comments or questions!

Zagreb Day 4

Ivo Karlovic @ 1.38 v Dudi Sela


No others

Day 3 in Zagreb, Montpellier, and Vina del Mar

Gasquet @ 1.41 v Davydenko - Gasquet has been playing well and has his eyes set on rejoining the top 10.  Being in France also gives him an edge here.

Seppi @ 2.68 v Melzer - I like Seppi's game and I think he can defeat Melzer here on the indoor hard courts.

Dodig @ 1.42 v Ilhan - Dodig is the 2 time defending champ.  He plays well in his home country and should be able to put the coals to Ilhan

Berrer @ 2.48 v Ljubicic - Ljubicic's performance yesterday was weak at best.  I think this long match and another tough opponent will overwhelm him.

Montanes @ 1.31 v Dutra Silva - Montanes is at home in South American and should be able to take it to Dutra Silva.

Results day 2 - 3/5 small loss

Today was a bit rough since I lost money.  All in all the picks were solid after reviewing them.  Looking back I had no reason not to take Petz and Rochus.

Day 2, Montpellier, Zagreb

Montpellier


Rochus @ 3 v Kohlschreiber - Rochus has been playing well lately and this price doesn't reflect that.
F Lopez @ 1.21 v Kunitsyn - Lopez's serve should be very affective on this surface and he's been in good form


Zagreb


Karlovic @ 1.32 v Kavcic - Ivo's monster serve will work exceptionally well on this indoor hard court
Berrer @ 1.66 v Chiudinelli -- Berrer owns Chiudinelli head2head
Petzschner @ 2.08 v Melzer -- Melzer has never beat Petz in a head2head.  There doubles playing gives Petz the ability to hit him where it hurts.

Happy betting!

Results Day 1 Zagreb, Montpellier, Vina del Mar ATP 250s

Montpellier
Qualifier
Serra @ 1.31 v Carreno Busta -- This was a great pick.  If I could've picked it twice I would've have.

1st round
Pospisil @ 1.51 v Rufin -- I was confused yesterday why Pospisil was so high against this seemingly nobody.  I thought it was too much.  Even though Pospisil had his chances he was never in control of this match.

Davydenko @ 1.41 v Robert -- Davydenko gave it to Robert.  I was really happy with this result and with this pick.
Muller @ 2.38 @ F Mayer -- Sometimes you win some sometimes you lose these types of picks.  Muller definitely had his chances in both sets, he just couldn't convert on the pile of break opps he had.  Mayer made him pay for it.

Zagreb
Qualifier
Melzer @ 1.13 v Fischer -- Melzer was a no brainer here.  He has been playing well and Fischer can't do much.

Ljubicic @ 1.21 v Beck -- This turned out to be a very close match with the match going to Ljubicic, in the end I think that the Croat's will in his home countries capital was enough to get him through.  Something I was definitely banking on.

Seppi @ 1.32 v Brands -- Seppi won this in straights as suspected.

Overall I was happy with the picks for today, although Vasek was a bit high and maybe should've thought something of it.  But I also think Davydenko should've been a bit lower too.

Another day, another tourney, actually 3 (Montpellier, Vina del Mar, and Zagreb)

Welcome to the wonderful world of post grand slam tennis.  ATP 250s on indoor hard in Montpellier, Zagreb, and an outdoor clay court in Vina del Mar Chile.

Montpellier
Qualifier
Serra @ 1.31 v Carreno Busta

1st round
Pospisil @ 1.51 v Rufin
Davydenko @ 1.41 v Robert
Muller @ 2.38 @ F Mayer

Zagreb
Qualifier
Melzer @ 1.13 v Fischer

Ljubicic @ 1.21 v Beck
Seppi @ 1.32 v Brands

Vina del Mar
None:  The clay court season hasn't even really started.  I want to see the adjustment period and then wait until I see something I like.

Oz betting results

I went 29/39 in Oz on picks with an ROI of 21.3%.  Overall I'm happy with these picks.  At times I made some boneheaded errors like backing Wawrinka @ 1.38 v Almagro.  Almagro was playing well and this was a shitty price for Wawrinka who is only consistent about being inconsistent.  He wins when he shouldn't and loses when he should win.  Also, taking Fish over Falla at such a low price of 1.13 was also very ill thought out.  I will learn from these mistakes as I go forward.  I'll have picks for tomorrows tourneys in Zagreb, Vina Del Mar, and Montpellier before they start.

Djokovic d. Nadal (Oz Final results)

In an epic 5 setter Djokovic defeated Nadal in an epic battle of wills.  After the 3rd set it looked like Novak was going to roll Nadal again in the 4th like he did last year at Wimbledon and the US Open.  But Nadal showed an iron like will to win the 4th set, even after being down 0-40 on his serve at 4-3, and being down 5-3 in the tiebreaker.  I've seen Nadal show a fierce will to win points, but this display was something more.  Entering the 5th set he was the fresher and more attacking player.  When he went up a break at 4-2, it seemed all but over.  Unfortunately for him and for my followers he was broken back and lost the 5th set 5-7.

This was the longest open era slam final at 5hrs 53mins, people are already talking about how amazing this display for endurance is.  While these two players are likely 2 of the greatest tennis players and all around athletes to ever walk the planet, I do have to comment on the fact that both of these players constantly flout the rules in terms of time between each point and soliciting challenge advice.  If this had been Federer/Murray for instance any every rally had been exactly the same the match would've lasted 4hrs or so.  These two constantly take over the allotted 25 seconds between each point.  I don't mind so much after a really long point, but when it's the norm it's down right ridiculous.  The second thing that disgusts me is how often they solicit challenge advice from their box.  They don't even try to hide it and it's completely against the rules.  The ATP needs to get more strict with both of these rules.  On the time limit between points institute a clock.  Give each player a few times to go over each set or something.  It's ridiculous.  The challenge should immediately not be allowed if there is a signal of any kind.  This will stop this madness.

Pick for the Oz Final

Nadal @ 2.44 v Djokovic

Picks day 11 in the land of Oz!

Nadal @ 2.48 v Federer

Results day 10 in Oz

Yesterday was a great day.  I went 3/3 and gained some more ground on the year!

Djokovic def. Ferrer (3-0) - I wasn't surprised by this result, but I thought that Novak might struggle and drop 1 maybe even 2 sets.  Otherwise I would've chosen (3-0).  As suspected Novak did struggle a lot.  Ferrer should have had 1 of the first 2 sets and I think the fact that he didn't broke him for set 3.

Murray def. Nishikori (3-0) - As suspected Murray beat Nishikori with ease.  He struggled at times with his serve and was even down a break early in the 3rd set, but since Murray is probably the 2nd or 3rd best returner in Men's tennis I wasn't at all worried.  Especially since Nishikori was busted up from all the sets he had already played this week, between singles and doubles.

Let me know what you think of these matches.

Day 10 in Oz, Men's Semis (Round 2)/First doubles pick

Djokovic @ 1.13 v Ferrer
Murray (3-0) @ 1.7 v Nishikori

Doubles
Mirnyi/Nestor @ 1.25 v Gonzalez/Kas

Happy betting!

Day 9 at the Aussie Results

Day 9 results,

Fed def Del Potro in straights - Federer played out of his mind and beat Del Potro easily.  It was close at times, and if Delpo had stepped up at times it could've been much closet, but at times Federer looked flawless.  He hit tons of winners, and it took Delpo a few winners in a row to get a point.  I was not surprised by this result, the price on Delpo was too good for a guy who has the skills to beat Fed in a Slam.

Nadal def Berdych in 4 - Berdych came out looking like the better player in this one.  He could've easily been up 2 sets to love instead of 1 and for 1.5 sets he was the better player.  However, Nadal upped his game and came back to win it.  No surprise here, Nadal's performance was exactly what to expect of him and what makes him a champion.  He does not quit until the last point has been played.

Day 9 in Oz

I didn't have any picks for yesterday so I didn't make a post.  I thought about Novak (3-0), Murray (3-0), Gasquet and Nishikori.  If I'd have taken these I'd have gone 1-2 as Novak won in 4, Murray won in 2 and 1 game with a retirement, and Ferrer won as did Nishikori.  Nothing stuck out that much, so I don't post.

Picks for today,

Del Potro @ 4 v Federer - I think this is a really good price for Del Potro.  He played some excellent matches versus Ferrer and Nadal on Clay at the Davis Cup, and he's played really well in Australia as well.    He also has the kind of game that has the ability to beat Federer, flat, penetrating forehands, a good return game and a huge reach to get to a variety of shots.

Nadal @ 1.29 v Berdych - Berdych never can deliver in these types of matches.  He has only taken one set off Nadal in the last 25 sets against Nadal and hasn't beat him since '06.  Berdych is going to have the crowd against him after his display against Almagro and the Aussies can be unforgiving.

Day 7 in the land of Oz results!

My thoughts on these matches and my picks.  I won 2/3 picks today for a small 35% gain on money wagered.

Berdych def. Almagro (3-1) - Berdych beat Almagro in 4 very tight sets today.  He lost the 1st one which voided my straights sets pick.  I didn't give Almagro much credit as his results on hard court have never been that great.  However, the Aussie would be a good place for him to make a stand as the courts are a bit slower.  I should have maybe taken that into consideration, but this one could have gone either way and at 2.38 it was still a good call.  Things could've gone that way relatively easy.

Nadal def. Lopez (3-0) - No surprise here.  Lopez has never taken a set off of Rafa on hard and hasn't taken a set since Rafa was a teenager.  With the exception of the Queen's club match that I won't even count as that was right after the French on a different surface that Lopez had time for and game is best suited for.

Federer def. Tomic (3-0) - I'm glad to get vindication on this one, because I thought the price was insane at 1.82.  Much more absurd than the 1.53 of Nadal over Lopez.  Although many people even some of the announcers suggested that this match was close in the first set, it wasn't.  Federer only lost a few points on serve and was owning Tomic's second serve.  It was only a matter of time before a break happened, and if not, the breaker would have resulted in a Fed victory.  Federer loosened up after the first set and put on a clinical display.  Tomic played really well at times especially during a break chance in the 2nd when he was down two breaks that he converted, and again in the 3rd when he was down 1 break which he didn't convert.  He pushed Fed around the court a bit, but Feds movement and shot making were far too good.

Pick(s) for tomorrow will be up in several hours.

Day 7 at the Aussie

Berdych (3-0) @ 2.38 v Almagro - Berdych has a great record against Almagro on hard courts and a decent one on Almagro's preferred surface of clay.  This is a nice price for a straight sets win against Almagro

Nadal (3-0) @ 1.53 v Lopez - Nadal is playing great and seems injury free.  In all their meetings Lopez has only taken 4 sets off of Nadal.  Once on Carpet in '03 when Nadal was 17 and the other time on the grass at the Queen's club just days after Rafa had won the French.  Never at a Slam and never on hard courts.  He also just played a long 5 setter with Isner.

Federer (3-0) @ 1.82 v Tomic - This is a good price for Fed to win in straights.  He's been playing well and shows no signs of a back injury.  Tomic has played Fed once and took a set off of him, but that was at the Davis Cup in Australia on a crappy, soggy grass court where he had practice and time off after his early loss at the US Open.  Whereas Fed had almost no rest after his painful loss to Novak at the US, and had just played a physical 4 setter with Lleyton Hewitt.  Tomic has also played 14 sets this tournament comparted to Federer's 6.  Federer also has the complete game to take on Tomic's constant slice backhands.  If Fed drops a set it will be at worst a minor annoyance.

Happy betting

Day 6 results in the land of Oz

Yesterday was a banner day for my picks.  I went 3-0 with a huge underdog winning for me in a long 5 setter.  I've been waiting for a breakthrough from Kukushkin at a Slam since I saw him play a few good sets at Wimbledon.  He did get a bit lucky in the fact that Monfils was injured, but him being injured is always a factor and I did take it into consideration in my pick.  Novak dominated Mahut, as did Tsonga over Gil.

Results day 5

Another wild day at the Aussie Open.

Lopez won in 5.  After being down 2 sets to 1 Isner won the 4th, but then ran out of gas in the 5th.  I knew that epic battle with Nalbandian was going to have it's affects on him, especially against a dangerous Feliciano Lopez.

Wawrinka lost, I didn't see much of this match, but I know he was feeling injured.  Wawrinka is about has tough to read as a book.  He wins when he shouldn't and loses when we shouldn't.

Picks for tomorrow in Melbourne

Djokovic (3-0) @ 1.18 v Mahut

Tsonga (3-0) @ 1.4 v Gil

Kukushkin @ 7.8 v Monfils

Good luck!

Results Day 4

Everything went swimmingly yesterday with the exception of David Ferrer.  I was shocked that Sweeting pushed him to 5 sets.  I've never really been too convinced of Sweetings game, but apparently he is one to watch this year after that performance.

Picks for today

Wawrinka @ 1.38 v Almagro - Wawrinka has a good record against Almagro and I'm never convinced of his game on hard courts.

Lopez @ 2.2 v Isner - Isner is going to be worn from his epic match w/ Nalbandian.  Lopez has been playing well and him as a dog doesn't really make sense


Happy trading.

Picks day 4 in Oz

Djokovic (3-0) @ 1.18 Giraldo

Tipsarevic @ 1.05 v Duckworth

Raonic @ 1.31 v Petzschner

Ferrer (3-0) @ v 1.39 Sweeting

Murray (3-0) @ v 1.3 Roger

Tsonga @ 1.3 v  Mello

Day 3 reaction!

Crazy day in Melbourne for the Open and also my picks.

Favs

Federer (3-0) v Beck - This match never happened as Beck pulled out before the match got underway.  This pick is obviously a no play, but this could play into Fed's run to the Final as he will have a much needed rest that his likely semi-final opponent Rafa Nadal will not have.

Anderson v Stakhovskky - Anderson beat Stakhovsky in 4 after dropping the 1st set.  Wasn't able to catch any of this match so I don't have to comment.  This is about the result that I figured would happen.

Karlovic v Berlocq - Karlovic wins in 4.  Again I didn't see any of this match at all.

F Lopez v Cipolla - Lopez wins in 3, no surprise here and I almost picked this to be a 3 set win for Lopez.  Although they were tight sets.

Fish v Falla - I was somewhat surprised that Fish lost in straights to Falla.  Although I felt and continue to feel that Fish's season will not be close to his best season of last year, I didn't think he'd lose this match or even that it would be close.  Fish was in a terrible mood, and couldn't get his head on straight, he hit unforced error after unforced error and is ability to get back in the game and hold leads was weak.

Dogs


Kamke v Dolgopolov  - I can never seem to get a match with Dolgopolov right.  Although Kamke had a match point at 5-6 in the 5th.  Dolgo held, then broke, then held for the win.  Another 5 setter for Dolgo, so I think his chances against Tomic will be weak.

Wawrinka v Baghdatis - I only caught the final few games of this match and from what I saw and heard from the announcers Wawrinka played great.  He usually is good for an upset and struggles against low level players.  I'll never really understand Wawrinka's inconsistency, but I know it's always good to bet him as a dog.

Isner v Nalbandian - I caught all of this match.  It was epic and from the outset I thought that Nalbandian should've won it.  Isner dialed up big serve after big serve when he was in trouble and hi 40+ aces.  Nalbandian should've won and was especially screwed.  At 8-8 and 40-A break point for Nalbandian, Isner hits one up the T that was wide.  The chair overrules and by the time Nalbandian figures out what happened the chair won't let him challenge.  Ridiculous.  I've never seen a player not get a challenge even after asking their opponent and the chair if they should challenge (which should be disallowed).  Isner got the point made it 40-40 and Isner hit two big serves to get out of that game.  Nalbandian's head wasn't on straight after that combined with Isner having to take epic chances (since he couldn't really move) he was broken for the match.

Querrey v Tomic - Querrey lost to Tomic after taking the first set.  I saw some of this match and I felt as though Querrey shoud've taken it more to Tomic.

Picks for tomorrow out later today.

Australian Open - Day 3

Happy betting!

Federer (3-0) @ 1.31 v Beck
K Anderson @ 1.35 v Stakhovsky
Karlovic @ 1.37 v Berlocq
F Lopez @ 1.36 Cipolla
Young @ 1.89 v Lacko
Fish @ 1.13 v Falla

Dogs
Kamke @ 3.1 v Dolgopolov
Wawrinka @ 2.26 v Baghdatis
Isner @ 2.2 v Nalbandian
Querrey @ 3.4 v Tomic

Oz day 2

Djokovic (3-0) @ 1.15 v Lorenzi
Murray (3-0) @ 1.40 v Harrison
Ferrer @ 1.02 v Machado
Tsonga @ 1.1 v Istomin

Oz first day results

Won all matches yesterday thankfully.  Considering I chose only clear cut winners, it should be no surprise.  This trend should continue considering my recent performance.  Picks for tomorrow out shortly.

Oz first day!

The first day of the Australian Open picks!

Murray @ 1.06 v Harrison
Dolgopolov @ 1.06 v Jones
Isner @ 1.08 v Mitchell
Nadal @ 1.02 v Kuznetsov
Lopez @ 1.21 v L Mayer

Another tough result

I'm pretty surprised that both Benneteau and Monfils fell in their recent match.  Benneteau has lost in every final he has played in.  I should've taken that into consideration.  When he lost in Winston-Salem in a tight match to Isner, I thought for sure he'd pull this one off, but I guess he's a choker.

Picks 14th

After a few rough days I decided to take a day off.  However, I'm back and ready to get on the upswing.

Monfils @ 1.42 v Melzer
Ferrer @ 1.1 v Rochus
Benneteau @ 1.82 v Nieminen

Picks Thursday

Tsonga @ 1.43 v Nishikori
Fish @ 1.63 v Melzer
Ferrer @ 1.09 v Falla
Gasquet @ 1.23 v Istomin

Another tough day

Another tough day for my picks.  Some real upsets, but I guess that is the nature of the beginning of the season and tennis general.

Reflecting on yesterday's picks, I'm going to see where it all went wrong.  And why I should've been on the other side of these picks.

Gasquet @ 1.14 v Fognini - This was a winner and I would still stand by this pick.  Gasquet is hungry and Fognini has been playing horribly lately.

Isner @ 1.2 v Reynolds - Isner wasn't match ready, he hasn't played a competitive match since Paris, and Reynolds has been playing and winning of late.

Ferrer @ 1.07 v Rosol - This was a winner and again I stand by this one.  Ferrer is always bringing it.

Tsonga @ 1.3 v Melzer - Tsonga was just in a final that he won in Doha a few days ago.  Should never bet on a guy who has just won a tournament and then immediately has to fly half way across the world for another tournament.  He probably thought he had a good chance of missing the final in Doha when he signed up for this one with Nadal and Federer there.  Plus Tsonga is french and probably didn't feel relaxed going into this one.


Berdych @ 1.45 v Tomic - This one I would also stand by and I'm still a bit surprised by this.  Berdych had just played four matches for the Hopman Cup which he won and Tomic had been in a final last week against Murray. I should've just not bet on this one as they were both in finals last week so this was somewhat unpredictable and it could've gone either way.  With the price on Berdych I should've considered Tomic or nothing at all.

Results/Picks for Wednesday

My results in the last 2 days were a bit rough, 2/5, but the two winners were heavy favorites.  Hewitt lost in a close one as did Granollers.

Picks for Wednesday.

Gasquet @ 1.14 v Fognini
Isner @ 1.2 v Reynolds
Ferrer @ 1.07 v Rosol
Tsonga @ 1.3 v Melzer
Berdych @ 1.45 v Tomic

Best of luck

Picks Auckland/Sydney

Granollers @ 2.08 v Ebden -- This line seems a little ridiculous considering the variance in their rankings and performance of late.  However, Granollers hasn't played a live match since ret in the Paris Masters after having a brilliant run to win the Valencia Open.  This is too nice a price to not bet it.

Hewitt @ 2.96 v Troicki -- Although Troicki is always a threat I like Hewitt's chances of an upset here.

Mannarino @ 1.16 v Sitak

Querrey @ 2 v Harrison

Giraldo @ 1.11 v Venus

Results so far in the new year

Hey guys, I've been kind of slacking at the beginning of the season to get meaningful feedback on my own picks to give as in depth of an analysis as I'd like to give and it's been due to the fact that I've been overwhelmed with the shear number of matches going on around the world with Hopman, Doha, Chennai, Brisbane, Auckland, Sydney all having tournaments at the same time.  I also have wanted to ease back into the season.  After time off tennis players can be shaky, we've seen that already in Federer getting punked out at Mubadala by both Rafa and Djoko, Dodig almost losing in India to a 200+ ranked qualifier, Wawrinka losing to Go Soeda.  Craziness abounds, so I'm trying to wait until predictableness is better.  Which is the point of this blog.

However, the results for this year so far are quite good.  I'm up 7.8% of total money wagered going 8 out of 10.  So far I'm pleased with myself and plan on staying the black.  I'm looking forward to this weeks fewer tournaments and the beauty that is Grand Slam tennis next week.

Doha, Final

Tsonga @ 1.77 v Monfils.

Fed drops out

Federer drops out of Doha, so technically my pick was correct, but of course, the books don't see it that way.  Although he dropped out with a back injury and it's only the second time in his career, I'm confident that he'll be ready at the Australian in two weeks.

Tomorrow we see Monfils/Tsonga after Rafa squandered a 2 break lead over Monfils in the Semis of Doha.  No picks for Brisbane Semis.  Chennai and Doha tomorrow update later today.

Semis Doha

My apologies that I didn't post anything yesterday.  I didn't find anything that I found appealing to make a bet on.  I just have one today...

Tsonga @ 2.66 v Federer

Sorry for the lack of posts.... Wednesday morning picks

Sorry for the day off guys.  I didn't have time to look at anything that in depth to bet, and nothing really looked that great at first glance.  I was surprised to see Ward lose, I have a feeling that he's going to be a breakout player, but I've felt that way for awhile after I saw him at Queen's last summer.

Dodig saved 5 match points to win the other day thank god.  After saving match points in two successive service games, I took him at 3 in the tie-breaker.  It turned out well as soon as he won the breaker he was priced at 1.4.

Bogomolov also won in a somewhat close one.

Today's picks
Brisbane
Favs
Tomic @ 1.29 v Ito
Dolgopolov @ 1.43 v Andreev
Haas @ 1.84 v Istomin
Baghdatis @ 1.69 v Nishikori


I may post others for Doha later today, but I didn't see anything in Chennai that I liked.
Dogs
Nieminen @ 2.62 v Stepanek

Chennai

Picks for today.  Happy betting.


Chennai
Dodig @ 1.19 v Vardhan

Doha
Bogomolov @ 1.14 v Volandri