Masters Week

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Developing Stories 📰

Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia, will host the 87th edition of The Masters Tournament this week. The course is a 7,545-yard par 72, featuring Bentgrass greens and unlike the three other majors, there’s an extremely rigid qualification process to make this tournament, so we will have a field of 88 golfers this week. The 13th hole will be 35 yards longer this year. They have taken the easiest hole relative to par and increased the difficulty. No longer easily reachable for most of the field, players will need extra length off the tee to turn that famous corner.

Scottie Scheffler is the co-betting favorite to become the first repeat Masters champion since Tiger Woods in 2001 and 2002. Scheffler's form has stayed steady since he won the green jacket last April at Augusta National Golf Club. The No. 1 ranked golfer in the world has finished in the top 15 in his last 10 PGA Tour starts and he is coming off a victory at The Players Championship, which was his last stroke play event before the Masters. Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm headline those who will try to stop Scheffler from repeating at Augusta. McIlroy took second behind Scheffler last year, and Rahm has four top-10 finishes in his last five Master’s appearances.

Thursday’s starting times range from 7:40 a.m. to 2 p.m., led by Honorary Starters Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Tom Watson getting the 87th Tournament started. Five-time champion Tiger Woods will be grouped with Viktor Hovland and Xander Schauffele at 10:18 a.m. Defending champion Scottie Scheffler, Max Homa and U.S. Amateur champion Sam Bennett go at 1:36 p.m. Other notable tee times throughout Thursday’s first round include: 10:42 a.m., Justin Thomas, Jon Rahm and Cameron Young; 12:24 p.m., three-time champion Phil Mickelson, Tom Hoge and Si Woo Kim; 1:48 p.m., Tom Kim, Rory McIlroy and Sam Burns; and 2 p.m. (the day’s final tee time), 2015 champion Jordan Spieth, Tommy Fleetwood and Tony Finau. The defending champion is traditionally grouped with the U.S. Amateur champion for the first two rounds. The groupings for Friday’s second round remain the same with starting times changed. The weather shows clear skies Thursday with possibly rain on Friday and Saturday. Will Scheffler get the repeat win or will we have a new champion.

Scheffler +750

Jason Day +2500

Homa +2800

Morikawa +2800

Koepka +4000

Headlines 🚨

On This Day in Sports History: 1967 Wilt Chamberlain sets NBA record of 41 rebounds.

1990 John Stockton reaches 1000-assist mark for NBA record 3 years in a row.

Lionel Messi move to Saudi Arabia is progressively likely after PSG talks break down.

Donovan Mitchell drops 43 points on Tuesday on the Cavs in a 117-113 victory, his fourth straight 40-point game.

Kings beat Pelicans to clinch their first Pacific title since 2003.

The Baltimore Orioles called up right-hander Grayson Rodriguez and he will make his big-league debut Wednesday against the Texas Rangers and Jacob deGrom.

Georgia DT Jalen Carter is declining to visit any teams selecting outside the top 10 in this months NFL draft.

Simon Fraser University, the only NCAA football team in Canada, will disband its program, the university announced Tuesday.

Purdue Zach Edey added another trophy to his case when he was named the winner of the Wooden Award on Tuesday.

The UConn Huskies open as betting favorite to win 2024 men’s basketball title.

Trends 📈📉 via Oddsshark

🏀 Knicks at Pacers

• New York is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games 

• New York is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Indiana

• Indiana is 19-4 SU in its last 23 games when playing at home against New York

• The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Indiana's last 8 games when playing at home against New York

🏀 Nets at Pistons

• Brooklyn is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games when playing Detroit

• Brooklyn is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Detroit

• The total has gone OVER in 5 of Detroit's last 6 games when playing at home against Brooklyn

• Detroit is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Brooklyn

🏀 Raptors at Celtics

• Toronto is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games 

• The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Boston's last 6 games when playing Toronto

• Boston is 9-2 SU in its last 11 games at home

🏀 Wizards at Hawks

• The total has gone OVER in 5 of Washington's last 7 games when playing Atlanta

• The total has gone OVER in 17 of Washington's last 25 games when playing on the road against Atlanta

• Atlanta is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing at home against Washington

• Atlanta is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing Washington

🏀 Bulls at Bucks

• Chicago is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games on the road

• The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Milwaukee's last 8 games when playing at home against Chicago

• Milwaukee is 21-4 SU in its last 25 games when playing Chicago

🏀 Kings at Mavericks

• Sacramento is 10-1 ATS in its last 11 games on the road

• Sacramento is 10-1 SU in its last 11 games on the road

• The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Dallas's last 10 games when playing Sacramento

• The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Dallas's last 13 games

🏀 Lakers at Clippers

• The total has gone OVER in 5 of LA Lakers's last 5 games 

• LA Lakers is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games 

• LA Clippers is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against LA Lakers

• LA Clippers is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing LA Lakers

🏒 Flames at Jets

• The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Calgary's last 6 games when playing Winnipeg

• Calgary is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games 

• Winnipeg is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Calgary

• Winnipeg is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games when playing Calgary

🏒 Lightning at Rangers

• The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Tampa Bay's last 6 games when playing on the road against NY Rangers

• The total has gone UNDER in 5 of NY Rangers's last 5 games when playing Tampa Bay

• NY Rangers is 7-1 ATS in its last 8 games when playing at home against Tampa Bay

🏒 Oilers at Ducks

• Edmonton is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games 

• The total has gone OVER in 8 of Edmonton's last 9 games when playing Anaheim

• The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Anaheim's last 5 games at home

Public Money 🤑 via VSiN at 9AMCT

🏀 NBA 

42% of bets and 66% of money is on BKN -11.5

43% of bets and 66% of money is on NYK -8.5

38% of bets and 58% of money is on ATL -11

26% of bets and 63% of money is on NOP -5.5

26% of bets and 47% of money is on DAL -6

33% of bets and 64% of money is on LAC -4.5 

27% of bets and 47% of money is on UNDER 232 LAL at LAC

⚾️ MLB

38% of bets and 54% of money is on OVER 8.5 CHC at CIN 

35% of bets and 54% of money is on UNDER 6.5 PHI at NYY

36% of bets and 89% of money is on UNDER 7 MIN at MIA

48% of bets and 73% of money is on STL -135

35% of bets and 53% of money is on NYM +115

61% of bets and 90% of money is on CHW -1.5

29% of bets and 58% of money is on UNDER 7.5 DET at HOU

42% of bets and 76% of money is on CLE -1.5

33% of bets and 55% of money is on UNDER 7 LAA at SEA

56% of bets and 73% of money is on UNDER 8.5 TOR at KC

Future Odds 🔮 via Bovada Sportsbook

Injury Report 🏥 via ESPN

DAL (PG) Kyrie Irving | Probable - Foot

DAL (PG) Luka Doncic | Probable - Thigh

IND (PG) Tyrese Haliburton | Out - Ankle

IND (SG) Chris Duarte | Out - Ankle

IND (C) Myles Turner | Questionable - Back

LAC (SF) Marcus Morris Sr | Questionable - Illness

LAC (SG) Eric Gordon | Questionable - Hip

 Picks 🔒

Masters

Tony Finau Top 20 Finish -130 | Tony’s Masters resume is one of the best in the field. He has made the top 5 in one appearance and the top 10 in three. Out of his 5 Masters appearances he has placed outside top 20 once- last year when he finished T35. Out of his 5 Masters he averages a T20 finish. The line is a little heavy but I am confident Finau plays well and finishes towards the top of the leaderboard.

MLB

Pirates/Red Sox over 9 | Neither starting pitcher is coming off a great outing. Both teams did just have their best pitching performances of the year in the last game. These teams should be able to get their bats right tonight.

White Sox ML -130 | Chicago has been better than San Francisco offensively over the course of the first week of the season, and it has the better starter on the mound with Dylan Cease.