Our US Open predictions and free picks for the men’s bracket continue this week, as the US Open betting action gets set to get underway next week in Flushing, NY!

2011 US Open Odds, Picks & Info
2011 US Open Dates: Monday, August 29 – Sunday, September 11
2011 US Open Location: USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, Flushing Meadows, Queens, New York
2011 US Open Favorite: Novak Djokovic (+170)
Defending US Open Ladies Champion: Rafael Nadal
2011 US Open TV Coverage – Network: Tennis Network, NBC

With just two losses to his credit for the entire year, Novak Djokovic (Current US Open Odds: 1.70 to 1 at 5Dimes Sportsbook) is clear the man to watch out for over the course of the next two weeks. Djokovic has played in this final twice in his career, but he has never taken home the coveted trophy. This has been a banner year for the Serb, who has captured the world’s No. 1 ranking and has already won a pair of majors (Australian Open and Wimbledon). Often times he and the fourth favorite, Andy Murray end up taking a back seat here in Flushing, and there is a decent chance that the exact same thing could happen this time around.

And why is that? Because the defending champion of this event, Rafael Nadal (US Open Lines: 4.45 to 1 at 5Dimes Sportsbook) isn’t going to want to get off of his throne. Rafa already has a Grand Slam title as well this year to his mantle, taking care of the French Open crown once again on the clay courts. However, hard surfaces have always given the Spaniard trouble, probably due to the fact that he doesn’t have the biggest serve in the world and that his best asset is his return game. Still, Nadal won’t go down without a fight in this one, and he is going to be the man of the hour to watch through the full fortnight, knowing that no one should touch him until at least the quarters at best.

List Of Past Ladies US Open Champions (Since 2000)
2010 US Open Winner: Rafael Nadal
2009 US Open Winner: Juan Martin Del Potro
2008 US Open Winner: Roger Federer
2007 US Open Winner: Roger Federer
2006 US Open Winner: Roger Federer
2005 US Open Winner: Roger Federer
2004 US Open Winner: Roger Federer
2003 US Open Winner: Andy Roddick
2002 US Open Winner: Pete Sampras
2001 US Open Winner: Leyton Hewitt
2000 US Open Winner: Marat Safin

As always though, we can’t forget about the five-time champ of this event, Roger Federer (Odds to Win the US Open: 6.15 to 1 at 5Dimes Sportsbook). It’s amazing to think that Federer hasn’t won a major this year, and it’s also odd to think that he is the fourth choice of the tennis oddsmakers this year at the tournament that he has historically dominated. With six finals appearances and five wins, no one since the great Pete Sampras has played like this at this tournament. Whether Federer has anything left in the tank or not is a totally different question.

US Open Odds @ 5Dimes Sportsbook (as of 8/26/11):
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Novak Djokovic 1.70 to 1
Rafael Nadal 4.45 to 1
Andy Murray 5.15 to 1
Roger Federer 6.15 to 1
Juan Martin Del Potro 22 to 1
Jo Wilfried Tsonga 38 to 1
Mardy Fish 40 to 1
Robin Soderling 50 to 1
Tomas Berdych 75 to 1
Andy Roddick 80 to 1
Gael Monfils 225 to 1
John Isner 255 to 1
David Ferrer 315 to 1
Bernard Tomic 375 to 1
Ernests Gulbis 375 to 1
Fernando Verdasco 400 to 1
Marin Cilic 425 to 1
Richard Gasquet 500 to 1
Gilles Simon 525 to 1
Stanislas Wawrinka 550 to 1
Nikolay Davydenko 600 to 1
David Nalbandian 750 to 1
Alexandr Dolgopolov 750 to 1
Mikhail Youzhny 925 to 1
Jurgen Melzer 1,000 to 1
Nicolas Almagro 1,000 to 1
Viktor Troicki 1,000 to 1
Florian Mayer 1,000 to 1
Juan Ignacio Chela 1,000 to 1
Marco Baghdatis 1,000 to 1
Michael Llodra 1,000 to 1
Janko Tipsarevic 1,000 to 1
Feliciano Lopez 1,000 to 1
Ivan Ljubicic 1,000 to 1
Thomaz Bellucci 1,000 to 1
Kevin Anderson 1,000 to 1
Andreas Seppi 1,000 to 1
Guillermo Garcia Lopez 1,000 to 1
Fabio Fognini 1,000 to 1
Xavier Malisse 1,000 to 1
Albert Montanes 1,000 to 1
Ivan Dodig 1,000 to 1
Philipp Kohlschreiber 1,000 to 1
Juan Monaco 1,000 to 1
Sergiy Stakohvsky 1,000 to 1
Andrey Golubev 1,000 to 1
Dmitry Tursunov 1,000 to 1
Adrian Mannarino 1,000 to 1
Kei Nishikori 1,000 to 1
Ryan Harrison 1,000 to 1
Somdev Devvarman 1,000 to 1
Lukasz Kubot 1,000 to 1
Robby Ginepri 1,000 to 1
Steve Johnson 1,000 to 1
Jack Sock 1,000 to 1
Donald Young 1,000 to 1
Julien Benneteau 1,000 to 1
Bobby Reynolds 1,000 to 1
Pere Riba 1,000 to 1
Carlos Berlocq 1,000 to 1
Potito Starace 1,000 to 1
Michael Berrer 1,000 to 1
Fredrico il 1,000 to 1
Flavio Cipolla 1,000 to 1
Ivo Karlovic 1,000 to 1
Fernando Gonzalez 1,000 to 1
Horacio Zeballos 1,000 to 1
Philipp Petzschner 1,000 to 1
Albert Ramos 1,000 to 1
Marcel Granollers 1,000 to 1
Mikhail Kukushkin 1,000 to 1
Pablo Andujar 1,000 to 1
Juan Carlos Ferrero 1,000 to 1
Grigor Dimitrov 1,000 to 1
Santiago Giraldo 1,000 to 1
Dudi Sela 1,000 to 1
Radek Stepanek 1,000 to 1
Tommy Haas 1,000 to 1
Alejandro Falla 1,000 to 1
Yen Hsun Lu 1,000 to 1
Andreas Haider Maurer 1,000 to 1
Jarkko Nieminen 1,000 to 1
Victor Hanescu 1,000 to 1
Thiemo De Bakker 1,000 to 1
Tobias Kamke 1,000 to 1
Alex Bogomolov Jr 1,000 to 1
Filippo Volandri 1,000 to 1
Diego Junquiera 1,000 to 1
Karol Beck 1,000 to 1
Daniel Gimeno Traver 1,000 to 1
Ricardo Mello 1,000 to 1
Maximo Gonzalez 1,000 to 1
Tatsuma Ito 1,000 to 1
Lukas Rosol 1,000 to 1
Rui Machado 1,000 to 1
Robin Haase 1,000 to 1
Igor Andreev 1,000 to 1
James Blake 1,000 to 1
Oliver Rochus 1,000 to 1
Michael Russell 1,000 to 1
Marc Gicquel 1,000 to 1
Denis Istomin 1,000 to 1
Ryan Sweeting 1,000 to 1
Edouard Roger Vasselin 1,000 to 1
Gilles Muller 1,000 to 1
Matthias Bachinger 1,000 to 1
Igor Kunitsyn 1,000 to 1
Eric Prodon 1,000 to 1
Blaz Kavcic 1,000 to 1
Nicolas Mahut 1,000 to 1

Our US Open predictions and free picks for the women’s bracket continue this week, as the US Open betting action gets set to get underway next week in Flushing, NY!

2011 US Open Odds, Picks & Info
2011 US Open Dates: Monday, August 29 – Sunday, September 11
2011 US Open Location: USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, Flushing Meadows, Queens, New York
2011 US Open Favorite: Serena Williams (+160)
Defending US Open Ladies Champion: Kim Clijsters
2011 US Open TV Coverage – Network: Tennis Network, NBC

It’s ironic to think that the woman who is the favorite this year by a country mile at the US Open isn’t even ranked in the Top 25 in the bracket. However, we all know that Serena Williams (Current US Open Odds: 1.60 to 1 at 5Dimes Sportsbook) is going to be the force to be reckoned with. Williams is only No. 28 in the bracket thanks to the fact that she hasn’t played a heck of a lot of tennis of late, but with three US Open titles to her credit and a slew of other finals, many of which were lost to her sister, there is no doubt that this is the player that no one wants to mess around with.

With women’s tennis so far out of tilt over these last few years, without any truly dominating players, we are at the point that we are content taking underdogs and seeing how things work out. The woman that really catches our eye in spite of the fact that she really has never played all that well on hard courts is Na Li (US Open Lines: 22 to 1 at 5Dimes Sportsbook). The Chinese standout played in the final at Wimbledon this year, which came just one major tournament after claiming her first ever Grand Slam title at the French Open. Li is already 29 years old, but she has definitely blossomed this year into one of the top players in the world and definitely should not be forgotten, especially at this type of a price.

List Of Past Ladies US Open Champions (Since 2000)
2010 US Open Winner: Kim Clijsters
2009 US Open Winner: Kim Clijsters
2008 US Open Winner: Serena Williams
2007 US Open Winner: Justine Henin
2006 US Open Winner: Maria Sharapova
2005 US Open Winner: Kim Clijsters
2004 US Open Winner: Svetlana Kuznetsova
2003 US Open Winner: Justine Henin
2002 US Open Winner: Serena Williams
2001 US Open Winner: Venus Williams
2000 US Open Winner: Venus Williams

She really hasn’t panned out as one of the best top seeds in women’s tennis this year, especially at majors, but the time is definitely coming for Caroline Wozniacki (Odds to Win the US Open: 17 to 1 at 5Dimes Sportsbook) to make a name for herself at the Grand Slam level. She’s won plenty of secondary events over the course of the last few years, but she has never gotten all the way through the biggest events of her career. Is this her day? We tend to think that there is at least a 1 in 17 chance of the Dane getting the job done.

US Open Odds @ 5Dimes Sportsbook (as of 8/24/11):
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Serena Williams 1.60 to 1
Maria Sharapova 6.50 to 1
Petra Kvitova 11 to 1
Victoria Azarenka 12 to 1
Caroline Wozniacki 17 to 1
Vera Zvonareva 21 to 1
Na Li 22 to 1
Sabine Lisicki 32 to 1
Andrea Petkovic 42 to 1
Agnieszka Radwanska 42 to 1
Samatha Stosur 44 to 1
Marion Bartoli 55 to 1
Jelena Jankovic 60 to 1
Venus Williams 65 to 1
Svetlana Kuznetsova 90 to 1
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 90 to 1
Daniela Hantuchova 90 to 1
Ana Ivanovic 95 to 1
Francesca Schiavone 120 to 1
Dominika Cibulkova 150 to 1
Julia Goerges 190 to 1
Yanina Wickmayer 190 to 1
Shuai Peng 200 to 1
Nadia Petrova 200 to 1
Flavia Pennetta 250 to 1
Roberta Vinci 260 to 1
Lucie Safarova 270 to 1
Jarmila Gajdosova 300 to 1
Maria Kirilenko 385 to 1
Shahar Peer 450 to 1
Bethanie Mattek Sands 500 to 1
Kaia Kanepi 500 to 1
Elena Vesnina 500 to 1
Ekaterina Makarova 500 to1
Tamira Paszek 500 to 1
Petra Cetkovska 500 to 1
Irina Camelia Begu 500 to 1
Tsvetana Pironkova 500 to 1
Lucie Hradecka 500 to 1
Gisela Dulko 500 to 1
Simona Halep 500 to 1
Bojana Jovanovski 500 to 1
Jelena Dokic 590 to 1
Anabel Medina Garrigues 1,000 to 1
Sara Errani 1,000 to 1
Klara Zakopalova 1,000 to 1
Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez 1,000 to 1
Polona Hercog 1,000 to 1
Rebecca Marino 1,000 to 1
Iveta Benesova 1,000 to 1
Lourdes Dominguez Lino 1,000 to 1
Alexandra Dulgheru 1,000 to 1
Ayumi Morita 1,000 to 1
Ksenia Pervak 1,000 to 1
Kimiko Date Krumm 1,000 to 1
Elena Baltacha 1,000 to 1
Monica Niculescu 1,000 to 1
Sofia Arvidsson 1,000 to 1
Pauline Parmentier 1,000 to 1
Johanna Larsson 1,000 to 1
Sania Mirza 1,000 to 1
Vera Dushevina 1,000 to 1

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At The Bottom of This Article is The Full List of Odds For The 2009 US Open

The U.S Open will return to Bethpage Black Golf Course in New York this year as the top golfers in the world take center stage in the tour’s 2nd major of the season. The U.S Open has historically always been the toughest major for scoring amongst competitors. The PGA Tour made their stop at Bethpage Black back in 2002 and the course was extremely difficult for the world’s top golfers. Tiger Woods prevailed over Phil Mickelson by shooting a 72 hole 277 which equaled 3 under par. Woods was actually the only player to finish in red figures on the tough par 70 course. Phil Mickelson ended up at even par for the 4 round contest, but the rest of the field was well above par in scoring. The PGA Tour returns this year to a slightly different looking Bethpage Black. The course went through renovations and redesigns since the last time they hosted the U.S Open. The course is now even longer ranging at 7,496 yards making it one of the longest U.S Open’s in history. Bethpage Black will also host the longest Par 4 in history this year as number 7 will play an enormous 525 yards. The course has also undergone physical changes with restoration of nearly all greenside bunkers and reshaped greens. Despite all the changes in the course and difficulties these players will face; the true question is who will be able to conquer Bethpage Black?

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Tiger Woods would of course be the favorite considering he won the event back in 2002, but Woods has not exactly been Tiger like since his return from knee surgery earlier this year. Tiger has not exactly been playing poorly, but he has not been as dominate like the world has grown to expect either. Woods won the 2008 U.S Open off that heroic playoff with Rocco Mediate. The world’s number 1 golfer won the event with a badly injured knee which was possibly one of his best performances of his career. Woods will be a 5/1 favorite to win the event slightly ahead of Phil Mickelson who is receiving 8/1 odds to win the event. Mickelson is coming off a disappointing performance at the Players Championship, but did have a top 5 finish in Augusta at The Masters. Mickelson along with Woods both benefit from the long golf course consider they can carry the ball a good distance. Another player that could very well emerge from the crowd and take home a major title is Padraig Harrington. Harrington come on strong last year in Wood’s absence from the sport winning two major events in the British Open and the PGA Championship. Harrington is another player that is solid on the long courses and he proved back in 2002 that he can play well at Bethpage Black when he posted an 8th place finish. Harrington’s game is far more advanced at this point in his career and he would definitely be a bet to consider.

The U.S Open has historically has been subject to falling to the unknowns among the PGA ranks. The US Open has been the event to turn determined young players into household names. Michael Campbell is a prime example. Before the 2005 U.S Open at Pinehurst, Campbell failed to make the cut in his first 5 tournaments on the season. However, Campbell broke putting together the best 4 rounds of action conquering Pine Hurst at even par which earned Campbell his first major victory and turned him into a household name overnight. In 2007, Angel Cabrera was another lesser known name to finally capture the spotlight. Cabrera had been on the tour for numerous years, but had failed to win a major championship or truly contend. However, Cabrera posted a +5 over 4 round score that also earned him his first major championship in one of the toughest U.S Open’s in history at the Oakmont Country Club. Heading into the 2009 U.S Open we would like to pick out some names that could emerge into overnight success stories. Cabrera might be another pick worth consideration at very profitable 50/1 odds. Cabrera won the Masters back in April and are amongst one of the longest hitters on Tour which will be needed at Bethpage.

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One particular name that comes to mind when trying to locate a underdog would be Paul Casey. The 31 year old British player has had a great start to 2009 winning at the Shell Houston Open back in April and has also not finished outside the top 35 in event this season. Casey finished 20th at the Masters and was runner-up at the Accenture Match-Play Championship. Casey is a 33/1 long shot to win the event and this could just be the Tournament that he finally captures his first Major Championship. Another name that could finally breakthrough could be Camilo Villegas. Villegas earned some impressive finished with two top 10 in both the U.S Open and PGA Championship in 2008 which equaled his best finishes in a Major. Villegas has not exactly played poorly over the last few weeks finishing in the top 25 in 3 of his last 4 events. Villegas is another player standing at 33/1 odds for the event, and worth consideration for the U.S Open.

Also we found an interesting Prop Bet surrounding the PGA’s number 1 ranked golfer Tiger Woods. This prop bet is gaining a lot of popularity due to Tiger’s less than terrific start and we decided to make a play on this bet as well;

Will Tiger Woods win a major this year?
Current Prop. Odds: Yes -200, No +150

There maybe some people that will take their chances against Woods, but not us. Woods proved last year in the U.S Open that he finds a way to raise his level of play in the Major Championships even if the odds were against him with a bad knee. Woods may not have the wins at this point in the season to compare with previous seasons, but he is not playing bad golf. Woods may still need time to get back to the top of his game after not swinging a club for nearly 9 months, but no way he does not find a way to win a Major Championship in 2009. Tiger has geared himself for the Major events since his arrival to the PGA Tour and we will take the -200 that Woods brings home at least one Major Title this season.

Below are the current futures odds to win the 2009 US Open for the entire field.  Check back or save the page to your favorites for updates as the odds change for the 09′ USOpen. These are the current odds are from BetUS Sportsbook.  You can also check out BetUS and you will find a variety of other props and match-up lines for the 2009 US Open.  Bet the US Open at BetUS and get a 100% Signup Bonus (up to $500) courtesy of Bankroll Sports when clicking this link.

Current odds to win the US Open From BetUS:

Current matchup odds for the US Open from BetUS Sportsbook (Get a 100% Bonus Above):

It may be a bit early to start up the PGA talk, but the season has officially begun with the Mercedes-Benz Classic in Hawaii over two weeks ago. This time of year the golfing world is usually rather slows with the biggest names in the sport not picking up action until normally around February. Missing in action at the start of this season is the sport’s biggest name in Tiger Woods. Woods went through season ending surgery after having a torn ACL last June following the U.S Open. Tiger amazingly defeated Rocco Mediate in sudden death in the U.S Open after playing on a knee with a torn ACL and two stress fractures that displayed one of the most heroic accomplishments in sports history. However, since that time little has been said about the greatest golfer on the planet since he has kept quite through his rehabilitation process. After Tiger’s absolutely absurd showing at last year’s U.S Open, America’s number 1 ranked golfer nearly immediately received surgery to repair his severely damaged knee one week after winning his 14th major. Tiger had played many months on what doctors had called a torn anterior cruciate ligament. Doctors also told Tiger two weeks prior to the U.S Open that he had obtained two stress fractures in his left knee and forbid him to play. However, Woods responded with “I am going to play, and I am going to win.” Strong words for a man on one leg, but that is exactly how it happened. Tiger did not go out and dominate the field, but he made two birdies on the 18th hole to force a sudden death and again to tie Rocco Mediate on the 18th hole in sudden death. Woods then won the event on the next hole in a double overtime like performance sealing one of the most memorable wins in the history of golf.

Augusta, GA in early April. The nearest competitor with the closest odds is Phil Mickelson at 10 to 1. If you were like me you might have been hoping for some really good odds with Tiger considering he is coming off a huge knee surgery, but that is not to be.Tiger’s return has the media around the world in a frenzy trying to predict the exact tournament that he will finally step back onto a golf course. Tiger reportedly has said that he is still uncertain what the date of his return will be, but of course there is no way he will miss the Masters in April as he seeks his 15th major and his 5th green jacket. Despite only playing 6 events last year, Tiger had 4 wins and it will be very interesting to see how fast he returns to Tiger status. The Associated Press has marked Tiger’s return to come for the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship at the end of February. However, that is still a guess to say the least. There are also many other places Tiger could make his return depending on how the recovery process goes. The WGC-CA Championship at Doral in mid-march is another likely scenario considering the tournament is in Tiger’s home state at a course he really likes. The Arnold Palmer Invitational is an event Woods never misses, but may be a bit to close to the Master’s to be his first return.

Despite the date and time Tiger will make his return to golf, one thing that is certain is that the world will be watching. The sport of Golf seemed empty last year without Tiger on the course not to mention a drop in television ratings. When Woods does decide to come back it will be one of the most anticipated moments of the year. Golf will benefit from having Tiger back on course no matter how he plays, because everyone will be watching to see how the knee will hold up and if the time off has affected his game. However, I think we all know that Woods still has a lot left in the tank and I seriously doubt that we have seen the last of the legend that is Tiger.