So market efficiency is about using all available and relevant information to create an unbeatable price, which in this case no line is mispriced. Its standard to understand that sportsbooks can make money purely off the juice if they can set lines to get even money on both side; however I think there's some literature that describes this isn't actually what is happening all the time. Maybe this is how it worked in the past, but with this new age of analytics, sportsbooks are setting lines to optimize profit and they exploit their understanding of public betting behavior to make more money on games. Under this premise, this means sportsbooks are willing to take on additional risk instead of settling with the commission rake, which also means that lines are not actually always efficient if they are willing to bear any additional risk.
I just find this interesting because when I think of modeling I never really quite understood the intuition on why models might disagree with Vegas lines. People always say NBA/NFL is super efficient which made me wonder if there even was a point in trying to compete with Vegas models, but I think the real actual value is deciphering the opportunities when Vegas does try to squeeze profit out of the public. Furthermore, if this whole premise is true, wouldn't that mean trap lines do exist?
Some reading: https://economics.yale.edu/sites/default/files/files/Workshops-Seminars/Industrial-Organization/levitt-040304.pdf

President Donald Trump announced he and First Lady Melania Trump had tested positive for the virus and will begin their quarantine and recovery process immediately. The news comes after it was announced that close presidential aide Hope Hicks tested positive Wednesday evening.
Megathread Part I

Submissions that may interest you

SUBMISSION	DOMAIN
Trump, first lady to quarantine after top aide tests positive for coronavirus	thehill.com
Trump flew to New Jersey for a fundraiser, reportedly after learning Hope Hicks had COVID-19 symptoms	theweek.com
Putin says Trump's 'inherent vitality' will see him through COVID-19	reuters.com
Trump in 'quarantine process' after top aide gets COVID-19	sfgate.com
Trump in ‘Quarantine Process' After Top Aide Gets COVID-19	nbcwashington.com
President Donald Trump, first lady to quarantine after top aide tests positive for COVID-19	upi.com
Trump in ‘quarantine process’ after top aide gets COVID-19	bostonherald.com
Trump's positive Covid-19 test throws country into fresh upheaval	amp.cnn.com
Putin offers Trump wishes of 'sincere support' after positive coronavirus test	thehill.com
Trump tests positive for COVID-19: What happens if the president cannot perform his duties?	wftv.com
President Trump and first lady Melania test positive for COVID-19	cbsnews.com
Fears for Joe Biden after Trump tests positive for Covid	theguardian.com
Trump's positive Covid test was a surprise that many saw coming	theguardian.com
Biden Will Get Urgent COVID-19 Test After Trump’s Diagnosis, Says Report	thedailybeast.com
Vice President Mike Pence and second lady test negative for coronavirus following Trump's positive diagnosis	cnbc.com
VP Mike Pence tests negative and 'remains in good heath,' after Trump tests positive for COVID-19	timesunion.com
The Finance 202: Stock futures dive on the news that Trump has coronavirus	washingtonpost.com
Putin wished Trump a speedy recovery after his COVID-19 diagnosis, and said his 'innate vitality' will see him through	businessinsider.com
Mike Pence and wife Karen test negative for coronavirus after Trump diagnosis	independent.co.uk
China’s state media outlet mocks Trump for contracting coronavirus	nypost.com
Inb4 trump has now "contracted" coronavirus cos his team knew he f****d up the first debate that bad that any further appearance would be detrimental to his campaign.	sbs.com.au
Putin says Trump's 'inherent vitality' will see him through COVID-19	reuters.com
Mike Pence and wife Karen test negative for coronavirus after Trump diagnosis	independent.co.uk
Trump tests positive for COVID-19: Pence tests negative, Biden reportedly getting test	usatoday.com
Timeline: How Trump Has Downplayed The Coronavirus Pandemic	npr.org
Trump's coronavirus diagnosis presents America with new clear, present dangers	axios.com
Biden to get tested Friday morning following Trump COVID-19 positive test: report	thehill.com
The virus spares no one’: World reacts to Trump’s positive coronavirus test	washingtonpost.com
Shock, sympathy, mockery: World reacts to Trump infection - CBC News	cbc.ca
Trump’s Covid diagnosis renews testing debate on Capitol Hill	politico.com
Mike Pence, who will assume the presidency if Trump is incapacitated, has tested negative for COVID-19	businessinsider.com
Biden wishes Trump, first lady 'swift recovery' after positive COVID-19 tests	thehill.com
MyPillow Guy Mike Lindell Shouts Out Unproven COVID-19 'Cure' To Trump	huffpost.com
Age, obesity put Trump at high risk for severe coronavirus infection	axios.com
Chinese state media mocks Trump's positive virus test: 'Paid the price for his gamble to play down' pandemic	thehill.com
Older, overweight and male: Trump's COVID risk factors make him vulnerable	reuters.com
President Trump’s positive Covid-19 test throws country into fresh upheaval	mercurynews.com
Trump’s Covid-19 Diagnosis Reshapes Election a Month From Vote	bloomberg.com
MyPillow Guy Mike Lindell Shouts Out Unproven COVID-19 ‘Cure’ To Trump	m.huffpost.com
Trump’s positive coronavirus test will keep him out of swing states he hasn't visited yet	independent.co.uk
QAnon Believers Think Trump Got COVID On Purpose Because of Course They Do - QAnon followers believe the virus is fake, but also that Trump has it. And they're "dangerously hype" about it.	vice.com
Biden says he's 'praying for the health and safety" of Trump after the president's COVID-19 diagnosis	businessinsider.com
Keller: Will Voters Punish Trump For Deriding Coronavirus Precautions?	boston.cbslocal.com
‘Wear A God Damn Mask,’ Joe Kennedy Tweets While Wishing Trump Fast Covid Recovery	boston.cbslocal.com
New York Times slammed for suggesting Trump might not remain on ballot after coronavirus diagnosis	foxnews.com
Trump joked while people suffered with Covid. Well, is now the time to stop?	theguardian.com
Pence, second lady test negative for coronavirus after Trump's positive result	thehill.com
Coronavirus: Pelosi says Trump’s failure to wear masks at rallies was ‘brazen invitation’	independent.co.uk
Fox's Kilmeade: Trump could serve as positive example if he beats COVID while in 'danger age' of 74	thehill.com
White House wanted to keep Hope Hicks's positive COVID-19 test private: report	thehill.com
Trump experiencing ‘mild symptoms’ after coronavirus diagnosis	cnbc.com
Trump experiencing 'mild symptoms' after coronavirus diagnosis	cnbc.com
Trump’s strange pre-spin on his coronavirus diagnosis: It came from military, police who want to ‘hug’ and ‘kiss’ you	washingtonpost.com
Minnesota congressmen traveled with Trump before, after Duluth rally and positive COVID-19 test	duluthnewstribune.com
White House official: Trump experiencing ‘mild’ symptoms of coronavirus after positive test	apnews.com
Putin sends Trump a telegram offering ‘sincere support’ after positive coronavirus test	marketwatch.com
RNC chair Ronna McDaniel has tested positive for coronavirus following Trump diagnosis	independent.co.uk
Trump’s Behavior Was ‘Brazen Invitation’ for the Coronavirus, Pelosi Says	thedailybeast.com
Trump, first lady positive for virus; he has 'mild symptoms'	apnews.com
Trump, first lady positive for virus; he has ‘mild symptoms’	apnews.com
Donald Trump has 'mild symptoms' after contracting coronavirus	news.sky.com
President Donald Trump's coronavirus infection draws international sympathy and a degree of schadenfreude	eu.usatoday.com
Gretchen Whitmer: Donald Trump's COVID-19 diagnosis 'wakeup call to every single American'	freep.com
Kushner, Ivanka Trump test negative for COVID-19	thehill.com
Tracking Trump: Where the president was and who he came in contact with before announcing his positive coronavirus test	marketwatch.com
Of Course Donald Trump Got Covid	newrepublic.com
Trump has ‘mild symptoms’ after testing positive for COVID-19	wkow.com
Trump and Melania test positive for Covid.	foxnews.com
Leftists Cheer News Trump, Hope Hicks Infected With COVID-19: ‘I Hope They Both Die’	dailywire.com
White House coronavirus adviser Scott Atlas reacts to Trump's coronavirus diagnosis, says 'zero reason to panic'	foxnews.com
Piers Morgan rips mockery of Trump after contracting COVID-19: 'No better than the man they loathe'	thehill.com
Trump Has ‘Mild Symptoms’ After He and First Lady Test Positive for COVID-19	nbcnewyork.com
US stocks slump after Trump tests positive for virus	bostonglobe.com
Trump’s test shows how Covid-19 might threaten Barrett confirmation	rollcall.com
UK bookmakers stop taking bets on US election after Trump gets Covid-19	edition.cnn.com
WATCH: Trump ignored the science and his own experts on coronavirus — now he's tested positive for COVID-19, while more than 200,000 Americans have died	businessinsider.com
Pelosi: Trump Flouting COVID-19 Guidelines Was 'A Brazen Invitation For This To Happen' - The president, who said he tested positive early Friday, has downplayed the COVID-19 pandemic, even as more than 200,000 Americans have died.	huffpost.com
Trump Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett tests negative for coronavirus	thehill.com
Trump’s pre-spin seems to blame military, police interactions for coronavirus diagnosis	washingtonpost.com
How Many People Has Donald Trump Already Infected With COVID-19?	vanityfair.com
Concern over Biden's possible exposure to COVID-19 after Trump tests positive	abcnews.go.com
RNC chairwoman tests positive for coronavirus after she was with President Trump, who has COVID	nydailynews.com
Donald Trump's Positive COVID-19 Announcement Becomes His Most Liked Tweet Ever	newsweek.com
Hicks, hubris and not a lot of masks: the week Trump caught Covid	theguardian.com
'We continue to pray': Joe Biden offers thoughts, prayers to President Trump for speedy recovery after coronavirus test	usatoday.com
Nancy Pelosi says Trump’s behavior was ‘brazen invitation’ after COVID-19 infection	nypost.com
Pelosi says Trump's actions were a 'brazen invitation' for a positive COVID-19 test, calls his diagnosis 'very sad' and 'tragic'	businessinsider.com
Conspiracy theorists believe Trump is using COVID results to postpone the election — Many online are calling b.s. amid the shocking news.	dailydot.com
A Steelworker Who Sat In The Debate Hall On Trump’s Positive Coronavirus Test: “It’s Frustrating”	buzzfeednews.com
President Trump showing mild symptoms after testing positive for COVID-19: officials	nydailynews.com
Mitch McConnell says the next presidential debate could be held remotely via videoconference after Trump tests positive for COVID-19	businessinsider.com
Trump experiencing mild Covid symptoms: Why the first week matters	nbcnews.com
Trump had close contact with "dozens" on trip after White House learned he was exposed to COVID-19. Trump traveled to a fundraiser after Hope Hicks already tested positive and he was "feeling poorly"	salon.com
Trump Kept Regular Schedule After Learning Close Aide Had Covid	bloomberg.com
Map: President Trump’s travels the week he tested positive for Covid-19	nbcnews.com
QAnon, the far-right, and some left-wingers are all spreading conspiracies about Trump's COVID-19 diagnosis	businessinsider.com
GOP donors panic after coming close to Trump at fundraiser hours before his positive Covid-19 test	cnbc.com
Trump experiencing "mild symptoms" of the Coronavirus	newsday.com
Biden, Harris express wishes for speedy 'recovery' after Trump's positive coronavirus test	foxnews.com
Trump and Melania 'paid the price': Chinese propaganda mocks president after COVID-19 diagnosis - The editor-in-chief of one of China's state-run media outlets suggested that President Donald Trump and the US first lady, Melania Trump, "paid the price" by contracting the coronavirus.	businessinsider.com
Putin sends Trump a telegram to wish him speedy recovery from COVID-19: agencies cite Kremlin (Reuters)	reuters.com
Trump coronavirus: Pence ‘praying for full recovery’ of president and first Lady Melania after positive test	independent.co.uk
After Trump's COVID-19 diagnosis, Trump, Biden appearances in Arizona next week unclear	azcentral.com
Trump’s coronavirus infection is an indictment of his approach to the pandemic - The diagnosis is another reminder of his administration’s failure on Covid-19.	vox.com
“No one knows where this is going to go”: Pandemonium inside the White House as Trump contracts COVID-19	vanityfair.com
Trump experiencing mild symptoms from COVID-19	telegraph.co.uk
Judge Amy Coney Barrett tests negative for COVID-19 after Trump contracts virus	nydailynews.com
President Trump apparently has COVID-19	thebulletin.org
Stocks Fall After Trump Tests Positive for Covid-19	nytimes.com
Twitter users predicted Trump's October COVID-19 diagnosis	dailydot.com
White House learned of Hicks's positive test before Trump left for fundraiser: Meadows	thehill.com
[GOP donors 'freaking out' after coming close to Trump at fundraiser hours before his positive Covid-19 test](https://www.cnbc.com/2020/10/02/gop-donors-panic-after-coming-close-to-trump-at-fundraiser-hours-before-positive-covid-19-test.html?__source=sharebar	twitter&par=sharebar)
Chris Wallace Says He's Getting Tested for Coronavirus After Being Exposed to Trump During Debate — "I don't think there's any question it's going to raise questions again about how seriously the president has taken the coronavirus," Wallace said Friday.	people.com
Trump's Covid diagnosis upends campaign, presents challenge for Biden — "This election isn't about Trump getting Covid, it's about America getting Covid," one Democratic strategist said.	nbcnews.com
Trump tests positive for COVID-19: Trump 'feeling mild symptoms,' but 'energetic'; Bidens praying for Trumps - live updates	usatoday.com
At 74 and obese, Covid-19 could be very serious for Donald Trump	telegraph.co.uk
John Cleese Revels in Donald Trump's COVID-19 Diagnosis — The 'Monty Python' icon has made it clear in the past he is not a fan of the president's and often criticizes him via social media.	hollywoodreporter.com
What Trump’s Positive Coronavirus Test Means for the Presidential Campaign	newyorker.com
Pelosi: Trump Flouting COVID-19 Guidelines Was ‘A Brazen Invitation For This To Happen’	m.huffpost.com
The Surprising Leftists Who Actually Wished Trump Well After COVID Diagnosis	townhall.com
How Will Trump’s Positive COVID-19 Test Affect The Election?	fivethirtyeight.com
Trump campaign did not notify Biden of positive coronavirus test	thehill.com
President Trump has ‘mild symptoms’ after testing positive for the coronavirus	opb.org
Trump downplayed Hope Hicks' Covid diagnosis on Fox hours before announcing he also tested positive	cnn.com
Mary Trump Slams President After Coronavirus Diagnosis: ‘Wear a F*cking Mask’	thedailybeast.com
Trump's age and weight could put him at higher risk for severe coronavirus infection	cbsnews.com
Will Trump’s COVID-19 Infection Change the Way He Manages the Pandemic? It Didn’t for the Leaders of Brazil and the U.K.	time.com
Trump's busy week before his positive Covid-19 test – in pictures - US news	theguardian.com
Timeline of Donald Trump’s activities in week coronavirus hit home	mlive.com
Global stocks fall, dollar gains after Trump gets coronavirus	uk.reuters.com
The latest coronavirus test results for Trump’s advisers and allies	washingtonpost.com
Sen Rob Portman, Rep Jim Jordan, Jon Husted will get COVID tests after being around Donald Trump	beaconjournal.com
Trump’s coronavirus infection is the result of his deadly, foolish recklessness	latimes.com
Positive! Trump’s Covid Bungling Now Takes a Personal Toll	thenation.com
Boris Johnson, who almost died of covid-19, wishes Trump a ‘speedy recovery’	washingtonpost.com
Did President Trump Refer to the Coronavirus as a 'Hoax'?	snopes.com
The world was already in chaos before Trump's COVID-19 diagnosis, and now there is more uncertainty than ever	businessinsider.com
Joe Biden has tested negative for coronavirus after Trump tests positive	vox.com
Trump says he and first lady have tested positive for the coronavirus	washingtonpost.com
Trump has coronavirus: Biden tests negative for COVID-19 after sharing debate stage with president - WATCH LIVE	abc7ny.com
'Not a Tragic Accident—A Crime Scene': Critics Say Trump Covid Diagnosis a 'Culmination' of His Deadly Pandemic Response	commondreams.org
After Trump's Positive Test, Here's The Status Of The Line Of Succession	npr.org
Trump suggested US troops or police were to blame for infecting White House staff just before he tested positive for COVID-19	businessinsider.com
Democratic nominee Joe Biden tests negative for coronavirus after potential exposure, Trump's diagnosis	cnbc.com
Schumer demands Senate coronavirus testing program after Trump diagnosis	thehill.com
Flights for Donald Trump's Wisconsin rallies canceled after president tests positive for COVID-19	madison.com
Joe Biden tests negative for coronavirus after Trump tests positive	businessinsider.com
Trump's coronavirus diagnosis guarantees this election will be about everything he has tried to avoid	cnn.com
The stock market's fear gauge surges 12% after President Trump tests positive for COVID-19	news.sky.com
Trump Team Knew of Hicks’ Positive Test—but Went Ahead With Golf Club Fundraiser	thedailybeast.com
InfoWars’ DeAnna Lorraine Claims ‘the Left’ May Have Given Trump COVID-19 Through His Debate Mic	rightwingwatch.org
Getting COVID-19 Is Probably Not a Brilliant Ploy for Sympathy That Will Boost Trump’s Reelection Chances	slate.com
House Probe Into Trump's Failed Covid-19 Response Shows "Unprecedented, Coordinated" Political Interference	commondreams.org
This Republican senator is the early leader for worst take on Trump's coronavirus diagnosis	cnn.com
Chris McDonald ‘Wouldn’t Put it Past’ Democrats to Infect Trump With COVID-19 to Stop the Presidential Debates	rightwingwatch.org
Trump supporter potentially exposed to COVID-19 from RNC chair's visit	cincinnati.com
GOP senator on Judiciary panel tests positive for Covid-19 days after meeting with Trump's nominee	cnn.com
Today’s coronavirus news: Ontario sets new record with 732 reported cases; Trump, first lady test positive for virus; Biden tests negative	thestar.com
[Politico] Trump coronavirus diagnosis leaves lawmakers exposed	politico.com
RNC chair Ronna McDaniel says she has COVID-19, hours after Trump	6abc.com
Nancy Pelosi Says Donald Trump's Actions Were 'Brazen Invitation' to Catch COVID	newsweek.com
Trump Has Repeatedly Downplayed COVID-19. What Will He Do Now That He Has It?	buzzfeednews.com
No, Trump Isn’t Faking COVID In A Master Scheme To Vanquish Biden	talkingpointsmemo.com
Trump Could Only Ignore the Reality of Coronavirus for So Long	jacobinmag.com
Trump’s ‘positive for COVID-19’ tweet is his most ‘liked’ post ever	marketwatch.com
Trump’s refusal to wear a face mask is a catastrophe A face mask might have protected Trump — and the people around him — from the coronavirus.	vox.com
Schumer says Trump coronavirus diagnosis shows what happens 'when you ignore science'	foxnews.com
Sen. Mike Lee, who met with Trump Supreme Court pick Amy Coney Barrett, tests positive for COVID-19	usatoday.com
Nancy Pelosi says continuity of government is ‘always in place’ after Trump tests positive for Covid-19	cnbc.com
Naomi Klein: I Fear Trump Will Exploit His COVID Infection to Further Destabilize the Election	democracynow.org
PolitiFact - Trump’s health and COVID-19: Here’s what we know	politifact.com
Confusion, concern infiltrate White House after Trump’s positive test	politico.com
Putin, Who Has Spent Almost Six Months In Isolation To Avoid The Coronavirus, Sent Trump A Get Well Note	buzzfeednews.com
Trumpworld delighted in cruelty. Now that Trump has COVID, it demands empathy.	businessinsider.com
Where Trump went (and who he was with) leading up to his coronavirus diagnosis	politico.com
Biden tests negative for COVID-19, reminds folks to 'wear a mask' after being mocked by Trump for mask at debate	usatoday.com

If you read the Men's rd 1 write up you can skip the paragraph below and head straight to the writeups. I participate in a picking competition that runs for most of the tournaments on tour and recently u/kuklachert who runs it has set up an automated site to take it to the next level. Check it out if you're interested!
Kukla has taken the time to put together a really great and easy-to-use site to automate his tennis picking competitons. The Australian Open will be the first contest this site is public for, so if you're looking for a fun way to compete against your friends and predict tennis without losing money to shady books, check it out 🐢. Just sign up (totally free to join and compete), join the Australian Open comp, and start picking. The site automatically tracks all your results, and maintains a leaderboard. The chat (runs thru discord) is a great place to hang out while you're watching, and there are even some small cash prizes for the top 3 finishers. If you like picking tennis, or tennis, or cash, or prizes, or turtles, or turtles as prizes, or strawberries, or cookies, or tennis, then this is the site for you <3. Check it out here, and remember since it's new feedback is always welcome
Australian Open Picking Competition
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Barty Kovinic : Rust is apparently not a thing for Ashleigh Barty. The loveable nugget from Australia took an entire year off from the tour due to Covid concerns, but started off this year as she does most years, by making the finals of the inaugural event. She has looked just as good as she ever was this week, and in the spot where she was likely to stagger against Bouskova (who was playing some excellent tennis in the 2nd and 3rd set) she was able to steady herself despite visible frustration. Although she has a finals left against a peak-form Muguruza, Barty’s fitness has never come into question, and since the WTA plays the 2/3 format, she shouldn’t really struggle with fatigue in the early rounds.
Kovinic has been a really consistent performer in early rounds on tour the past season or so, and she represents a very consistent baseliner who generally beats the players she’s supposed to. Barty just doesn’t give up the easy errors though, and will be sharp following some good matches this week. In Barty’s past as well as Osaka’s and Serena’s is losing sets in early rounds of majors, but here I think she will have ample time to right the ship even if she does go down an early break. Barty in 2.
Gavrilova Sorribes Tormo : This is a tough match for both players. Gavrilova struggled with injury for a while, but despite the lopsided scores against Serena this past week she played well. There are a lot of quality baseliners on the tour so the fact that these two stand out as very consistent is a testament to how hard they work on court. Gavrilova plays a bit more offense, but hasn’t really had a ton of wins. Tormo has won a bunch of matches, but lately is starting to slump a little. Bookmakers have this as a pickem, and I agree. It’s hard to see either player really pulling away here, and so the winner will have to be decided by who plays the big points better. Gavrilova has a slightly better serve, but Tormo makes a ton of noise on every shot and it’s fairly obvious that outlasting her opponent and outworking them is her intent. If Gavrilova loses it’ll be to rust. Simple shots into the net, and offensive opportunities sent long because of Tormo’s defense pressure. If she converts these, she should win as Tormo is unlikely to deviate. Gavrilova in 3.
Krejcikova Zheng : This is one where I disagree with the line as set. Krejcikova has had one of the quietest yet best years of her career. No major buzz, no discussions of her future from announcers, but sets taken off top players and cohesive beatdowns of players for entire matches. There was a match I watched last year against I believe Azarenka where she didn’t miss a shot for an entire set. For her to be only a mild favorite against Zheng I can really only chalk up to these being somewhat unknown talents to the general betting public and to Zheng’s ranking being a touch higher. I expect Krejcikova to continue to improve, and Zheng losing to Begu in 3 last week is understandable, but that was a matchup she had won in the past so her confidence has to be a bit under duress. Krejcikova in 2.
Trevisan Alexandrova : Unstoppable force immovable object type matchup. Trevisan is slated to lose almost every match she plays but she never alters her game. She keeps the ball in play in and is able to convert big unexpected shots on her forehand when you least expect it. The sort of Nadal above the head forehand means it’s tough to tell when she’s going to go down the line. Her attitude is great and her fight is inspiring. Overall though, she’s not currently going to overwhelm too many opponents. Losing to Petkovic isn’t great, as she does give you long stretches of errors at times. Across the net from her now is also Alexandrova, who just hit through Halep the previous week and is on an absolute tear. Alexadrova is always a pretty big favorite in early rounds, and she will be here also even though Trevisan is one of my favorite new competitors. Just making gets and attacking the backhand won’t be enough here for Trevisan. Alexandrova in 2.
Sasnovich Kontaveit : “This is as good a spot for Sasnovich to beat Kontaveit as she’ll likely see on tour.” That was my first thought when I saw this matchup. Kontaveit still has a semifinals to play today against Sakkari, and given how big she hits, fatigue could be a factor. Checking their history though, Sasnovich has won all but one of their contests so I really underrated her chances in the matchup. She even beat her last year at this exact event. I did bit of scoreboard watching this week also and caught Kontaveit having a bit more trouble than she should have with Mattek-Sands. It’s a bit puzzling since Kontaveit has such a dynamic game, but Sasnovich has a good chance to take this. Sasnovich in 3.
Watson Kr. Pliskova : Heather Watson has one of the widest spectrums of play on the WTA. She’s a great server and strings together at least one finals run each year, but in between she loses in straight sets to a number of opponents. Krystina Pliskova on the other hand never really makes the big splash, but wins a lot of matches and is a pretty steady fixture on tour. This is a serving battle and in serving battles the X factor is often who moves better in rallies. Pliskova’s backhand is heavy and she plays a game similar to Delbonis where more effort goes into the shot to try to avoid the ball being redirected, but she’s a bit slow. Watson is actually quite quick for a server, and given her history of notching wins against Pliskova, and the pickem line set by bookmakers, I lean towards her having a good chance to advance here. Watson in 3.
Rogers Jones : Shelbyyyyyyyy! Rogers has really blossomed in the past year and a half, and it’s good to see her finally notching wins on tour. She’s worked hard on her fitness and it’s resulting in greater court coverage. Francesca Jones looked amazing in qualifiers, and was crushing the ball early last week against Podoroska, but it’s clear that at this stage of her career, she needs time and control of rallies to really thrive. Rogers hits a heavy ball with a less exaggerated but similar motion to Madison Keys, and the time that she takes away from her opponents will prove to be the difference here. Podoroska punished Jones by redirecting her shots and the extra quality of pace coming back was often the undoing of Jones. I think Jones has a bright future, but she’ll need some help from the draws going forward to rise up the rankings. Rogers in 2.
Martic Danilovic : I am a big Petra Martic fan, but there is something lacking from her game sometimes. She started slow against Lapko, and never really threatened against Rogers. She should win this match, but Danilovic is a promising player and she’ll make Martic work for it. Her loss last week to Greet Minnen wasn’t a great scoreline, but Danilovic broke serve a few times and Minnen really came into this even sharp. I think this goes three, and Martic will need to control the tempo of the game in order to win because this is a very tricky spot for her. Martic in 3.
Bencic Davis : Woof. Bencic really has phoned in some performances lately. She’s got the game to win tournaments but really can’t find victories a good portion of the time. A quickish loss to Cirstea doesn’t mean the end of the world since Sorana is playing great tennis, but these are matches Bencic should win. A relative gift here from the draw since Lauren Davis doesn’t really overwhelm anyone, but Bencic will need to appear and compete to make her 2-0 advantage against Davis 3-0. This is a similar matchup to Martic’s where the favorite should find a way to win but the challenger absolutely will if they struggle on offense. Bencic in 3 or it could be a long year.
Strycova Kuznetsova : Strycova lost to Mattek-Sands last week which isn’t a real problem since hardcourt isn’t her best surface and Mattek-Sands presents a unique and frustrating challenge by getting to net so often. Rushing opponents who haven’t really had a ton of matchplay is a decent plan, and it paid off. Coming into this there’s not a lot of reason to think Strycova has anything wrong, but no real reason to think she’ll dominate this matchup either. Kuznetsova started off reeling off games against Brady, but the wind slowed down her ball and she really folded in the second set. Understandable, as Brady is really a top tier opponent, but not the kind of fight that makes me think she’s going to dominate Strycova. I still expect Kuznetsova’s baseline prowess to give her a pretty good chance to win here, but that it will be close since these two know each other so well and are towards the ends of their careers. Kuznetsova in 3.
Zhu Osuigwe : Lin Zhu has not been crushing worlds on tour, but Osuigwe is not quite read for the tour. Her AO qualifying draw was the easiest one offered, but beating Buzarnescu in the finals is still a great win for her. The junior standout is going to be a big question mark in any significant stage on tour, and although her and Zhu have similar quality games at the moment, it is more likely that the junior falters here. Zhu is very consistent and I give her the tiniest edge at the moment. Zhu in 3.
Mertens Fernandez : Mertens is my favorite. This is common knowledge. I don’t believe in elfs. That would be silly. But if I did. And they lived among us. And they were adorable. And they played really skillful tennis. I’m just saying. I’m just saying.
Fernandez really has some tough draws lately, and I hope the talented junior gets more matches that are not so very unwinnable soon. She showed what she can do by beating Sloane Stephens unmercifully last week, but Sloane is just shrugging and picking up checks at this point so I would expect Fernandez to want to play some 50-100 range talent soon. Mertens is a bit too stable from the baseline and will be able to move Fernandez well. Fernandez thrives on being lefty and exposing her opponents movement, but will be at a power disadvantage here. It just seems like barring a very bad day from Mertens, that this is a bit of a bad matchup for Fernendez. Elf in 2.
Ostapenko Muchova : There are elfs and there are dwarfs. Jelena Ostapenko is a cat swatting things off a table. You do not know why she does it and she is not likely to stop. There is something very reassuring about the singular approach Ostapenko takes to tennis, and going for winners every shot has netted her some very big results, but she doesn’t bring the best attitude to the bad times. Muchova plays one of the best rounded games on tour, and I’m a bit surprised that she’s not more of a favorite. Her defending is pretty darn special at times, and I think that Ostapenko will struggle with timing since Muchova can hang with some pretty big hitting. I think Muchova’s conditioning is a bit better also. Muchova in 3.
Cocciaretto Barthel : Cocciaretto is inching up the rankings nicely, and this is a great spot for her. Barthel has some talent, but being off the tour for so long has set her back a bit and it could be a bit longer before she really starts to win matches. This is winnable as Cocciaretto isn’t just going to serve you out, but she’ll have an edge from the baseline and has to know this is a good opportunity to snag ranking points against an unsteady opponent. Cocciaretto in 2-3.
Bogdan Collins : Tough opener for Bogdan, who crushes worlds in qualifers and early rounds, but doesn’t really have the marquee victories next to her name that would make her a good option to win this contest. Collins played extra sharp last week, and had a great 2020. Her serving has sort of improved, and given Serena’s resurgence, splitting sets with her hints that Collins’ peak performance of 2020 is her new level. Bogdan is very good, but not dangerous enough to shut Danielle out of the match. Collins in 2.
Pliskova Paolini : Pliskova matches are the most random events generally. Sometimes she smokes everything without blinking and looks like she’ll win the whole tournament. Sometimes it’s obvious she doesn’t really feel like making a full effort and her opponents get close. I think the moment is what dictates her effort, and she’ll put in enough effort here to beat Paolini. Jasmine has kinda thrived lately on just sticking around in matches, and hopefully Pliskova’s team will make it clear to her that this is a player who believes they can win this match. Pliskova in 2 but if she starts missing this could take 3.
Inglis Kenin : Maddison is a nice player, and it’s great for her to get a chance in a major, but this isn’t a lucky draw at all. Kenin is a frontrunner to go deep in any hardcourt event she enters. Super emphatic walking all day. Kenin in 2.
Kanepi Sevastova : Kaia Kanepi was formerly a player who’d go deep in the 3-4 tournaments a year that she showed up to, but in recent years she’d struggled to string wins together. A brilliant run this past week is likely to continue, but she has had some shoulder injuries in the past so she’s a mild question mark in this first round. I expect to see some kinesiology tape on her, and although Sevastova is a frustrating opponent we should see Kanepi able to control the rallies. Kanepi in 2.
McHale Podoroska : Christina McHale is a good baseliner. I feel like sometimes I say everyone is that when they’re just kinda generic. The truth is none of these players are generic. Tennis is ridiculously difficult and there just aren’t a myriad number of ways to play it and win unless you’re incredibly talented or physically gifted. Everything looks like pushing when you don’t have an edge in ballstriking. Pushing won’t work here though. Podoroska looked lost on hardcourt a few months ago. She even looked to be struggling early against Jones. She looked like she was outclassed at times against Kvitova. She continues to improve though and she has a great mind for tennis. This is a straightforward match and if she isn’t pressured Podoroska moves the ball too well to lose this. Podoroska in 2.
Vekic Wang : Donna Vekic just hasn’t won matches. She has a great game and looks like she’s a threat to win the event for a set, and then she just finds herself a bit behind the pace and loses. It has to be a mental struggle to really believe she’s going to turn it around at this point, and add in that here she’s expected to win but was beaten by Wang in their only previous meeting in Acapulco. How much tennis are we really playing at an event in Acapulco? I’m not quite sure. I do know that Vekic took a set off Pironkova last week, and she’ll have ample chances to employ her offense against Wang. This is a must-win for Vekic, and I think she’ll shrug off her struggles here. Vekic in 3.
Brady Bolsova Zadoinov : Brady is a fudge brownie in a world of regular brownies. There is something so pure about the way Ernie and Bert’s human cousin approaches tennis. It is a ton of fun to watch her forehand flutter through the air, and her backhand was never great but she has made great improvements to the length she gets on it and minimizing the slice habit has been great for her results. Bolsova had a couple nice wins recently to get her back on track on tour but this is relatively unwinnable. Windy conditions are really the only thing that’s going to throw people off this week in Australia and the wind honestly benefits players like Brady who can put a lot of shape/junk on the ball. Brady in 2.
Brengle Rodionova : Brengle seems like she’s a pretty big favorite here. Rodionova is benefitting a bit from wildcards at this point in her career, and she isn’t really a big threat to beat most of the top 100. Brengle in 2.
Sherif Pacquet : Mayar Sherif is a new name but she really is an effective winner. Her best attribute is durability so far. She extends rallies and hustles and hits a solid ball which is enough against lower tier opponents. As she gets more comfortable on tour I’m sure we’ll see more of her offense, but her plan A is best against this particular opponent. Chloe Paquet has one of the best T serves on tour, and goes for it almost every time. It’s a simple motion, and it nets a lot of cheap points since she serve and volleys often. Her marathon match with Destanee Aiava though illustrated that a good defender can make things very tense. I don’t consider Sherif such a big favorite as the -300 line she’s offered at, but given she’s a good bit better than Aiava at a similar strategy so she is likely to find the finish line here. Pacquet is great, but it’s really difficult to win matches when you have to earn every point, and she will here. Sherif in 3.
Konta Juvan : Jo Konta is a tricky one to predict. She sometimes looks very solid but struggles in extended rallies with errors. Begu was in good form so her losing there isn’t a problem, but there isn’t much to take away from her win against Pera. Pera was double-faulting at a really nonstop rate, and when that’s going on players beat themselves. Kaja Juvan is a tough test here, and she’s already snagged some good names and faces on tour. Coming through qualifying at the AO and also almost snagging Swiatek last week are good steps, but beating Konta may be a cut above what she’s accomplished so far. I expect Juvan to win a set, but maybe not the match. Konta in 3.
Azarenka Pegula : This doesn’t seem fair. Azarenka was the best player in 2020 for my money but that run has to cool off a bit. Her win against Putintseva shows she’s still focused, but her withdrawal to Kontaveit lends a bit of mystery to her quality heading into this match. Pegula had a decent week almost defeating Kenin, and this will be a good quality affair since Pegula really has good energy at the baseline and a solid forehand. I think she’ll struggle to find points though if Azarenka is full strength as Vika’s defending and counterpunching is a big strength of hers. Azarenka in 2.
Aiava Stosur : Couple wildcards playing in the first round. Destanee Aiava is clearly very talented and has great defending. She extends points well and her serve is passable. I’m not really sure how much tennis training she’s doing though as she’s a tiny tiny tiny small very minimal little bit heavier than she might want to be to really compete. She’s still young and there’s no reason she has to be completely committed to tennis or train her brains out anyway, just an area I think could make a match like this a clear victory rather than a “well she should win”. Sam Stosur hasn’t really played much winning tennis the past few seasons. She’s basically retired but still enjoying the sport the way I see it. Still has a great serve, a fast forehand, and can compete a bit but I don’t really see her fistpumping and getting too excited over it. This is one where Aiava’s war with Pacquet means she is able to outlast an offensive talent, but where Stosur’s experience may make her a bit more effective with her opportunities than Pacquet. Tough to really decide, and with Azarenka or Pegula waiting in round two, this is one I’m ok getting wrong. Stosur in 2.
Hibino Sharma : Hibino has climbed the rankings nicely again after some tough relatively winless seasons. She hasn’t played since the French which is a puzzle, and she’s sat at a pickem here against Sharma who really hasn’t won a ton of matches but has played some great isolated sets of tennis. Sharma is one of the few players who took a set from Kanepi this past week and since Hibino should be a bit rusty and is generally not an overwhelming talent but more of a counterpuncher this is a good chance for Astra. Sharma in 3.
Sakkari Mladenovic : Maria Sakkari is a top 10 player for the foreseeable future. She works too hard on conditioning to be outlasted, and the more comfortable she gets on tour the fewer errors she makes. Mladenovic is on a bad slide but is too talented to ever really crash off the tour. This is a rough draw, and she’s unlikely to come up with enough offense to beat Sakkari. Sakkarin in 2.
Stephens Putintseva : Sloane Stephens is already retired, and tennis is her retirement home. I don’t begrudge an athlete who’s accomplished so much some time off, and it really makes predicting her matches a bit easier. Sloane has the talent to beat anyone and hits the ball heavy when she’s playing well. She can drag her way through a match playing poorly, but the peak peformances that netted her titles are few and far between at this point.
Putintseva has been winning when she’s supposed to, and is very solid from the baseline. She might play the most error free tennis of anyone on tour in some stretches, and she’ll be able to frustrate Stephens. Putintseva in 2.
Burel Van Uytvanck : Clara Burel is very good, but like most junior standouts much of your future on tour depends on who you draw in the first round. Against a more conservative player or even someone with a smaller offense, Burel is going to have a good shot at winning. She drew Giorgi last week though and showed that while she’s a very talented player, she can’t really counterpunch nonstop during a match. This will be the ask here as well, and as well as Van Uytvanck played last week, the only issue working against her is how quickly she imploded against Muguruza when the ball started coming back.
AVU really plays nonstop offense, and can hit herself out of matches quickly if her opponent gets the ball deep. She’ll have a much easier time holding serve than Burel though, and I think in a tiebreakelate set situation Van Uytvanck’s serving will be a big plus as well as her experience. Burel will at some point be better than AVU, it’s just not quite there yet. Close match, but AVU in 3.
Teichmann Gauff : This is kinda puzzling. These two played first round in last week’s event as well, and Gauff didn’t do anything special but never really seemed like she was in danger. It was a 3 setter, and there were momentum shifts, but it seems like Teichmann has to do an awful lot to win a point and Gauff is able to just defend and eventually overwhelm her opponents. Pushing isn’t my favorite, but it’s hard to say that Teichmann is going to turn that result around in a week. Gauff in the same 3.
Svitolina Bouzkova : There are some really tough first rounds in this section of the draw. Svitolina is always a threat to go on a tear. Her defending is second to none and her forehand is solid when she’s confident. The problem across the net is that Bouzkova brings a similar level of defending, so this is likely to come down to who makes errors when forcing offense. Bouzkova didn’t struggle much to move the ball against Barty, but she played 2 good sets and one bad one. It’ll be a similar issue here. I think she can win a set, but winding up in a third set against Svitolina and having to come up with 6 games of winners is very tough. The upset is possible, but will require a really comprehensive performance. Svitolina in 3.
Andreescu Buzarnescu : A lucky loser spot will get Buzarnescu a nice paycheck. After struggling with some knee injuries, Andreescu finally makes her return to the tour. It’s tough to know what to really expect, but Buzarnescu has struggled to win matches on hardcourt, and it’s likely that Andreescu will have ample chances to win here. It’ll be interesting to see how she’s playing after such an extended break. Andreescu in 2.
Hsieh Pironkova : Hsieh pretty much gave up against Van Uytvanck last week and was having clean winners hit off her serve. She’s a fan favorite, but hasn’t been winning matches. Pironkova on the other hand, has pretty much beaten everyone on tour she’s faced since returning. I think that run continues here. Pironokova in 2.
Flipkens V. Williams : Flipkens wins just when you think she can’t. I think this is one of those spots where she can’t. Venus Williams isn’t going to beat the top half of the tour, but she’s still a pretty adept server and if she doesn’t have to move a lot, she’s a very tough out in early rounds. Flipkens thrives on a slice-heavy game and generally nets most of her wins against overzealous youth. Venus is neither, and should have the ability to win here. I don’t agree with her -318 pricetag, but I think her price is often inflated. Williams in 3.
Wang Errani : There’s always a good chance that Wang gets the job done in straight sets. She really performs well as a favorite, and rarely wins when she isn’t. Here she has a tricky opponent in Errani. Errani wins this matchup on clay, but hardcourt leaves her a bit lacking in big weapons. Wang hits big, but lost to Paolini last week which is a similar caliber of player to Errani. Errani is coming off a qualifying run in the AO, and lost a decider this past week to an in-form Ostapenko. This is a similar opponent and I’d expect a very close match. Wang winning here puts her in good shape since she can defeat Venus in round two, but the upset isn’t out of the question since Wang was able to basically get outlasted last week. Errani in 3.
Voundrousova Peterson : Marketa managed to wake up this past week, and because of that she’s probably going to win this match. She found good length on her forehand, and when she’s in a rhythm she’s very tiring to beat. Peterson has a great ability to get to the 5-5 point in matches, but hasn’t closed them out of late. There’s nothing overpowering in her game and you kinda need that to beat Voundrousova. Voundrousova in 2.
Marino Birrell : Marino did well to qualify for the AO, and playing a wild card ranked in the 700s is a good reward. Since I know Marino is reading this, I’m picking her. Marino in 2.
Tig Cirstea : Tig is one of the toughest fighters on tour. Some might say her attitude on court is, awful. Her play reflects how hard she’s fighting though, and she acknowledged in some interviews that she gets too intense at times. She hasn’t really found her hardcourt game yet, and Cirstea really has in the past few weeks. Tig will make this a long match, but it’s Cirstea’s offense vs Cirstea’s mistakes in this one. Most pro’s win that battle when it’s availalble. Cirstea in 3.
Minnen Kvitova : Tough draw for Minnen who came out firing last week and looks to have a bright future on tour. Kvitova is occasionally caught off guard but she tends to do well in serving battles and this is one. Kvitova in 2.
Muguruza Gasparyan : Muguruza is ballin. As I’m typing this she’s struggling to find easy points against Barty, but this week she has looked at her best. Two opponents have gotten 0 games in a set against her already, and that spells trouble for Gasparyan. Muguruza’s losses on tour are usually hard to watch and she looks tentative while makes tons of simple errors. This tells me that generally the difference in her game is how much training she’s doing and how much tennis she’s playing. For now, it’s a lot of both. Gasparyan is pretty darn good and a lucky loser spot is fair since she really does belong in the main draw, but this is toooooo tough. Muguruza in 2.
Samsonova Badosa : Tough tough first round. Liudmila Samsonova sorta reminds me of Rybakina and Sabalenka. She crushes the ball on both wings, she moves well, but her breakout performances were followed by a bunch of tough draws and losses. I think many players just get a bit solved by the tour, and Samsonova will have to wait a while to really announce herself. This is a good opportunity for her, and Badosa. Badosa is one of the ball-machines currently operating on tour, and really doesn’t give much up once the rally is started. This is a classic offense vs defense matchup, and although I think Samsonova has a higher ceiling, at this point Badosa should get the job done. Badosa in 3.
Diyaz Zidansek : Zarina Diyas is a player that always seems encouraging, but doesn’t win a lot. Her speed is off the charts, but her game is really geared towards that 2017-18 stretch where there weren’t really dominant players offensively and a lot of matches were about outlasting the other player. The shoutout format is really back now, and I think Diyas has to make some adjustments. Zidansek is mostly a clay talent, but she has better options and variety than Diyas. I wonder if anyone is reading this. Diyas beat Zidansek in 2018, but hasn’t really beaten many players since. Zidansek had some nice wins against Brady and Fernandez recently, so I’d lean towards her. Zidansek in 3.
Pera Kerber : Bernarda Pera winds up in a third set pretty much every time she steps on the court, but this past week in the windy conditions her serve left her bigtime. It was frustrating to watch and she never really found the motion against Konta. I don’t expect this to improve during a match against a very offensive returner in Angelique Kerber. Kerber looked sharp on isolated points this week, and I think she’ll be able to break early and often against Pera. Kerber in 2.
Petkovic Jabeur : Petkovic hit through Trevisan which means she’s at the top of her game. The top of her game though, is at the bottom of Jabeur’s. Since Petkovic is such a great athlete, her ballstriking can make this close for a bit, but Jabeur’s serving is top level and even though she plays a bit impatient, she’s likely to close this out even if she gives up an early deficit. Jabeur in 3.
Hibi Schmiedlova : This is a good one. Hibi is on a roll stretching 5 wins in a row to start the season prior to going down to Mertens (no shame there) this week. Schmiedlova has been really solid since coming back to the tour and has pulled a couple upsets most notably besting Azarenka at the Frenchest Open. Schmiedlova is likely to be the bigger hitter here but with both coming in in decent form, this should go down to the wire. Schmiedlova in 3.
Hercog Garcia : I’m not sure why I always think Hercog is going to win, but I do. Part of the equation here is that Caroline Garcia has turned in some of the most random poor performances I’ve ever seen, and Hercog pretty much always plays well even if she doesn’t really have the weapons to beat a top defender. It’s time to stop doubting though. Garcia has won all of the previous meetings between these two, and she played ok last week. Garcia in 2.
Pavlyuchenkova Osaka : Tough first round for Osaka as Pavs isn’t really interesting in what name is across the net, but pretty winnable. Osaka can lose any match, but can win any match also and that tends to be her most frequent result of late. Osaka in 2.
Sabalenka Kuzmova : Sabalenka struggles with strange losses less and less as she matures. I think she’ll add a good number of indoor titles this year, but her outdoor game will take another year or so. Hard to pick against her here though. Sabalenka in 2.
Boulter Kasatkina : Katie Boulter snatched wiiiiiiiiiigs last week. It was really a great run (defeating Kalinskaya and Gauff) and she looked like she might even defeat Osaka. That kind of quality is necessary, as Kasatkina is pretty efficient during the rally. She doesn’t have any clear holes in her game, and generally plays error free. Her only real struggle is with opponents that have power and Boulter doesn’t really crush the ball. Expect long rallies in this and if I’m being honest I’m not sure what to expect for an outcome. Boulter had a much better week, but Kasatkina is way more established. Boulter should probably lose, but Kasatkina has had some very extended struggles in the past on hardcourt. I’m guessing, but Boulter in 3.
Cornet Savinykh : Cornet is likely to have an edge here. She’s been just average in 2021 but is a very good defender and extends rallies in a manner that new players on tour generally struggle with. She’ll likely find errors from Savinykh but admittedly she is a new commodity and I’m mostly going off her results so far. Cornet in 2 but I’ll be watching most of this one to get an idea baout Savinykh’s game.
Li Zhang : Ann Li has basically surprised everyone this week (and by everyone I mean me). I really liked her game last year, and I find that she moves the ball around the court in a very composed manner and makes good decision as to when to get in to net. I didn’t expect her to beat Cirstea though, and I think that lends itself strongly to her beating Zhang here. Zhang received a 1 and 1 beating from Muchova last week and I don’t think she’s going to turn it around her against a surging talent. Li in 2.
Riske Potapova : Alison Riske hasn’t played since last season, and it’s going to be pretty tough to figure out where her level is given how inconsistent she’s played in the past. A lot of errors and a lot of serving struggles are interspersed with rare stretches where she really lands her shots and is able to overwhelm her opponents. I’m not sure if I put Potapova’s results above hers really. Potapova is the type to win 1 round at every event she goes to, but never multiple matches. Rusty inconsistency against consistent underperforming is a tough one to figure out. I lean Potapova in 3.
Bonaventure Babos : Ysaline is a fine player, but appears on tour a bit less than is really necessary to get up the rankings. This is a good chance in terms of name of opponent, as Babos has had some bad seasons, but not in terms of timing, since Babos is playing her best and most motivated tennis in the past few weeks. Her qualifying run was impressive, and although she lost to Garcia last week she acquitted herself well. Babos in 3.
Begu Stojanovic : Begu was really the most improved player at this week’s warmup events. I don’t see a reason given her quality of play to think that she won’t play a good level this week as well. Stojanovic was pretty convincing beating Sherif, but Begu is a big step up from a defensive qualifier. Begu in two.
Siegemund Williams : Laura Siegemund has really fought nonstop, and her reward is a pretty comfortable ranking on tour for at least a year. There were times where her knee injuries looking like they’d cancel her permanently, but she really is a joy to watch when she’s playing well. This is bad timing to play Serena Williams though. There isn’t really a good time, but her mobility suffered a bit in her return last season and she seemed a bit vulnerable at times. 2021 is here though, and Serena has shed any extra weight she was carrying, and looks very sharp to start the season. It takes a lot of hard training and dieting to do what she did, and there’s reason to believe that she might be able to get that long-sought after major title this year. Her serving looked excellent this past week, and although she withdrew with a shoulder injury, high profile tennis players injury withdrawals are often more opportunistic than tragic. Williams in 2.
Swiatek Rus : Iga Swiatek isn’t really confident on hardcourt yet. A lot of junior standouts get their first real results on clay, and she’s no different. Her talent though is something that won’t really be held back for too much longer. At this point it’s a question of when, not if. Swiatek in 2.
Shvedova Giorgi : Nice to see Yaraslava back on tour,but this is a pretty tough first round. Giorgi is playing pretty well, and should take advantage of Shvedova’s rust. Giorgi in 2.
Ferro Siniakova : Popcorn time. Fiona Ferro’s hardcourt results are night and day from her clay results. During her match with Rogers last week, she basically figured out hardcourt tennis within the match, but couldn’t really stick to the plan. I would expect her team to work on that, and I think that given Siniakova’s streaky play, that Ferro will have a chance to start winning on hc here. On the other side of the fence, Siniakova has lost some matches, but has competed and won against a much higher tier of player than Ferro. She has to sit as a slight favorite, and the question here is similar to Swiatek; when will Ferro put the puzzle pieces together. I expect it to happen in this match. Ferro in 3.
Zvonareva Rybakina : This is a brilliant matchup but unfortunate for whoever loses. Zvonareva served better than she has in a while last week, and her baseline game is always very accomplished. Rybakina is really good enough to win a major already, and the real trouble is just getting through these difficult early rounds. I guess that’s a problem for everyone, but a peaking Zvonareva is a difficult test. Rybakina has to sit as a favorite, but if she starts slowly she’ll lose this match. Still, Rybakina has the talent to withstand Zvonareva’s onslaught and her serving is just as good. Rybakina in 3.
Kudermetova Kostyuk : Kudermetova has a big edge coming into this, having just defeated Kostyuk at the event in Abu Dhabi. Kostyuk has been garnering some very high prices, and is expected to really have an impact on tour soon. The trouble came for her last week with the windy conditions in Melbourne. She’s a very clean ballstriker and needs to be able to commit to her swings. This is an exceptionally tough match to call, and the match in Abu Dhabi was decided by a single break. I think Kostyuk can turn this around, but her performance against Brady wasn’t very inspiring. Someone in 3.
Gracheva Blinkova : Blinkova’s been struggling to notch wins, and Gracheva won their previous meeting. This is another very tight contest, but it’s hard to say that Gracheva doesn’t have a small edge here. Gracheva in 3.
Doi Tomljanovic : Misaki really isn’t the most dominant player but she presents a very difficult test if her opponent lacks power. Ajla Tomljanovic is a great talent but hasn’t really taken the next step on tour. It’s easy to think that her tough results on tour mean she’ll never get there, but she does play some tight matches against most opponents. I think she’ll get a boost from playing at home here, and while Doi is good for a few breaks of serve against most players, Ajla will really just need to keep errors to a minimum to get across the finish line here. Tomljanovic in 3.
Cabrera Halep : Cabrera is a good talent, but I am quite sleepy at this point, so Halep in 2.

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Matthew Davey — Chief Executive Officer and Director
Mr. Davey has over 25 years of experience within the digital media, sports, entertainment, leisure and gaming ecosystems, as well as experience in the public sector. He is an experienced public company executive officer and board member. He has served in executive management positions across the gaming technology arena. Over the course of Mr. Davey’s career, he oversaw more than ten mergers and acquisitions and over $1.2 billion in debt and equity capital raised to support the companies he has led.
Most recently, Mr. Davey was Chief Executive Officer of SG Digital, the Digital Division of Scientific Games Corp. (“Scientific Games”) (Nasdaq: SGMS). SG Digital was established following the purchase by Scientific Games of NYX Gaming Group Limited (“NYX”) (formerly TSXV: NYX), where Mr. Davey served as Chief Executive Officer and Director. The NYX acquisition provided Scientific Games with a vehicle to significantly accelerate the scale and breadth of its existing digital gaming business, including the strategic expansion into sports betting. In his capacity as Chief Executive Officer of NYX, Mr. Davey developed and implemented a corporate strategy that generated strong revenue growth. Mr. Davey shaped company strategy to focus on digital gaming supplier platforms and content that provided various gaming operators with the underlying gaming and sports betting systems for their online gaming business. In 2014, Mr. Davey oversaw the initial public offering of NYX, and his experience in the digital media, sports, entertainment, leisure and gaming industries helped NYX recognize momentum as a public company. After the public offering, from 2014 to 2018, Mr. Davey oversaw seven acquisitions which helped establish NYX as one of the fastest growing global B2B real-money digital gaming and sports betting platforms. These acquisitions included:
• OpenBet: In 2016, NYX completed the $385 million acquisition of OpenBet. This was one of the more complex and transformative acquisitions that Mr. Davey oversaw at NYX. Through securing co-investments from William Hill (LSE: WMH), Sky Betting & Gaming and The Stars Group (formerly Nasdaq: TSG, TSX: TSGI), Mr. Davey was able to get the acquisition from Vitruvian Partners completed successfully, winning the deal against much larger and well capitalized competitors. By combining two established and proven B2B betting and gaming suppliers, NYX was well positioned to provide customers with exciting player-driven solutions across all major product verticals and distribution channels. This allowed NYX to become the leading B2B omni-channel sportsbook platform in the market and the supplier to over 300 gaming operators globally with an extensive library of desktop and mobile game titles, including more than 700 on NYX platforms and more than 2,000 on the OpenBet platform.
• Cryptologic/Chartwell: In 2015, NYX completed the $119 million acquisition of Cryptologic and Chartwell. The acquisition provided NYX with more than 400 titles of additional leading gaming content, a broader customer base, and direct exposure to PokerStars and Intercasino, part of the Gamesys Group (LSE: GYS) — two of the world’s largest online casino offerings.
• OnGame: In 2014, NYX completed the distressed acquisition of OnGame, a premier poker content, platform and service provider. This acquisition provided NYX with one of the best poker products in the industry, access to several regulated jurisdictions, and a valuable talent pool that was instrumental in the growth of NYX. The addition of OnGame further established a path for NYX to continue its growth in both European and U.S. markets.
These acquisitions, together with meaningful organic growth, increased NYX’s revenue from $24 million in 2014 to $184 million annualized in 2017. During that time, Mr. Davey helped build NYX to have over 200 customers in the global gaming industry and a team of 1,000 employees. Mr. Davey’s success at NYX ultimately led to its sale to Scientific Games for $631 million in 2018.
Mr. Davey joined Next Gen Gaming, the predecessor to NYX, in 2000 as the Vice President of Technology, was appointed as Executive Director in 2003 and named Chief Executive Officer in 2005. Prior to that, he was the Senior Consultant for Access Systems, a company that specializes in the provision of back-end software for licensed online casinos. Prior to joining Access, Mr. Davey worked for the Northern Territory Government specializing in matters pertaining to the internet and e-commerce along with roles in the Department of Racing and Gaming. Mr. Davey received a Bachelor of Electrical & Electronic Engineering from Northern Territory University, Australia (also known as Charles Darwin University).
Robin Chhabra — President
Mr. Chhabra has been at the forefront of corporate acquisition activity within the digital gaming landscape for over a decade. His prior experience includes leading corporate strategy, M&A, and business development at two of the global leaders in the digital gaming industry, The Stars Group (“TSG”) and William Hill, and a leading supplier, Inspired Gaming Group (Nasdaq: INSE). Mr. Chhabra served on the Group Executive Committees of each of these companies. From 2017 to May 2020, Mr. Chhabra served as Chief Corporate Development Officer at TSG and, from 2019 to August 2020, he also served as the Chief Executive Officer of Fox Bet, a leading U.S. online gaming business which is the product of a landmark partnership between TSG and FOX Sports, a transaction which he led. During that period, Mr. Chhabra led several transactions which transformed TSG into the largest publicly listed online gambling operator in the world by both revenue and market capitalization and one of the most diversified from a product and geographic perspective with revenues of over $2.5 billion. Mr. Chhabra’s M&A experience is extensive and covers multiple global geographies across the digital gaming value chain and includes the following:
• TSG/Flutter Entertainment Merger: In 2019, Mr. Chhabra led the TSG M&A team that was responsible for TSG’s $12.2 billion merger with Flutter Entertainment (LSE: FLTR). The merger between TSG and Flutter Entertainment is the largest transaction in the digital gaming industry to date. The combination created the largest publicly listed online gaming company with approximately 13 million active customers and leading product offerings, which include sports betting, online casino, fantasy sports and poker. The combined entity includes some of the world’s most iconic digital gaming brands such as Fanduel, Fox Bet, Sky Bet, PaddyPower, Betfair, PokerStars and SportsBet. TSG/Flutter Entertainment is one of the most geographically diverse digital gaming and media companies with leading positions in the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Ireland, Italy, Spain, Germany and Georgia.
• TSG/Sky Betting and Gaming (“SBG”): In 2018, Mr. Chhabra led the acquisition of SBG from CVC Capital Partners and Sky plc, Europe’s largest media company, in a transaction valued at $4.7 billion. At the time of the acquisition SBG was the largest mobile gambling operator in the United Kingdom and one of the fastest growing of the major operators having doubled its online market share in three years. The acquisition of SBG provided TSG with (a) greater revenue diversification, significantly enhanced expertise and exposure to sports betting just ahead of the judicial overturn of The Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA) by the U.S. Supreme Court, (b) a leading position within the United Kingdom, the world’s largest regulated online gaming market, (c) improved products and technology as a result of the addition of SBG’s innovative casino and sports book offerings and a portfolio of popular mobile apps, and (d) expertise in deeply integrating sports betting with leading sports media companies, positioning TSG to create more engaging content, deliver faster growth and decrease customer acquisition costs.
• William Hill (LSE: WMH): At William Hill, from 2010 to 2017, Mr. Chhabra served as Group Director of Strategy and Corporate Development where he led several transactions which contributed to William Hill’s transformation from a land-based gambling operator in the United Kingdom to a leading online-led international business. Mr. Chhabra led William Hill’s entry into the U.S. sports betting and online lottery markets with the acquisition of four businesses, including the simultaneous acquisitions of three U.S. sportsbooks, Cal Neva, American Wagering and Brandywine Bookmaking, in 2011 for an aggregate purchase price of $55 million. These businesses ultimately led William Hill to achieve a leading position in the U.S. sports betting market with a market share of 24% in 2019. Additionally, Mr. Chhabra played a key role in structuring William Hill’s successful joint venture with PlayTech Plc (LSE: PTEC) in 2008. The combined entity created one of the largest online gambling businesses in Europe at the time of its formation and led to William Hill’s buyout of Playtech’s interest for $637 million in 2013. Prior to the transaction, William Hill had struggled in its attempt to establish a strong online gaming platform and a meaningful presence outside the United Kingdom.
Mr. Chhabra has also successfully completed four transactions worth over $1.2 billion in Australia, the world’s second largest regulated online gambling market, and various partnerships in Asia. Additionally, he completed several technology and media related transactions, including William Hill’s investment in NYX, where he worked with Mr. Davey on NYX’s transformational acquisition of OpenBet.
Prior to working in the gaming sector, Mr. Chhabra was an equities analyst and a management consultant. Mr. Chhabra received a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Eric Matejevich — Chief Financial Officer
Mr. Matejevich is a seasoned gaming executive with extensive experience in both the online gaming and traditional casino industries. From February to August 2019, he served as Trustee and Interim-Chief Executive Officer of Ocean Casino Resort (“Ocean”) (formerly Revel Casino, which had a construction cost of $2.4 billion) in Atlantic City, where he successfully led the management team through an ownership change and operational turnaround effort. Over the course of seven months, Mr. Matejevich managed to reduce the property’s weekly cash burn of $1.5 million to an annualized cash flow run rate in excess of $20 million.
Prior to Ocean, from 2016 to 2018, Mr. Matejevich served as the Chief Financial Officer of NYX. At NYX, he focused his efforts on integrating the company’s many acquisitions and multiple debt refinancings to simplify its capital structure and provided liquidity for growth initiatives. Additionally, Mr. Matejevich was instrumental to the executive team that sold NYX to Scientific Games for $631 million.
Prior to NYX, from 2004 to 2014, Mr. Matejevich was the Chief Financial Officer of Resorts International Holdings and later, from 2011, also the Chief Operating Officer of the Atlantic Club Casino, a property under the Resorts International Holdings umbrella — a Colony Capital (NYSE: CLNY) entity. As Chief Financial Officer, he provided managerial oversight for all finance functions for a six-property casino company with annual gaming revenue exceeding $1.3 billion, 10,000 gaming positions, 7,000 hotel rooms and over 11,000 staff members during his tenure. Mr. Matejevich led the transition effort to integrate a four-casino, $1.3 billion acquisition from Harrah’s Entertainment and Caesars Entertainment (Nasdaq: CZR). As Chief Operating Officer of Atlantic Club, he lobbied for and was successful in obtaining the first internet gaming legislation passed in the United States. The Atlantic Club was the sole New Jersey casino proponent of the legislation.
Prior to serving in various gaming positions, Mr. Matejevich was a Vice President of High Yield Research for Merrill Lynch, where he managed the corporate bond research effort for the gaming and leisure sectors and marketed high yield and other debt transactions totaling $4.8 billion. Mr. Matejevich received a Bachelor of Science in Economics from The Wharton School and a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations from The College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania.
Our Board of Directors
Morris Bailey — Chairman
Over the past 10 years, Mr. Bailey has been a leader in turning around Atlantic City, as well as being among the first gaming executives to embrace online gaming and sports betting in the United States. In his efforts, Mr. Bailey partnered with two of the largest digital gaming companies in the world, PokerStars, part of the Stars Group, and DraftKings (Nasdaq: DKNG). In 2010, Mr. Bailey bought Resorts Atlantic City (“Resorts”) and initiated a comprehensive renovation which allowed for the property to be rebranded and repositioned. In 2012, Mr. Bailey signed an agreement with Mohegan Sun to manage the day-to-day operations of the casino. In addition to Mohegan Sun’s operational expertise and ability to reduce costs via economies of scale, Resorts gained access to their robust customer database. Soon thereafter, Mr. Bailey and his team focused on bringing online gaming to the property. In 2015, Resorts established a platform to engage in online gaming by partnering with PokerStars, now part of the $24 billion Flutter Entertainment, PLC (LSE: FLTR), to operate an online poker room in Atlantic City. In 2018, Resorts announced deals with DraftKings and SBTech to open a sportsbook on-property and online. For 2020 year-to-date, Resorts has performed in the top quartile in internet gross gaming revenue in New Jersey. Mr. Bailey’s efforts in New Jersey helped set the framework for expansion of online sports and gaming throughout the United States.
In addition to his gaming interests, Mr. Bailey has over 50 years of experience in all facets of real estate development, asset M&A, capital markets and operations and is the founder, Chief Executive Officer and Principal of JEMB Realty, a leading real estate development, investment and management organization. Mr. Bailey has notable investment experience within the energy, finance and telecommunications sectors through investments in the Astoria Energy Plant, Basis Investment Group and Xentris Wireless.
Tony Rodio — Director Nominee
Mr. Rodio has nearly four decades of experience in the gaming industry. Most recently, Mr. Rodio served as the Chief Executive Officer and director of Caesars Entertainment Corporation (“Caesars”) (Nasdaq: CZR), one of the world’s most diversified casino-entertainment providers and the most geographically diverse U.S. casino-entertainment company, from April 2019 until its acquisition by Eldorado Resorts, Inc. in July 2020. Mr. Rodio led Caesars through its $17.3 billion merger with Eldorado Resorts, one of the largest transactions in the gaming industry to date. Additionally, Mr. Rodio was instrumental to Caesars’ expansion into the digital gaming industry and oversaw the implementation of new digital segments such as its Scientific Games powered retail sportsbook solution that now operates in various states throughout the U.S. From October 2018 to May 2019, Mr. Rodio served as Chief Executive Officer of Affinity Gaming. Prior to Affinity Gaming, he served as President, Chief Executive Officer and a director of Tropicana Entertainment, Inc. (“Tropicana”) for over seven years, where he was responsible for the operation of eight casino properties in seven different jurisdictions. During his time at Tropicana, Mr. Rodio oversaw a period of unprecedented growth at the company, improving overall financial results with net revenue that increased more than 50% driven by both operational improvements and expansion across regional markets. Mr. Rodio led major capital projects, including the complete renovation of Tropicana Atlantic City and Tropicana’s move to land-based operations in Evansville, Indiana. Each of these initiatives, among others, generated substantial value for Tropicana. Ultimately, Mr. Rodio’s efforts at Tropicana led to its sale to Eldorado Resorts in 2018 for $1.85 billion. Prior to Tropicana, Mr. Rodio held a succession of executive positions in Atlantic City for casino brands, including Trump Marina Hotel Casino, Harrah’s Entertainment (predecessor to Caesars), the Atlantic City Hilton Casino Resort and Penn National Gaming. He has also served as a director of several professional and charitable organizations, including Atlantic City Alliance, United Way of Atlantic County, the Casino Associations of New Jersey and Indiana, AtlantiCare Charitable Foundation and the Lloyd D. Levenson Institute of Gaming Hospitality & Tourism. Mr. Rodio brings extensive knowledge of and experience in the gaming industry, operational expertise, and a demonstrated ability to effectively design and implement company strategy. Mr. Rodio received a Bachelor of Science from Rider University and a Master of Business Administration from Monmouth University.
Marlon Goldstein — Director Nominee
Mr. Goldstein is a licensed attorney with nearly 20 years of experience in the gaming space. He joined The Stars Group (Nasdaq: TSG)(TSX: TSGI) in January 2014 as its Executive Vice-President, Chief Legal Officer and Secretary until his retirement from the company in July 2020 following the merger of TSG with Flutter Entertainment, PLC (LSE: FLTR). Mr. Goldstein also previously served as the Executive Vice-President, Corporate Development and General Counsel of TSG. Mr. Goldstein was also the senior TSG executive based in the United States and was one of the primary architects of TSG’s strategic vision for its U.S.-facing business. During his tenure, TSG grew from an approximately $500 million market-cap company to an approximately $7 billion market-cap company through a combination of organic growth and strategic mergers and acquisitions. Mr. Goldstein participated in numerous M&A transactions and capital markets offerings at TSG, including several transformational transactions in the digital gaming industry. Notable transactions in which Mr. Goldstein was involved include:
• TSG/Flutter Merger: In 2019, TSG merged with Flutter for a $12.2 billion transaction value, the largest transaction in the digital gaming industry to date.
• TSG/Fox Bet Partnership: In 2019, TSG entered into a partnership with FOX Sports to create FOX Bet in the U.S., a leading U.S. online gaming business. Wall Street Research estimates an approximate $1.1 billion valuation for Fox Bet post-partnership with The Stars Group.
• TSG/Sky Betting & Gaming: In 2018, TSG acquired Sky Betting & Gaming, the largest mobile gambling operator in the United Kingdom at the time, for $4.7 billion.
• TSG/CrownBet and William Hill: In 2018, TSG simultaneously acquired CrownBet and William Hill, two Australian operators, for a total of $621 million in a multi-part transaction.
• TSG/PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker: In 2014, TSG acquired The Rational Group, which operated PokerStars and Full Tilt and was the world’s largest poker business, for $4.9 billion.
Through his ability to legally structure large and complex transactions, Mr. Goldstein was integral to TSG’s vision of becoming a full-service online gaming company. Additionally, he assisted in structuring TSG’s capital markets activity, which generated liquidity for acquisitions and strengthened its balance sheet.
Prior to joining TSG, Mr. Goldstein was a principal shareholder in the corporate and securities practice at the international law firm of Greenberg Traurig P.A., where he practiced for almost 13 years. Mr. Goldstein’s practice focused on corporate and securities matters, including mergers and acquisitions, securities offerings, and financing transactions. Additionally, Mr. Goldstein was the founder and co-chair of the firm’s Gaming Practice, a multi-disciplinary team of attorneys representing owners, operators and developers of gaming facilities, manufacturers and suppliers of gaming devices, investment banks and lenders in financing transactions, and Indian tribes in the development and financing of gaming facilities.
Mr. Goldstein brings experience and insight that we believe will be valuable to a potential initial business combination target business. Mr. Goldstein received a Bachelor of Business Administration with a concentration in accounting from Emory University and a Juris Doctorate with highest honors from the University of Florida, College of Law.
Sean Ryan — Director Nominee
Mr. Ryan is a digital media and technology operator with extensive global experience in online payments, e-commerce, marketplaces, mobile ad networks, digital games, enterprise collaboration platforms, blockchain, real money gaming and online music. Since 2014, Mr. Ryan has been serving as Vice President of Business Platform Partnerships at Facebook, Inc. (“Facebook”) (Nasdaq: FB), where he leads a more than 500 person global organization that manages the Payments, Commerce, Novi/Blockhain, Workplace and Audience Network businesses. Prior to his current role, Mr. Ryan was hired in 2011 as the Director of Games Partnerships to lead and grow the global Games business at Facebook. While the Director of Games Partnerships, Mr. Ryan focused on re-shaping Facebook’s games and monetization strategies to derive more value for Facebook, its users and its partners, including the addition of a Real Money Gaming offering in regulated markets. Mr. Ryan’s team helped accelerate a major trend in engagement through cross-platform games and therefore the opportunity to increase users through establishing games on multiple platforms. Prior to joining Facebook, Mr. Ryan created the new social and mobile games division at News Corp, an American multinational mass media corporation controlled by Rupert Murdoch. While at News Corp, Mr. Ryan led the acquisition of Making Fun, a San Francisco social-game start-up, that created News Corp’s games publishing division.
Before joining News Corp., Mr. Ryan founded multiple digital businesses such as Twofish, Meez, Open Wager and SingShot Media. Mr. Ryan co-founded Twofish in 2009, a virtual goods and services platform that provided developers with data analytics and insights for individual application’s digital economies. Twofish was later sold to online payments provider Live Gamer, where Mr. Ryan served on the board of directors. From 2005 to 2008, Mr. Ryan founded and led Meez.com, a social entertainment service combining avatars, web games and virtual worlds. The white label social casino gaming company Open Wager was spun out of Meez and was later sold to VGW Holdings, Mr. Ryan also co-founded SingShot Media, an online karaoke community, which was sold to Electronic Arts (Nasdaq: EA) and merged into its Sims division.
We believe Mr. Ryan’s experience will be valuable to a potential initial business combination target and would provide an expanded perspective on the digital gaming landscape. Mr. Ryan received a Bachelor of Arts from Columbia University and a Master of Business Administration from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Tom Roche — Director Nominee
Mr. Roche has more than 40 years of experience in the gaming industry as a regulator, advisor and independent auditor. Mr. Roche joined Ernst & Young (“EY”) as a partner in 2003 and opened its Las Vegas office. He was subsequently appointed as the Office Managing Partner and Global Gaming Industry Market Leader. In 2016, Mr. Roche relocated to the EY Hong Kong office to supervise the expansion of the EY Global Gaming Industry practice in the Asia Pacific region. Mr. Roche has been integral to numerous transactions that have shaped the current gaming landscape, including:
• Wynn Resorts (Nasdaq: WYNN) initial public offering: Mr. Roche was the lead partner on Wynn Resort’s initial public offering, which raised $450 million in 2002.
• Harrah’s Entertainment/Apollo Management Group & Texas Pacific Group: Mr. Roche headed the regulatory advisory services on the buyout of Harrah’s Entertainment, the world’s largest casino company at the time, for $17.1 billion.
• Dubai World/MGM Resorts: Mr. Roche headed the regulatory and due diligence advisory services to Dubai World in its approximately $5.1 billion investment in MGM. Dubai World bought 28.4 million MGM shares, or 9.5 percent of the casino operator, for $2.4 billion. It then invested $2.7 billion to acquire a 50% stake in MGM’s CityCenter Project, a $7.4 billion 76-acre Las Vegas development of hotels, condos and retail outlets.
• MGM Growth Properties (NYSE: MGP) initial public offering: Mr. Roche provided tax and structural transaction services to MGM Resorts in the creation of MGM Growth Properties, a publicly traded REIT engaged in the acquisition, ownership and leasing of large-scale destination entertainment and leisure resorts. MGM Growth Properties raised $1.05 billion in its 2016 initial public offering.
Mr. Roche also directed EY advisory services to boards and management teams for profit improvement and technology related initiatives. In addition, Mr. Roche provided advisory support to the American Gaming Association on several research projects, including those specifically related to sports betting, the revocation of The Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA) and anti-money laundering best practices in the gaming industry. Equally, he has assisted government agencies in numerous international locations with enhancing their regulatory approach to governing the industry especially in the online gambling sector.
Prior to joining Ernst & Young, Mr. Roche served as Deloitte’s National Gaming Industry Leader and as the co-head of Andersen’s Gaming Industry Practice in Las Vegas. In 1989, Mr. Roche was appointed by then Governor of the State of Nevada, Robert Miller, to serve as one of three members of the Nevada State Gaming Control Board for a four-year term, where he was directly responsible for the Audit and New Games Lab Divisions. As a board member, he spent a substantial amount of time assisting global jurisdiction regulators enact gaming legislation in the design of their regulatory structure. During his career, Roche has been involved in numerous public and private offerings of equity and debt securities. His background includes providing casino regulatory consulting services to casino licensees and to federal and state agencies including the National Indian Gaming Commission and the Nevada State Gaming Control Board, and industry associations such as the Nevada Resort Association and the American Gaming Association.
We believe Mr. Roche’s highly regarded reputation as a gaming auditor and advisor in the gaming industry will be valuable for us and a potential business combination target. Mr. Roche is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and is licensed by the Nevada State Board of Accountancy and Mississippi State Board of Public Accountancy. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from the University of Southern California.

What would you be willing to do to be able to fulfill your deepest desire? What would you be willing to risk? How many other people’s dreams would you be willing to trample on in the process? Many anime of many different genres have tackled such themes in the past, but one of the most creative and ambitious series to do so is one that happens to be among my top 10 favorite anime of all time, and that is the WIXOSS franchise. I know there have been two prior WT! threads written about the series before, but both of them only touch on the first half of the story. And so, with the original story fully completed and an upcoming WIXOSS spin-off airing next month, I feel like the best time to talk about why I love this franchise so much is just before that new spin-off potentially takes the franchise in a drastically different direction. So have a seat, grab a deck, get your “BATORU!!” face on, and enjoy the ride.

OPENING DRAW: What is WIXOSS?

WIXOSS (pronounced “wee-cross” in case you weren’t sure) debuted as a Japan-exclusive trading card game in early 2014. Like many card games before it such as Yu-Gi-Oh and Cardfight Vanguard, it also received an anime to help attract players, and Selector Infected WIXOSS began airing in the Spring of 2014. After ending on a cliffhanger and revealing itself as a two-part story, Selector Spread WIXOSS followed later that same year and concluded the Selector arc of the story. The series was licensed outside of Japan on Funimation, who also gave it an English dub.
The Selector arc tells the story of Ruko Kominato, an outgoing high schooler who is introduced to a new card game that has become popular with the girls at her school, WIXOSS. In her first deck, she is greeted by a sentient LRIG card that can talk, which she names Tama. The next day, one of her classmates, Yuzuki, approaches her with a talking LRIG card of her own and introduces her to the world of Selector battles. She learns that by winning a certain number of battles against other Selectors, a girl can become an “Eternal Girl” and have her deepest wish granted. Joined by another new friend named Hitoe, the girls set out to win enough battles to have their wishes granted. But all is not as it seems… when Hitoe suffers her devastating third loss and Yuzuki manages to fulfill the conditions to become an Eternal Girl, the twisted truth of the Selector battles is revealed. After seeing what becomes of her two friends, Ruko falls into a deep depression, but comes out of it with a new resolve: to completely topple the Selector battles and turn WIXOSS back into a game that they can play just for fun. The only way for her to do that is for her and Tama to battle, more and more, until she can reach the source of this demented system.
The Selector arc by itself tells a complete story with a nice and satisfying ending, so theoretically you can watch these two seasons and stop there. This is helpful to remember if you’re an anime fan who greatly prefers to watch English dubbed anime, as unfortunately, only these first two seasons were dubbed.

SECOND TURN: Lostorage? The heck is that?

At the end of Selector Spread WIXOSS, Ruko seemingly puts a stop to the Selector battles. But as long as there are girls with strong enough desires, a way to make them come true can still emerge. After the Selector Destructed WIXOSS compilation movie partially retconned the ending of the Selector story, the possibility for more content was opened up, and that continuation eventually came in the Fall of 2016 in the form of Lostorage Incited WIXOSS. This season focuses on a brand new cast aside from one returning character from the Selector arc, and reveals that a new round of Selector battles has begun. It came and went and mostly resolved the troubles of the Lostorage main cast, but the Selector battles were still going, meaning there was still more to the story. Lostorage Conflated WIXOSS finally arrived in the Spring of 2018, bringing the Selector and Lostorage casts together for one final struggle to end the Selector battles once and for all. The Lostorage arc was licensed by Crunchyroll (why Funimation didn’t pick it up again, we’ll probably never know) which, as I mentioned earlier, led to it not receiving an English dub like the Selector arc did.
Lostorage Incited follows the story of Suzuko Homura, a shy girl who found happiness alongside her best friend, Chinatsu Morikawa. After going their separate ways years prior, both of them discovered WIXOSS and met LRIGs of their own. They were told of the Selector battles and given three coins, which they could bet in battles against other Selectors. Acquire five coins and you can change the memories of one person in any way you like, but if you lose all of your coins, you disappear. Of course, in true Selector battle fashion, what exactly all of this entails isn’t revealed right away. Chinatsu enters the fray with the desire to erase her memories of Suzuko, the girl who put her on such a pedestal that it drove her nearly to madness. Then, after reuniting with Chinatsu and seeing what she had become, Suzuko wants to become friends again and protect the memories of them that she holds dear. Pulling the strings behind the new round of Selector battles is the sadistic “bookmaker” Kou Satomi, and the emergence of the mysterious (but oddly familiar) Kiyoi Mizushima complicates things further.
Finally, Lostorage Conflated brings Ruko, Suzuko, Chinatsu, Kiyoi, and many other Selectors together for one final round of Selector battles. The last one standing becomes the new “master” of the Selector battles and is able to do whatever they want with the game of WIXOSS and the system. I won't say who wins or how it all ends, but whether you watch all 48 episodes and see the whole story unfold or if you only watch the Selector story and stop there, either way you’re getting a full and enjoyable story with a satisfying ending.

STANDOUT STRATEGIES: What makes WIXOSS so good?

Right from the beginning, the viewer can tell just from the character designs that WIXOSS is very different from other card game anime. Far removed from the hot-blooded males with spiky multi-colored hair seen in Yu-Gi-Oh and Vanguard, the cast of WIXOSS is almost entirely composed of females with normal, realistic hair colors. The LRIGs that the girls command in battle are quite colorful, which acts as a beautifully unsettling contrast throughout the series. Also, the actual rules of the card game are never explained on-screen, and there’s very little dialogue during battles explaining moves. The viewer is simply meant to watch the LRIGs do battle on their Selector’s behalf, which makes it feel less like a card game and more like gladiatorial combat, complete with the losers being (metaphorically) thrown to the lions afterwards. WIXOSS doesn’t paint the card game it’s based on as something glamorous or worth playing at all, and as an ad for the real-life card game, it was arguably a failure. But looking at it purely from the standpoint of an anime fan, WIXOSS is the greatest experience that I’ve ever had watching a card game anime.
To put it very simply: WIXOSS is to card game anime what Madoka Magica is to magical girl anime. At its core, it’s a psychological thriller filled with cute girls suffering horrific emotional trauma as they fight for their wishes, and the card game (like the magical girl aspect of Madoka) is merely the vehicle used to move the story along and facilitate the conflicts between the girls. Just like Madoka being seemingly normal until closing the jaws of suffering at the end of episode 3, WIXOSS starts out relatively normal for a few episodes and then zaps the viewer with a hundred thousand volts of suffering in episode 5. If you give the franchise a chance, at least watch through episode 5 of Selector Infected WIXOSS before judging it, because that’s where the wild ride truly begins. WIXOSS does so many things well that I actually love it even more than Madoka, and as I mentioned earlier, I would call it one of my top 10 favorite anime of all time.
The cast is full of interesting characters, friend and foe alike. Ruko and Suzuko are enjoyable and fun protagonists, Chinatsu and Kiyoi are interesting anti-hero characters with deep backstories, Iona and Satomi play their roles as lead antagonists very well, Akira is so unbelievably good at being such a fucking bitch that I love to hate her even though she’s not a lead antagonist… and that’s just among the human characters! The wide assortment of colorful LRIGs, from the bubbly battle maniac Tama to the quiet best girl Piruluk, all add another element of depth to their respective Selectors and the story as a whole. The drama and character interactions are well-written, showing off the characters’ motivations, struggles, and doubts.
The art and animation are some of J.C.Staff’s best work, especially during the Selector battles when the LRIGs are duking it out. The music in the show is fantastic as well, adding more emotion and drama to the conversations and more intensity to the battles. The OP/ED songs are bangers too, especially the Lostorage openings sung by Yuka Iguchi, who also voices Chinatsu. Combine all of this with excellent voice acting (including in the dub) and you can really feel the passion and emotion radiating from the show. The story twists and big reveals along the way (I’ve done my best to avoid spoiling anything major) kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time, and to top it all off, the final battle at the end of Lostorage Conflated is one of the craziest final battles that I’ve ever seen in any anime, not just among card game anime. It built up to a huge finale and went out with a bang.

DEAD DRAWS: Where does WIXOSS struggle?

Despite all of this praise, WIXOSS is not without flaws. Though it avoids many pitfalls that other card game anime tend to hit, there’s still the undesirable aspect of certain characters obviously existing only to lose to make an antagonist appear more dangerous. Plus, if you primarily watch card game anime for the actual card game aspects and need/expect entire turns and plans to be spelled out for you, the lack of explanations during the battles in this series could be seen as a detriment.
As for the story beyond the card game, there are a few specific parts of the story where I feel like the writing isn’t quite as good as elsewhere. Lostorage Incited is seen as the weakest part of the franchise (it's the only season with a MAL score below 7.0) in large part due to shaky writing, though even so, I still think it’s good. Suzuko and Chinatsu are also not quite as endearing as Ruko in terms of being fun protagonists to root for, but Kiyoi’s emergence later on remedies that a bit. There were also some viewers who disliked Satomi and the addition of male Selectors in general after there were no males taking part in the first two seasons, but that didn’t bother me too much.

THE FINAL TURN: How would I rate WIXOSS, and should you watch it?

To sum this all up: among the many “dark” anime of the 2010’s that drew inspiration from Madoka Magica, I think WIXOSS is one of the very best. I would personally rate Selector Infected and Lostorage Conflated (the first and last seasons) each a 10/10, Selector Spread a 9/10, and Lostorage Incited the weakest at an 8/10, which averages out to a bit over a 9/10 for the whole story. I think that it’s a great series all around that can appeal to many different kinds of anime fans.
If you like card game anime like Yu-Gi-Oh or Cardfight Vanguard that feature intense card battles, give WIXOSS a try. If you like Madoka Magica or other similar anime with dark, psychological themes and plenty of suffering, give WIXOSS a try. If you like anime with a cast primarily made up of cute girls doing some random activity together, give WIXOSS a try. If you like stories where the main characters are not only fighting opponents directly, but also rebelling against an unfair system that has control over them, give WIXOSS a try. And if a few of those apply all at once… you might love it so much that you spend weeks searching for a show with enough “BATORU!!” to fill the void afterwards.

1) Failure to Use Betting Banks
Most gamblers fail to understand that the best method of achieving a healthy and sustained long term profit from racing is to set aside a sum of money away from your main finances, solely for the betting of horses. Whatever method or system you are using, whoever you are following or subscribing to or however your own bets are calculated, you are better off with a "Betting Bank" that has built -in advantages that can help you. It needs to be independent from your own personal finances and needs to be protected from factors that can threaten it. This can take a lot of emotion out of the decision making process. Emotion is a factor that threatens all punters. The size of your betting bank will of course be dependent upon your own individual circumstances and free capital available.
An analogy to the world of shares perhaps may be that no financial advisor worth his salt would advise you throw all your capital into the stock market alone. The vast majority of punters fail to use any form of set aside bank. They bet randomly with what ever money they have in their pocket at the end of the week or go in too deep with stakes far in excess of their personal safety levels. A punter with a professional attitude will set aside what he can comfortably afford to invest and then determine the best use he can make of that fixed sum of capital. With a fixed sum of capital available you now move on to the next reason for failure.
2) Failure to Stake Correctly
It is vital that you consider your betting bank as capped in amount. You do not have an endless pool of resources to dip into. Betting by its nature carries inherent risks. These risks include periods of low strike rates and long losing runs. Your betting bank and staking should be adapted for the method you use. You must in advance, prepare yourself for the possibility of a worse than average sequence of losers through adoption of a sufficient number of units in your betting bank. Correct methodical staking in addition to the mathematical advantage, can also help overcome the risk of emotional reaction to a sequence of unusually positive or negative results. Take the Pricewise column in the racing post as an example.
Long term if you could get on at the advised prices, it would have returned a decent profit overall. During this time however followers would have to have endured runs of up to 40 losers in a row! Despite the overall long term profit I suspect the vast majority of Pricewise followers would have been terminated either by a failure to set aside a sufficient amount of points or through failure to cope with the emotion of the losing run. We have long since established here a strike rate of about 35% on our Best Bet selections and at an average S.P. of over 5/2 for each winning bet.
We feel able to protect clients banks as long losing runs haven't happened and the strike rate and odds have been more than enough to ensure long steady and safe growth for your betting profits. That is in essence the key to winning money. Manage your accounts in a way that protects them as far as possible from the element of risk that the game presents you.
3) Chasing Losses
Chasing losses at first sight may appear to be an easy way to guarantee an eventual profit but the true story is it is a game for fools and statistically will not work unless you generate an overall level stakes profit. Chasing losses is a game for the ill informed who do not want to make the effort to seek value in their bets. Bookmakers have to price up every race. Punters don't have to play in every race, they can pick the races they want to bet in,and that is the main edge that people fail to understand.
If you have had a losing day, by attempting to chasing your losses you give up that advantage and bet in the races that you should not be betting in. You are therefore betting the way bookmakers want you to and not in the way to win. Many punters will alter their stakes in the last race either to "chase" losses or "play up" winnings. Its no coincidence that the bookmakers have ensured that the last race on each day is often a handicap or one of the hardest races that day. There will be more racing the next day and the day after that.
The secret is waiting for opportunities and only betting when you know you have circumstances which favour you and not the bookmakers. You must never change your approach, or deviate from sensible staking as there is no such things as "The Last Race".
4) Lack of Value Appreciation
Appreciation of "value" in a bet is core to long term success. To profit over a long series of bets you must be betting at odds greater than the true chance of winning your selection have. To do this however over the long term, you need to concentrate on each race individually and seek the value bet in that race. There is value to be had in every race. The key to it is understanding where that value is. Many times a punter will screw up a losing betting slip and say "At least I had some value".
There is absolutely NO relationship between value and prices. A 33/1 chance may be diabolical value yet a very short priced favorite may be supreme value. It does not follow that the bigger the price you take the better "value" you have. The value is sometimes clear but more often well hidden and it takes a trained eye to see that. Everyone has this "Foresight" on occasions, it is a game about opinions after all and nobody is always right or wrong. Value can be the most expensive word in racing if you can't bet winner. The old cliche is that value is about betting a horse whose true chance is better than its price reflects.
That's only a small part of it. You also have to make sure that you bet in the right way and in the right races as that is the only way you can keep strike rates high and protect a betting bank. You should continually strive to increase value in your bets. Once you have a selection you feel is value do not just take the first acceptable price that comes along. Seek to improve it by shopping around the various bookmakers or try and top the best bookmakers price by looking to the betting exchanges. Marginal improvements on odds on each bet you make can have a dramatic effect on long term profits.
5) Greed For Instant Wealth
Many punters seek the thrill of a life changing bet that will produce huge gains of instant wealth for a small outlay. Bookmakers play on your natural desire and go out of their way to encourage you to bet exotic multiple selection bets that can in one hit, turn a small stake into a large sum. Professionals however rarely bet in multiples. Most professionals bet singles and steer away from the multiple bets. Bookmakers relentlessly promote a host of multiple bets with exotic names such as Yankee, Lucky 15, and Goliath.
The reason they are heavily touted is the profit margin in the bookmaker's favour increases the more selections you add to your multiple bet. Say you select any random 5/1 selection. If you bet this as a single the bookmaker may have a theoretical edge in his favor of 15%. Taking two such selections however and betting them in a win double, the bookmakers profit margin rises to about 30% ! Yes your win double can produce a much bigger win from the same stake however over the long term the bookmaker is eating away at your capital at a much faster rate.
It is a waste of time debating which type of multiple bet is 'best'. Unless your prediction skills are supernatural or you are incredibly lucky, then betting in singles is more often the best option. You may say that many "Pros," do bet in multiples in bets like The Scoop 6 or the Jackpot, but that's only because they know there is plenty of "Dead" money in any given Pool and they are betting against people who don't understand the dynamics of those types of bet. There are times you should bet in multiples but in truth they are few and far between.
You can't approach this as a "Get Rich Quick " scheme. It is a long slow process of serious and sustained profit and not a game for Get Rich Quick schemers. If you go Into any Betting shop, have a look at all the posters on the wall offering "special offers", "enhanced terms " and "bonus offers". You will see they are all multiple bets. Bookmakers want you betting in multiples and it is easy to see why. They carve most profit from them. You never see a Bookmakers promotion offering extra's on a win or each way single. Ask yourself why.

I think many of us have experienced the excessive loading time when betting in-game or live, and we all start at the same place of thinking there’s something wrong with our internet connection, computer, or mobile device. But that latency is not on our end, it’s manufactured by the online bookmaker on purpose using algorithms to give us a slightly worse number based on line movement (using time to their advantage)🤬🤬🤬The best way to combat the effect is to only book live bets during a timeout, but admittedly, thrill of the game doesn’t always keep us disciplined to that approach. So I’m curious - which online Sportsbook do you find stalls you the most??

Sports making a bet is a difficult shape of making a bet and no matter its seeming loss of approach and entire reliance on know-how of the occasion, precise sports activities making a bet 먹튀검증 really is based on a wonderful deal of approach which have to be used for you to win. The maximum crucial methods contain a near evaluation of the statistics upon which a legitimate judgment have to be primarily based totally and thereafter the guess have to be located. A triumphing approach takes some salient elements into consideration which are:
1. The quantity of the bid
2. The form of guess three.
3. The odds on provide
Sportsbooks withinside the US and Bookmakers in UK are entities that take delivery of sports activities bets. The bets may be located predicting the final results of numerous wearing activities like Baseball, Snooker, Basketball, Hockey, Soccer, Football, Tennis and loads of different sports activities and atheletic activities. Just to cowl a few simple definitions: a sportsbook is the only that accepts the sports activities guess. An oddsmaker is the only who units the chances of making a bet.
Betting the Odds
In order to vicinity a guess, you have to first pick the kind of guess and the quantity you'll wager. This clearly will rely upon the chances which can be being offered. Before you pass beforehand and vicinity the guess, cautiously scrutinize the variety of to be had odds.
The odds have to be withinside the ratio of as a minimum 2:1 for the guess to be worthwhile. Another issue that have to be taken into consideration is the quantity being given through manner of fee to the sports activities-book. This preferably must be a minimum percent of the whole price of the chances.
Given under is a listing of a few not unusualplace sorts of bets: .
Single or Straight Bet: This is making a bet in its maximum simple shape and permits you to guess at given odds, upon a winner. .
Point Spread: Under this guess you'll guess on one in all alternatives which have been equated thru the allocation of appropriate factors. In the Point Spread the quantity of allotted factors are proven with a + signal for the favorable aspect and a - signal for the underdog. In order that the higher wins, the popular group have to win through greater than the Point Spread. On the turn aspect, if a guess has been located at the underdog, that group has to lose through much less than the Point Spread for the higher to win. .
Buy Points: This entails transferring the Point Spread positively, through paying a price. .
The Moneyline: This kind of guess is truly on who will win. It establishes the chances for every aspect however is the opposite of the Point Spread, with a - signal status for the favourite and the + signal for the underdog. .
Total Bet: This is just like factor unfold bets, handiest in that the higher bets on the whole factors scored. .
Ove Under: This is a guess as consistent with which the quantity of factors scored through the groups in any recreation can be beyond/ over OR unde beneathneath the whole set through the oddsmaker. .
Parlay of Accumulator: This is a manner of making a bet on a couple of wearing activities withinside the wish that a massive payoff can be made if all win. The selections made are with regards to the factor unfold. Even if one occasion does now no longer win or draw, the higher loses the complete guess. Huge quantities may be made thru parlay making a bet, withinside the occasion of a win. .
Teaser: A teaser is just like a parlay, but it has the choice of including or setting out factors from one or a couple of Spread bets. The odds rely upon the quantity of factors the unfold is moved in addition to upon the quantity of groups which can be mixed to shape the teaser. .
Futures: These are bets on who will win the championship withinside the occasion that there are greater than feasible groups to guess on. Substantial versions among sportbooks exist in residence area on futures. .
Buying Half a Point: In this, the directly guess participant receives the choice of transferring the factor unfold 1/2 of factor to his advantage. The maximum suitable time to shop for a 1/2 of factor is while one group is preferred through 2.five, three, 6.five or 7 in football. This is generally because of the truth that numerous video games lead to a three or 7 factor difference. The greater 1/2 of factor may also emerge as turning a loss to a draw or a draw to a win. Of these kinds of forms of bets, 3 forms of bets are distinguished and have to be used for the easy purpose that they may be easy themselves, are smooth to win and feature an excellent threat of triumphing. These are the Straight guess, the Doubles and the Future.
Here are some Betting hints to help you to vicinity the Best Bets and push you in the direction of a massive win, they may be:

1. Always make an sensible evaluation of the chances and the provide of the guess.
   
2. For a easy guess, keep on with the Straight guess as it's miles non-complex and has precise triumphing prospects.
   
3. Bet accurately through preserving your alternatives limited. Also try and restriction the have an impact on of bias for your making a bet. If you're a fan of a group try and restriction the impact of that favoritism while making a bet.
   
4. One of the maximum worthwhile bets is the 'Future' guess however handiest in case you realize loads approximately the game being performed and approximately the players.
   
5. By making a bet frequently aleven though systematically and in an analytical manner, you'll enhance your judgmental ability.
   
6. Contain the urge to guess together along with your winnings immediately. If you do now no longer comply with the usual rule of 50%, as a minimum placed a number of your winnings again into your pocket.
   
7. Make positive your sportsbook is a member of a regarded Gambling Association, makes a short price and is without problems accessible. Read in among the lines, approximately subjects concerning disputes.
   

The theme of the first round on the women’s side seems to be lopsided matches if you’re to trust the bookmakers. Many of the favorites are wildly inflated due to some lesser known players getting direct entry in the draw, and while I do think most of the favorites will come through, since the WTA doesn’t generally feature a number of dominant serves, 2/3 matches often feature much closer contests than the prices offered. Buyer beware I guess, and this tournament has a number of unfortunately superb first round contests.
Pliskova Kalinina : Pliskova just didn’t look sharp in her 1st round exit in Cincinnati. I don’t think she’ll look much better here for a few rounds, and Cincinnati was her 3rd loss in a row. Kalinina is on a similar streak, and so while Pliskova is likely to struggle at times in this event, she should advance to the second round. Pliskova in 2.
Paolini Garcia : This one jumps out as a match where Garcia will have a big edge in power but will have to hit multiple shots to end rallies. Paolini is a good lefty and plays a big behind the baseline which gives her time to defend, but gives up a bit too much pressure and that’s what generally hurts Garcia. Garcia in 2.
Bellis Korpatsch : Bellis is listed at like -1200 or something like that and that is just plain ridiculous. I think Bellis (given Pliskova’s struggles) has a good chance to make a deep run in this section, but Korpatsch is coming off a nice streak of wins and will work her way onto the tour by the end of the year. Bellis will be better on this day, but this will not just be a walkover. Bellis in 2.
Blinkova Brady : Brady was the hottest player coming into Cincinnati and exited quickly at the hands of Pegula. Blinkova is a good baseliner but Brady will be able to dictate most of the rallies here. Barring fatigue or a day plagued with unforced errors, she should come through here. Brady in 2.
Kerber Tomljanovic : This is another tough first round for Ajla, but a good opportunity as well. Kerber has declined a good bit her last few seasons and the form that saw her win a few majors doesn’t seem to appear more than 2-3 weeks a year. Is it a motivation issue? An awkwardly positive article was put out a week ago indicating Kerber was excited to get back on the court and compete. I only describe it as awkward because the new trend of turning a single tweet into a news article is, well, awkward. A motivated Kerber against a surging Tomljanovic is a close affair, but Kerber will likely have an edge as this match goes on. Kerber in 3.
Dolehide Friedsam : Dolehide has the best kick serve on the women’s tour, but booms the ball long in a similar way to Sabalenka. She gets a lot of height on her forehand and reminds me a bit of an unpolished Andreescu. She’s been around the edge of the tour for a few years and seems fitter than ever, but the results just haven’t come. Friedsam’s return to tour has come with a lot of victories in smaller events, and this is a winnable match for both of them. Dolehide will need to keep the ball on the court at all costs, as her power can overwhelm Friedsam in the long run. Friedsam, on the other hand will be looking to move the larger player and focus on the backhand wing. I won’t back an inconsistent server until they string match wins together. Friedsam in 3.
Li Rus : This one is set verrrrry close according to the bookmakers, and is opposite of what I’d expect. Rus has turned in two excellent weeks of tennis, and while Li has made improvements, I’d expect Rus to be the larger market here. -150 makes me hesitant. Rus is ranked higher by 60 places, just went 3 sets with Serena Willians, and won 4 rounds in Cincinnati. Li has some good qualifier wins against Kuzmova and Diyas, and that coupled with this line makes me go against my gut and think this one will be close. Rus hadn’t really had much success with multiple wins on tour until this year, so there could be a slump, and an anonymous tipster did message me after Li’s loss to Muchova last week saying Li had really improved. Rus in 3.
Maria Riske : Tatjana Maria is the ideal foil for Riske’s game. She hits a lot of slices, basically only wins as an underdog, and has that veteran ability to remain calm and win against younger players who “should” win. Riske hits much bigger, but has problems with the forehand which compound when she strings losses together. I do think she’ll win here, but she’s prone to going three and turns in more 7-5 sets than anyone else on tour. Riske in 3.
Voundrousova Minnen : This line is a puzzle with Voundrousova coming in at an inflated -550ish, but both players are slumping so I guess it makes sense. Marketa seems like she can win any event when she gets her game together, but is 0-4 in her last few matches. Greet Minnen can play a better brand of tennis than her line would imply, but an 0-4 stretch of her own isn’t inspiring. If Voundrousova can get going she becomes a very dangerous player, as her game fits nicely into the somewhat fatigued long rallies that show up in the second week of a major. Voundrousova in 3.
Di Lorenzo Sasnovich : Aliaksandra Sandwich is one of my favorite journeywomen on tour. She’s been playing on clay, but she generally wins all the matches she’s supposed to and loses all the ones she’s supposed to as well. It’s somewhat high praise on the WTA as streaky results are somewhat par for the course even for the top tier. DiLorenzo has had a middling 2020, but hasn’t shown that she can compete on Sasnovich’s level yet. Sandwich time in 2.
Golubic Lapko : Golubic is a bit more relevant on tour at this juncture in their career, and Lapko’s been struggling a bit. Neither player is sharp, so they’ll both be happy to have drawn the other. Someone in 3 but really no way to know.
Montgomery Putintseva : Montgomery is 15 years old and playing in her first major. She won an ITF 25k event earlier this year, beating Xiaodou Yu and Sebov, fairly good wins to indicate her future. How she’ll fare against Putintseva is a question mark, but the -900 price tag attached to Putintseva is wildly inflated. Montgomery should be able to win at least a few games, but at this juncture they’re in different weight classes. Putintseva in 2 and a bright future for Montgomery.
Mladenovic Baptiste : Mladenovic put up more of a fight than expected in Cincinnati, and is a clear favorite here. A good match to get the skillful player going, and a winnable round 2 as well could see a resurgence of Mladenovic’s season. Baptiste has just lost 4 of the last 5, but she’s only 18, so this is a good opportunity to get some ranking points and experience. Mladenovic in 3 unless she Mladenovic’s.
Gracheva Badosa : Paula Badosa is pretty solid on clay, and Gracheva isn’t exactly a stalwart on tour, but her hardcourt game should prove a slight nudge above. Gracheva in 2.
Bondarenko Kiick : These are cool names. Bondarenko in 2.
Martincova Martic : Martic is a big favorite here, and while matchups between countrywomen tend to be a bit fuzzy, she should win. She’s always been a slow starter though, and Martincova doesn’t just go away. Martic in 3.
Osaka Doi : Misaki Doi is tiny, lefty, and outperforms her natural physical ability. Osaka is the best player on the women’s tour when she’s in form, and she just spent a week playing near the top of her game. The withdrawal from the W&S is puzzling and there is a big question mark as to how this week will go for her. If she takes the court, she’ll win. Osaka in 2.
Giorgi Van Uytvanck : Camila Giorgi has managed to find a number of wins in the past 8 months after really being so inconsistent on tour that she was becoming the new Bouchard. V.U. has a great serve and that helps on these courts, but in the rallies Giorgi will be able to dictate and her movement is pretty solid. Giorgi in 3.
Kostyuk Kasatkina : Kostyuk hits big and serves well. The projections for her game were not as high as Kastkina, but her recent results have been much better. Kasatkina on a fast court will likely continue to struggle, and hopefully her talent and skill will net her some ranking points at the French Open. Kostyuk in 2.
Gauff Sevastova : The hits keep coming for Sevastova. It’s been a backwards slump on tour for a lot of the players employing the dropshot/slice game. She could create a frustrating challenge for Gauff but Gauff has shown that she is named Gauff. Just checking to see if you’re still reading. Gauff can move the ball comfortably and will net extra points on her serve. Her speed is going to negate a lot of Sevastova’s attack, and Anastasia will find her serve the biggest liability. I expect Gauff to struggle with errors as the finish line becomes obvious to her, but she should be able to break often. Gauff in 2.
Linette Inglis : Magda Linette has been hinting at a push into the higher tiers of the game, but seems to fair much better at home in Europe. Inglis is a good qualifier, but isn’t quite up to the tour level yet. Linette in 2.
Kovinic Cabrera : Kovinic looked the better of these two in the exhibition season that just passed, and was unfortunate to meet a resurgent Zvonareva first round in the last event. Cabrera is young and there’s still time to improve. She could eke out a victory here but the edge goes to Danka. Kovinic in 3.
Arconada Juvan : Arconada is getting a lot of burn around the American circuit, but with my somewhat biased view of American tennis, that’s not going to get her over the finish line here. Kaja Juvan can ball, and ball she will. Juvan in 2.
Collins Kontaveit : This has to be getting frustrating for Collins. Two weeks in a row with an extremely difficult first round while ITF players are competing against 125k 3rd rounders. Kontaveit was a few points from putting Osaka away, and there’s nothing to suggest she won’t have had enough time to recover. The week after a deep run is a classic letdown spot, and Collins can get going in a major way with her big groundstrokes, but Kontaveit is likely to have the larger strokes on this day. Kontaveit in 2.
Rybakina Zavatska : A quick loss for Rybakina last week was sort of disappointing, as I think she’d have matched up better the next round with Mchale. This will be a good restart, as Zavastka is a few rungs below on the WTA ladder. Rybakina in 2.
Khromacheva Rogers : Khromacheva is the coolest name. If I had a robot cat, a sentient highlighter, a vicious cyborg dictator, an automated rainbow, a russian pokemon, or a really jacked lizard that competed in jujitsu I would name it that. Rogers has her work cut out for her here, but she’s logged more time on the courts and is in the best shape of her life. Rogers in 3.
Brengle Tsurenko : Interesting matchup as Brengle goes straight ahead and battles in most of her matches. It’s not an overly skillful approach but it is admirable, and while she struggles to generate weak returns with her serve Tsurenko is a somewhat safe opponent to roll the ball in against. Tsurenko is the polar opposite, employing a variety of different shots to frustrate and take her opponents out of rhythm. She plays a great deal of defense, and while she has been somewhat injury prone, I think she has the edge here. Tsurenko in 2.
Sharma Yastremska : Tough draw for Sharma. Yastremska smashes the ball and will keep doing so. Her leg injury from last week could be an issue as she navigates through this week, but it shouldn’t shut her down here. Yastremska in 2, despite greasy Bajin following her around mumbling about his precious.
Peterson Flipkens : I swear these two just played each other. They didn’t though, and while Flipkens beat Siniakova, I’m inclined to believe something is off with Katerina in this short stretch and Peterson has the better recent results. Peterson in 2 nice sets of good quality wholesome tennis.
Bouzkova Pegula : Some of these first round matchups are sad. Bouzkova had a nice run last week and Pegula played some of her best tennis ever. This match has one difference and that’s Pegula hitting the ball a good deal harder than Bouzkova. If she falters on offense she’ll drop a set, but it’ll be her in control of most of the rallies once she gets a swing. Pegula in a very tiring 3 sets.
Kozlova Osiugwe : Katerina Kozlova is always around, and always able to win enough to stay on tour. Osuigwe is a good youth talent (from the same season as Gauff), and has threatened at being ready to make the move up but not done much when she gets close. This is a new season after a long break and it’s possible that she’s made a major improvement. If not, Kozlova in 2.
Begu Kvitova : I didn’t catch Kvitova’s loss to Bouzkova but Bouszkova’s play after that was pretty legit. Kvitova should be ok for this one, but this is a dangerous matchup as well. Begu serves great and crushes the ball, and a marathon match (although on clay) with Leonnie Kung will have her frustrated, but intent on netting letting any further chances slip. Possible upset here if Kvitova’s game is in a slump. Kvitova most likely in a tiebreaker or two.
Keys Babos : Babos hasn’t done much on tour but she has a big forehand. That is a problem here as Keys has the biggest forehand. The errors will go both ways, but I think Keys will find her way to the second round which is wonderful for me if Teichmann lands as an underdog against her. Keys in 2.
Teichmann Bolsova : Teichmann is one of the 5-6 players who made incredible strides over the break. Bolsova is relatively unknown on tour and prefers clay. Teichmann is too good right now. Teichmann in 2.
Davis Cornet : Good winnable match for Cornet, who played well last week also. I’m noticing in writing this that I’m putting more weight than I want to in who won matches last week. Styles are also very important for deciding tennis, and Davis is the sort of defender who can frustrate Cornet. This is bad timing to play defense against Cornet though, as she’s just defeated Kenin and pushed Azarenka in two competitive sets. Cornet in 2.
Bonaventure Zhang : Good chance for Ysaline to nab a win. She sometimes plays excellent tennis, and she’ll get a chance to as Zhang wasn’t exactly crisp last week. I’m not gonna pretend I know who’s going to win. I went to elementary school with a girl named Bonaventure though which is cool.
Vekic Pliskova : Vekic lost to Azarenka but who didn’t. The thought here is that she’ll get back on track, but Pliskova is a dangerous opponent. Krystina has a big serve, and being lefty is very frustrating for some opponents. She’s been playing clay, but she’s been playing very well, whereas Vekic has been dropping matches left and right. Pliskova in 2.
Tig Nara : Tig’s been more active on tour, playing most events this year before the break. Nara stays local more often, but she won their only previous meeting. While Tig’s been active, she hasn’t been winning. Nara in 3.
Pironkova Samsonova : Samsonova is one of the best new players on tour. Similar to Rybakina, she has big groundstrokes and covers the court well for a slightly taller player. She has issues with fatigue late in matches, but should finish this one off in two. Samsonova in 2.
Hibino Muguruza : Nao Hibino is good for some upsets now and then, but mostly bows out by the third round. Muguruza is at times not in the right mindset to push through adversity on court, but she looked reaaaaaally good at times early this season, and she’s been working hard on her fitness and on making videos of her fitness this offseason. Could take a while to find the court, but Muguruza in 3.
Sakkari Voegele : Voegele is a good mid level tour player, but Sakkari got a hint of victory last week and a setback against Konta (who really was on a roll) won’t hurt. Sakkari in 2.
Pera Diyas : I keep scrolling down but the matches keep coming. How many can there be? Luckily, I am pretty interested in this one. Pera took a set off Serena, and has snagged a few wins recently. Being a lefty is big in any sport, and she can keep developing. Part of that development will be hitting through players who are adept at defense, and Zarina Diyas is one such player. She’s fast, consistent, and composed. This will be an excellent win for either player, and since Pera’s been more active but Diyas is the slightly more established player, it should be a great contest. Diyas in threeyas.
Vikhlyantseva Scott : Vikh hasn’t been great on tour, and Scott has racked up 4/5 wins in the exhibition season. Grass is Vikh’s specialty, and she could struggle here to find an edge against a surging young talent. I’ve never seen Scott play, and it’s tough in the matches available to see how her game will stack up against the tour. Vikh in 3, but I would not be surprised at an upset here.
Tomova Anisimova : Anisimova hasn’t slumped the way I’d expected, and Tomova is a good 1st round for her. Anisimova in 2.
Stephens Buzarnescu : Everyone gets a turn to beat Stephens! Buzarnescu has the bad attitude that Sloane should have, but not quite the same level of slump. Buz cruise is much better on clay, but this is a winnable match for her. The USO is the only tournament that Sloane really plays well, and with Osaka potentially injured, and Andreescu and Halep sitting it out, it has to kinda get her attention? We hope? Pls? Pls try Sloane? Probably Buzarnescu in 2, but maybe Sloane wlll win and we can get excited before she loses to Govortsova in 2.
Diatchenko Govortsova : Govortsova in 2. Why? It’s a secret.
Gasparyan Puig : This is a who’s worse match. Neither have won a single set in their last five tennis matches, which is surprising as both of them are professional tennis players. Puig has won 2 out of 3 matchups,but Gasparyan snagged the most recent one. I think Puig is more likely to find form within a slump, as she’s used to being in a slump. Puig in 3.
Ahn Williams : No more tears, Serena. Here is a perfect opponent to beat. Ahn plays a smart game, but doesn’t have the pace to hit Serena off the court. Williams in 2 and she has a good chance to tie the record in this one if she can avoid long matches in the early going.
Sabalenka Dodin : Very similar players. Sabalenka is the larger of the two, and while she struggles against the top of the tour, she has a pretty good track record of winning 3rd sets she doesn’t belong in. Sabalenka in 3.
Azarenka Haas : Azarenka with a title last week makes me smile. She really never stopped working hard even though myself and many others were writing off her chances of being a factor on tour again. Azarenka in 2.
Vickery Townsend : I saw an article saying it was unfortunate for Vickery to get a wildcard and run into an American in the draw. I think it’s unfortunate that a talented athlete like Vickery can’t get good enough coaching to add variety to her game so that she can get onto the tour and not need a wildcard. Vickery crushes the ball and moves great. She tends to hang too far behind the baseline, and this is her main issue. Townsend has such a cool game. She has a great attitude, and displays a level of racquetskill and variety that makes me think she could be the # racquetball player in less than a year. This will be a match similar to Lopez vs Carballes Baena in that one player’s offense to errors ratio will decide who wins. I do think Townsend struggles at times on defense and could use some more training, but she should win this. Townsend in 3.
Swiatek Kudermetova : The hero of the W&S vs the slumping talent. Swiatek stuck around and played doubles for at least a few rounds, which I always think is a good sign players are looking to get back on track. Swiatek is struggling, and Kudermetova just beat the 1 seed last week. There’s reason to expect both players to come though, but I think it will require 3 sets to decide. I lean Swiatek in 3, but would not be surprised if Kudermetova was able to earn the errors.
Muchova Williams : Muchova plays some great tennis in the early rounds, and crushes the ball. Williams does the same. This is an offensive battle, and given what we saw from Venus against Serena, there is a lot of fight left in Venus. I’ll be crushing pistachios and icewater for this one, and I do expect Muchova to win as the crowd would be the biggest benefit to Venus, whom I expect to start slow. Muchova in 3.
Kalinskaya Stojanovic : Tough but fair first round for both. Similar results on tour and I’d give a small edge to Kalinskaya on talent and Stojanovic on recent performance. Someone in 3.
Cirstea Mchale : Cirstea and Dodin were the same person in my mind for a long time, but Cirstea has really upped her game. Mchale is the wrong opponent for this though, as she tends to defend well and really execute the pusher mentality. Cirstea is a bit better indoors, and has a question mark next to her until she beats players like Mchale. Mchale in 2.
Watson Konta : This one seems a bit underpriced, even though Konta is -600. Watson has never beaten Konta, and Konta pretty much was at her best serving and attacking last week. I didn’t see anyone else really pressing Azarenka in the same way. Watson could steal a set because she is a solid server, but Konta was also defending well last week. Konta in 2.
Mertens Siegemund : There were a lot of winners last week in an event that to me looked like a warmup run for the US Open. Mertens was one of those, and this will be her best chance so far in her career to win a major. I filled out some brackets last night on a lark, and without realizing it I had her winning. It starts here, and while Siegemund has really become a solid performer, she’s a cut behind. Mertens in 2-3.
Liu Sorribes Tormo : Tormo in 2.
Kuzmova Mcnally : Kuzmova has struggled recently, and this could be Mcnally’s first chance at racking up some good points. It’ll be a tight one, but a win against Pera in exhibitions means she can at least hang at this level. Kuzmova in 3 or maybe Mcnally’s first upset.
Clijsters Alexandrova : Clijsters hasn’t really won since she came back, and while she played some inspiring tennis early on and you can still see the skill, it seems like Alexandrova will be a tough ask here. This is a double win round as well with Mcnally/Kuzmova waiting, and players will be hyperaware of these situations especially at a major. Alexandrova in 2.
Jabeur Kawa : Jabeur has a bit too much for most players even though she got blanked just last week. The comp will have to be better than Kawa to press her into errors. Jabeur in 2.
Siniakova Kanepi : Good chance Siniakova is not going to perform here, as she’s struggled since the tour returned. The bookmakers agree, as this has been slated as a pickem even though Kanepi only shows up for the 4 majors in most years. Kanepi crushes the ball, and generally can compete with anyone on tour in the early rounds. Age will become a factor at some point, but she’s shown a pretty reliable ability to show up and win. Kanepi in 2.
Zvonareva Fernandez : Fernandez is really getting a rough start to her WTA career. Zvonareva last year would be a winnable match. As it stands now she was one of the better players last week and hitting big is something that can trouble Leylah at this juncture as evident from her L to Shelby (recently found out this is short for Shelberto) Rogers. This would be a big win for Fernandez, but I don’t think it comes yet. Zvonareva in 2.
Wickmayer Kenin : Kenin looked bad last week, but this is a somewhat simple match to get her back on track. There’s a good chance she’ll go down to Zvonareva in the second round if she doesn’t clean up her errors, so I’ll be watching this one. Kenin in 2.