For those of you who missed it, the 2010 Tour de France had some exciting highs and devastating lows. Lance Armstrong, competing in his final year at the tournament, looked to be a major contender for the yellow jersey, but some major crashes in the latter stages of the race destroyed any hopes of a fairytale finish.

Similarly, Cadel Evans was thought to be a serious challenger for the title, and proved his worth by holding the yellow jersey for one stage before a fractured arm all but ended his dreams.

To be honest, there were only two riders that were ever going to win the Tour: Contador and Schleck. Alberto Contador, an all-rounder competing in his third Tour de France, may not have been in the same sort of form as he was 12 months ago, but he still managed to grab victory with a 39-second lead over his Luxembourgian opponent.

Andy Schleck will rue those 39 seconds, especially considering that that is the exact time he lost when he slipped a chain. Nevertheless, the Team Saxo Bank rider is still young and continues to improve with each year, winning the Young Rider Classification for the third consecutive year in 2010.

Unfortunately, the 2010 Tour de France was mainly overshadowed by extreme showings of unsportsmanship. Mark Cavendish got his just desserts when he crashed in the Stage 1 sprint after leaning into an opponent. While the Isle of Man international ended up finishing second in the points classification after winning five stages of the Tour, his Team HTC-Columbia teammate was not so lucky.

In a display worthy of immediate disqualification, Australian rider Mark Renshaw was expelled from the Tour for his actions in Stage 11. Renshaw was seen to clearly change direction in order to cut off opponent Tyler Farrar after first deliberately head-butting Garmin-Transitions’ leadout man Julian Dean. This was the first time a rider has been kicked off the Tour for a non-doping related offence in 13 years.

While the Tour is over for another year, you can still enjoy cycling betting over at BetUS. The 2010 UCI Road World Championships will be held in Melbourne, Australia in just over a month, and BetUS already has some interesting Mark Cavendish vs. The Field odds for you to take a look at.

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As the biggest names in golf gear up for next week’s British Open Championship, both the Barclays Scottish Open and John Deere Classic will give us an indication of who is in form, and who will need to improve before July 15.

The 2010 Scottish Open will host several of the top players on the PGA and European Tours, while lower ranked competitors will ply their trade at the John Deere Classic this weekend. Amongst the players at Loch Lomond Golf Course on Thursday will be Phil Mickelson, Vijay Singh, and Graeme McDowell, the 2010 US Open winner.

BetUS has all the odds for this weekend’s tournament, including round matchups and futures. Keep updated at the online sportsbook as the Scottish Open progresses for all the latest odds.

To Win Barclays Scottish Open

Phil Mickelson: +800
Ernie Els: +1200
Martin Kaymer: +1400
Graeme McDowell: +1800
Retief Goosen: +2200
Robert Allenby: +3000
Camilo Villegas: +3000
Vijay Singh: +3500

Phil Mickelson: Three-time Masters champion Phil Mickelson heads into this tournament looking for a win. Since picking up his fourth major in April, Mickelson has been steady but not brilliant. Tying for fourth in this year’s US Open compounded an already frustrating history with that championship, but with The Open Championship just a week away, he needs to put that behind him and go for victory. Without Tiger in the field, Mickelson has the best chance to win the Scottish Open – according to the bookies – but it will doubtless be a tough four days at Loch Lomond.

Martin Kaymer: Young Martin Kaymer is a definite chance to back up his 2009 Scottish Open win this weekend, although it’s safe to say that the field is a little more competitive this time around. The 25-year-old German has already picked up a win on the European Tour this year, collecting his second Abu Dhabi Golf Championship career title in January. Kaymer won this event by two strokes last year, so there’s plenty of expectation riding on the youngster’s back; whether he will be able to outplay the likes of Mickelson and Els is another story.

Graeme McDowell: Graeme McDowell is coming off the back of arguably the best month of his career. Having only ever finished in the top 10 of a major championship once before, McDowell took advantage of several big names dropping off the pace to pick up the 2010 US Open in June. That victory succeeded a win at the Celtic Manor Wales Open just two weeks before. With two big events already under his belt this year, McDowell is one of the favorites to make an impact at the Scottish Open.

For all the latest news, updates, and odds on the 2010 Barclays Scottish Open, follow the popular online sportsbook BetUS. New members can collect up to 155% in bonuses.

The third, and most prestigious, Grand Slam tournament of the tennis calendar has started today.  So, don the all whites and grab some strawberries and cream because it’s time for Wimbledon.

With the shake-up that saw some new talent emerging at the French Open earlier on in the month, many tennis fans are no doubt wondering if we can expect the same on the grass.  Will the traditional favorites return to the top, or will this be another one that sees new contenders for the title?

As far as the men’s singles goes, you can never count Roger Federer out.  Though he had a somewhat forgettable French Open, the grass courts of Wimbledon are a whole new kettle of fish for the Swiss superstar.  He’s the defending champion at this year’s tournament and he’s listed as a favorite to win.  It’s no wonder as he has ruled the Wimbledon courts since 2001with a record seven titles under his belt.  Though he has mastered the serve and volley style of the grass courts, he did suffer an upset in Halle.  Australian Lleyton Hewitt conquered Federer for the first time in 16 attempts, giving the Aussie a huge morale boost going into the Grand Slam tournament.  So, does Federer have one more Wimbledon win left or are we indeed facing the end of an era?

Spain’s Rafael Nadal is breathing down his neck in both the rankings and the odds.  He has seen a major return to form over the past few months, even reclaiming his French Open throne with a win over Robin Soderling.  His win put him back in the new world number one position and made him a favorite to win this year’s tournament.  As good as Nadal has been in recent appearances, his record on the grass courts isn’t quite as stellar as his numbers on the clay.  He has been known to struggle with the serve and volley style that’s so common at this tournament.  Nevertheless, he has won at Wimbledon before, and his recent performances have proven he’s a force to be reckoned with.

The Brits are still holding out hope that Andy Murray will be the first UK man to take out the Wimbledon title in over 70 years.  He has made a couple of decent runs in recent years, but he hasn’t been quite the powerhouse this year that we’ve seen in past tournaments.  He struggled going into the French Open and ended up taking an early exit at the hands of Soderling.  He is rumored to be struggling with a knee injury.  Perhaps that can explain his third round exit at the Queen’s Club.  All of the UK will likely have their fingers cross for the Scottish star as he could face matchups with Sam Querrey (this year’s Queens Club winner), Fernando Verdasco, and Nadal en route to the Finals.  Nevertheless, the world number four is confident in his chances of making Wimbledon history as he is determined to make this the year that ends the British title drought.

BetUS is offering the following odds to win for the men’s singles:

Roger Federer: +125
Rafael Nadal: +225
Andy Murray: +650
Novak Djokovic: +2000
Andy Roddick: +1000

There will also be plenty of fans looking to the women’s tournament to see if the big names can return to the top.  If the Williams sisters have anything to say about it, they will be dominating the Final round for the third consecutive year.  They both suffered disappointing performances in the French Open; though, it’s no secret that neither really likes the clay.  Serena is Wimbledon’s defending champion and remains the world’s number one seed.  Her powerful and dominating style of play is perfect for the grass courts, and there are plenty predicting that she will easily make it through to the Finals.  She starts off her bid against Agnieszka Radwanska and Na Li neither of which should pose too much of a threat.

Sister Venus is known for her performances at Wimbledon and she has declared it her favorite tournament of the year.  She’s a five-time champion – two more than her younger sister – and last year’s runner up.  She’s had her ups and downs this year, taking out only two titles and posting a 25-9 record.  But, watch for her to get back on track on her favorite surface with her powerful serve and volley game.

Plenty in the tennis world have been keeping their eyes on the progress of Justine Henin, wondering how she will fare in the big tournaments as she continues to make her comeback after a brief retirement.  Wimbledon will be no exception, as plenty will be keen to see if she can make this her first Grand Slam win.  She’s listed in the top five favorites to win this year’s tournament, sitting just behind Serena and Venus.  She has been putting on consistently impressive performances since her return with two tournament wins and a 24-7 record.  Many are predicting that she will be the one to break up the all William’s Final.

BetUS is offering the following odds to win:

Serena Williams: +200
Venus Williams: +300
Justine Henin: +700
Maria Sharapova: +900
Kim Clijsters: +900

Be sure to get to BetUS to put down a wager at these odds, or to check out their full list of odds on all other competitors.  Don’t forget that they are also offering matchup odds for each stage of the competition.