Liebe, Lust und Leben » n on how we calculate each teams playoff odds, s

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- They were always close as friends. They used to be just as close as golfers.Russell Knox and Duncan Stewart grew up 30 miles apart in the Scottish Highlands and spent four years as teammates at Jacksonville University. Their careers went in wildly different directions since they last played in the same tournament at the Atlantic Sun Conference championship.That was more than nine years ago.Neither could have imagined the circumstances for such a dream reunion.Knox is No. 18 in the world, the winner of a World Golf Championship and a sympathetic figure this summer for being left off the Ryder Cup team.Stewart, who worked in a slaughterhouse and drove a delivery van to help pay the bills, took out a bank loan to give his golf career one last shot, and he made it pay off. He won a Challenge Tour event in Spain on a sponsors exemption in April, moved up nearly 1,000 spots in the world ranking to No. 315 and finally earned a European Tour card.Knox never forgot his friend.As the highest-ranked player in Scotland, Knox was allowed to pick his partner for the World Cup next week at Kingston Heath in Australia, provided his teammate was among the top 500 in the world. He picked Stewart.It was a surprising choice for some because three other Scots are ranked ahead of Stewart.It was an easy choice for Knox.Were going to talk about this forever, the rest of our lives, Knox said. Were going to have the best time. Its going to be epic.Knox first raised the prospect in May, and Stewart figured he was joking. But after Knox won his second PGA Tour title at the Travelers Championship, he sent Stewart a text asking him his plans the week of the World Cup.The last thing he said was, `Lets go win this, Stewart said.Paul Lawrie was among the first to raise questions about the pick, saying on Twitter, Is Duncan Stewart the second highest-ranked Scot? The former British Open champion believes the two best players available should have represented Scotland. Then again, only Knox and Martin Laird have earned more ranking points than Stewart this year.Besides, the World Cup is as much about team as simply two players from the same country.Ever since I picked Duncan, hes only played awesome, Knox said. He was better than I was in college. Our paths have gone in slightly different directions. It could have easily been the other way around. If the roles were reversed, he would have picked me.Knox used a recruiting company to help find a college in the U.S., and while Jacksonville was not a golf powerhouse, the weather there was a wee bit better than in Inverness. His late coach, Mike Fleming, was looking to fill out Jacksonvilles roster and Knox mentioned his friend from home.Knox had a slightly better scoring average over their four years. Stewart won more tournaments and was the Atlantic Sun player of the year as a sophomore. Stewart made more birdies. Knox was more consistent. They even worked at the same country club in the cart barn to pocket spare cash for the mini-tours when they graduated.Thats when it changed.Knox has joint citizenship (his father is American) and had a stronger financial backing. Stewart said he would stay until he could no longer afford it, and the money ran out about the time the engine blew up in his $600 car. He headed home to Scotland where he could stay with his parents and pay less in entry fees to small tournaments.If he would have stayed, I know he would have made it to the tour, Knox said.Stewart took a hard road. He played the EuroPro Tour, one year missing his Challenge Tour card by 300 pounds. He tried to change his swing to get more distance and figures that cost him two years. He took whatever jobs he could find and stopped playing for eight months out of frustration.Knox, meanwhile, made his way onto the Web.com Tour as a Monday qualifier, won a tournament, graduated to the PGA Tour and steadily improved each year until he broke through in a big way by winning the HSBC Champions in Shanghai.It was fantastic to see on the one hand, Stewart said. And it motivated me on the other.Stewart worked harder than ever, and then decided to take out the bank loan to give himself a proper chance. He missed his Challenge Tour card by one spot on the money list but saw enough progress to keep going. He started this year with no status on the Challenge Tour and wound up with his European Tour card.If you had told me at the start of the year I would finish 10th on the Challenge Tour and play in the World Cup with Russell, I would have laughed, he said. Were both really excited. Authentic Justin Jones Jersey . Three came down to the fourth quarter while quarterbacks continued to shine in all four games; so important to the overall quality of the game. Wholesale Chargers Jerseys China .Y. -- Marcell Dareus and the Buffalo Bills defence made life miserable for Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco. http://www.cheapchargersjerseysauthentic.com/?tag=authentic-scott-quessenberry-jersey .Y. -- Jayna Hefford scored the winning goal Friday as Canada survived a scare with a 4-3 win over Sweden at the Four Nations womens hockey tournament. Wholesale Chargers Jerseys . Here are his mid-season NBA awards. MVP: (KEVIN DURANT-Thunder) - Has been sensational this season and more importantly, the most consistent player in the league. Considering that his team has been without star guard Russell Westbrook and with the free agent departure of sharpshooter Kevin Martin, hes had to carry the majority of the load to not only keep his team afloat but more importantly, at an elite level. Cheap Chargers Jerseys . Ashley Youngs cross was inadvertently headed by Chester into his own net in the 66th minute, allowing United to claim a third straight league win. "We had to dig deep with our fighting spirit and weve done that," United striker Wayne Rooney said. There are only three undefeated teams left in the NFL. Denver, Minnesota and Philadelphia have all looked great so far this season. However, based on Football Outsiders methodology, none of those three teams is the current favorite to win Super Bowl LI.This early in the season, our playoff odds still combine performance this season with our preseason forecast that was based on personnel changes and general year-to-year trends. And because they are playing very well, have a 3-1 record, and were our top forecasted team coming into 2016, we currently have the Seattle Seahawks as a significant favorite to win Super Bowl LI. The Seahawks make it back to the Super Bowl in 33.2 percent of our simulations this week and win it all 20.7 percent of the time. The Pittsburgh Steelers are second at 11.7 percent after their big win over Kansas City. Undefeated Minnesota and Denver are third and fourth.But while they might not be our Super Bowl favorites, Minnesota and Denver have very strong odds to make it to the postseason because of their 4-0 records.?Each week from now until the end of the regular season, well be taking a look at the playoff odds for all 32 teams in the NFL.For a full exxplanation on how we calculate each teams playoff odds, see the bottom of the article.ddddddddddddAFC PLAYOFF PREDICTIONSFAVORITES1. Denver Broncos (4-0)Odds of making playoffs: 80.4 percentThe Broncos had by far their best defensive game of the season against Tampa Bay in Week 4, climbing to fifth in defensive DVOA. Theyre also still in the top 10 on offense, one of the major surprises of the early season. Right now the biggest hurdle between the Broncos and another AFC West title is that the AFC West is the best division in the game. All three of Denvers division rivals also have an above-average DVOA through four weeks.2. Pittsburgh Steelers (3-1)Odds of making playoffs: 79.8 percentBased on average DVOA rating so far, the Steelers have played the hardest schedule in the NFL, but they play the easiest schedule over their final 12 games. While Pittsburgh has yet to play a team with a below-average DVOA through four games, six of its next eight opponents are currently below average (although New England wont be by the time they play the Steelers). ' ' '