This year's Aussie over, but odds are already out for next year's.

Betting lines for the 2011 Australian Open are already available, even though the 2010 Aussie is barely over.  Here are the odds for next year's Aussie with Stan James and Sky Bet:

1.  Roger Federer, +225 (9/4), Sky Bet
2.  Andrew Murray, +450 (9/2), Stan James
3.  Juan Martin Del Potro, +450 (9/2), Sky Bet
4.  Rafael Nadal, +700 (7/1), Stan James
5.  Novak Djokovic, +1000 (10/1), Stan James
6.  Marin Cilic, +1600 (16/1), Stan James

When you are working with odds one year in advance then you want to be sure to do a couple things. 

First, learn about your sportsbook's policy regarding what will happen to your bet if your pick doesn't play in the targeted event.  There is no way to know what will happen in the next year and it's possible that your pick might be injured at this time next year or come down with the flu. You want to know if your bet is refundable for a no-show or if that possibility is simply part of the risk and then you want to factor that into your betting.

Secondly, you only want to work with long odds at this point and with really small bets.  There's a lot more risk involved with long term betting than there is with short term betting and so you need a good price in order to justify that risk.  Keep in mind that a year ago, people would have thought it inconceivable that Rafael Nadal would not have made the 2010 Australian Open semifinals, but a lot has happened in the last 12 months that lead to that.

The best bet to make in the above list is to sprinkle Cilic.  He's young, developing, and fresh off of a semifinals appearance from the Australian Open just completed.  With another year of improvement he could very well be a finalist at this time next year and +1600 to win looks great.

Go to Stan James to bet on Australian Open futures.