Despite
the stories, Gaming Control Board Figures Show
Sports Books are Doing Just Fine, Thank You
All football season, we have
been hearing about how this was the year of
the favorite in NFL betting, and how badly the
sports books' bottom lines were damaged as a
result.
Favored
teams have been covering the point spread at
a rate approaching 60 percent, a virtually unprecedented
clip.
Because
the betting public tends to wager on favorites,
gamblers were consistently crushing the sports
books week after week. So we were told.
Terms
such as "bloodbath" were thrown around
to describe the beating sports books were taking.
Because
individual casino companies do not publicly
reveal how much money their sports books win
or lose in particular sports, we had to wait
until the state Gaming Control Board released
its figures for all of Nevada to get an up-close
look at the carnage.
The
Control Board recently released its statewide
revenue report for August through October 2005,
which covers the first two months of the football
season that we were led to believe were oh-so-devastating
for Nevada's sports books.
Brace
yourself.
In
September, the state's sports books won more
than $22.3 million from gamblers in football
betting alone, representing a win percentage
of 13.69 percent (meaning about $164 million
was wagered), according to the Control Board.
In
October, the state's sports books won more than
$30.3 million from gamblers in football betting,
a win percentage of 12.15 percent (about $252
million was wagered), according to the Control
Board.
Those
figures do not include money won from gamblers
on parlay cards, which the Control Board tracks
in a separate category. From August through
October, casinos won an additional $10.3 million
on parlay cards, a win percentage of 36.75 percent,
according to the Control Board.
That's
a profit for the state's sports books on football
betting alone from August through October --
a stretch encompassing the preseason and the
first two months of the regular season -- of
more than $55.3 million.
Yep.
That's some bloodbath.
*
* *
Jose
Luis Castillo has been installed as a 2-1 favorite
against Diego Corrales in their lightweight
championship fight set for Feb. 4 in El Paso,
Texas -- the third bout between the two men
in nine months. Corrales went off as a small
favorite in the first two fights, both in Las
Vegas, winning by 10th-round technical knockout
in May and losing by fourth-round knockout in
October.
The
round proposition is over/under 9 1/2 rounds
in the scheduled 12-rounder.
The
second fight was marred when Castillo failed
to make weight, allowing Corrales to retain
the lightweight title.
Manny
Pacquiao is a minus-125 favorite (risk $1.25
to win $1) against Erik Morales, a former world
champion in multiple weight classes, in their
super featherweight eliminator scheduled for
Jan. 21 at the Thomas & Mack Center, according
to odds at Wynn Las Vegas. Morales is a plus-105
underdog. The round proposition has "will
go" 12 full rounds a minus-140 favorite,
with "won't go" a plus-120 underdog.
•••
With
eight college football bowl games remaining
on this season's schedule, "over"
bettors have had much more success at the windows
than their "under" counterparts.
Of
the 20 bowl games played so far, 14 have gone
over the total (70 percent) with six landing
under the total.
The
over/unders in today's six bowl games are tightly
bunched, ranging from 45 points in the West
Virginia-Georgia game to 56 points in the Louisville-Virginia
Tech game, according to odds at all Station
Casinos properties.
•••
Officials
with the Las Vegas Hilton sports book report
they plan to post a "slew" of propositions
-- or offbeat, unique wagering opportunities
-- on Wednesday's Rose Bowl between Texas and
Southern Cal. Hilton sports book director Jay
Kornegay believes the game will be one of the
most heavily bet college sporting events ever.
USC is favored by 7 1/2 points with an over/under
of 71 points, according to Hilton odds.
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