MVC teams were a collective nine games under .500 as home favorites last season, a statistic college betting fans will checking this year. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2008/09 season are in parentheses:
Mountain West Conference teams covered 60 percent of the time as road favorites last year, a trend college basketball betting fans will be monitoring this season. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2008/09 season are in parentheses:
With Memphis down for the first time in memory, college basketball betting followers will be watching to see if the other teams in the C-USA try to gain some revenge by crushing the Tigers. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2008/09 season are in parentheses:
Collectively, A-10 teams were 19 games under .500 versus the pointspread, a statistic that college basketball betting wonks will be watching this winter. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2008/09 season are in parentheses:
Pac-10 teams were 15 games over .500 ATS versus non-conference foes and played 21 more "over" than "under" games last season, trends college basketball betting fans will be watching this year. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2008/09 season are in parentheses:
Two of the sport's premier attractions, Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao and Miguel "Junito" Cotto, will square off in a special 145-pound catch-weight bout before a packed house at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas and an HBO pay-per-view television audience on Nov. 14 in which boxing betting fans will have dozens of wagering options.
Only four of the SEC's 12 teams had winning pointspread records last season, a trend basketball betting devotees will be tracking this year. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2008/09 season are in parentheses:
Despite it reputation as the nation's deepest and toughest conference, Big East teams were nine games under .500 ATS versus non conference foes last season, a statistic that college basketball betting fans will be eyeing this year. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2008/09 season are in parentheses:
Only one Big Ten team, Northwestern, played more "over" games than "under" games last season, a trend that basketball betting aficionados will be monitoring this year. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2008/09 season are in parentheses:
Take mighty North Carolina out of the mix and ACC teams were just 54-55-4 ATS outside the conference last season, far from the expected dominance and a college basketball betting trend worth watching. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2006/07 season are in parentheses:
The Big 12 Conference has the best pointspread record over the past seven seasons, a trend that college basketball betting fans will be watching this year. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2008/09 season are in parentheses:
We're still a few weeks away from the start of the 2009/10 NCAA men's hoop season but college basketball betting fans need not wait until then to start dipping into their wallets for some much-needed hardcourt action. Future book wagering is open for which team will cut down the nets in Indianapolis, April 5, 2010. What's more, some books also are offering odds on which teams will win their respective conference crowns.
Even if you're strictly a sports betting practitioner, someone who doesn't know an exacta from exact change, it still might be worth your time to take a run at some horse race betting when the windows open for Breeders' Cup XXVI, to be contested this year at Santa Anita Park, Nov. 6-7.
As a whole, Pacific Division teams were 27 games under .500 against the spread last season, a statistic that NBA betting practitioners will be tracking this year. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2008/09 season in parentheses:
It probably comes as little surprise to NBA betting followers that the three best teams in the division, Denver, Portland and Utah, also were very solid plays at home, notching a 78-53-2 mark against the spread last season, an evolving trend worth watching. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2008/09 season in parentheses:
Every team in the Southwest Division had a losing record against the spread last season, a trend NBA betting fans will be monitoring carefully again this year. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2008/09 season in parentheses:
The Magic has been 30-16-2 against the spread versus Southeast Division foes over the past three seasons, an evolving wagering trend that betting devotees will be eyeing again this year. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2008/09 season in parentheses:
The Cavaliers were wagering bullies but three other teams within the division also had winning pointspread records last year, a trend NBA betting aficionados will be tracking this season. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2008/09 season in parentheses:
Since acquiring Kevin Garnett, Boston has ruled the division the last two seasons, both straight up and against the spread, trends which NBA betting fans will be monitoring. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2008/09 season in parentheses:
The Lakers are a narrow future book NBA betting favorite over the Cavaliers to win a second straight championship next summer. The matchup, which was expected but did not materialize last season when Cleveland failed to keep up its end of the bargain, would pit the game's two biggest super stars, the Lakers' Kobe Bryant, and the Cavaliers' LeBron James, against each other in a bonanza for TV ratings.
Art Linkletter used to insist that "kids say the darndest things" but when it comes to the fields of sports and sports betting, it looks like the children have little on athletes, journalists, politicians, administrators and just plain folks.
While 90 percent of NFL betting action is on the pointspread, there are some gamblers who find value in totals, the wagering pursuit where you bet whether the combined points scored by the teams in an individual game are over or under a prescribed number. Other gamblers believe that "totals," as they're called, are sucker bets, another diversion designed by the house to separate the player from his money. Of course, if that were true, bookmakers wouldn't have to place such severe restrictions on over/under wagering.
Since the introduction of the 17-week schedule to the NFL in 1990, every team has enjoyed a week off during the regular season, a scheduling phenomenon that has created yet another wagering variable for NFL betting fans to consider. Savvy gamblers will tell you this is a good development; that the more complex the betting equation, the better the opportunity to find advantages where the less focused, less disciplined and less determined bettor fears to tread.
Monday Night Football has been broadcast into homes across America since 1970, adding an extra day to the gridiron weekend that has been both used and abused by ardent NFL betting enthusiasts over the past 40 years. Because it is the final game of the week, MNF often is the difference between winning and losing for bet makers and bet takers alike.
It's not the last game of the week but when NBC took over and began flexing its muscles in 2006 by commanding a strong schedule, Sunday Night Football quickly became a wagering staple for NFL betting fans.
Despite a 21-month absence from the ring following a hasty retirement and a subsequent injury, Floyd Mayweather Jr. opened as a solid -400 favorite (bet $400 to win $100) to beat Juan Manuel Marquez in a welterweight showdown at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Sept. 19. Take back +300 (bet $100 to win $300) on Marquez.
Arizona eked out a winning record against the spread last season but over the past five years this is the worst performing pointspread division in the league, a trend NFL betting aficionados will be watching closely again this season. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with 2008 regular season records and pointspread results in parentheses:
With fewer wagering opportunities than any other team sport, NFL betting places a premium on gamblers to get off to a quick start. That again will be the case when the NFL kicks off another season, Sept. 10.
No system, especially one designed to earn a profit at college football betting, is foolproof but some gamblers have reported success matching the dispassionate "scientific" approach of mathematician Jeff Sagarin against the Las Vegas wagering line.
Every team in the NFC South held its own against the spread, especially in non-division play where the four teams were a combined 24-14-2 ATS last season, a statistic that NFL betting enthusiasts surely will be monitoring this year. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with 2008 regular season records and pointspread results in parentheses:
The division enjoyed a combined 22-16-2 pointspread record in other neighborhoods last season, attesting to the overall strength of the NFC East. The division draws the weak AFC West this year so more wagering success is likely, though NFL betting fans will want to watch for inflated lines. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with 2008 regular season records and pointspread results in parentheses:
Defending champions Roger Federer and Serena Williams opened as future book favorites to successfully defend their respective men's and women's singles titles at the final Major of the year, the US Open Tennis Championship in Flushing Meadows, New York, Aug. 31-Sept. 13.
The Colts have won at least 12 games every year since 2003 but it's the Titans, who are 31-19 against the spread overall and 14-4 versus the number within the division the last three seasons, who have been best wagering friends to NFL betting enthusiasts. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with 2008 regular season records and pointspread results in parentheses:
Pittsburgh hasn't had a losing pointspread season since 2002 and Baltimore was one of the league's best against the spread last year, trends that NFL betting devotees undoubtedly will be monitoring this season. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with 2008 regular season records and pointspread results in parentheses:
Just five of the Sun Belt Conference's nine teams have pointspread records dating back nine years so there's not a great statistical data base for bettors. Among independents, only Navy has been a decent play versus the number since 2000. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with 2008 records, returning starters (RS) - including kickers - and returning lettermen (RL) in parentheses:
Although he failed to win any of the year?s first three Major events, oddsmakers are sticking with Tiger Woods, installing the world?s No. 1 ranked golfer as a 5/2 favorite in PGA Championship future book golf betting. Woods, who boasts four PGA Championship titles among his 14 Major victories, will head a field of 156 golfers who tee off for the season?s final Major, at the Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minnesota, Aug. 13-16.
For a great many NFL betting enthusiasts, their initial wager of the 2009 season won't be on the first game of the upcoming campaign but on the last. Future book betting on the 2010 Super Bowl, where prices are far more generous than the usual 10/11 odds gamblers readily accept on individual games, is a nice way to start the gridiron betting season.
Just five of the Sun Belt Conference's nine teams have pointspread records dating back nine years so there's not a great statistical data base for bettors. Among independents, only Navy has been a decent play versus the number since 2000. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with 2008 records, returning starters (RS) - including kickers - and returning lettermen (RL) in parentheses:
The Mid-American Conference was better than expected out of conference, finishing 28-21 ATS last season, a trend that college football betting aficionados will be watching this year. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with 2008 records, returning starters (RS) - including kickers - and returning lettermen (RL) in parentheses:
Teams from the MWC were 6-1 SU and 4-3 ATS versus the Pac-10 last year while producing the nation's only major undefeated team (Utah) so followers of college football betting know better than to dismiss he league as just some wagering weak sister. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with 2008 records, returning starters (RS) - including kickers - and returning lettermen (RL) in parentheses:
Rice and East Carolina are the only Conference USA teams to enjoy a winning pointspread record over the last nine seasons, a trend college football betting enthusiasts are sure to watch carefully this season. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with 2008 records, returning starters (RS) - including kickers - and returning lettermen (RL) in parentheses:
College football betting fans again will be watching to see if the WAC, as it was last season when members posted a record of 12-21 ATS, is a "go-against" conference again this year. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with 2008 records, returning starters (RS) - including kickers - and returning lettermen (RL) in parentheses:
It's easy to underestimate the Big East but six of the league's eight teams went to bowls last season and conference teams are 66-51-1 ATS outside the Big East the past three seasons, a statistic that should be of great interest to devotees of college football betting. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with 2008 records, returning starters (RS) - including kickers - and returning lettermen (RL) in parentheses:
Pac-10 teams were 19-15 ATS in non-conference games and were 4-1 ATS in bowls, trends that college football betting followers will be tracking this year. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with 2008 records, returning starters (RS) - including kickers - and returning lettermen (RL) in parentheses:
The ACC sent 10 teams to bowls last season, compiling a 7-3 record ATS, a show of national strength that college football betting fans will be eyeing this year. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with 2008 records, returning starters (RS) - including kickers - and returning lettermen (RL) in parentheses:
Big 12 play produced an average of 67 points per game last year leaving college football betting devotees to wonder if "over" is the way to go again this season. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with 2008 records, returning starters (RS) - including kickers - and returning lettermen (RL) in parentheses:
Tiger Woods opened as a consensus 9/4 future book favorite to capture his fourth British Open Championship, in Turnberry, Scotland, July 16-19. Two-time defending champion Padraig Harrington of Ireland is the distant second choice at odds of 14/1.
Big Ten teams were just 15-26-1 ATS in non-conference games last year, adding to the perception that the league really isn't that good any more, a trend college football betting enthusiasts will monitor this season. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with 2008 records, returning starters (RS) - including kickers - and returning lettermen (RL) in parentheses:
The SEC may be the strongest conference but its teams were just 25-22 ATS versus non-league foes last year, something college football betting fans will watch this year. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with 2008 records, returning starters (RS) - including kickers - and returning lettermen (RL) in parentheses:
One of the best ways to achieve college football betting success early in the season is to identify those teams that have improved enough from the previous year that oddsmakers may be behind the pointspread curve.
Just as NFL future book betting has evolved to include the winners of the AFC and NFC Championships as well as the league's eight divisions, college football betting has expanded to encompass future book wagering on which teams will earn titles in the six major BCS conferences.
It's usually right around this time, after Lord Stanley has had his Cup hoisted, when the NBA Playoffs finally have crowned a league champion, and when the prospect of another three months of Major League Baseball begins to wear on even the heartiest of wagering souls, that gamblers begin to turn their attention to the upcoming college football betting season.
Their results may have been different in France but Roger Federer and Serena Williams each cross the Channel to England as tennis betting favorites to win respective men's and women's singles titles at the Wimbledon Championships, outside London, June 22-July 5.
"There are three kinds of lies," wrote Benjamin Disraeli, "lies, damned lies and statistics." Devotees of the oft-quoted British Prime Minister (1874-1880) will have to forgive baseball betting fans if they differ with him on the value of statistics.
We're about a third of the way through the regular season, a time when many Major League Baseball betting fans assess their future book wagers and look to improve their position. It turns out that MLB futures also reveal quite a bit about day-to-day baseball betting, as well.
Since bursting on the scene more than a decade ago and quickly establishing himself as the man to beat in every tournament he enters, the fundamental question for golf betting fans always has been whether to take a short price on Tiger Woods or whether to shop for longer odds and wager on someone else.
Horse racing betting fans were left wondering if Rachel Alexandra would join the boys in the in the Belmont Stakes at Belmont Park on June 6 after the filly worked a half mile at Churchill Downs, Monday, May 25.
Although it's fun and occasionally profitable, sports betting can be an unapologetic and unrelenting pursuit, filled with doubt and uncertainty and with far more failure than success.
Fans of boxing betting may be eying a wagering parlay when HBO presents a fight doubleheader featuring a pair of rising stars against a couple of aging former title holders, from Ft. Lauderdale, May 30.
The World Series of Poker, which began nearly four decades ago with less than a dozen players, has grown into the biggest and richest poker game in the world, an event so large in size and stature that gamblers now can bet on the poker betting. Last year, nearly 55,000 card players fought it out for some $180 million in prize money, numbers that could be aced this year.
Rafael Nadal is an overwhelming choice to win a fifth consecutive men's singles title but on the women's side, au contraire, where as many as four ladies can claim to be the tennis betting favorite to capture individual glory on the red clay courts at the French Open in Paris, beginning May 24.
Helio Castroneves had the beat and beat the federal government. Now, with Indy 500 future books listing him as the favorite, can he beat the odds and win America's most revered motor race, May 24?
If winning the Triple Crown, a task that's been accomplished just 11 times in 133 years, is the ultimate achievement for any thoroughbred, then having a winning wager on each of the three races is a primary goal for any horse racing betting enthusiast.
Horse racing betting fans, eager to forge ahead to the second jewel in the Triple Crown, the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course, May 16, might aid their handicapping cause by first looking back at the results of the May 2 Kentucky Derby.
Boxing betting enthusiasts understand that fighting styles, motivation and conditioning can be almost as important in determining the outcome of a fight--and a wager--as talent. But this time gamblers also will have to ponder whether injury will be a factor when Chad Dawson (27-0, 17 KOs) defends his IBF lightweight championship in a rematch against Antonio Tarver (27-5, 19 KOs) in Las Vegas, May 9.
The NFL Draft had its impact on NFL betting as 13 off the league's 32 teams had their Super Bowl future book odds adjusted at the conclusion of the personnel lottery in New York City, April 25-26.
It's been more than three decades since Affirmed became thoroughbred racing's 11th and last Triple Crown winner, compelling evidence that whether your game is horse racing betting or horse racing breeding, a horse's pedigree and the best intentions do not assure success.
Horse racing betting fans, long famous for carping about the difficulty of handicapping races, will have a legitimate complaint when the 135th running of the Kentucky Derby is contested at Churchill Downs, May 2.
There hasn't been a winner of thoroughbred racing's Triple Crown in more than three decades but the trio of races that comprise the triad, the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes, also pose quite the challenge for horse race betting fans, as well.
With its wager-friendly dime line and the inability of bookmakers to influence the outcome of games through a pointspread, baseball betting may be a player's best bet.
The latest version of the British Invasion to America's shores means that boxing betting fans will be tested on successive Saturday nights, April 25 and May 2.
The daily six-month drudgery of money lines and game totals that is baseball betting can wear on any gambler but there are other, far less intensive and much more enjoyable ways to wager on America's pastime.
NBA betting enthusiasts who wagered on games during the regular season will need to address a whole new set of challenges when the playoffs tip off in mid April.
From the provocative to the insightful to the ridiculous and downright silly, few venues afford the total wealth of verbal treasure as the twin fields of sports and sports betting.
For the past decade or so, the fundamental question facing golf betting enthusiasts has been whether to bet on Tiger Woods or against him. Once again, gamblers will have to ask and answer that query when Woods and some 125 other of the world's premier golfers tee off at the Masters in Augusta, Georgia, April 9-12.
Boxing betting will get a boost when Showtime and HBO bring the action to gamblers during the first two weekends of April. As has conclusively been proven by other sports, most notably football, events that appear on television generate more activity at the betting windows.
The big risk, big reward strategy that is an inherent part of future book Kentucky Derby betting, never has been more evident that this year when several winter favorites stumbled in the spring on their way to the first Saturday in May at Churchill Downs in Louisville.
From a baseball betting standpoint, there was no more inept division than the National League West last year. In fact, all five teams were losing wagers overall, posting unit losses (if you bet on a team every game it played) from -5.3 to -37.2.
The teams that were good on the field in the National League Central division also were pretty good to baseball betting fans last year. On the other cleat, the two division teams with losing records, the Reds and the Pirates, rarely merited a gambler's devotion in 2008, trends that are more likely than not to continue in the approaching season.
Not surprisingly, the two teams in the National League East Division that were better than expected, the Phillies and Marlins, also surged at the baseball betting windows last year. But will higher expectations in 2009 take away that crutch from baseball betting fans?
The only suspense in this division will be at the baseball betting windows where gamblers see if LA's field dominance again translates to some wallet-fattening or if bookmakers adjust their money line prices to such an extent that the Angeles become a betting liability.
The Twins, Indians, Tigers and White Sox all have a legitimate chance to win the AL Central title but although these teams are evenly matched on the field, baseball betting enthusiasts know that won't necessarily be the case at the wagering windows.
Seemingly, all it took was exorcizing the name "Devil" from their names for the Tampa Bay Rays to become not just an on-field success, but a baseball betting powerhouse in the American League East last season.>Seemingly, all it took was exorcizing the name "Devil" from their names for the Tampa Bay Rays to become not just an on-field success, but a baseball betting powerhouse in the American League East last season.
While NASCAR still has more auto race betting horsepower, Formula 1 and Indy Car competition, which rev up with their respective season openers Mar. 29 and April 5, each have been gaining speed with wagering wonks, recently.
First there was "The Real World," which started on MTV in 1992. Then there was "Survivor," a CBS staple since 2000. But no reality show has gained the mass appeal, including the betting attention, of "American Idol," which has been broadcast by Fox since 2002 and currently is in its eighth season.
"April is the cruelest month" wrote T.S. Eliot, who probably didn't have Major League baseball betting on his mind when he first put pen to paper to scribble those words. But for anyone who's endured the daily six-month grind of wagering on America's National Pastime, April can seem like little more than the start of a long and difficult journey that has no certain destination or outcome.
The Super Bowl attracts more attention but many sports betting fans believe the opening round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament, which tips off March 17 this year, is the best wagering opportunity of the year.
With its inherent unpredictability from both the fighters and the judges and the reality that a contest can end at any time, betting boxing is neither for the faint of heart nor light of wallet.
WBC heavyweight champion Vitali Klitschko opened as a prohibitive -1000 favorite (bet $1,000 to win $100) to dismiss mandatory challenger Juan Carlos Gomez in a bout that will cap two weeks of intense international boxing betting action in March.
The Super Bowl attracts more attention but many sports betting fans believe the opening round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament, which tips off March 17 this year, is the best wagering opportunity of the year.
The 2009 Run for the Roses won't be contested until the first Saturday in May but Kentucky Derby betting fans can run to the windows (or their computer screens) now to place a future book wager on America's premier horse race.
"April is the cruelest month" wrote T.S. Eliot, who probably didn't have Major League baseball betting on his mind when he first put pen to paper to scribble those words. But for anyone who's endured the daily six-month grind of wagering on America's National Pastime
College basketball betting will reach an insane pitch this month with March Madness but you can avoid a trip to the asylum and maybe even make a few bucks by observing a few simple rules when wagering on the 2009 Men's Basketball Championship.
With and the start of the NFL preseason still more than five months away, bookmakers quickly rushed to fill the wagering void by offering future book prices on which team will win Super Bowl
They still may be sweeping the streets of confetti in Pittsburgh but NFL betting fans just about everywhere else already have turned their attention to the 2009 season.
College basketball betting will reach an insane pitch this month with March Madness but you can avoid a trip to the asylum and maybe even make a few bucks by observing a few simple rules when wagering on the 2009 Men's Basketball Championship.
Wagering interest won't be nearly as keen as was on the Super Bowl but with a viewing audience of some two billion people, sportsbooks aren't about to let the Academy Awards be handed out in Los Angeles on Feb. 22 without offering that enormous pool of potential gamblers some Oscar betting with their popcorn.
They may still be celebrating Florida's BCS title in Gainesville but college football betting fans across the country already are looking to next season, eyeing a future book on whether the Gators will repeat or whether some other team will end the 2009 campaign ranked No. 1.
Before leaving 2008 and plowing into the sports betting action in 2009, we offer a fond look back at the athletes, journalists, executives and just plain folks who gave us so much pleasure with the simple act of opening their mouths:
Students of college basketball betting will have to crack open a book before testing their wagering skills on the Ivy League. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
Horizon League teams were 51-40-2 ATS outside their conference a year ago, trend college basketball betting enthusiasts surely will be watching this season. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
The over/under for the conference's eight teams was 99-134-3, giving college basketball betting technicians a solid trend. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
For the second straight season, the five MAAC teams that won 18 or more games straight up also had winning records against the spread, a trend college basketball betting enthusiasts will be monitoring this year. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
The teams with the three best SU records also had the best ATS marks, a trend college basketball betting fans will be monitoring this season. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
Despite a faltering economy, NASCAR betting shows no signs of running out of gas any time soon. Even the start of the 2009 Sprint Cup season, which puts tires to the racetrack at the Daytona 500 on Feb. 15 - the Budweiser Shootout, Feb. 7, is a non-scoring event--demonstrates how stock car racing can attract an expanding audience despite a defiance of conventional wisdom.
With Friday the 13th on the calendar for both February and March (and, for those of you scoring at home, November, as well) superstitious athletes, sports betting fans and sportsbooks may be knocking on wood for the next couple of months.
With and the start of the NFL preseason still more than five months away, bookmakers quickly rushed to fill the wagering void by offering future book prices on which team will win Super Bowl XLIV in Dolphin Stadium, in Miami, Feb. 7, 2010.
All seven teams that had a losing straight up won/lost record also were unsuccessful against the pointspread last season, a trend that college basketball betting followers will be watching again this year. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
College basketball betting followers should expect the unexpected in an Ohio Valley Conference that could look a lot different than last year. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
College basketball betting aficionados made a bundle betting "over" in the Big Sky, a trend they'll be tracking again this season. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
Only four of the Sun Belt Conference's 13 teams had winning records against the spread, a trend college basketball betting followers will be watching this season. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
One trend, as it has in the previous six seasons, again was validated last year: Straight up (SU) losers are losers against the spread (ATS), too. In fact, of the 11 teams that had SU regular season losing records in 2008, not a single one of them had a winning record ATS:
With its enormous payoffs but slim chances for success, golf betting is something less than an ideal wagering pursuit for weak-kneed gamblers who might be prone to choke over a two-foot putt.
As regular readers (thanks, Mom) will recall, this is the time of the season when we pit art against science in an annual college football betting ritual matching the Nevada oddsmaking community against a man and his computer models.
Conference bully Davidson again had the best pointspread record last year, something students of college basketball betting will be watching this season. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
VCU not only did it on the court but also proved kindest to college basketball betting devotees of the CAA last season. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
College basketball betting fans will take note that only three of the conference's nine teams had winning pointspread records last season. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
Call it short-term memory loss if you like but NFL betting fans can get spoiled on a team's previous season's results. The notion lingers of the Patriots, Colts, Cowboys, Chargers, Packers and Giants as elite teams while the Dolphins, Raiders, Falcons, Rams and Ravens are etched in the brain as sub-standard football clubs.
Big 12 teams were 70-57-2 ATS outside their conference last season, providing a winning trend for students of college basketball betting. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
Atlantic 10 basketball betting junkies profited from the league's 83-64-2 non-conference ATS mark last season. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
College basketball betting followers did well going against the WAC in one-conference games (33-57-2 ATS) and will be watching that trend this year. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
Missouri Valley Conference teams were worth a wager at home last year, something college basketball betting followers will be monitoring this season. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
Memphis gets most of the coverage but college basketball betting fans know that other Conference USA teams may be better pointspread plays than the Tigers. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
The teams with the best records also were the best bets in the Atlantic Coast Conference last year, a trend which college basketball betting fans will watch closely this season. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
College basketball betting fans have to be careful gauging the ever-changing power struggle in the Big Ten. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
For all its prowess, only five of 16 Big East teams had winning records against the number last season, something college basketball betting devotees will be watching closely this year. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
Only three of the Pac-10's teams failed to post a winning pointspread record last season, making the league a favorite of college basketball betting fans. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
There should be a lot of volatility in the SEC, forcing college basketball betting aficionados to stay on their wagering toes this season. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
NCAA hoops, which are pushing the NFL for the most popular wagering sport among North American gamblers, won't tip off until November but college basketball betting fans can get an early start on the action right now.
Motivation should be the only question as bettor-friendly Boston seeks a second straight NBA championship after competing in the NBA's weakest division. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2007/08 season are in parentheses:
Sports betting darling Detroit should be able to hold off Cleveland in a division that always offers many wagering opportunities. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2006/07 season are in parentheses:
The Magic were also magic to NBA betting fans last season but a rising Heat and a dangerous team of Wizards may have something to say about that this year. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2006/07 season are in parentheses:
Having emerged as a serious contender last season two or three years before most predicted, don't expect the Jazz to wait around for the rest of the division to catch them. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2006/07 season are in parentheses:
The Lakers not only were the best team but the best pointspread team in the division a year ago. The former may be easier to achieve than the latter this season. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2006/07 season are in parentheses:
It would be wagering justice if New Orleans, the team with the best pointspread record in the Western Conference last season, won it all this time, which is a distinct possibility. Straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2006/07 season are in parentheses:
Minnesota and Green Bay were a combined 13-5-2 ATS outside the division last year, a trend which could continue this season for those two NFC North contenders.
The US Open Tennis Championship takes center court in Flushing Meadows, New York, beginning Aug. 25 but for the first time in recent wagering memory oddsmakers can't even agree on which players should be made the tennis betting favorites to win the men's and women's singles titles in the year's fourth and final Major.
New England's dream season ended in a nightmare in the Super Bowl but it's difficult to see how the Patriots won't dominate this division again, certainly straight up and probably against the spread, as well.
There's not much separating Pittsburgh and Cleveland at the top of the division this year and, come to think of it, Cincinnati and Baltimore at the bottom.
Just five of the Sun Belt Conference's nine teams have pointspread records dating back eight years so there's not a great statistical data base for bettors. Among independents, only Navy has been a reliable play since 2000.
The Giants may have won Super Bowl LXII just five months ago but in a lack of NFL betting respect only the late Rodney Dangerfield could appreciate, New York isn't even favored to win its own division this season.
The Giants may have won Super Bowl LXII just five months ago but in a lack of NFL betting respect only the late Rodney Dangerfield could appreciate, New York isn't even favored to win its own division this season.
Only one Conference USA team, East Carolina, has enjoyed a winning pointspread record over the last eight seasons, so there are wagering opportunities here.
The WAC may not be at the top of every gambler's list but many of the conference's teams have fallen into statistically reliable betting categories over the past decade.
With two-time defending champion Tiger Woods still in rehab following June knee surgery, golf betting fans shouldn't have any difficulty finding value at the final Major of the year, the PGA Championship at Oakland Hills in Bloomfield Township, Michigan, Aug. 7-10.
Olympic Games betting never has enjoyed the action of a World Cup, a Wimbledon, an NBA Championship or a World Series, but the inclusion of soccer, tennis, basketball and baseball, not to mention dozens of other sports popular in different parts of the globe, should ensure that the bi-annual five-ring circus, which gets underway in Beijing, August 8, will keep both bet makers and takers hopping.
The continued popularity of NFL preseason betting can be linked to America's growing addiction to anything football. Bettors, particularly those in the United States who have survived a five-month hiatus from their favorite wagering sport, seem unwilling (or unable) to endure another five weeks before the NFL preseason.
Pac-10 teams were 21-14 ATS outside their conference last season but don't appear to be as strong, overall, this year. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with 2007 records, returning starters (RS) - including kickers - and returning lettermen (RL) in parentheses:
Don't go to sleep on the Big East. Conference teams were 22-16-1 ATS outside their league last year and, if history is a guide, could be undervalued and underestimated by oddsmakers again in 2008.
When it comes to boxing betting, anything that removes the outcome from the hands of the judges is preferable, thus the affection gamblers have for those knockout prone heavyweights who seem to rarely leave matters to the ringside pencil-pushers.
For the greater part of a decade, when it came to golf betting, the key question always was whether to take a short price on Tiger Woods or put your cash on some other player at much longer odds.
If gamblers accept assurances that doping scandals truly are a thing of the past, then Tour de France betting should get a wagering boost when the world's most revered bicycle race wheels out of the western naval port of Brest on July 5 to start its annual three-week journey across the country before concluding with a ride down the Champs-Elysees in Paris, July 27.
Anyone who is contemplating a round of golf betting tees off by asking themselves if Tiger Woods, the world's No. 1 ranked player and the most dominating force on the links since Jack Nicklaus, is worth the price.
Favorites may have been dominate in recent years but if you want to do more than just scratch the surface of French Open Tennis Championship betting, look to, well, the surface.
Legendary oddsmaker Roxy Roxborough was fond of saying that NFL betting is part reality and part perception, a description that aptly fits this year's recently concluded NFL draft.
The first thing you should know about Preakness Stakes betting is that it's even farther removed from the Kentucky Derby, the opening leg of thoroughbred racing's Triple Crown, than the 494 miles that separate Louisville from Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, the site of the triad's middle jewel, May 17.
Rain may have washed away the race's second round of qualifying on May 11 but many bookmakers, looking for maximum wagering mileage, raced to open their windows for Indy 500 betting on the annual Memorial weekend American racing classic at the Brickyard, Sunday, May 25.
The Kentucky Derby, dubbed "The Greatest Two Minutes in Sports," surely is the greatest two minutes in horse race betting and, come to think of it, probably also is the two greatest minutes in sports betting.
Don't get too cocky if you did well betting NBA basketball during the regular season because the playoffs, which tip-off at the end of this month, are a whole new ball game for gamblers.
Joe Calzaghe has never lost (44-0, 32 knockouts) so it shouldn't come as
a major surprise that the former super middleweight champion of the world opened as a solid favorite
to continue his unbeaten streak before HBO's cameras at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, April 19.
As the only one of golf's four major events that can boast a permanent home course, betting The Masters is a little more predictable than golf betting in general.
It was in early 1992, just after the successfully concluded Gulf War, when the first President Bush had a popularity rating of 90 percent that Roxy Roxborough, the nation's preeminent price maker at the time, came under fire for political future book betting odds he'd posted on the upcoming US presidential election.
The best two sports betting days of the year, the opening round of the NCAA
Men's Basketball Tournament, dribbles into the wagering picture on March 20 and
21 and gamblers already are sharpening their attacks for the 32-game onslaught.
There's no doubt that the Red Sox and Yankees are the bullies of the American League East but baseball betting aficionados understand that straight up achievement doesn't always translate to wagering success, arguing for a more sophisticated analysis of the upcoming Major League Baseball campaign.
The Indians were the surprise team in the American League Central Division a year ago, not only winning on the field, but at the wagering windows, as well.
The Angels may have coasted to a comfortable victory in the AL West but astute
MLB betting fans also were able to find winning plays for the other three teams
in the division last year.
Proving that MLB betting is a difficult pursuit for even the most studious sports bettor, the Nationals, who finished a distant fourth in the NL East, were a lot more reliable a bet that the heralded Mets, who were in the division hunt until the final weekend of the season, last year.
The Cubs won last year's National League Central title (and are favored to do
so again in 2008) but savvy baseball betting fans were more than able to find
wagering nuggets throughout the division by either betting on or against
certain teams in certain situations.
With four teams over .500 and three teams involved in the post-season (the
Rockies beat the Padres in a one-game playoff for the wild card), the National
League West was a high-profile division last season, not just for baseball fans
but for fans of MLB betting.
The NASCAR Sprint Cup series puts pedals to the metal later this month but sports betting enthusiasts need not wait a minute longer to jump start their wagering engines.
While most of us have bid farewell to 2007, it's not too late for one final look back at the athletes, administrators and journalists who have given the arena of sports and sports betting such fabulous lip service over the past 12 months
With over half the NBA regular season complete, this would be both a convenient and appropriate time for NBA betting fans to take a detailed look back at the more than 600 games that have been played
The teams had barely left bone-chilling Lambeau Field in Green Bay when the word arrived from up high (actually, the second floor of a building in Las Vegas)
It was the colorfully named "Deep Throat" who, cloaked in a dark and desolate parking garage in the motion picture, "All the President's Men," admonished Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward to "follow the money" in the Watergate investigation.
Shouldn't anyone eyeing a serious sports bet or three on the NFL Playoffs have their TV remote set to the Weather Channel? Don't games where there is snow, rain and/or wind favor the underdog?
Sports betting, particularly football betting, has become significantly more sophisticated over the past decade with players mining years of research in an effort to gain an edge on sports books.
Sports betting, particularly football betting, has become significantly more sophisticated over the past decade with players mining years of research in an effort to gain an edge on sports books.
A 23-59-3 pointspread record outside their league last season tells college basketball betting followers all they need to know about the prowess of the Ohio Valley Conference teams.
The four MAAC teams that won 18 or more games straight up also had winning records against the spread last season, a trend college basketball betting enthusiasts will be monitoring this year.
The conference's only 20-game winner also was the only reliable pointspread play, an emerging trend that college basketball betting aficionados will be watching this season.
With a non-conference record of 41-51-1 ATS, college basketball betting followers of the Sun Belt Conference had to be careful picking their wagering spots last season.
All five teams that had a winning straight up won/lost record also were successful against the spread last season, something college basketball betting followers will be eyeing this year.
Conference bully Davidson also had the best pointspread record last year, something students of college basketball betting will be watching this season.
The three teams that won 20 or more games, Butler, Wright State and Illinois-Chicago, also had the best pointspread records a year ago, a trend college basketball betting enthusiasts surely will be watching this season.
Six of the eight teams had losing pointspread records outside the conference, an indication to college basketball betting technicians to tread lightly with this group.
Sports betting, particularly football betting, has become significantly more sophisticated over the past decade with players mining years of research in an effort to gain an edge on sports books.
The Big 12 played just .500 ball ATS outside the conference last year, leaving students of basketball betting to ponder if the league will be as good as advertised this season.
The Pac-10 could be the nation's strongest hoop loop this year, hardly a surprise to college basketball betting fans who backed the league's teams to the tune of a 63-48-3 ATS record versus non-conference foes.
Back-to-back titles by Florida and a 77-63-2 out-of-conference ATS record have alerted every college basketball betting aficionado to the power of the SEC.
Sports betting, particularly football betting, has become significantly more sophisticated over the past decade with players mining years of research in an effort to gain an edge on sports books.
Sports betting, particularly football betting, has become significantly more sophisticated over the past decade with players mining years of research in an effort to gain an edge on sports books.
Of the eight teams in the Sun Belt conference, only two, Troy and Middle Tennessee, had winning records last year and just one, Troy, is above .500 for the past seven seasons.
Western Michigan and Toledo look solid but overall the MAC appears mediocre at best with a quartet of teams (Miami, Temple, Buffalo and Eastern Michigan) having won two or fewer games last season.
Southern Mississippi and Houston, the winners of the respective East and West divisions of CUSA last season, again will be the teams to beat this year.
For the second year in a row, there could be another undefeated BCS bound team from the WAC, only this season it's more likely to be Hawaii than Boise State.
The MWC is a league with three strong teams and six weak ones with BYU, TCU and Utah clearly in position to dominate. The Cougars get the nod because they get to play both the Horned Frogs and Utes at home this year.
Either West Virginia or Louisville - but not both - could have a chance to play for the national championship. The teams meet before a Thursday night national television audience in Morgantown, Nov. 8. Notre Dame will be the best of the three independents, though Navy may have more victories this season.
Oklahoma and Texas meet in the Red River Shootout in the Cotton Bowl on Oct. 6 in a contest that could decide one of the representatives in the BCS title tilt.
USC will begin the year as the top team in the nation, a position the Trojans will have a good chance of defending, if they can negotiate road trips to Oregon and California.
With HBO as an unwitting accomplice, betting on boxing should move to the top of the sportsbook betting menu around the globe over the first three Saturdays in July.
The Mets came within a game of the World Series and hope that better health, especially in the pitching staff, and a good mix of emerging young players and veteran performers, will get them to the October Classic this year.
Chicago's fall from World Series champion to also-ran can be traced to a pitching staff that yielded exactly one more run per game (3.61 to 4.61) than in 2005.
The Yankees scored the most runs in baseball last year and a lineup that features Johnny Damon, Derek Jeter, Bobby Abreu, Alex Rodriguez, Hidecki Matsui, Jason Giambi, Jorge Posada and Robinson Cano figures to be every bit as potent this season.
While betting totals for the Feb. 25 Academy Awards won't approach what was wagered on Super Bowl XLI earlier in the month, with a worldwide television audience estimated at more than two billion people, there's plenty of incentive - including cultivating a slew of new bettors - for sportsbooks to post prices on many of the top categories.
While the end of one year and the start of another always bring about a measure of self - examination for the gambler, it should be comforting to know that over the eons, other people, some of great fame, repute and disrepute, have pondered the complexities of sports betting, gambling and luck, as well...
NBA betting is a lot like baseball betting; a player needs discipline and stamina to deal with the daily drain of a long and debilitating six-month season.
The 23rd edition of the Breeders' Cup - renamed the Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred Championships five years ago to give it a sense of global importance - comes to Churchill Downs (and sportsbooks everywhere), Nov. 4 so even if you're not one who regularly plays the ponies, this is the time to make horse betting your passion.
Astute bookmakers - most other types soon are wearing paper hats at fast food joints - realize that the greater the number of wagering choices in an NFL betting equation, the easier it is for them to hide the vigorish.
Friday the 13th looms large in the sports betting world, forcing bet makers and bet takers alike to superstitiously cross their fingers even though there's no credible evidence that the second Friday of this month will carry more risk than any other day.
Chicago Bears (11-5 SU, 9-5-2 ATS, 4-11-1 O/U): The Bears gave up the fewest points in the NFL last year and dominated their NFC North rivals by a wide margin, trends which should continue in 2006.
Here are thumbnail sketches of the NC East and NFC West teams. Numbers in parentheses indicate last year's straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS) and over/under (O/U) records...
The Greek Sportsbook released the opening betting lines for the first week of college football. As most online sports bettors rejoice at the prospects of the upcoming season, The Greek continues previewing the BCS conferences.
AFC North: PITTSBURGH STEELERS (11-5 SU, 9-7 ATS, 8-6-2 O/U): The Steelers lost several key players, including Antwaan Randle El, from last year's Super Bowl winning team but the biggest loss is the one that didn't happen, to QB Ben Roethlisberger, who seems to have recovered from a motorcycle accident.
The Greek Sportsbook recently released future book odds for baseball's postseason awards. Online sports bettors will find some intriguing opportunities in the Cy Young, Most Valuable Player and Rookie of the Year awards.
The Greek Sportsbook is currently offering college football game-day lines, as well as odds on the conference champions, season 'over/under' win totals and the winner of the Heisman trophy.
Some people are critical about the quality of the NFL exhibition season. However, for the sharp bettor, there can be an abundance of good opportunities.
Fed an August diet of preseason games where motivation was questionable and lines and betting limits reflected a queasiness of confidence, you can't blame gridiron gamblers or the bet takers at The Greek Sportsbook if they're starved for some real NFL betting when the regular season starts this month.
The dog days of summer are here but that doesn't mean that baseball bettors, panting from the daily drudgery of the sport, have to roll over and play dead.
Handicapping Mistake #5: There are several tried and true rules of the game, such as, "Never bet a horse to do something he hasn't done before," "Never bet a 3-year-old against older horses in the spring," "Never bet fillies against colts," "Never bet maidens versus winners," and "Never bet the highest weighted horse on a muddy track," which always should be followed.
Handicapping Mistake #4: Public prognosticators can help you win. Those who can, do. Those who can't, make selections in newspapers or via a telephone service, hold seminars or write books.
The Heisman Trophy is awarded in early December, but its outcome can be wagered on now. The Greek was the first online sportsbook to release lines on the Heisman.
Handicapping Mistake #3: Class will tell: "Years ago, before there were reliable speed figures and when there were fewer horses and fewer racetracks, class might have meant something. Today, there's no such thing as class," said the professional horse player.
Handicapping Mistake #2: Never let the tote board influence your wagering decisions: "You couldn't possibly make a dumber statement," one of Nevada's best professional horse bettors who asked that his name not be used.
The planet's biggest and most widely bet sporting event, the World Cup of Soccer, kicks off in Germany June 9 and it's no surprise that the globe's grandest and most innovative bet taker, The Greek Sports Book, already has a series of prices posted for the 32-nation extravaganza that makes America's Super Bowl look like a provincial backyard game of touch football.
Last time out, The Greek Sportsbook examined the four handicapping pillars - speed, pace, track bias and value - on which a foundation of successful horse race betting is based.
Rome wasn't built in a day. Neither, for that matter, was Athens so if you're planning to bet on horses with The Greek Sportsbook, it would be wise to analyze the four essential pillars on which race handicapping is constructed...
With the Greek Sportsbook offering a myriad of wagering options on thousands of games each season, sophisticated gamblers understand that in order to be successful betting online on Major League Baseball, a player needs to concentrate on eight core factors...
The Kentucky Derby won't be run until the first Saturday in May but The Greek Sportsbook already has prices posted and is accepting wagers on the 132nd Run for the Roses at Churchill Downs.
With The Greek Sportsbook offering a money line, runs line and total on every Major League Baseball game, that's 2,430 regular season baseball games, you wouldn't think there'd be any need to expand the sports betting menu beyond those appetizers.
The 2005/06 NFL season has come and gone and the 2006/07 campaign still is a couple of months away but before the handicapping buzzards pick the carcass clean, it's time to wash up, put on our scrubs, make like Kay Scarpetta or Temperence Brennan (or any other medical examiner on your fiction reading list) and perform a pointspread postmortem.
Shouldn't sportswriters, journalists and commentators know something about odds and oddsmaking before they issue proclamations and offer opinions on gambling?
Defending champion Tiger Woods opened as a strong +175 favorite (bet $100 to win $175) to win his fifth Masters Tournament at the Augusta National Golf Club, April 6-9, but if that price is a little too short for your wagering taste, The Greek Sports Book is offering double-digit odds (and more) on every other golfer in the elite field.
The shout of "play ball" has yet to arrive at Major League Baseball Stadiums but it's not too early to place a future book wager or three on the upcoming season, which begins April 2.
Whoever coined the phrase, "March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb" couldn't have been a fan of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament, which roars into arenas, living rooms, wagering outlets and onto computer screens this month.
Formula One racing celebrates its centennial this year, a season that promises to be among the most challenging - but potentially rewarding - for bettors in the 100-year history of the sport.
If you can't wait for the "March Madness" that is the 2006 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament then try out the "February Frenzy" that is the Match Play Golf Championship in Carlsbad, California, this week.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. is favored to win the battle but Tony Stewart is favored to win the war when the NASCAR Nextel Cup season roars out of the garage with the Daytona 500 in Daytona Beach, Florida, Sunday.
It may be the calendar's shortest month but with the Super Bowl, the Winter Olympic Games and the start of the NASCAR Nextel Cup season all packed within its 28 days, February figures to be long on both wagering options and activity.
Hardwood hysteria continues to build on college campuses this month, presenting the bettor with a set of challenges and considerations that have a limited application to the NBA.
Astute bookmakers - most other types soon are wearing paper hats at fast food joints - realize that the greater the number of wagering choices in a betting equation, the more vigorish that can get passed along to the gambler.
