Norman Freedman is 83 but vividly recalled details of a bad beat he suffered 40 years ago, when Earl “The Pearl” Monroe mysteriously turned his apparent $2,000 win into a $100 loss.
Basketball
Most avid sports bettors and poker players can write a book on bad beats. It would be a tragicomedy about the most agonizing losses of their gambling lives that double as miracle wins for other bettors.
As owner of the WNBA’s Las Vegas Aces, MGM Resorts won’t accept any wagers on their games or futures next season, which starts in May.
The Westgate sports book has Tiger Woods at 20-1 to win the Masters and 5-1 to win any major in 2018.
The Browns have got nothing on the Dolphins when it comes to dealing bettors a bad beat.
The Boston Celtics, who defeated the defending champion Golden State Warriors 92-88 on Thursday, have the league’s best record against the spread at 13-2-1. The Philadelphia 76ers are second with an 11-3 ATS mark.
An unidentified bettor at CG Technology sports book used his phone app to make one $220,000 wager on the Rams at minus-12½ points over the Texans and another $220,000 bet at minus-13.
Cleveland moved from a 1-2 favorite to win the NBA’s Eastern Conference to a 1-3 favorite after Celtics forward Gordon Hayward’s gruesome injury.
The 1994 Arizona State point-shaving scandal was one of several uncovered over the years with the help of Las Vegas bookmakers, who are on the same side as the NCAA and major pro sports leagues when it comes to wanting to protect the integrity of the games.
Downtown Las Vegas property Golden Nugget will continue to accept NBA futures wagers until sale of the Houston Rockets to owner Tilman Fertitta is completed.
The Westgate sports book posted their NBA 2017-18 season win totals and the Boston Celtics opened with the second-highest total (56.5) behind the defending champion Golden State Warriors (67.5).
Before the trade was reported Tuesday by ESPN, the odds on Cleveland to win the title were 4-1 and Boston was 10-1. After the trade, the odds stayed the same.
The Warriors are 5-11 favorites ($11 to win $5) to repeat as NBA champions, and the Cavaliers are the 7-2 second choice. The Celtics (10-1) have surpassed the Spurs (12-1) as the third choice at the Westgate sports book.
The Lakers and Suns are the 6-1 co-favorites to win the Las Vegas NBA Summer League championship game on July 17, and the Kings are the 13-2 third choice.
The odds are 9-1 that rookie point guard Lonzo Ball will help lead the Los Angeles Lakers to their first playoff appearance in five years.
