Why so serious? SuperBook VP tries ‘to have some fun’ in new role

John Murray was promoted from Westgate SuperBook director to vice president of race and sports in November, when longtime SuperBook boss Jay Kornegay retired.

Murray, a Virginia native who moved to Las Vegas after graduating from West Virginia University, worked his way up from a ticket writer at the SuperBook to the youngest sportsbook vice president in Nevada at age 42.

He recently sat down with the Review-Journal to discuss a wide range of topics (Note: Answers have been edited for clarity and length).

RJ: What was your introduction to gambling?

Murray: As early as third grade, I ran a pool for the boys in my class on the NFL. We didn’t know about the point spread. But most of the boys in my class would give me a dollar on Fridays and you’d have to pick the winner of every NFL game. And I’d give the money to whoever picked the most winners. When I was in college, I actually funded my move to Las Vegas when me and my roommate bet (Philadelphia Phillies slugger) Ryan Howard to lead the major leagues in home runs at 40-1 in 2006. I took that money and I used that to move here in 2007. I was always really interested in gambling and I thought Las Vegas would be a fun place to live.

RJ: What was your first job here?

Murray: I was writing tickets here at what was then called the Las Vegas Hilton. Jay Kornegay hired me in 2007. And I was the closing ticket writer here that whole season, so I’d be here until 2 or 3 in the morning. Totally different business back then. Before mobile accounts. Every bet’s at the counter. And this place was just packed every single night. One of the things I found so strange was I had learned in high school and college that parlaying seven- and eight-teamers probably wasn’t your way to go. And I get out here and I start writing tickets here and every bet I write is an eight-team parlay. And I’m like, “What are these guys doing?”

RJ: What were the biggest keys to your quick climb up the corporate ladder?

Murray: The advice I like to give to some of the younger guys that I work with now is to try to learn every aspect of the business. Dealing with the media is something that probably helped propel my career. More people knew who I was because I was doing so many media spots. And then I started getting offered jobs by other casinos in Nevada and by casinos outside of Nevada when (the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act) got repealed (in 2018).

RJ: Why did you stay at the SuperBook?

Murray: I was very comfortable working with Jay, very comfortable working with the team here. And the Westgate’s always been very good to me. They’ve always put us in position to be successful. Obviously, sports betting is getting a lot more competitive than it was 10 or 15 years ago. But they continue to put an emphasis on sports betting, and some of the stuff we have planned here for the next 12 to 18 months I think is going to be pretty significant.

RJ: Jay Kornegay was one of the most influential figures in the industry for the past four decades. How much of an influence has he had on your career?

Murray: Big time. I worked very directly with Jay since 2018 when I became director. He and I worked together every day for about six years, so it’s been a real adjustment not having him around. I still talk to him pretty regularly just to seek him out for advice on things. I learned a lot from Jay. He was really the person that showed me it’s good to branch out and see what the other departments go through and to learn every aspect of this business.

RJ: You’ve added SuperContest Survivor and SuperContest College this season. What are your expectations for those contests and can you discuss any other plans?

Murray: The Survivor contest at Circa has been so successful, and we want to try to do one for a $5,000 buy-in and I think it’s going to be very popular. People love that format. The reception to the college contest has been just overwhelmingly positive. Our main focus is catching up to some of the other books in terms of the offerings they have on their mobile app. Everything is shifting to the mobile app.

RJ: Westgate has long billed itself as the world’s largest race and sportsbook. Circa now bills itself as the world’s largest sportsbook. Which one is bigger and is there a rivalry between the books?

Murray: Well, square footage we’re bigger. But their book is taller. I like (Circa owner) Derek Stevens a lot. I think it’s a pretty friendly rivalry.

RJ: The Westgate began offering reduced juice on football and basketball games last year. Has that promotion proved successful and will you continue to offer it?

Murray: Whether you’re betting $50 or $10,000, if you can make your bet at -105 instead of -110, you should. We’re going to do that again on the NFL this year. It absolutely drives business and drives handle this way, so we’ve got no plans to stop that.

RJ: The SuperBook ceased operations in eight states last summer. What is your forecast for the sports betting landscape locally and nationally?

Murray: I hope nationally that a few of these operators can hang on. I hope it doesn’t get to a point where there’s only one or two books. I think that would be bad for everybody involved. In Nevada, the landscape’s a little bit different. Your big whales are mostly going to gravitate to the Strip casinos. So you’ve got to do something, if you’re a property like the Westgate, to stand out. We’ve got a lot of ideas that we’re going to introduce in the next 12 to 18 months and remind people why the SuperBook became the big brand that it became.

RJ: You have a sports betting podcast with handicapper Kelly Stewart. What can people expect when they watch the “Kelly and Murray” show?

Murray: We try to obviously give some humor. There are a lot of sports betting shows. I think most people in sports betting take themselves extremely seriously. And I hope that I am not one of those people. I try to have some fun with Kelly. Try to give some information out there. But it’s important to understand even if I say the sharp guys are on the Eagles, it doesn’t necessarily mean the Eagles are going to win. It’s not that simple.

RJ: That said, you won the Leroy’s college football contest here in 2009 and picked 10 straight weekly NFL winners on NESN in 2023. Do you have a best bet on the NFL?

Murray: I’ve seen some sharp accounts betting Miami under (eight) wins. That made sense to me because I think New England’s going to be much better. The Jets should be better without the Aaron Rodgers distraction. And I think (Bills quarterback Josh) Allen’s the best player in the league. I like fading the Dolphins. The Colts +1 is my best bet against Miami in Week 1. It’s more of a fade of Miami, and I like that Colts coach (Shane Steichen) a lot, too.

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com. Follow @tdewey33 on X.