bet on Unders

High-Tech Brings High Stakes for Super Bowl XLIWith an estimated $7 billion wagered on the Big Game, websites vie for action with increasingly outlandish proposition wagers—or prop bets—that make up nearly 50 percent of the total wagers because they’re accessible to those who don’t exactly sweat the stat sheetsAn awful lot of people are going to be timing the national anthem Sunday. It’s not just OCD: Hundreds of thousands of dollars are riding on Billy Joel’s cadence. The Super Bowl isn’t just the most watched sports event—it’s also the most bet on. More than 60 million people bet on last year’s game, placing over $6 billion of wagers. This year, as the high-tech formulas of online betting sites eclipse the old dry-erase board of the office pool, that number is expected to grow to $7 billion, making Super Bowl XLI the most lucrative hour of sports history. If you’re lucky.
The NFL’s title tilt has become the crown jewel in the $200 billion sports gambling universe. While tourism officials in Miami, this year’s host city, expect 125,000 out-of-towners this weekend, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority expects more than 275,000—most of them looking to get rich quick. And that puts loads of pressure on the institutions trying to stop them.
Whether at Las Vegas casinos or online sportsbooks, establishments contacted by PM all set their lines by hand—with preparation beginning the moment the Indianapolis Colts and Chicago bears punched tickets to Miami. Chuck Esposito, the assistant vice president of the Race and Sport Book at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas—and the man who works with consultants to set its lines—starts by feeding endless stats to computers. Software crunches the numbers, and then he adjusts those readouts based on gut reaction—the key component, he says, because fantasy football players today have access to virtually the same information Esposito does. So there’s a method to the madness. But there’s still plenty of madness at places like Bodog.com.
“To determine Peyton Manning’s correct over/under for passing yards [which the site lists as 273.5], we consider his average passing yards for the current regular season, historical playoff performances and the defense’s rating against the pass—among other things,” said Calvin Ayre, founder of Bodog, a hugely popular online gambling site based in Antigua. “If we feel he’s due for a big game, we’ll move the total higher. Of course, when it comes to instinct, there is bound to be some disagreement. It’s amazing how much of an argument five yards higher or lower can cause.”
Internet betting was made illegal in the United States last October, but as many as 23 million Americans placed a bet online last year, and laws have done little to slow the tide. Vegas insiders expect about $100 million in action this year in Nevada, the only state where sports gambling is legal. Offshore sports books, meanwhile, have raked in nearly a half-billion each of the past two years.
With so much wagered on the game, websites vie for action with increasingly outlandish proposition wagers—or prop bets—that make up nearly 50 percent of the total wagers because they’re accessible to those who don’t exactly sweat the stat sheets. Bodog has set the over/under, for instance, on Billy Joel’s performance of the national anthem at 1 min., 42 sec. from the moment he says the word, “Oh.” (As of Thursday evening, the over is +120, the under -160.)
“We timed Billy Joel’s past performance singing ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ at the World Series,” Ayre said. “He is the only singer to have the privilege of being a repeat national anthem singer at the Super Bowl. You have to take into account the musical accompaniment and what liberties will be taken while singing, such as dramatic pauses and notes being stretched out. Last year, Beyonce Knowles took an eternal 2 min., 15 sec.”
Joel’s a capella rendition from the 2000 World Series—including nearly five seconds on the word, “free”—clocked it at 1:36.
At Bodog, international members can vote on who’ll win the coin toss. But that’s hardly creative enough, because Ayre described whacky prop bets as “our version of the Super Bowl commercial.” Members can wager on who’ll score more points Sunday: The Colts, or LeBron James—the NBA star whose Cleveland Cavaliers host the Detroit Pistons. Will Colts QB Manning throw for more yards than former San Francisco 49ers great Joe Montana did in Super Bowl XVI (157 yards)? Who will have more on Feb. 4: touchdown passes by Bears quarterback Rex Grossman, or Grammy wins by John Mayer?
“Nearly everyone that watches the Super Bowl has some type of action on the game, whether making friendly wagers with friends, buying squares at the local bar or placing bets with a licensed sportsbook,” said Simon Noble of PinnacleSports.com, an online betting site that doesn’t cater to American customers, but has members in more than 100 other countries. Pinnacle members can bet on whether there will be a score in the first 6:27 of the game, and on which team will make the first coach’s challenge. “The Super Bowl offers more betting opportunities than any other single game in the world,” Noble says.
Having Chicago back in the Super Bowl seems only appropriate, because Sunday’s game marks the 20th anniversary of the novelty wager that started it all. In 1986, the last time Chicago played for the championship, Caesars gave 20-1 odds against behemoth Bears defensive lineman William “The Refrigerator” Perry rushing for a touchdown. Then-coach Mike Ditka had used the Fridge for two short-yardage scores during the season, but had said he wouldn’t play that game in the Big Game. He changed his mind in the fourth quarter—and Caesars got walloped.
“The place just erupted,” said Esposito. “There were long lines at the payout windows, and long faces on our side of the counter. But it caused us to be more outlandish and give the public what they want. The prop bets really are the game within the game.” An awful lot of people are going to be timing the national anthem Sunday. It’s not just OCD: Hundreds of thousands of dollars are riding on Billy Joel’s cadence. The Super Bowl isn’t just the most watched sports event—it’s also the most bet on. More than 60 million people bet on last year’s game, placing over $6 billion of wagers. This year, as the high-tech formulas of online betting sites eclipse the old dry-erase board of the office pool, that number is expected to grow to $7 billion, making Super Bowl XLI the most lucrative hour of sports history. If you’re lucky.
The NFL’s title tilt has become the crown jewel in the $200 billion sports gambling universe. While tourism officials in Miami, this year’s host city, expect 125,000 out-of-towners this weekend, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority expects more than 275,000—most of them looking to get rich quick. And that puts loads of pressure on the institutions trying to stop them.
Whether at Las Vegas casinos or online sportsbooks, establishments contacted by PM all set their lines by hand—with preparation beginning the moment the Indianapolis Colts and Chicago bears punched tickets to Miami. Chuck Esposito, the assistant vice president of the Race and Sport Book at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas—and the man who works with consultants to set its lines—starts by feeding endless stats to computers. Software crunches the numbers, and then he adjusts those readouts based on gut reaction—the key component, he says, because fantasy football players today have access to virtually the same information Esposito does. So there’s a method to the madness. But there’s still plenty of madness at places like Bodog.com.
“To determine Peyton Manning’s correct over/under for passing yards [which the site lists as 273.5], we consider his average passing yards for the current regular season, historical playoff performances and the defense’s rating against the pass—among other things,” said Calvin Ayre, founder of Bodog, a hugely popular online gambling site based in Antigua. “If we feel he’s due for a big game, we’ll move the total higher. Of course, when it comes to instinct, there is bound to be some disagreement. It’s amazing how much of an argument five yards higher or lower can cause.”
Internet betting was made illegal in the United States last October, but as many as 23 million Americans placed a bet online last year, and laws have done little to slow the tide. Vegas insiders expect about $100 million in action this year in Nevada, the only state where sports gambling is legal. Offshore sports books, meanwhile, have raked in nearly a half-billion each of the past two years.
With so much wagered on the game, websites vie for action with increasingly outlandish proposition wagers—or prop bets—that make up nearly 50 percent of the total wagers because they’re accessible to those who don’t exactly sweat the stat sheets. Bodog has set the over/under, for instance, on Billy Joel’s performance of the national anthem at 1 min., 42 sec. from the moment he says the word, “Oh.” (As of Thursday evening, the over is +120, the under -160.)
“We timed Billy Joel’s past performance singing ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ at the World Series,” Ayre said. “He is the only singer to have the privilege of being a repeat national anthem singer at the Super Bowl. You have to take into account the musical accompaniment and what liberties will be taken while singing, such as dramatic pauses and notes being stretched out. Last year, Beyonce Knowles took an eternal 2 min., 15 sec.”
Joel’s a capella rendition from the 2000 World Series—including nearly five seconds on the word, “free”—clocked it at 1:36.
At Bodog, international members can vote on who’ll win the coin toss. But that’s hardly creative enough, because Ayre described whacky prop bets as “our version of the Super Bowl commercial.” Members can wager on who’ll score more points Sunday: The Colts, or LeBron James—the NBA star whose Cleveland Cavaliers host the Detroit Pistons. Will Colts QB Manning throw for more yards than former San Francisco 49ers great Joe Montana did in Super Bowl XVI (157 yards)? Who will have more on Feb. 4: touchdown passes by Bears quarterback Rex Grossman, or Grammy wins by John Mayer?
“Nearly everyone that watches the Super Bowl has some type of action on the game, whether making friendly wagers with friends, buying squares at the local bar or placing bets with a licensed sportsbook,” said Simon Noble of PinnacleSports.com, an online betting site that doesn’t cater to American customers, but has members in more than 100 other countries. Pinnacle members can bet on whether there will be a score in the first 6:27 of the game, and on which team will make the first coach’s challenge. “The Super Bowl offers more betting opportunities than any other single game in the world,” Noble says.
Having Chicago back in the Super Bowl seems only appropriate, because Sunday’s game marks the 20th anniversary of the novelty wager that started it all. In 1986, the last time Chicago played for the championship, Caesars gave 20-1 odds against behemoth Bears defensive lineman William “The Refrigerator” Perry rushing for a touchdown. Then-coach Mike Ditka had used the Fridge for two short-yardage scores during the season, but had said he wouldn’t play that game in the Big Game. He changed his mind in the fourth quarter—and Caesars got walloped.
“The place just erupted,” said Esposito. “There were long lines at the payout windows, and long faces on our side of the counter. But it caused us to be more outlandish and give the public what they want. The prop bets really are the game within the game.” Spread Betting at PWI An introduction to Spread BettingWelcome to the world of spread betting. The Financial Spread Betting Course will introduce you to the ins-and-outs of this form of trading. In fact, by the end of the course, you should be set-up and ready to start spread betting. Over the next 8 lessons you'll learn how to open a spread betting account, and how to use stop losses to minimise losses. The course also explains how to use world indices to make big money. And if you're having trouble choosing the right trade? Well, you'll learn how fundamental and technical analysis can help you spot that winning trade - by both going long and going short. At the end of the course, you will also receive a full glossary of spread betting terms, something that no spread better can do without. Well, without further a due, let's get started. Spread betting is creating a revolution in the financial markets by allowing everyone access to a new world of opportunity. There are no barriers to entry with spread betting, apart from your level of enthusiasm. Even money should not be a problem and you do not need to have City experience. For once it is not an area where those in the City get to gain at the expense of all those who do not belong to their elitist club. Indeed, in many ways, with spread betting, private investors hold all the aces. And soon, you'll hold all the aces too.
What spread betting is - and isn'tThe type of betting you are probably most familiar with is rather different from financial spread betting. In normal betting, you are taking a view on a horse race or a football game and are looking for a particular result. But in financial spread betting, the bet that you are making is not this fixed result, a single moment in time. You don't 'bet' that BP shares will hit 439p on 28 January, for example. Instead, you place a bet on whether you think a share or a market will be higher or lower in a few months than it is today.
Spread betting should be regarded simply as a way of backing your view on where the financial markets are going. Like anything else, the more you get it right the more money you make. But it is not a game. If you are wrong you will lose real money. How spread betting has revolutionised the market Spread betting was first offered by Stuart Wheeler in 1974 when IG Index opened its first market on the gold price. As with share futures, clients were able to bet on where they saw the gold price going in the future. This product took off rapidly and soon spread to the financial world. In 1985, IG Index offered its first financial spread bet on the FTSE 100 index. The rest, as they say, is history. And now you too can use spread betting to maximise your gains. Six advantages of spread betting There are six main advantages to spread betting:
1. Spread betting profits are tax freeThe major advantage of spread betting is that all profits are free of capital gains tax (CGT). It is difficult enough right now to make money on the markets, without the Inland Revenue taking away a large proportion of the gains.
2. You can minimise risk by restricting your lossesWith spread betting, you can guarantee your 'stop loss', or the point at which you exit your trade. A conventional share purchase also allows you to set a stop loss, but this is not guaranteed. Therefore, when your share moves a great deal overnight, your broker may not be able to get you out the next morning at the stop-loss price you requested. But spread betting is different. Even if the shares move a great deal, you'll still be taken out of the bet at the guaranteed stop-loss price you asked for - the spread betting company has to swallow the extra cost itself. 3. Use bear markets to your advantage by going short 'Going short' means reversing the normal process of buying low and selling high. When you go short you first sell high and then buy low at a later date. You do this by borrowing shares from a broker in order to sell them. When you buy the shares, you're actually merely giving back the shares you borrowed. The further a market falls, the lower your buying price and the more profit you'll make.
Going short of a market or share is something that only insiders or the rich were able to do until recently. In a bear market, going short is one of the few ways of making money and spread betting is the easiest and most efficient way of doing this. Here's an example on how to profit from going short: You believe that AstraZeneca is overvalued.
* The spread betting company quotes you 1864 - 1872.
* You 'sell' £30 a point at 1864.The market then slumps, dragging AstraZeneca with it.
* The company is now quoting AstraZeneca at 1844 - 1852.
* You decide to close your position at 1852. Your profit is (1864-1852) x £30 = £360, free of capital gains tax.
3. You can start small with spread betting - before hitting the big-timeWith spread betting you can choose exactly what the size of the bet is going to be. The range is from 1p 'a point' with financial spreads to hundreds of pounds per point. This means that you cannot only trade as small or as large as you like, you can enter and exit positions in stages.

4. You can lock in some profits, but keep the bet openUnlike betting on a horse, with spread betting you are not locked in until the result is known. You can close a bet at any time, even just a few seconds later. And you can also close off part of the bet to lock in some profit, but keep the remainder of the bet open in order to try to make more money.
5. Use it to hedge your portfolioHedging has only been available to large institutions, banks and wealthy individuals until very recently. As an example, if you think the property rise has been unsustainable, you can hedge against the value of house prices going down by spread betting on the property market.Small investors can now compete on the same level as the large financial players, giving the equity market a new dimension. This aspect of spread betting is still a point that is under-emphasised in the mainstream financial media. In some ways this is hardly surprising, because if you gain knowledge of even the most basic aspects of spread betting you should be able to manage your own financial fate at least as well as the so-called professionals.