WHAT YOU SAVE IS WHAT YOU EARN
Joe Gavazzi, Private Players of Pittsburgh
It was just 15 years ago that local Bookmakers across America were screaming “Foul”, threatening to change straight bets to 15 cents juice, raise the teaser odds, and reduce parlay payouts. Sharp handicappers had edged ahead of the line makers, and bookies were exposing themselves to viable “middles” by moving their lines too far, too fast. It left the bookies with the “squares” to balance their books and maintain an ever shrinking profit margin. How quickly life can charge!
Keyed by the advent of the Internet, dissemination of information changed dramatically. Companies like Don Best transmitted line moves based on smart money instantaneously. The race was on between the sharps and the books to “beat the move” then “prevent the buyback.” Eventually the playing field leveled when anyone with a computer received the information simultaneously. Today only highly respected originators get a chance to middle.
Offshore sports books proliferated setting up corporate headquarters on Caribbean islands, believing they had outdistanced themselves from U.S. law. Using the advertising power of America’s sports services these “offshore outs” quickly built a huge client base. In several short years they were able to go fully automated by transforming any customer who preferred to the option of internet wagering. The U.S. government, with an incredibly broad interpretation of the 1962 Wire Act, claimed the American citizens working for these offshore corporations were violating the law by accepting wagers across state lines! That cat and mouse game continues today with various moves and countermoves.
Where does this leave us as we enter the upcoming 2008 Football season? As most always it’s a good news, bad news scenario. First the bad…. Lines have become sharper as the line maker has used the same type of information that was only being used by sharp handicappers in the 80’s and early 90’s. And the existence of middles has virtually dried up with lines moving simultaneously. On the bright side, competition among sport books has forced many of them to offer 5 cents juice on all football and basketball sides and totals. That is HUGE because (and I’ll save you from the boredom of the math) a $100 better who averages only 3 bets/day, (1000 plays per year) and wins 52% of his bets is transforming himself from a LOSER (-$80) to a WINNER (+$160). Use your own scenario to plug in your personal numbers to find out how much you’ll save. And remember….WHAT YOU SAVE IS WHAT YOU EARN!
Along with the above revelation, please consider this caveat. Simply because you are saving money with 5 cent juice it does not excuse you from following the guidelines that have helped to make you a winner. For example, if you don’t like a play well enough to bet it straight up, do you really want to bet a teaser. If you truly don’t think your team has a 60% chance to win, why bet it in a parlay. And finally, if you don’t think shopping for every ½ point is worthwhile, remember how you felt the last time you had a ½ point loser! Just some food for thought as you enter the upcoming season.
Joe Gavazzi, and his 30 years of experience as a professional handicapper, can be reached at 1-800-678-7529 or via his website www.thegreengorilla.com
