Slim Pickings In Vegas

I just got back from my annual October visit to Sin City where and when I place my NFL and NHL Future wagers and I must say I found very slim pickings. The books are getting much better at keeping their pencils sharp when it comes to betting anything involving the NFL. I put 200 units on the Vikings and another 100 units on the Cowboys to win the Super Bowl next February. I got Minnesota at 7/1 odds and Dallas at 12/1. On the AFC side I like the Patriots but their odds of 100/225 are well below my 5/1 threshold. When the playoffs begin next January I am fairly sure those same odds or close to it will be available on Brady and company. Therefore I cut my NFL bankroll in half and refused to wager on teams that my numbers say are not real Super Bowl candidates.

In the NHL I bought action on four teams:

• Tampa Bay 40 units at 8/1
• Florida 20 units at 20/1
• Los Angeles Kings 20 units at 16/1
• Nashville 20 units at 18/1

I received a few unhappy emails about my 600 unit loss on MLB this season after the Orioles, Rangers and Nationals all bowed out of the playoffs with hardly a whimper. I can only answer by listing my last 5 year results:

• 2012 Lost 650 units
• 2013 Won 3,705 units
• 2014 Lost 780 units
• 2015 Won 1,450 units
• 2016 Lost 600 units

That’s a net profit of 3,125 units. Enough said. You can’t win every year but if you stick to my guidelines of not betting a favorite or a repeater and insisting on getting at least 5/1 odds you will have a decent chance of making money.

In closing I put 100 units on the Washington Huskies at 7/1 odds to win the National Championship. Ordinarily I would not wager on a team this far into the season but they have the kind of QB that can challenge the 2/1 Crimson Tide favorites. They along with Clemson who we grabbed at 9/1 back in July are the two main threats to Alabama and Ohio State.  Thanks for logging on.