Rpckets Basketball Betting News

<< Haynesworth MRI reveals no structural damage
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - An MRI exam on Washington Redskins defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth's ailing knee reportedly showed no structural damage. The Washington Post, which cites sources familiar with the situ

<< Sharks re-sign Joslin, Zalewski
San Jose, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Jose Sharks have re-signed defenseman Derek Joslin and forward Steven Zalewski to one-year contracts. The 23-year-old Joslin recorded his fist NHL points (three assists) in 24 games last year fo

<< West Ham signs New Zealand WC hero Reid
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - West Ham signed New Zealand international defender Winston Reid to a three-year contract from Danish side Midtjylland on Thursday. Reid helped New Zealand to three draws in the recent FIFA World Cup. He s

<< Jazz ink GM O'Connor to extension
Salt Lake City, UT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Utah Jazz announced Thursday that the team has signed general manager Kevin O'Connor to a multi-year extension. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not released. "I am very appreciative of

Cowboys' Spears suffers injury in practice >>
San Antonio, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dallas Cowboys starting defensive end Marcus Spears suffered a sprained left MCL at practice Thursday. Spears will miss 4-to-6 weeks of action, putting his status for the season- opener against th

Braves go deep to down San Fran >>
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alex Gonzalez and Eric Hinske homered off Giants ace Tim Lincecum and the Braves defeated San Francisco, 3-2, to kick off a four-game set between these playoff hopefuls. Jair Jurrjens (4-4) went six

McDonald solid as Pirates down Rockies >>
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - James McDonald twirled six shutout innings to help the Pittsburgh Pirates take a 5-1 win over the Colorado Rockies in the opener of a four-game set. McDonald (1-1) gave up just four hits and a walk wi

Izturis' heroics helps O's sweep Angels >>
Baltimore, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Cesar Izturis' single in the bottom of the ninth drove in the game-winning run, as the Baltimore Orioles edged the Angels, 5-4, to complete a three-game sweep at Camden Yards. Francisco Rodriguez (

SPORTS BETTING - Tennis is an underrated and under-utilized bettors' sport.

Ten years ago, at just about this time, I called Alan Boston in Vegas and left him a voicemail that went something like this (abridged version): "Hey Alan, Chad Millman from ESPN The Magazine calling. I want to do a book about wise guys, you in?"

A couple weeks later I got a message back (abridged version): "I don't know, maybe," Boston said. "Call me and we'll talk about it. But not later today. I got $1,000 on Andre Agassi to win the French Open at 40-1, and he's in the finals."

Here's what happened next (abridged version): Agassi won his tourney. Boston won his $40,000. I wrote sportsbook.

In the ten years since, how much has been wagered on the big-time tennis events? Put it this way: The Nevada Gaming Commission doesn't even track the number year by year because it's so small.

"Tennis makes up about one-tenth of one percent of our take," says Lucky's bookmaking boss Jimmy Vaccaro. "The last big golf major we probably had $100,000 worth of bets. In tennis, we might have written two big tickets."

Tennis' lack of popularity amongst the American bettoratti is no surprise, really. For starters, the biggest sports betting holidays -- the Super Bowl, the NCAA tourney -- are must see TV. People, at least the degenerates I know, plan vacations around watching those events in Vegas sports books.

But Wimbledon? Doesn't exactly reel in the whales. "Seriously, it's the nuts as an event," says Boston. "But who even knows when it's on?"

Here's another reason that helps explain why golf gets traction, something I call "The Bubbe Theory." My Bubbe is pushing 95 and has cataracts so bad that, to her, even the most crystalline Chicago day is mostly cloudy. But she still listens to the Cubs games, and she still calls me in a fit if she disagrees with something Rick Telander writes in the Chicago Sun Times. She's a sports fan. If she doesn't know you, you're just filling a niche. And niche players, even historically good ones like Roger and Raf, don't drive betting volume. Only the highest profile names attract square money, which inflates wagering totals like a shot of saline to the lips. Bubbe, and the public, loved Agassi, tennis' last cross-the-rubicon, mainstream draw. She also has a crush on Tiger. She's given me standing orders to put a sawbuck on the big cat whenever I walk through a sports book (or mistakenly tap into one via my Internet machine.) That explains why the Masters is getting $100K in action at some books while the four tennis majors might not get that combined this year.

This isn't a case of tennis being a difficult sport to bet. In fact, in Europe, it's probably the second most popular sport for gambling after soccer. Granted, as the WSJ football betting last week and The Mag's Shaun Assael examined in even greater depth last year, that might be because gamblers across the pond see it as an easy game to fix. But it could also be because, over there it holds the kind of sway the big two do over here.

Street corners in Spain are peppered with public courts and kids doing their best Raffy impressions. In some war torn parts of Eastern Europe poverty-stricken kids view tennis as an escape route, like football or basketball here. A couple years ago The Mag's Lindsay Berra wrote a great piece about Belgrade's Jelena Jankovic, Ana Ivanovic and Novak Djokovic. They learned the game as kids while bombs were raining down on their homeland. They practiced in drained swimming pools. Not exactly Nick Bolletierri conditions.

In the United States, casual fans think tennis is played four times a year. But on the tightly packed European continent, national interest in homegrown talent runs deep every weekend. Of the ATP's current top 20 players, only two, tennis betting and James Blake, are American. Fourteen are from Europe, representing six different countries.

No wonder fans from Lisbon to Bhudapest get jacked up for the net game, whether it's Wimbledon or a low-level tourney like the Estoril Open in Portugal (congrats to Spain's Albert Montanes for winning that one, btw). Chances are good that someone representing their flag will not only be playing, but have a shot at winning.

And that's all any bettor can ask for.

To visit this sports book go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.