There are seven casinos in the St. Louis area, but only one is kicking ass at the moment, River City.

River City, according to a report in various media outlets, is bringing in the gamblers in astonishing numbers, helping to make the entire industry in the city profitable.

Of the seven casinos in the St. Louis area, six of them experienced decreases in revenue for June in comparison to the same month in 2009.

The total take for the seven is about $85.8 million, up from the $82.3 million from the same period a year earlier.

River City decreased from their May revenue figure of $15.2 million, but still clearly was better than most other St. Louis casinos with revenue of $13.3 million in June.

Guess they like to gamble more in K.C.

Ameristar Casino had the highest revenue of all casinos at $23.4 million. Harrah’s Casino revenue was down twelve percent, to $20.1 million.

Pinnacle finally closed the President Casino after year’s of battling with the Missouri Gaming Commission over the state of the riverboat casino. The figures for June at the President were even more disappointing because of flooding that had the casino closed for ten days. The total revenue for June was $618,476 at the President.

Pinnacle has other properties in St. Louis, and their relationship status with the Gaming Commission led them to agree to close the President.

Lumiere Place, which is  one of the newest casinos in the city, brought inf $12.8 million, down from $14.7 million in June of 2009, a 13 percent decline.

Casino Queen and Argosy Alton casinos had two of the lowest revenue figures in the area. Casino Queen saw revenue drop twenty percent, from $12 million last June, to $9.6 million this year. Argosy Alton’s revenue only dropped one million, from $7 million to $6 million.

Now my take is that all of these casinos are first rate. I’d like some feedback from those who have visited any of the casinos. What do you think?

I admit that I’ve been ONLY to River City, mainly because of its reputation, so I can’t bust on the others.

But I’d sure like to find out why their numbers are down.

Of course, one reason could be their demographics, their location.

And the economy. Who has disposable income these days?

Florida governor Charlie Crist has long been known to be a friend to the gambling sector. Who could forget that pact he made with the Indians to allow them huge liberties in their activities? While this was welcomed by many, it didn’t sit well with just as many other people.

He has been quite active recently in promoting gambling as a good source of revenue for the state. In fact, he visited a school and spoke about his point of view. The Miami Herald has this story:

Facing resistance from lawmakers to a $1.1 billion gambling deal with the Seminole Tribe, Gov. Charlie Crist ditched Tallahassee Thursday to visit a struggling Little Havana school he said would benefit from the money.

Crist didn’t make his pitch directly to the Riverside Elementary Community School teachers or students. He made it to a troop of television cameras.

”It will put more money into education for this hard-working principal and, more importantly than that, for the children at this school and others around the state,” he told a media gaggle after climbing the school’s steps. “We need to make sure we continue to make progress in education in Florida, and the opportunity to adequately fund great schools like this one today is the way to do it.”

To be honest with you, I do not quite agree with his tactics. He is politicizing gambling, which I think should just be left to the discretion of the individual. Then again, can we expect anything else? Politicians will always attach themselves to a cause. In any case, we shall see how the people of Florida react to this. Are you from there? Any opinions?

The Superbowl is here and sports bettors all over the country are getting busy making their bets.  Sports books – both online and offline – are even busier dealing with the slew of bets coming in.  So how should you bet?

I will not go as far as to tell you who to bet on but here is the deal.  If you bet $100 on the Cardinals and they win, you also win – all of $210!  But that’s not the only kind of bet you can make for Sunday’s game.  There are all sorts of prop bets that sports books all over the country are offering.  The Baltimore Examiner features these:

They can range from how many yards a running back will gain to how many catches a player records. But the past decade, it has evolved. BetUs.com, however, has odds on players getting arrested leading up to the Super Bowl (Santonio Holmes, 2/1 odds), touchdown dances (River Dance, 9/1 odds) and how many songs The Boss will play (over/under 3).

Las Vegas Sports Consultants has posted about 300 prop bets for its clients, which include the Las Vegas Hilton, Caesar’s and the Palms, with most created by senior odds maker Dan O’Brien.

If I were you, I would go to the most reliable online sports books now and look to see what kinds of bets you can make.  There is good money to be won on Sunday and I wouldn’t want to be left out of the betting.

Photo by msb_nyc

Here is the last installment of this mini-series on baseball betting tips.  I hope that you will be able to master these tips and apply them when the right time comes.

Tip #6: Do not overlook the effect of the ball park.
Although the venue does not have as strong an effect as it does in football and basketball, the baseball park should still be included in your list of considerations when betting on a baseball game.  History will come in handy again – some baseball teams hit better in certain parks and some play poorer in others.  The trick is in being able to detect the patterns so that you can have better odds when betting.

Tip #7: Do not bet on rivalries if you can.
As tempting as it may be to bet on a game wherein the teams have a longstanding rivalry, it might not be the best idea.  How so?  Put yourself in their shoes.  If you are facing your biggest rival on the field, then the chances are that you would be putting your best foot forward.  You would do most anything in your power to come out on top.  Put two teams in this position and you have a very unpredictable game.  Anything goes, anyone might win.  Though this is the baseball fan’s dream – one of the most exciting kinds of games – it might not be the best situation for betting.  If I were you, I would just sit back and enjoy the game WITHOUT putting money into it.

So you like playing video poker?  Who doesn’t? Let me ask you though, how many times have you won?  If you are hesitating on answering that question, let me share some tips with you.  These tips just might help you win more in video poker.

Tip #1:  Know your machine
Video poker machines are made differently.  It is not a one size fits all thing.  As such, before you sit down and play, find out all that you can about a particular machine.  That way, you know exactly how to play.

Tip #2:  Look for full play machines
What are full play machines?  As mentioned above, various video poker machines have different pay out odds.  What you should look for are those machines which offer a payout of 9 to 1 for a full house and 6 to 1 for a flush.  According to experts, these machines pay out 99 percent of whatever money they receive.  That simply means that you have better chances of winning!

Tip #3:  Don’t be stingy – play for the maximum number of coins
There are a couple of reasons for this tip.  One, if you get a royal flush, your payout increases exponentially if you play with the maximum number of coins (usually this is 5).  You may argue that the chances of getting a royal flush are low.  True, but then, what if you do get one?  Two, you will not get the progressive jackpot if you do not play with the maximum number of coins.  Naturally, this second reason applies to progressive video poker machines only.

Photo by Cia L

As promised, here is the last installment of this series for gambling virgins. I am actually hoping that at this point, you are a gambling virgin no more. In any case, whether you have not gambled before or you have had some experience, these tips can still help you out while you are at the tables.

Shop around.
This is a very general piece of advice, I am well aware of that. In most every endeavor – from grocery shopping to car buying, you will always be advised to shop around. There must be a reason that this maxim is preached a lot – it works to your advantage! So how do you apply shopping around to gambling? In many ways as well. If you are interested in trying out sports betting, then shop around for the bookmaker that has the best odds. Contrary to uninformed opinions, not all bookmakers have the same odds. Shop around and find a better deal. If you are interested in playing at a casino – whether online or offline – then it would be better to look around and see which casinos have which offers. Again, not all casinos are the same. Shop around.

Learn to walk away – even when you are winning.
This is perhaps one of the hardest things to do, especially if you are new to gambling. If you find yourself on a long winning streak, you will probably be tempted to keep going. Trust me, it will not last forever. My suggestion is that you psych yourself up before gambling. Set your limits and tell yourself that you are going to stick to them.

It is nothing to be ashamed of. After all, some people consider gambling a vice and if you have held out this long, then from some people’s point of view, you did pretty well. Then again, I am a firm believer of the idea that gambling is not inherently evil so if you have decided to try gambling for the first time, then good on you!

You have to bear in mind, though, that gambling does have its pitfalls. As such, you have to prepare yourself for the various activities that you will engage in as you embark on your gambling journey. Here are some tips for you, the gambling virgin.

Set aside the money that you can afford to lose.
This is the basic maxim in gambling. You may have all the money in the world but if you gamble all that away, then you are left with nothing. I doubt that you are as rich as Warren Buffet but whatever amount you have, you should still set a limit as to how much you can afford to lose. Keep that amount ready and do not touch the rest of your money.

Do not, at all costs, chase your losses.
Gambling is all about winning and losing and not knowing exactly when one is going to happen. That is all part of the fun. Although you can take certain measures to help increase your chances of winning, there is always the chance of losing. If you find yourself on a losing streak, do not be tempted to chase your losses.

(more to come)

The truth is that you can bet anywhere you want.  Heck, you can even find people on the streets and strike up a deal with them!  Then again, if you are really serious about your sports betting activities, then you should make sure that you place your bets with serious sportsbooks.  More than serious, I mean respectable, reliable, and legal.

There are already many sportsbooks online carrying out their operations today.  It is not hard to find a sportsbook that will take your UFC bet.  Then again, do you know which ones to choose?  The MMA Betting Blog has done its own survey and has come up with some of the best online sportsbooks to bet with.  Here they are:

Sportsbook.com
Rating: 9/10
U.S. friendly? Yes

Bodog.com
Rating: 9/10
U.S. friendly? Yes

Betus.com
Rating: 7.5/10
U.S. friendly? Yes

Bookmaker.com
Rating: 7/10
U.S. friendly? Yes

According to the guys at the blog:

MMA Betting Blog.com has reviewed the best online sportsbooks which post Mixed Martial Arts odds. All of our reviews are based on a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the best. Each site is graded based on overall MMA odds, UFC odds, security, deposit options and their history as a gambling website. All of the sportsbooks listed are safe and easy to deposit with.

These guys know what they are doing – they have been at it for quite some time and they have used these sportsbooks many times. Then again, you should realize that not all sportsbooks are the same for each bettor.  You might want to visit their individual sites and see if they are really right for you.

I was watching reruns of the UFC the other night, hence, my proclivity for writing about UFC these past days.  The UFC is very dynamic and really engages the viewer, whether you are at the venue or at home, watching on TV.  It is also one of the most popular events that sports betting enthusiast like.  We talked about some basics in the previous post, let’s talk about some basic tips this time.  How can you make the most out of your UFC betting experience?

Here’s tip # 1: Do not bet on heavy favorites.
Just because a fighter is the heavy favorite does not mean that he will win.  Unlike in other sports, the UFC is known to have great upsets.  Experienced UFC betters will tell you to stay within a -300 favorite range and to stay away from those who are above a -400 favorite.

For tip #2: You are not required to bet on every single fight.
This might be a no brainer for some but for a beginner who is more enthusiastic than usual, betting on every fight might be tempting, especially if he has a considerable bankroll.  I suggest, however, that you keep that bankroll intact and choose your fights.  Choose the fights where there is a considerable edge between the two fighters and win big.  If you still want to bet on fights where there is no considerable edge between the fighters, do yourself a favor and keep your bets small (negligible even).

The UFC is one of the hottest things in the mixed martial arts scene today.  With world class fighters, heavy funding, and wide advertising, this is really not a surprise.  In fact, the UFC is watched by countless supporters all over the world.

A natural by-product of this popularity is sports betting.  If you are already a sports betting fan, then it is but understandable that you would want to get your hands on UFC betting.  You better hold your horses though, if you have no experience in UFC betting.  How exactly does it work?  Here is a good explanation by the guys at MMA Betting Blog:

Unlike football as basketball where there are point spreads (ex. -7, +13.5) UFC fights have odds which are called moneylines. A moneyline is basically a way for the sportsbooks to even out the betting public. So for example if Chuck Liddell was fighting a no name guy in his first fight, Liddell would be a HUGE favorite, probably around -4400 or so (44 to 1). If there was no moneyline, you could just bet on the favorite everytime, and become a millionaire pretty quickly.

So here is an actual example from a UFC fight, that will explain the odds a bit better.

Tito Ortiz (-140)
Rashad Evans (+120)

In this matchup, Tito is the favorite at -140. This means that for every $1.40 you bet, you win $1. So if you were to bet $140 on Tito, you’d win $100 (profit) if he is victorious. Rashad is the underdog in this match at +120. This means that for every $1 you bet, you will win $1.2o. So if you bet $100 on Rashad, and he wins, you will win $120 (profit).

The moneylines on UFC fights will often change with the amount of money coming in on each side. If a bunch of money is coming in on one side, the sportsbook will adjust the moneyline to even out the action and get bettors betting on the other fighter. With that said, whatever the odds are when you place your bet, is the odds you get. They don’t change like in horse racing.

Not a bad deal as long as you know what you are getting into.