GAME FIXING - PEOPLE - A SINCERE DIGRESSION

Ahh, one of my favorite subjects.  For those of you haters who want an early Xmas present, here you are, unload on this:

In the olden days I was as square as a cube.  Six-sided square.  I put my hard-earned money to work in the gambling industry, on the action side of the tables.  My first time playing blackjack I was such a novice I didn't know I could split Aces.  Needless to say, I quickly lost my hard-earned money.  But I knew that some games could be beat and others couldn't.  So I learned basic strategy and when I was accomplished at that, learned at least a dozen card-counting schemes, finally settling on one that was easy but powerful.  I also learned to play poker and, for poker, learned how to identify the suckers.

All the while I dabbled in sports betting.  Mostly football and then basketball, when the seasons changed, or overlapped.  What I knew about playing at the tables was, 'know where you gain your advantage and bet accordingly.'  It took me a while to learn that with sports.  To be honest, I'm still learning it with sports.

But the old adage is still true: If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.  You all know what I'm talking about - that line that just begs you to bet it.  And it is always the wrong side.  But why is it the wrong side?

In my opinion, yes, absolutely, some games are fixed.  But not all games and not all games you think are fixed are fixed. 

The oddsmakers are very good at what they do.  They hang lines they know the squares will devour.  Monday night's game between Denver and Cincinnati is an excellent example (for the record I was on Cincy, points and moneyline). I won't go into why I think that line was for the squares, it is only important to me that I was on the right side.  But, in my opinion, that game was not "fixed."

My brother, and I love him dearly, has the nickname "Action."  He will bet on anything.  And he loves the square lines.  I have tried to educate him on why a line is square, but then he quotes back to me all the crap he hears on ESPN and all the stats that he has heard and has swimming around in his head.  Then he loses his money betting on "the best team."

Sports betting, especially professional sports, has more to do with the enticement and inducement of squares, where the real money is, than it has to do with the "fix being in."  BUT, one or two "bad" calls by the refs will swing the momentum and the game to the other side.  This stuff happens.  It does not happen all the time, but when it does, you can bet that the momentum swing takes the money out of the square's pockets and deposits it in the book's accounts.

Professional sports, especially, are more entertainment than they are sporting contests.  Most people tune in to be entertained for a few hours.  Those of us who put our hard earned money on one side or the other prefer to see a sporting contest break out.  But, you can bet, when the oddsmakers need a game to be "delivered" it will be.

Happy Solstice and Merry Christmas to all.  Haters, have at it...