Fine Print Strikes Again
Virginia teacher who had more than $200k in winning bets cancelled due to a pricing error is speaking out and now has legal counsel.
The Bulletin Board
NEWS: Virginia teacher retains lawyer after BetMGM cancels $200k in winnings over pricing error.
NEWS: All bark, no bite: Connecticut issues PSA warning about the risks of illegal gambling operators.
NEWS: Fanatics Sportsbook officially launches in four states.
VIEWS: UK Gambling Commission chief executive: Stop misrepresenting data.
QUICK NOTE: Delaware Lottery selects RSI as its online gambling vendor.
AROUND the WATERCOOLER: DFS revenue in Massachusetts and more signs that No House Advantage is floundering.
STRAY THOUGHTS: Build a strong foundation.
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Too Good to Be True
The story of a Virginia teacher who had more than $200,000 in winnings canceled due to a pricing error has just been escalated.
As reported in Gambling911, Kris Benton, a 35-year-old math teacher and soccer coach at Springfield High School in Springfield, Virginia, has retained legal counsel. The attorney contacted Benton after an appearance on a DC radio show.
Benton provided Gambling911 with a timeline of events, which includes screenshots of his account and an email chain with BetMGM. Per Benton, his bets were graded as wins two hours post-match before being canceled.
When Benton contacted BetMGM to learn why his bets were canceled, he received an unsatisfactory-to-him response from the BetMGM rep:
“In your case… there was an issue that caused the corners market to have inflated the odds… therefore we are not able to find out what the correct odds would have been, that is why the wager was voided.”
Benton asked the obvious question, if you don’t know what the correct odds are supposed to be, how do you know the odds were in error?
The situation (significant pricing errors, AKA palps) is not unique (New Jersey regulators dealt with a palp issue early on) but is still unsettled in the US. If Benton’s version is the entire story, this will not bode well for operators.
As I said on X:
Connecticut Issues Warning About Illegal Betting Sites
The Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection and Attorney General William Tong are warning residents about illegal gambling websites.
In its press release, the DCP states:
“There are only three gaming operators approved to offer internet gaming in Connecticut — DraftKings, FanDuel, and Play Sugarhouse.
“The Department is aware of numerous illegal offshore gambling businesses soliciting Connecticut consumers to place wagers via their online platforms. These illegal gambling websites are not licensed to accept wagers within the state of Connecticut, and create a risk for users who may not realize these companies do not comply with state regulations created to protect consumers’ personal information and money.”
There is also a very strange allegation in the release that I feel the need to hoghlight, as I’m not aware of this being a widespread practice:
“These illegal offshore gambling websites often call potential patrons directly and use high pressure sales tactics to get them to make a deposit and place wagers. They tell patrons it is legal to place a bet on these sites from Connecticut when it is not, and there is no guarantee that consumers who place wagers on these platforms will receive their winnings.”
The warning is unlikely to have any real impact. Offshore operators are largely beyond the reach of US law enforcement, and attempts to educate the average bettor have not been overly effective - hence the need for such a letter from the CT DCP.
Poor performance: Connecticut is not what you could call an iGaming success story. The state is near the bottom in terms of per-adult revenue, barely outperforming West Virginia - which shouldn’t be the case considering the economic differences between the two states -CT’s performance is something I will delve into in the future.
New Jersey leads the way with more than $250 per adult resident. Michigan is over $200, and Pennsylvania is just below $200. Connecticut is generating around $120 per adult resident, with West Virginia just below $100 and Delaware bringing up the rear at around $20.
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Welcome to the Party Pal
Fanatics Sportsbook is officially live in Massachusetts, Tennessee, Maryland, and Ohio after a lengthy beta-testing period.
One area Fanatics is hoping to leverage is its rewards. Per Sam McQuillian, Fanatics Sportsbook is offering bettors Fan Cash, which can be used to purchase free bets or Fanatics merchandise.
The launch is just in time for the start of the NFL season (Sep. 7) and gives Fanatics a headstart over the soon-to-launch ESPN BET. The Fanatics Sportsbook app operates on an Amelco-based platform but will eventually migrate to the PointsBet platform. The company is expected to complete its purchase of PointsBet this month.
I Can Make Data Say Whatever you Want It To Say
The head of the UK Gambling Commission issued an Open Letter this week, chastising the current use of data in the gambling debate.
h/t to Jon Bruford from The Gaming Boardroom for tipping me off on this.
In the letter, posted on August 14, Andrew Rhodes wrote in part:
“Everyone has the right to put forward their argument or opinion and there has been little shortage of that in recent times…
“However, much as everyone is entitled to present their arguments, what is wholly unacceptable is the misuse of statistics to support that argument.
“The Commission is very concerned at the significant increase in the misuse of statistics around gambling as different parties seek to make persuasive arguments for or against different proposals.”
The full letter can be read here.
This is important because people misuse or play with data on a regular basis.
To illustrate that point, I’ll use Rhode Island as an example. If I’m trying to cheerlead its entry into online gambling, I might write, “With the addition of Rhode Island, nearly 1-in-6 US states possess legal online gambling options.”
If I’m trying to downplay Rhode Island, I could write, “After more than a decade of legalization efforts, just 11.7% of the US population has access to legal online casinos.”
Not only did I use different metrics, a fraction (rounded up) in the first and a precise percentage in the second. I also included online poker-only Nevada in my positive spin analysis and excluded it in the second passage.
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Quick Note
The Delaware Lottery is switching online gambling vendors, having selected Rush Street Interactive.
“Rush Street Interactive, Inc. (NYSE: RSI) (“RSI”), a leading online casino and sports betting company in the United States, today announced that it has been selected by the Delaware State Lottery as its vendor for the state’s online gaming business. RSI will provide state-of-the-art online gaming in Delaware for an initial term of 5 years, renewable for additional 1-year terms for an additional 5 years pending regulatory approvals.”
Around the Watercooler
Social media conversations, rumors, and gossip.
The Massachusetts Gaming Commission is now reporting DFS revenue by operator, and those numbers by Prize Pick are likely fueling the recent jousting between DFS 1.0 and 2.0 operators.
The No House Advantage story continues to reach new depths.
Stray Thoughts
One of my favorite sayings is, “Basic, when done correctly, looks professional and can look elegant and advanced.” These words of wisdom come from kickboxer Majid Raees. He is obviously talking about martial arts, but this applies to just about everything. When you do the basics at a high level, they are no longer basics.
Unfortunately, as is the case in most martial arts classes, everyone wants to skip past the basics and go straight to advanced, not understanding that there aren’t any advanced “secret” techniques; it’s just the basics done at a high level. Every fancy technique you see is built on a foundation that includes a basic skill. The basic skill gives you the understanding of balance, distance, and body awareness to pull off a spinning sidekick. But if you can’t do the basic skill (a sidekick), you can’t pull off the fancy move.
Just something to chew on.