From a July 2005 article that appeared in Time Magazine… For a man who hasn’t bet a nickel since 1989, Bruce Roberts spends a lot of time in casinos. He’s rarely there alone, however. He usually has an escort walk him through–the better to ensure that he doesn’t succumb to the sweet swish of the cards or the signature rattle of the dice. A onetime compulsive gambler, Roberts, 62, weathered his years of wagering better than many. He never lost his wife or his home–although he has refinanced the house nine times. “Cards and Vegas were the two biggest things in my life,” he says. “I’m a helluva poker player, but I have one serious flaw: I can’t get my ass off the chair.” Click here to read full article Todd’s Take: Sometimes we all get lost in the delusions of grandeur and the financial upside of being a great gambler. My goal isn’t to play psychologist or shrink but it is to take an active interest in everyone that visits the blog seeking advice. Rarely in sports do we address the problem gambler but they exist in all our circles and as a result the topic warrants discussion. There’s no stereotypical depiction of a problem gambler; its a sum total of actions and behaviors that creates warning signs we all should be paying attention to in those closest to us.  Whether it’s chemical, genetic, or psychological, when gambling stops being fun and starts becoming dangerous to your or your loved ones make sure you take a step back and regain perspective on the big picture rather than becoming fixated on the bad beat that just won’t leave you alone.  For 99% of people out there, gambling should be a hobby, nothing more. When...

Sports from a betting perspective on NBC Sports Radio from myself and Clay Travis. The NBA, NHL, women in Las Vegas; nothing is off limits when Clay and I get you prepared for a busy sports weekend. Click Here to...

Our weekly look at sports with the crew from ESPN UNITE. This week’s topics included a breakdown of the Indy 500 (props included), NHL vs NBA dialogue, and how to attack big favorites in your handicapping. Honestly, it wouldn’t be right if I didn’t ask about the swirling rumors regarding the show’s potential cancellation…in odds format of course.  To Danny and Reese’s credit, they both kept their sense of humor about the topic the whole...

You hear these terms thrown around all the time: steam move and fading the public but what exactly do they mean? There are some serious fallacies about how the true meaning of each term and exactly how one can use the two concepts to turn themselves into a long term...

Written by Kentucky Derby Jay  The middle jewel of thoroughbred racing’s Triple Crown is upon us — Saturday marks the 138th running of The Preakness at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore.  To harken back to something I said last year, the Preakness is a bit of a different race than the Kentucky Derby and requires a different handicapping mindset. While recent Derbys have produced some winners who completely disappeared after wearing the garland of roses (Giacomo, Mine That Bird, Super Saver), the Preakness has produced a number of champions who either failed in the Derby (Afleet Alex, Curlin, Lookin At Lucky) or didn’t race in Kentucky at all (Bernardini, Rachel Alexandra).  Of course, the most popular Preakness winners are those who back up their Derby victory, as did I’ll Have Another did last year, and thus stay alive for that most elusive of accomplishments, the Triple Crown.  35 years and counting, people.  So, it’s fair to say that all eyes will be on this year’s Derby champ, Orb. Before we delve into this year’s Preakness (an incredibly small field of nine horses), I wanted to take a minute to look back at my Derby handicapping.  I feel pretty good about my analysis, even in spite of saying this about Orb: Orb was the one Itsmyluckyday was chasing, and has earned Derby favoritism off of that effort.  He had a monster workout on Monday, which has everybody proclaiming him the next big thing.  Look, I think he’s a super horse, and very capable of winning this race, that close to a race of this distance (and stature). I don’t think he wins this one now That said, I still had Orb tabbed as the third choice.  In fact, my top three selections ran 5th-3rd-1st.  Not...

What better way to get people in the spirit for the 2nd leg of the Triple Crown than with a quick breakdown on UNITE. Of course there’s some discussion of the Andrew Wiggins impact along with the weekly give and take with Danny and...

Todd’s Take: I’m all for player safety in hockey (along with the other sports) but where does the policing end? Hockey and football by nature, more so than every other spor,t are high intensity contact sports with violent collisions every game. Torres’ track record of cheap shots doesn’t bode well here or give him the benefit of the doubt from the league but unless you can determine intent, we have to let the best athletes in the world go about their business in the most intense of playoff...

Click here to listen Just another Wednesday with the guys on 3HL talking all things gambling from NBA odds to French Open Tennis

I’m not the Warren Buffet of sports betting but I have been known to make a wager or six. People always ask questions about the best practice for handicapping games such as what stats/metrics do professional bettors value or how should someone approach the futures markets. Don’t get me wrong, all of these topics are relevant in helping achieve long term success and stir great debate depending on who you ask but they pale in comparison to mastering money management. We all know plenty of bettors and financial advisers that find great money making opportunities regularly yet never have their own funds to invest in the “next big thing.” Why is that? Plain and simple they don’t handle their finances well when everything is coming up roses nor do they understand damage control principles to protect their money when the chips are down.  Here’s my advice on the topic highlighted by 2 schools of thought for bankroll management every bettor should understand....

FA Cup trends of note (provided by @Ukbettingpro) In the last 17 finals, the under 2.5 is 14-3 Last 10 finals, 8 have been won by the clear favourite and the other 2 games were between teams of a comparable standard. The last 7 finals have been separated by one goal with two of those were decided via penalty kicks. Only 2 of the last 12 finals has seen a side cover a -1.5 line on the handicap markets. Wigan only beat 1 team in the Premiership to secure a birth in the FA Cup Final...

  NCAA study finds growing gambling habit among golfers By Dan Wolken Since the creation of a task force nine years ago to address gambling issues among college athletes, the NCAA has made some progress in curbing potentially dangerous behavior, according to data from its quadrennial survey on gambling behaviors and attitudes. But several trends revealed in the survey, released Tuesday, are troubling for the NCAA’s enforcement division, with one sport in particular emerging as a major concern: golf. Click here to read full article Todd’s Take: I commend the NCAA for establishing a task force to curtail gambling under the guise of protecting student welfare.  The numbers they claim to be “staggering” are actually lower than I would have guessed among student athletes. As a former college athlete myself, I admit that I placed the occasional wager from time to time. Did I see it as part of a national epidemic plaguing collegiate sports? Absolutely not. To group all forms of gambling together from sports to the lottery to playing cards blurs major lines of distinction. The culture around certain sports lends itself more to gambling than others but to say golfers are alone as a “problem” group because they’re surrounded by it is naive.  The socioeconomic factors Dan Wolken does a great job of alluding to in the article obviously play a role but letting the NCAA insinuate thats the primary driver is an unfair blanket generalization that didn’t apply in my case. I find it curious the NCAA has chosen to focus only on sports betting as a problem especially given the study revealed nearly 35% of college athletes purchased lottery tickets.  Let me get this straight; buying lottery tickets is ok with no chance to win but trying to give yourself an edge through sports is the ultimate sin? How is this more acceptable...