It’s upon us — let the sports gambling begin
Tuesday was a first for the state of New Mexico — and for me. It was the first day that legal sports betting occurred in the state, thanks to Santa Ana Star Casino & Hotel and US-Bookmaking partnering to open the state’s first legal sports book. Being that the casino did not allow the media access to the premises for this momentous occasion, I decided to visit as a potential casual bettor — who just happened to be the sports editor of a newspaper.
If you think this will be a column about the evils/virtues of gambling, don’t bet on it. This is about a guy’s first foray into this new world of organized sports betting. I’ve lost a lot of money betting on Super Bowls with friends and once won $50 betting an old flame that the Boston Celtics would win an NBA title before the 2000s ended. This, though, was different.
The closest I came to placing a bet was when I was in Las Vegas, Nev., about four years ago. There was temptation to lay $50 on the Kansas City Royals as the American League pennant winner for 2014, which had 50-1 odds, but I let the moment pass. Good choice, seeing as how Kansas City didn’t win the pennant until the following year.
There was a mix of uneasiness from infringing upon the sanctity of a business just to place a bet and write about it.
It was offset by the excitement of placing a bet and seeing how smart (or dumb) I am.
I casually walked into the casino, just as the first bets were placed shortly after the sports book opened at noon, and there was a line of about 10 people when I reached it.
I stayed back for a while, watching as a collection of bettors, ranging from just about every legal age range, making bets and grabbing sheets of paper with the betting lines and odds for a variety of sports.
I perused through the betting sheets and took aim at the NBA’s opening-day games Tuesday — the 76ers-Celtics and Thunder-Warriors game. Being a Celtics fan, it seemed like a fun plan to make a bet on that game.
The Celtics were a 4½-point favorite, but I opted for the over/under (the amount of points both teams would score), narrowing this momentous decision to the over/under for the first half (106 points). Remembering how physical and brutal their Eastern Conference semifinal was in May, the under was very appealing.
The process of making the bet was pretty simple — to me, at least. You went to the cashier, told them what your wager was, gave him the corresponding number to the game and laid your money on the counter. The transaction took maybe three minutes, and I had my first-ever ticket.
About seven hours later, I had my first win — the Celtics led 47-42 at the half, well below the line.
What did I win? Well, it was a $5 bet, so I won $4.55.
Don’t worry, I’m not quitting my day job. The reality check came by way of blowing $20 at the blackjack table on the way out of the casino.
Stick to sports, Barron. You’re decent at that.