Bookies have edge vs. bettors, but not by much

LAS VEGAS » It was shaping up to be the biggest Super Bowl score ever for Las Vegas’ legal bookmakers.

Philadelphia plus 4 points against New England, with the money just like the bookies like it — almost perfectly balanced on both sides. In the days before this year’s game, bettors carrying fistfuls of cash lined up 20 deep at sports book windows, wagering a total of $158.6 million.

The reward for those booking the bets? A paltry $1.17 million win that probably didn’t even cover the light bill at most casinos.

The house won, as it usually does. But those eyeing a huge payoff as sports betting is on the verge of expanding across the nation should understand that opening a sports book — while potentially very lucrative — isn’t the same as actually printing money.

“It’s a high-volume, high-risk operation,” said Jay Kornegay, who runs the sports book at the Westgate Las Vegas. “It’s a rollercoaster ride every day.”

The Eagles’ upset of New England cost the books a big profit on the Super Bowl, with the 198 legal books in Nevada eking out a 0.7 percent hold. It wasn’t much, with the bookies narrowly avoiding losing money on the Super Bowl for the third time in 28 years.

It’s a bookie’s life, as it always has been. Unlike other games in the casino where there are fixed ranges of percentage win rates, the profitability of sports books in Nevada is often dependent on the skill of those making the lines.

“There’s no mathematical probability like the other games,” Kornegay said. “You really can’t control a lot of it. You just do your best to put yourself in a positive position to win.”

It’s not like the bookies are crying poverty or about to turn the lights out. They won $248.8 million in Nevada in 2017, a record payout in an industry that lately has been growing exponentially every year.

But that’s only a 5.1 percent return on $4.87 billion in bets placed.