At the beginning of October, I wrote an article titled, "Lessons from the Hilton Contest." I pointed out that keeping track of the Hiton NFL Contest provides an excellent lesson in short term vs. long term results. There are, however, two more lessons that we can learn from examining the contest: LESSON #1 : Despite what you've heard, you can't win by betting against against the public because in terms of individual game... Read more

Recently, there was a discussion in the Pregame forum regarding the suspected release of opposing sides in the same game by a handicapper. It turned out that there was nothing evil going on, but the attitude of some posters left no room for the possibility of a legitimate reason for opposite sides. Most sports bettors treat the recommendation of opposite sides by a sports advisor as invariably evil. There are many times... Read more

Today is the day for the 135th Running of the Kentucky Derby. The Derby is the Super Bowl of horse racing. Everyone from Auntie Lucinda to your Grandmama suddenly dons a big, fancy hat and becomes a racing fan. You can, of course, pick your horse by one of the tried and true methods such as closing your eyes, pointing your finger at the program, and hoping for the best, asking your 3-year old niece which name she likes... Read more

As you park you car in the lot a guy walks up to you with a large mallet.. He points to a few scratches on your bumper and says, "I'll fix those for you while you're in the store. I work cheap, but I'm an expert body man." He has no sander, no paint, no paint sprayer, no filler. Just a mallet. You know scratches can't be fixed with a mallet, and so you know immdiately it's a scam. No matter whether you handicap on your... Read more

Here's some information to help you to bet like a professional in the NCAA Tournament tonight and get the best of everything. In the NCAA Championship game tonight I'm seeing a line of North Carolina -7.5. It's been a solid 7.5 all day, but appears like it may be moving down to -7. That trend should reverse itself as we get closer to game time. The money line is -380 in most places. Some books have only a 40 cent spread... Read more

Team depth is one of the most important factors to consider when handicapping the college basketball tournaments. Teams that normally play only 30 games for the entire season may suddenly be playing as many as 3 games back-to-back or 4 games in 7 days. Some teams may play one or more overtime periods and then be required to come back and play again the next day. Syracuse, for example, played 6 overtime periods... Read more

During the regular season most games are played on one team's home court. The most accurate handicapping results in such games are achieved by using the applicable home and road statistics for each team. During March Madness, however, most games are played on a neutral court. When handicapping teams on a neutral court, there are three possible sets of past performance statistics that can be used: Road... Read more

Last night, the total in the Motor City Bowl was set at 70. At the Crowne Club we had our biggest play of the Bowl season so far on the UNDER. Offensively, Florida Atlantic has averaged 25 points per game this season, and Central Michigan has averaged 30. The combined offensive points total 55 -- far under the posted total. Defensively, Florida Atlantic has allowed 29 points per game, and Central Michigan has allowed... Read more

The early bowls are best known for their "surprise" results. In many cases, however, the often aberrational results of the minor bowls are easily predictable by picking losers instead of winners. Some of you are no doubt saying, "I have no problem picking losers. It's winners that are the problem." The secret to picking the minor bowl winners, however, lies in picking the losers; and there are some secrets to doping out... Read more

Here are the best props for the Monday, October 24 game between Denver and New England. As I said last week, proposition bets are the most profitable bets available for the small bettor. Unfortunately, you can't bet them big, but you can win an unusually high percentage. TEAM TOTAL: Take N.E. under 26. With Matt Cassel at QB expecting 27+ points is wishful thinking. N.E. has scored more than 26 points in only one game... Read more