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<< Suns beat skidding Bobcats
Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Robin Lopez scored 11 of his 13 points in the fourth quarter, as the Phoenix Suns handed the Charlotte Bobcats their 11th straight loss with a 95-89 victory. Michael Redd had 17 points in his first start

<< Denmon lifts No. 4 Missouri over Kansas
Columbia, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Marcus Denmon's personal surge late in regulation boosted No. 4 Missouri to a 74-71 win over eighth-ranked Kansas in the Border Showdown. Denmon, who scored nine straight points during Missouri's

<< Flyers C Rinaldo fined by NHL
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The National Hockey League fined Philadelphia Flyers center Zac Rinaldo $5,000 on Saturday. The fine stems from two plays during Saturday's game against New Jersey, which the Devils won, 6-4. The first c

<< Stars down Wild in SO
Dallas, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jamie Benn scored the winner in the shootout as the Dallas Stars took a 2-1 win over the Minnesota Wild on Saturday. In the second round, Benn cut out to the right before coming back to the middle and sn

San Diego State handles TCU >>
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jamaal Franklin poured in a game-high 24 points on 7-of-11 shooting and grabbed 11 rebounds as No. 17 San Diego State handled TCU, 83-73, on Saturday. James Rahon netted 16 points to go with five reb

Batum makes 9 three-pointers, Blazers down Nuggets >>
Portland, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - There was nothing wrong with Nicolas Batum's left knee on Saturday. Batum returned from a brief two-game absence and nailed a franchise record nine three-pointers en route to a career-high 33 points

Kings down Warriors in OT >>
Sacramento, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - John Salmons scored 14, including the go- ahead three-pointer to start overtime, helping Sacramento to a 114-106 win over the Golden State Warriors. DeMarcus Cousins had 21 points and a career-high

Nugent-Hopkins returns, carries Oilers to SO win over Red Wings >>
Edmonton, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan Nugent-Hopkins netted the game-winning goal in the sixth round of the shootout, sending the Edmonton Oilers to a 5-4 win over the Detroit Red Wings at Rexall Place. Nugent-Hopkins, who returned to th

Sportsbooks to bet on football

Recently I had an email debate with an angry reader who said I did not understand "the science of oddsmaking", as he called it.

He said I was wrong for suggesting oddsmakers care about who wins or loses games.

"Oddsmakers only care about splitting the betting public 50/50 on both sides of the line and keeping the commission (a.k.a. juice)," he wrote.

He might have been right about not understanding "the science of oddsmaking". After all, I'm not an oddsmaker. That said, I stick to my assertion that oddsmakers (a.k.a. sportbooks) often do care about who wins games.

Granted, as a general rule, sportsbooks try to balance their action so that they're not exposed to big losses. However, there are times when this is difficult to pull off, regardless of how much a line has moved. There are also times when that general rule is ignored and a book pursues risk.

Generally speaking, it's safe to say the books in Vegas are risk-adverse. Unlike in the past when the wise guys ruled the town, Vegas is now corporate and the goal of most casinos is to make as much money as possible with as little risk as possible.

Thus, Vegas sportsbooks try everything in their power to balance the action. They're satisfied simply collecting the juice. But these profits are small, especially compared to the take from other casino games, namely slot machines.

Because the profits at Vegas sportsbooks are so small, you could argue that many casinos operate sportsbooks simply as a novelty to keep the tourists happy.

With a growing aversion to risk, it should come as no surprise that Vegas bookmakers have been panicking this NFL season.

Despite huge pointspreads, a disproportionate percentage of bettors are still laying their money on favorites like the Eagles, Colts, Pats and Vikings rather than the dogs (a common trend for the largely recreational bettors that visit Vegas).

And much to the dismay of the books, those favorites are finding ways to cover the thick chalk. In fact, prior to Week 7, the four teams listed above are a combined 16-2-2 (88 percent) against the spread. (The tables turned dramatically in Week 7, but more on that later.)

The result has been an early-season beating for the books, and a bonanza for bettors.

While Vegas increasingly hates risk, it's no longer a major player in the sports betting world. Most of the betting action now takes place offshore where sportsbooks are not as obsessed about balance. In fact, some books encourage exposure to risk because the rewards can be so much bigger.

Consider MySportsbook.com. On its website, the book has odds pages which actually display the amount of action it's getting on games. In other words, you can see how much action the book is taking on both sides of a pointspread, moneyline or over/under.

One look at these numbers and it's obvious MySportsbook.com does not balance every game. In fact, far from it.

Take last weekend's matchup between St. Louis and Miami. By game time on Sunday, 83 percent of the betting action at MySportsbook.com was on the Rams; only 17 percent was on Miami.

What's interesting is that MySportsbook.com opened the pointspread with Miami at +6 1/2. By game time, the spread had lowered to +5.

That goes contrary to the balancing theory. If MySportsbook.com had wanted to balance the action, it would have given Miami more points; instead, it took away 1 1/2. World Series odds are now up as well.

MySportsbook.com exposed itself to even more to risk, and rolled the dice on the underdog Dolphins. Why? I contacted a representative with the book to find out. His answer was simple.

"The line moved early based on 'smart money' from sharp players," said Jeff Gilroy, a spokesperson for the book. "We also knew from early in the week that we would need Miami, therefore (we dropped) the spread to encourage Rams money.

"At the end of the day, we liked the home team."

So the conclusion is this: MySportsbook.com respected the sharp action, and gambled that the sharp bettors had a better take on the game than the recreational bettors, who were hammering the visiting Rams.

In the end, the gamble paid off. Miami, desperate for a win in front of its home fans, pounded the overrated Rams, who are terrible on the road and even worse on grass. Final score: 31-14 Fish.

MySportsbook.com was also heavily exposed on numerous favorites in Week 7, including Philadelphia, Seattle and Denver. All three failed to cover.

The fact that sportsbooks are exposed to risk on certain games is really nothing new. The fact, that Sportsbook.com is willing to show the public where it's exposed is intriguing.

Armed with this type of information, bettors can make more educated wagers. They can get an idea where the sharp money is going and conversely where the public money is headed.

MySportsbook.com is opening up its cashbox, letting bettors look inside and challenging them to take their best shot at grabbing the cash.

To visit this online football betting got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting odds needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.

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To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.