Reed Between The Lines Wed, Jul 21, 2004
Wild World of Sports Gambling
Reed Holmes
Lay down your money, then get laid
That would have been an appropriate advertising slogan for a enterprising bookie in New Jersey who got arrested this month. Salvatore Teodoro operated an online book and used to pay off his clients with sex, cash or a combination of both.
The unique settle-up offer was made when Teodoro sent hookers to pay off his winning clients in Connecticut, Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey. Clients were given a choice of receiving all or some of their winnings in exchange for sex with the hookers.
"It brought up his profit margins a bit," said Police Chief Don Ingrasselino.
Teodoro, who was convicted of theft in 2001 and spent nine months in jail, was arrested on charges of promoting gambling, prostitution and underage prostitution - two of the prostitutes he sent to clients were under the age of 18.
The 46-year-old was also accused of kidnapping and other charges. Police say Teodoro tied up a man he correctly suspected as a police informant. He then threatened to break the man's legs with a bat and shoot him.
"(Teodoro) wanted this guy to believe he was going to kill him," Ingrasselino said.
According to police, Teodoro operated his sports betting website for about five months. He apparently did not actively advertise his prostitution pay-off scheme but instead relied on word-of-mouth.
Former NFL QB sacked
Former Indianapolis Colts quarterback, and notorious sports gambler, Art Schlichter has been tossed more time behind bars.
The 44-year-old was sentenced in court to eight years in prison for operating a sports ticket scam. The gig involved selling fake tickets to the NCAA Final Four tournament and other sporting events such as Indiana Pacers and Indianapolis Colts games.
Schlichter also pleaded guilty to corrupt business influence and being a habitual offender. As a result, he was ordered to pay $500,000 in restitution to 22 victims.
"Clearly, it's very unlikely that Art Schlichter will ever pay back all of the people he's ripped off in his life," said Deputy Prosecutor Larry Brodeur. "Those civil judgments are in place in case he comes into some money."
Schlichter has been convicted of at least 10 charges involving forgery, fraud and theft since 1995.
Before his latest conviction on the ticket scam, Schlichter was already serving a five-year prison term for money laundering, forging securities and unauthorized use of credit cards to pay gambling debts.
A former star quarterback at Ohio State, Schlichter was the No. 1 draft pick by the Baltimore Colts in 1982. After only one season, Schlichter was suspended by the NFL for gambling.
He returned to the NFL in 1984 after being re-signed by the Colts, who had re-located to Indianapolis. But the Colts released him the following season.
Big loss on the Big Easy
Ernie Els wasn't the only one dejected about his shocking loss to no-name American Todd Hamilton at the British Open last weekend.
The No. 2-ranked golfer in the world lost to the 38-year-old PGA Tour rookie in a four-hole playoff at Royal Troon in Scotland.
That loss was a killer for one bettor who placed the largest British Open wager ever - 62,500 pounds or about $116,000 U.S. - on Els at 8-1 before the tournament began.
The poor unfortunate soul stood to made about $935,000 if the Els had come through. There's no word on whether anyone made a killing on Hamilton. Ranked No. 54 heading into the tournament, the odds on Hamilton winning were 250-1.
Still with the British Open, bookmakers in the U.K. say this year's tournament became the single biggest sports betting event outside of horse racing.
British bookmaking behemoth William Hill estimated that 30 million pounds - just under $60 million U.S. - would be bet on the tournament.
According to Hill spokesperson Graham Sharpe, that's more than was bet on the Euro 2004 soccer final.
Bet on Bond, James Bond
A couple of weeks ago we told you how you could bet on the sex of Britney Spears' first baby. Well, here's another wacky bet that might leave you shaken, if not stirred.
After four films, 51-year-old Pierce Brosnan reportedly will no longer play the role of James Bond in the famous movie series. As a result, Antigua-based sportsbook Intertops.com is now offering odds on who will play the next 007.
Currently, the odds on favorite to play Bond in the 21st installment of the series is British pop star Robbie Williams, who is posted at 7-2 to land the role.
According to Intertops, Williams has dreamed of playing Bond. Among other things, he sampled a Bond theme song and played a secret agent in the video for his hit single Millennium.
While Bond is quintessentially British, Intertops has posted odds on a number of American actors to land the role - George Clooney is listed at 50-1, Tom Cruise at 80-1, and Ben Affleck at 250-1.
Perhaps not surprisingly based on his weak performance in box office flops Gigli, Affleck is actually a longer shot to land the role of Bond than pretty boy soccer star David Beckham, who's posted at 100-1.
And if that weren't wacky enough, British Prime Minister Tony "I love George Bush" Blair is a 1000-1 long shot to be the next 007.
And for you TV junkies...
Not to be outdone on the entertainment angle, fellow Antigua-based sportsbook WagerOnSports.com - the same book that brought you the Britney bet - has posted odds on the upcoming Emmy Awards.
The Emmy awards are handed annually out to the top shows and actors in American television. The 56th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards take place Sunday, September 19 and WagerOnSports.com has posted odds on who will win.
In the Best Comedy category Arrested Development is the favorite to win at 9-5. The late John Ritter is the favorite to win as Best Actor in a Comedy at 2-1. The favorite in the Best Actress in a Comedy is former Friends star Jennifer Anniston at 9-5.
On the more serious side, The Sopranos is the favorite to win Best Drama at 3-2. James Gandolfini, who plays Tony Soprano, is the favorite to win Best Actor in a Drama Series (1-1) and Edie Falco, who plays Carmela Soprano, Tony's wife, is the favorite to win Best Actress in a Drama Series (6-5).
Dead ringer
And finally, in an effort to curb sports gambling at schools in the Philippines, Justice Secretary Merceditas Gutierrez has proposed the banning of cell phones from college and university campuses.
Gutierrez says that students are using their cell phones during school hours to place bets on sporting events. especially NBA games.
Her proposal comes on the heels of a report by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism that suggests students are amassing huge gambling debts, sometimes into the millions of pesos (1 million pesos is nearly $18,000 U.S.).
In one case detailed in the report, a 15-year-old kid piled up 90,000 pesos ($1,600 U.S.) in losses on NBA games with a student bookie.
To pay down their debts, some kids are forced to sell their cars, appliances, clothes, and even their shoes, according to the report.
Wild World of Sports Gambling
Reed Holmes
Lay down your money, then get laid
That would have been an appropriate advertising slogan for a enterprising bookie in New Jersey who got arrested this month. Salvatore Teodoro operated an online book and used to pay off his clients with sex, cash or a combination of both.
The unique settle-up offer was made when Teodoro sent hookers to pay off his winning clients in Connecticut, Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey. Clients were given a choice of receiving all or some of their winnings in exchange for sex with the hookers.
"It brought up his profit margins a bit," said Police Chief Don Ingrasselino.
Teodoro, who was convicted of theft in 2001 and spent nine months in jail, was arrested on charges of promoting gambling, prostitution and underage prostitution - two of the prostitutes he sent to clients were under the age of 18.
The 46-year-old was also accused of kidnapping and other charges. Police say Teodoro tied up a man he correctly suspected as a police informant. He then threatened to break the man's legs with a bat and shoot him.
"(Teodoro) wanted this guy to believe he was going to kill him," Ingrasselino said.
According to police, Teodoro operated his sports betting website for about five months. He apparently did not actively advertise his prostitution pay-off scheme but instead relied on word-of-mouth.
Former NFL QB sacked
Former Indianapolis Colts quarterback, and notorious sports gambler, Art Schlichter has been tossed more time behind bars.
The 44-year-old was sentenced in court to eight years in prison for operating a sports ticket scam. The gig involved selling fake tickets to the NCAA Final Four tournament and other sporting events such as Indiana Pacers and Indianapolis Colts games.
Schlichter also pleaded guilty to corrupt business influence and being a habitual offender. As a result, he was ordered to pay $500,000 in restitution to 22 victims.
"Clearly, it's very unlikely that Art Schlichter will ever pay back all of the people he's ripped off in his life," said Deputy Prosecutor Larry Brodeur. "Those civil judgments are in place in case he comes into some money."
Schlichter has been convicted of at least 10 charges involving forgery, fraud and theft since 1995.
Before his latest conviction on the ticket scam, Schlichter was already serving a five-year prison term for money laundering, forging securities and unauthorized use of credit cards to pay gambling debts.
A former star quarterback at Ohio State, Schlichter was the No. 1 draft pick by the Baltimore Colts in 1982. After only one season, Schlichter was suspended by the NFL for gambling.
He returned to the NFL in 1984 after being re-signed by the Colts, who had re-located to Indianapolis. But the Colts released him the following season.
Big loss on the Big Easy
Ernie Els wasn't the only one dejected about his shocking loss to no-name American Todd Hamilton at the British Open last weekend.
The No. 2-ranked golfer in the world lost to the 38-year-old PGA Tour rookie in a four-hole playoff at Royal Troon in Scotland.
That loss was a killer for one bettor who placed the largest British Open wager ever - 62,500 pounds or about $116,000 U.S. - on Els at 8-1 before the tournament began.
The poor unfortunate soul stood to made about $935,000 if the Els had come through. There's no word on whether anyone made a killing on Hamilton. Ranked No. 54 heading into the tournament, the odds on Hamilton winning were 250-1.
Still with the British Open, bookmakers in the U.K. say this year's tournament became the single biggest sports betting event outside of horse racing.
British bookmaking behemoth William Hill estimated that 30 million pounds - just under $60 million U.S. - would be bet on the tournament.
According to Hill spokesperson Graham Sharpe, that's more than was bet on the Euro 2004 soccer final.
Bet on Bond, James Bond
A couple of weeks ago we told you how you could bet on the sex of Britney Spears' first baby. Well, here's another wacky bet that might leave you shaken, if not stirred.
After four films, 51-year-old Pierce Brosnan reportedly will no longer play the role of James Bond in the famous movie series. As a result, Antigua-based sportsbook Intertops.com is now offering odds on who will play the next 007.
Currently, the odds on favorite to play Bond in the 21st installment of the series is British pop star Robbie Williams, who is posted at 7-2 to land the role.
According to Intertops, Williams has dreamed of playing Bond. Among other things, he sampled a Bond theme song and played a secret agent in the video for his hit single Millennium.
While Bond is quintessentially British, Intertops has posted odds on a number of American actors to land the role - George Clooney is listed at 50-1, Tom Cruise at 80-1, and Ben Affleck at 250-1.
Perhaps not surprisingly based on his weak performance in box office flops Gigli, Affleck is actually a longer shot to land the role of Bond than pretty boy soccer star David Beckham, who's posted at 100-1.
And if that weren't wacky enough, British Prime Minister Tony "I love George Bush" Blair is a 1000-1 long shot to be the next 007.
And for you TV junkies...
Not to be outdone on the entertainment angle, fellow Antigua-based sportsbook WagerOnSports.com - the same book that brought you the Britney bet - has posted odds on the upcoming Emmy Awards.
The Emmy awards are handed annually out to the top shows and actors in American television. The 56th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards take place Sunday, September 19 and WagerOnSports.com has posted odds on who will win.
In the Best Comedy category Arrested Development is the favorite to win at 9-5. The late John Ritter is the favorite to win as Best Actor in a Comedy at 2-1. The favorite in the Best Actress in a Comedy is former Friends star Jennifer Anniston at 9-5.
On the more serious side, The Sopranos is the favorite to win Best Drama at 3-2. James Gandolfini, who plays Tony Soprano, is the favorite to win Best Actor in a Drama Series (1-1) and Edie Falco, who plays Carmela Soprano, Tony's wife, is the favorite to win Best Actress in a Drama Series (6-5).
Dead ringer
And finally, in an effort to curb sports gambling at schools in the Philippines, Justice Secretary Merceditas Gutierrez has proposed the banning of cell phones from college and university campuses.
Gutierrez says that students are using their cell phones during school hours to place bets on sporting events. especially NBA games.
Her proposal comes on the heels of a report by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism that suggests students are amassing huge gambling debts, sometimes into the millions of pesos (1 million pesos is nearly $18,000 U.S.).
In one case detailed in the report, a 15-year-old kid piled up 90,000 pesos ($1,600 U.S.) in losses on NBA games with a student bookie.
To pay down their debts, some kids are forced to sell their cars, appliances, clothes, and even their shoes, according to the report.
