All favorites on the weekend

New Zealand squeaked out a win over West Indies yesterday, so I finally got a win in the Super Eight. This weekend, I'll need to win all three of my picks to be profitable, because I'm going with all the favorites.

I'm taking England at 1/14 over Ireland, Australia at 1/50 over Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka at 8/15 over West Indies.

Sri Lanka and New Zealand in the next two days

Learned a valuable lesson yesterday ... don't pick your team without incomplete, or worse, incorrect information. Austrailia put up 322 runs yesterday, and West Indies still has a chance to respond today, as rain kept the side from batting. I don't like my chances, but you never know.

Today I'm going with Sri Lanka over South Africa at 5/6 ... should have jumped on this yesterday as it was paying even money. Tomorrow I'm taking New Zealand over West Indies at 10/11. I think the West Indies side is going to be a little tired when they play their third consecutive day.

I'm taking West Indies in the first Super Eight matchup

So I completely blanked on the Super Eight starting in the Cricket World Cup this morning until literally one minute before game time.

I was kinda bummed, because I messed up again.

Turns out that BetFred offers in-game odds, so I'm taking West Indies at 15/8 over Australia in a big upset.

Part of my reasoning is that the WIndies already have 43 runs in 8.3 overs (make that 56 in 10 ... keep it up Ponting!), averaging more than five runs an over. Sure, the powerful Austrailian offense may put up more than six per over, but given that BetFred is paying nearly 2/1 on the home team and their decent start out of the gates, I'll take the dog in this battle.

I updated the results on my picks for the remainder of opening round, you can see the table with my results here ...

EDIT: So I got some bad info, and AUSTRALIA is actually pouring in the runs at better than 5/over ... gotta stick with my original call though. I obviously know nothing, as Ponting bats for the Aussies. Thankfully, I do know that Australia's nastiest batsman is done for the day!

Just who is it that signed this ball? Conversations with Len Elmore and Slick Leonard

When Lee Adams offered to trade his 1975-76 Indiana Pacers autographed basketball for my set of poker chips, I extensively researched that season. I was mostly interested in the fact that it was the final season of the ABA before the NBA merger.

I’m not a huge basketball fan, so all I really knew about the ABA was that they played with a red, white and blue ball.

It turns out that the league – and that Pacers team in particular – have a very interesting history.

Imagine playing in a league that you thought could fold at any minute.

“We were pretty confident that the Pacers were a solvent group and could survive,” said Len Elmore, one of the players who signed the ball as a second-year player for the Pacers that season. “But we still kind of peeked over our shoulders and made sure our checks would be cashed.”

“The league had come a long way, and we had some owners that just ran out of cash,” said Bob “Slick” Leonard, who coached the Pacers for 12 seasons, including eight ABA and four NBA seasons. “And we were headed in that direction ourselves. But once you’re out on the basketball floor, you’re out there to win a ball game. I didn’t really pay any attention to it.”

That Pacers team was filled with characters, including Slick Leonard himself.

“He is the prototypical old line coach,” Elmore said. “Former player, roughhouser, carouser, hard-drinking, hard-driving, but nevertheless, a basketball genius.”

With a 51-year history in the game, no one has better perspective than Slick Leonard. And while he doesn’t remember the night that Lee Adams joined his roster for an exhibition game in 1975, he does admit that it was a bit out of the ordinary.

“I wish I could remember that day,” Leonard said. “That was somewhat unusual. (Basketball) was not nearly as promotional as it is today. Today it’s entertainment city in the NBA. They’re doing all kinds of things.”

Leonard led the Pacers to the ABA Finals five times in eight years and helped the team win three ABA titles. He continued to coach the Pacers for five more seasons after the NBA merger, and is now part of the Pacers radio broadcast team, with this season representing his 40th with the team.

“I was raised in the state of Indiana and went to Indiana University,” Leonard said. “We won an NCAA Championship my junior year in 1953. Indiana is home to me, and in 40 years, there have been some great years and there have been some up and down ones.”

Leonard isn’t the only person from that team still in the game. Elmore works as a college basketball analyst for CBS and ESPN, Billy Knight is the General Manager of the Atlanta Hawks and Billy Keller runs basketball camps in Indiana.

“That’s the type of people that came up with the team,” Elmore said. “Guys that understood the game and loved the game. I think in the case of the players, we recognized the value of education and what it could do for us beyond the game of basketball.”

There’s no doubt that this Indiana Pacers team was filled with some pretty amazing guys. This autographed basketball is pretty awesome, and I kind of want to keep it for myself.

But this isn’t www.sixtycent1975-76indianapacerssignedbasketball.com, it’s sixtycentmainevent.com. So I’ve got to trade this bad boy for something that will help put me on the road to trading for an entry into the WSOP Main Event.

Make me an offer, I can’t wait. And if you want ideas on what I’m looking for in trade offers, read this post. It references the chip set, but the same guidelines apply.

Final cricket picks until Super Eight Series

I'm headed to Philadelphia for a wedding this weekend, so I probably won't have Internet acces. That means I'll have to make all my cricket picks for the remainder of the Group Stage this morning.

It's been an interesting journey so far. I'm not doing too bad, so far I'm up just over three bucks on my theoretical one dollar bets. I'd be up more if I hadn't missed the opportunity to pick games on Day 2. I'm just disappointed that Canada didn't qualify for the Super Eight Series ... would have made my 1000/1 bet on the Canucks to win the whole thing a lot more exciting.

In that spirit, I'm picking Canada to beat New Zealand (which has little to play for) in its last match of the tournament at 25/1 today. I'm also picking the Netherlands to upset Scotland at 5/4 in a match between winless teams.

Tomorrow, I'm picking Sri Lanka to knock off India at 5/6. Sri Lanka will want to take the opportunity to eliminate a formidable opponent in India given the chance, and with a loss by India and a Bangladesh win over Bermuda, Sri Lanka would accomplish just that. Ireland has already qualified for the Super Eight Series and will prove to be no match for host West Indies (1/33), which should finish the Group State with a perfect 3-0 record.

Over the weekend, I'm taking South Africa at 5/4 over Australia, England over Kenya at 1/12, and Bangladesh, which may be playing for a spot in the Super Eight Series, at 1/50 over Bermuda.

ICC World Cup Cricket Wager "History"

Date	Wagers	Amount	Odds	Status	Return
3/12	Canada to win ICC	$1	1,000/1	L	$0
3/13	PAK over WI	$1	5/4	L	$0
3/15	SL over BER	$1	1/500	W	$1.002
3/15	IRE over ZIM	$1	6/4	NA	$1
3/16	NZ over ENG	$1	5/6	W	$1.833
3/16	SA over NED	$1	1/200	W	$1.005
3/17	IND over BAN	$1	1/14	L	$0
3/17	IRE over PAK	$1	10/1	W	$10.00
3/18	AUS over NED	$1	1/500	W	$1.002
3/18	ENG over CAN	$1	1/200	W	$1.005
3/19	BER over IND	$1	66/1	L	$0
3/19	WI over ZIM	$1	1/33	W	$1.030
3/20	SA over SCOT	$1	1/100	W	$1.010
3/20	KEN over NZ	$1	16/1	L	$0
3/21	BAN over SL	$1	4/1	L	$0
3/21	PAK over ZIM	$1	1/6	W	$1.167
3/22	CAN over NZ	$1	25/1	L	$0
3/22	NED over SCOT	$1	5/4	W	$2.25
3/23	SL over India	$1	5/6	W	$1.833
3/23	WI over IRE	$1	1/33	W	$1.030
3/24	SA over AUS	$1	5/4	L	$0
3/24	ENG over KEN	$1	1/12	W	$1.083
3/25	BAN over BER	$1	1/50	W	$1.020
	Totals*	$23		14-8-1	$27.270

* NOTE: BetFred does not accept bets from U.S. residents, so this truly is for entertainment purposes only.

* Does not include pending wagers
Theoretical Profit: $4.27
Theoretical ROI: +18.6%

Quick post with picks

Gotta work on a story about NETELLER, so just quick picks this morning.

I'm taking Bangladash at 4/1 over Sri Lanka and Pakistan will win one for the Gipper, beating Zimbabwe at 1/6.

ICC World Cup Cricket Wager "History"

Date	Wagers	Amount	Odds	Status	Return
3/12	Canada to win ICC	$1	1,000/1	L	$0
3/13	PAK over WI	$1	5/4	P	$0
3/15	SL over BER	$1	1/500	W	$1.002
3/15	IRE over ZIM	$1	6/4	NA	$1
3/16	NZ over ENG	$1	5/6	W	$1.833
3/16	SA over NED	$1	1/200	W	$1.005
3/17	IND over BAN	$1	1/14	L	$0
3/17	IRE over PAK	$1	10/1	W	$10.00
3/18	AUS over NED	$1	1/500	W	$1.002
3/18	ENG over CAN	$1	1/200	W	$1.005
3/19	BER over IND	$1	66/1	L	$0
3/19	WI over ZIM	$1	1/33	W	$1.030
3/20	SA over SCOT	$1	1/100	W	$1.010
3/20	KEN over NZ	$1	16/1	L	$0
3/21	BAN over SL	$1	4/1	P
3/21	PAK over ZIM	$1	1/6	P
	Totals*	$14		8-4-1	$17.887

* NOTE: BetFred does not accept bets from U.S. residents, so this truly is for entertainment purposes only.

* Does not include pending wagers
Theoretical Profit: $1.887
Theoretical ROI: +27.8%

It's all African today

Today's World Cup Cricket picks are all African. I'm taking South Africa to beat Scotland at 1/100, and my upset special is Kenya to defeat New Zealand at 16/1.

How is Kenya going to pull off such a big upset? Well, I don't know anything about cricket, but I ran cross country and have noticed that the best distance runners in the world are all from Kenya. These matches take upwards of five or six hours, so I'm going with the guys that have proven they have the endurance.

Gotta go against India

Not because I want to, but only because I don't know what the odds would be for Bermuda. BetFred has taken India off the board, and since I pledged to pick each team in each World Cup Cricket match, I guess I have to go with Bermuda.

That's okay though, I have some breathing room after correctly taking Ireland on St. Patrick's Day at 10/1!

So today, it's Bermuda at 66/1 over India, and West Indies at 1/33 against Zimbabwe.

On the run, just picks for now

Late for a million things this morning, so no explaining.

Just Australia at 1/500 over Holland, and England at 1/200 over Canada.

St. Patty's Day surprise

With a 2-for-2 day, including a correct pick of the Kiwis in the New Zealand/England match, I'm feeling very confident in my World Cup Cricket picks.

So I enter today with lots of confidence, and there's little doubt who I'm going with in today's matches. I think India will have a fairly easy time with Bangladesh at 1/14, and I think Ireland will use the momentum gained from its after a thrilling tie with Zimababwe to upset Pakistan, who played a lackluster match against West Indies in the tournament's opening match.

Plus, who could possibly pick against the Irish on St. Patrick's Day?

Unfortunately, I think I jinxed the St. Lawrence hockey team, as they were dominated by Quinnipiac, 4-0 in the ECAC semifinals. But I'm still going with the Saints to knock of Dartmouth in the consolation game, and Clarkson to win as long as their goalie learns how to use his glove.

Day Four World Cup Cricket picks ... and ECAC hockey picks too

Today I'm going with New Zealand over the Brits at 5/6 and South Africa to beat the Netherlands, even though it only pays 1/200.

I was 1-0-1 yesterday, and even though "there was little doubt which team walked away happier," Ireland's tie still makes me feel like I'm kissing my non-existent sister. At least I was on the side of the underdog.

I completely unrelated news, I'm going with my alma mater St. Lawrence to beat Quinnipiac in the ECAC hockey semifinals and Clarkson in the league championship this weekend in Albany to earn an automatic NCAA bid. No lines or pretend bets on this one, just institutional pride.

Chuck Blount is my favorite writer

Well, I guess that's a little self-serving. But he wrote a great column about my quest, published in The San Antonio Express News today.

And while my son's name is Charlie, he's actually named for my father-in-law, not for Mr. Blount.

Day Three World Cup picks

I was on the ball yesterday and got the odds for today's cricket matches so I would be able to actually work towards my goal. Today, I'm picking Sri Lanka to beat Bermuda at 1/500 and Ireland to beat Zimbabwe at 6/4.

My reasoning? Is Bermuda even there? I heard that some of their players might be caught up in some kind of triangle ...

As for Ireland, the pick is simply "brilliant."

Already failed ... on day two

So I’ve already failed miserably.

No, I’m not distraught over Pakistan’s 54-run defeat at the hands of West Indies yesterday. You win some, you lose some. I went for the underdog, and I lost. That I can handle. (Though I’m still steaming that my instead source said that Pakistan’s Shahid Afridi was one of the most dominant batsmen in the game, and he DIDN’T EVEN PLAY!)

All I was really intending to do when I started this project was to pick EVERY Cricket World Cup match. To be honest, I didn't even care if I picked the matches correctly.

And apparently, I missed the deadline for picks in today's games this morning.

Two matches (Canada vs. Kenya and Australia vs. Scotland) are scheduled to begin 15 minutes from the time I am writing this. I figured that when I got into the office half an hour before game time, I’d be able to make some quick picks and post them before the start of the game.

But BetFred is no longer posting odds on the games. Obviously I needed to check this earlier.

So from now on, I’ll be making my picks the day before the games, rather than the day of the games. That way I’ll be sure I won’t miss.

Oh, and for what it’s worth, I was almost certain I was going with Kenya and Australia in these matches, no matter what the odds were. I know, I know, I picked Canada to win the whole thing, but that’s based solely on the 1000/1 payoff. If there’s a match with odds that positive, then I’ll take Canada then. But barring that, I’ll probably be picking against them the rest of the way.

ICC World Cup Day 1 Pick

West Indies vs. Pakistan
West Indies is a 4/7 favorite, but my money is on the inconsistent Pakistani side. West Indies may have the early emotional lift as the host, but I’m betting Pakistan’s Shahid Afridi puts together a devastating run which will suck the energy right out of the hosts. I’m putting my $1 on Pakistan to win $1.20.

ICC World Cup Cricket Wager "History"

Date	Wagers	Amount	Odds	Status	Return
3/12	Canada to win ICC	$1	1,000/1	P
3/13	WI over PAK	$1	5/4	P

* NOTE: BetFred does not accept bets from U.S. residents, so this truly is for entertainment purposes only.

Watch out cricket, here I come ...

I’m always trying to think of fun ways to get myself involved in a story. Journalism can be fun, but being personally involved in the project is much more exciting. Consider me the modern day gambling equivalent of George Plimpton.

Since I started writing for Casino City, most of my schemes to inject myself into a story have involved poker (e.g., The 24-hour game, Sixty Cent Main Event, Freerollin’). I guess that’s only natural, since that’s the game I know the most about.

Poker has always been the most interesting casino game to me because over the long term, the quality of your play will determine your results. If you play well against opponents who make mistakes, you’ll win money.

But the reality is there’s a lot more to the gambling world than poker. So I decided it’s time to branch out. I don’t want to waste my time on roulette “strategies” that claim to beat the house edge. Nor do I believe the fools that spout the “golden” theory that it’s possible to control a roll of the dice in a craps game.

I do believe, however, that it’s possible to be a winner making sports bets. I also believe that there’s no way in hell that I could be one of those winners.

Sports handicappers spend a lot of time analyzing teams, injuries, weather reports, etc. In other words, they know way more than I do. I can’t outsmart these guys. But I thought it would be fun to try.

I decided – purely for entertainment purposes – that I would pick a side for each Major League Baseball game this year and publish my picks every day. My pretend wager would be $1 for each game, and I would track my results for the entire season.

Now while I am a baseball fan, I am by no means an expert. Living in Boston, I know plenty about the Red Sox and most of the rest of the AL East, but I couldn’t name more than one starting pitcher for most other teams.

I pitched the idea to my editor, giving him the following reasoning:

1. It would be fun to see how a regular schmo does against oddsmakers over an entire season.
2. Each pick would be accompanied by two or three comedic sentences, most using my own incompetence as a punch line.
3. It would be interesting to see if I got better as the season progressed and I learned more

My editor gave me one of the best rejections I’ve heard yet.

“It’s both a brilliant idea and a terrible idea,” Vin said.

Umm, last I checked, that’s impossible. Please explain.

Apparently, during his time at USA Today, Vin was given the task of selecting a winner in every NHL playoff game one season. While the NHL was his beat, this turned into a Herculean task that ate up most of his working day.

Vin liked the idea of posting my picks alongside some cutting wit, but he didn’t like the idea of using the MLB schedule, what with its 2,430 regular season games spanning six months. Okay, even I will admit that I was biting off a little more than I could chew.

So instead of baseball, Vin pointed me to the ICC Cricket World Cup which begins tomorrow.

Now there’s a sport I know absolutely nothing about. And with a much more limited schedule, it’s actually feasible. I'll be using BetFred's lines for the duration of the tournament, "wagering" $1 on the winner of every match*. Later today I'll be posting my picks for tomorrow's match between West Indies and Pakistan.

Oh, and just to prove how little I actually know about this, I'm laying $1 down on Canada to win the whole thing at 1,000/1. This pick is purely based on regional pride. I grew up on the Canadian border in Northern New York. And while I'm told that Canada's odds are actually much-longer than 1,000/1, if I get this one right, well then the rest just won't matter.

ICC World Cup Cricket Wager "History"

Date	Wagers	Amount	Odds	Status	Return
3/12	Canada to win ICC	$1	1,000/1	Pending

* NOTE: BetFred does not accept bets from U.S. residents, so this truly is for entertainment purposes only.

Addiction, thy name is Chinese Poker

Sure, the editorial team at Casino City reads what the other poker Web sites put out there. Hey, we’re not ones to overlook our competition. And we’ll even give their ideas a try once in a while.

So when we read a recent two-part series on Pokernews (see, we even name the competitor’s site) on how to play Chinese Poker, we decided it would be worth testing out a few hands in the office.

I don’t think our editor realized how addictive the game would become.

No money ever changes hands in our office game; we only play for bragging rights. There has been talk lately of finding a small trophy that the winner could display in his cube until the next game, but nothing has materialized as of yet.

Regardless, usually during our lunch break or after 5 p.m., someone starts shuffling a deck of cards and we gather around the table for a hand or two of Chinese Poker.

Chinese Poker is the perfect card game for the office, because you can easily play two hands during a five-minute break and get right back to work. There’s no folding in Chinese Poker, so every hand is interesting. And there’s always room for debate – something every member of a newsroom loves – on how each player constructed his hand once it’s time to reveal.

So if you’re looking for a quick diversion from every day life, Chinese Poker just might be for you.

Basic rules of Chinese Poker

• Two, three or four player may play a standard game
• Each player is dealt 13 cards
• Players arrange their cards into two five-card hands and one three-card hand
• The highest ranked five-card hand is set in the back
• The middle hand is five cards and is lower in rank than the back hand
• The three card hand goes in front and must be lower in rank than both five-card hands
• Straights and flushes do not apply to the three-card hand
• Each hand is compared to all other players’ hands heads up
• If you win two out of three hands against a player, you win two chips from that player
• If you sweep all three hands against a player, you win four chips from that player

TRADING NOTE: I'm still accepting trade offers for the Pacers basketball. Seen some interesting offers. Sorry, I'm not accepting a set of 500 poker chips for the ball ... nice try.

Stay tuned for some fun stuff soon, including some great publicity, and believe it or not, cricket!