Gambling

I guess Carson Palmer is healthy! Playing in his first game since his knee injury in last season’s playoffs, Palmer threw three touchdown passes Monday (was 9-of-14 for 140 yards), as the Bengals beat the Packers 48-17. He’s the first player to throw three touchdowns in a preseason game this year, as the Bengals moved to 3-0 for the first time in preseason play since 1976. The win also guarantees the team its first winning preseason since 1988.

My free play for Tuesday is on the NY Yankees over the Det Tigers at 7:05 ET. My 9-0 win on the A’s last night (Las Vegas Insiders in MLB are now 9-1 since 8/5!) ups my all-sports run to 20-6 since 8/18. I look to continue my 10-2 MLB since 8/21 tonight, with two blockbuster 15* plays. My Underdog of the Month and a rare “Road Warrior” play. Get them BOTH, right now!

The Bengals ended a 14-year playoff drought last season by going 11-5 and winning the AFC North. However, they lost their wild card game at home to the Steelers 31-17, in a game Palmer was injured in on his first pass attempt of the contest. Last night’s game completed Week 3 action, as home teams went 11-5 SU and 10-6 ATS. They are 30-18 SU through three weeks with ATS records of 26-21-1.

The Bengals’ 48-point effort topped their 44-point effort in Week 2 (beat the Bills in Buffalo, 44-31), as the most points scored by any team this preseason. The Patriots, in their 41-0 shut out of the Redskins Saturday night, are the only other team this year to reach the 40-point mark. New England’s 41-point win marked the largest margin of victory in the preseason by any NFL team since the Seahawks beat the Colts 45-3 back in 1997 (pre-Peyton).

Just one team scored as many as 30 points in Week 1 (the Jags in their 31-26 win at Miami), seven teams score at least 30 in Week 2 and Week 3 play saw four teams reach at least 30 points. Adding in the HOF game, there have been 21 ‘overs’ and 28 ‘unders’ so far. Five teams remain unbeaten, with the Raiders leading the way at 4-0. The five teams have also combined to go 16-0 ATS. Four teams remain winless, going a combined 1-11 ATS.

Those numbers make sense, as through 49 games of this year’s preseason, 45 of the 49 SU winners have also been the ATS winners of their games. Week 4 begins with 12 games on Thursday, August 31 and concludes with four games on Friday, September 1. The NFL’s 2006 regular season opens on Thursday, September 7, when the Steelers host the Dolphins at 8:30 ET on NBC.

MLB notes

The Marlins extended MLB’s longest active winning streak to eight consecutive games by beating the Brewers last night, 4-2. Florida has recovered from an 11-31 start to go 53-35 (Marlins also opened 2-13 at home but have since gone 33-17) and now sits just two games behind the Reds in the NL wild card race. The NL wild card race figures to go down to the season’s last few days, as currently six teams are within 2 1/2 games of the lead.

MLB’s longest active losing streak is just four games, a mark held by five teams. The Red Sox are one of those teams with four straight losses, the third time this month the team’s had a losing streak of at least four games. Boston has lost 12 of 15 and its 8-19 mark in August is a ML-worst. Speaking of losing streaks, the Mariners ended one of epic proportions last night. Felix Hernandez pitched a five-hitter for his first career shutout, leading Seattle over the Los Angeles Angels 2-0 and stopping the Mariners’ 20-game losing streak against the AL West. Seattle’s losing streak was the longest against division rivals since the big leagues split into divisions in 1969. It matched the 1969 Montreal Expos’ skid against the NL West for the longest slide against teams from any division.

Seattle’s previous win against an AL West team was June 11, when it completed a three-game sweep of the Angels. Monday’s game took just 1 hour, 51 minutes, the fastest in the history of Safeco Field, which opened in July 1999 and was Seattle’s fifth straight win, tying a season-high. Another game worthy of mention from last night was Oakland’s 9-0 win over the Red Sox.

Esteban Loaiza threw seven scoreless innings against the Red Sox, and over his last four starts he’s allowed only one earned run in 30.2 innings, for a 0.29 ERA. No other pitcher has allowed as few as one earned run in as many as 30 innings over four starts this season. Four pitchers did it last year: Jae Seo, Chris Carpenter, Mark Buehrle and Kenny Rogers.

Loaiza’s run may remind some of Cory Lidle’s season for the A’s in 2002. Loaiza had a 6.41 ERA in 87 innings before his hot streak began. Lidle had a 5.15 ERA in 113.2 innings in 2002, then did not allow an earned run in 38 innings over next five starts, and only one earned run in 45 2/3 innings over his next six starts.

Besides those two A’s pitchers, no one else in the last 30 years has had a run of four starts with zero or one earned runs in at least 30 innings, after having an ERA over 5.00 in at least 75 innings on the season when the streak began.

It’s another full 15-game MLB schedule tonight, highlighted by the Tigers and Yankees in New York at 7:05 ET in the opening game of their three-game series. Detroit (82-49) and New York (77-52) both have comfortable leads in their divisions, but the Yankees have managed to pull within four games of the Tigers for the best record in the AL. New York has picked up ground on Detroit by going 27-16 since the All-Star break while the Tigers have gone 23-20.

Nate Robertson (11-10, 4.10) was one of the leaders in the Tigers’ surprising start to the season, going 8-3 with a 3.14 ERA in his first 16 starts. However, he’s 3-7 with a 5.50 ERA over his last 10 outings heading into tonight’s game. The Yankees go with Chien-Ming Wang (15-5, 3.81 ERA). Wang owns a 4.88 road ERA but is 9-1 at home in 13 starts (Yanks are 11-2) with an ERA of 2.66.

Ness Notes is available Monday through Friday by 1:00 ET.

Strange, strange, strange line for the Steelers/Saints game at the Big Ketchup this weekend. New Orleans is 6-2, with an exciting aerial attack, visiting Pittsburgh, who’s 2-6, and just gave up three touchdown passes to Jake Plummer. The Saints have the fourth-best passing offense in the game; the Steelers have allowed big days by Carson Palmer, Philip Rivers, Michael Vick and Plummer. And the Steelers are favored by 4.5?

Well, either the Wise Guys know something the rest of us don’t, or the AFC is about 7,000 times better than the NFC. The Saints got cremated at home by Baltimore a couple weeks back, and squeaked past Cleveland in their only other game against an AFC team. The Steelers lost 41-38 at Atlanta (a team, granted, that the Saints pulverized) in a game where they lost their starting quarterback to a concussion. The combined record of the teams New Orleans has beaten is 18-30 (Cleveland, Green Bay, Atlanta, Philadelphia and Tampa Bay twice). The combined record of the teams that defending-champ Pittsburgh has lost to is 28-20 (Jacksonville, Cincinnati, San Diego, Atlanta, Oakland and Denver).

Would the six best AFC teams all beat anyone the NFC could muster in a Super Bowl? Could be. Miami crushing Chicago at Solider Field last weekend certainly didn’t make the NFC look good. But that huge upset came in a game where the Bears were double-digit favorites. This Saints/Steelers line is like a “pre-upset.” Any time a 2-6 team topples a 6-2 team, no matter where the game is played, that’s supposed to be a pretty big surprise, right? Evidently not.

Like a lot of people, I was skeptical about Drew Brees’s shoulder, about the New Orleans defense, about Joe Horn’s health and Sean Payton’s first season as a head coach. I still don’t think they’re an elite team, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see them get knocked off in the first round of the playoffs. But I do think they’ll be in the playoffs, which is more than I can say for Pittsburgh. Brees has made all the throws, WR Marques Colston is the Rookie of the Year to this point, and the defense has made enough plays in most games to keep the team close. If Pittsburgh really does topple New Orleans this weekend, there will be no more ringing condemnation of the NFC’s quality, and that includes the Bears’ disappointing performance last week.

The Colts are the only defeated team in football. They’re also on pace right now to be a historically bad run defense. They’ve given up the second-highest yards-per-carry to opposing running backs since 1960. Can this team win a championship?

BoDog Bookmakers, BoDog.ws : Yes, the Colts are undefeated and coming off big wins over Denver and New England the last two weeks, but this team can’t stop the run, and doesn’t have a consistent enough running game to worry teams come January. This has many believing that Indianapolis will be forced to win games in their vintage style, which is not enough to convince bookmakers that this season will end any better than in recent years.

How has the action been for Sunday night games, compared to Monday night games this year, and what the “old” Monday night games on ABC used to do? Has Sunday night really taken over as “Football Night in America” in the gaming community?

BDB, BoDog.ws : Sunday Night match-ups have been far more appealing than Monday night’s, but the action is, and will likely always be, significantly greater for Monday Night Football games. The reason for this is simple: Sunday night games have to compete against all the early NFL games and usually a full NBA card for bettors’ money, while Monday night games dominate what people can bet on.

It’s a mighty big if, but if Rutgers somehow upsets Louisville this week, and winds up going undefeated, do you think they’ll play the Ohio State/Michigan winner for the national championship?

BDB, BoDog.ws : We think that if a team comes out undefeated from a major conference, and there’s no other undefeated team that can match their record, they should play for the National Championship. Is this fair? No; but this is not a flawless system where the two best teams play at the end. There are a couple of one-loss teams who can match up better vs. the winner of the Ohio State/Michigan game than Rutgers.

The Florida Gators are the consensus pick to repeat as NCAA hoops champions. What do you think about the likelihood of that? If there’s one team to unseat Florida, who would it be?

BDB, BoDog.com “>BoDog.ws: Although it’s unlikely that they’ll repeat as NCAA basketball champions, the Gators will be better than they were during last year’s regular season and earn a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament. The Final Four is incredibly tough to win and they face long odds to repeat last March’s incredible run. It’s possible, but only two preseason #1 ranked teams have won the NCAA Tournament in the last 10 years: UConn in 2004 and Kentucky in 1996. If any team can unseat them and cut down the nets at the end of the Tournament, Kansas looks like they present the greatest threat; the Jayhawks are loaded with talent everywhere and return all five starters from a team that won 15 of its final 17 games and captured the Big 12 regular-season and tournament titles.

Why would you bother going to the casino when you can gamble in the comfort and safety of your own home? You don’t have to worry about finding a parking spot, and you certainly don’t have to fight to get a spot on a table. On the other hand, land based casinos offer social interaction, food and drinks, and a way to escape from your home for a while. Lets take a look at these factors in a bit more detail to decide which form of gambling is best for you.

Benefits of online casinos

1) Complete privacy

I love gambling at home on my computer. My girlfriend has absolutely no idea, and cannot call me a gambling addict. I also have the pleasure of never running into anyone I don’t want to see in public.

2) Convenience

I hate going to the casino and having to worry about finding a parking spot, having to wait for a position on a poker table, or roulette table. I’d much rather be on my computer, able to gamble whenever I feel like it, without any delays, or any inconveniences.

3) Big bonuses

How many land based casinos offer you bonuses just for playing there? Absolutely none, based on the casinos I have visited!

4) Safety

If you win a lot of money, you can feel safe knowing you won’t get robbed as you walk towards your car.

Benefits of land based casinos

1) Social interaction

You can meet a lot of interesting people at the casino, and a lot of attractive members of the opposite sex. Casinos are great places for meeting people and making new friends.

2) Food and drinks

I love going to the casino and ordering a cold drink and a nice hot snack. You can do that for yourself at home, but it isn’t the same experience.

3) Entertainment

Casinos often contain night clubs, and various entertaining activities. Most importantly, they offer us a way to get out of our homes (which is especially good when boredom sets in). You can’t get that from gambling at home behind your computer.

Online casinos and land based casinos offer us different benefits. Depending on your needs, its up to you to determine which form of gambling is better suited to your lifestyle. For me though, the decision is very easy. Since I don’t like fighting for a parking spot, driving for extended periods, and waiting for a table, I’d take an online casino over a land based casino any day of the week.

The importance of taking notes on your opponents can’t be stressed enough. The more you play, the more you value the information that you have collected on each player at your table. It is quite an advantage to know that player “A” likes to bluff a lot and that player “B” only plays if he has a big pair

Taking notes on the other players at your table, online, is very easy. On some sites, they even put a marker on the player if you have written a note on him before.

When you start taking notes just watch the opponents that stand out, like the over aggressive player that raises every betting round and ends up throwing his hand away at the river.

It’s best if you start developing some sort of code system to classify each player. This can be a set of numbers, a group of letters, or anything that will remind you of the way he plays.

Learn to classify players. This will help you in remembering their play the next time you run up against them. Think of them in terms of tight or loose and passive or aggressive. I like to assign numbers for tight or loose and letters for passive or aggressive. For example a very loose passive player might be coded as “8” for his loose play and “A” for his passive play.

Remember when you are watching the other players to keep an eye out for the very tight ones. These players are either too tight and passive or they are just tight, and aggressive when they have good cards. It is very easy to over look them as they are not in many hands. And the tight aggressive player is the most dangerous at the table.

Look for special betting traits that you see.

• Does this player always bet on the button if it hasn’t been bet before his turn?
• Does this player like to raise from early position with high cards?
• Does this player slow play high pairs and sets?
• The list can go on, but you get the idea.

Write all this information in your notes, it will give you a tremendous advantage as time goes on.

When you run into a player that you have a note on, review the note. Watch him for a while to see that he still plays the way your note says he does. Many times a player will improve his play with time and you should recognize this and adjust your notes.

In the end it just comes down to having more information about other players at your table. How you use that knowledge is still the most important thing.

Good Luck

Freerolls are the free tournaments of online poker. There is no entrance fee as in real life tournaments and there are money prices offered usually by the organizer or by the sponsors of that particular game. How to play better if you are engaged in such a tournament will be explained in this article, given the fact that people play freerolls in a strange way, and there isn’t such a big commitment because nobody is loosing money.

When deciding to go on and enter a freeroll you must pick a moment when your patience resources are at the top measure. These types of tournaments last a lot mostly because there are many players involved.

After entering, you must play more aggressively than you would usually do. When having a hand like AA or KK you must raise or increase the bid. You will surely get a call, because of so many participants. And you need at least one or two or the bid will lose its power after the flop.

You must play fewer hands. Just wait for the proper cards and play them aggressively. If in normal poker tournaments, played for money, people don’t call all the time when they see a big raise from an aggressive player, in freerolls things usually are quite the opposite. If a bad hand appears, drop it. Drop even hands like 6-6, 4-4. But try not to be predicable because some players might keep an eye on you and if you end up playing the finals with them they can tell the way your playing style.

Take a good lock at your position. It helps to know when you are in the first positions and when you are among the last ones. If you get a hand containing Q-10, J-6 and you are in the first positions you should throw them. If on the other hand you are last then call.

As in all types of online poker games, you have to find a way to stay focused. There are many temptations if you get bored and nothing to restrain you from them. There is TV, emails, chatting, talking on the phone. All that must be avoided. Another thing that you must avoid is bluffing. The chances that someone would actually keep on playing are pretty high in this type of competition.

Don’t go changing that lucky card or draw. If you almost have a flush or a straight it’s tempting to go along with it, but when you have to give away many chips in order to do that it is not recommended. The one that raised the bid so high must already have something and you still need a card or two to actually have a good hand.

These types of tournaments must not be taken as a model. They don’t really mean poker, they are full of beginners and the lack of the actual chance of wining or loosing at every hand affects the normal ways of poker. Try not to give importance to hand you’ve lost or won here, just get over them quickly. Freerolls are not to be played forever because they can make you create a style of playing that is not recommended for real poker. Play freerolls when you are a beginner or out of money, and with the money won here play ring games or real tournaments.

The top poker games depend on the player. Some people love video poker—man against machine. Sure, your chances for winning aren’t as great as playing against a human player, but when it comes to gambling, to each his own. Blackjack is not your best game statistically either, but that doesn’t stop people from playing the game. When it comes down to it, you have a better chance of winning a game you enjoy.

There are a number of video poker games available. Deuces Wild, Jokers Wild, Jacks or Better, and All-American are some of the top poker variations you’ll find at online casinos. Some casinos will have one or two video poker variations, while others will have the gamut. It may take a few games to decide which one you like best, so play at an online casino that has a wide variety of top poker selections.

It is not uncommon for experienced video poker players to play more than one type of video poker. A video poker aficionado might have more than one window open at the same time. The trick to winning is to not aim too high. While you might want to go for that Royal Flush and get a big payout, you can actually win more money if you get a series of lower-playing hands.

This is the main secret behind how top poker players operate. With online gambling, slow and steady wins the race. Don’t bet it all too early. If you win a few dollars here, there on smaller hands, this can really build up in the long run. Once you have built up a pot with smaller wins, you can then think about making larger and larger bets. Top poker players do not make huge bets right off because they know this will land them quickly in the red. Just like live poker, video poker takes a little bit of finesse.

What is especially great in online poker games is the fact that you get to choose the card room that you will be participating in. Although in live poker games, you also have the same privilege, poker rooms online are vastly different.

Perhaps one advice that professional poker players can give novices is that once you have found the perfect poker room for you, you have already won half of the battle. Believe it or not, there are poker rooms online that are more profitable than others. Every poker room offers something different to a player. A player must know then which of the poker rooms suit him best.

Look into the games

There are so many kinds of online poker that it is hard to keep track of all of them. Before getting started, narrow down your search for the poker rooms by considering those that offer the games that you would like to play. Most sites would indicate the kinds of games that are being played in the room before you enter.

Look into the numbers

Poker is a card game but in choosing a poker room, you need to think numbers first before symbols and suits. Determine the number of players in the room before joining. Chances are, the bigger the population, the harder will it be for you to win.

Look into the players

If you can watch a game, go ahead and observe. This will help you determine the kind of players each room has. Of course, if you are just a novice player, you would not want to join a room with experienced players unless you want to end up as minced meat. Often, sites will have rooms for amateurs and another room for professionals.

You should also take note of additional features of the rooms that will help you with your game. For instance, some online poker rooms allow players to talk to each other and communicate.

Look for bonuses

Choose rooms that offer special packages and bonuses to players. This is especially advantageous to players who play deep and bet large amounts of money. There also sites that offer sign-up bonuses that players can take advantage of. Be careful though because some bogus operations use these sign-up packages to lure customers in.

Look into the reviews

Before joining a room, look at poker reviews posted on the site. For novices or those who are just starting to learn, it is a good idea to join rooms that are highly-rated for novices. You should also look into the reputation of the room. Do players win in the room? How many games do they offer? What kind of payment schemes do they go for?

Look into the payment and collecting scheme

You are gambling not only for leisure but also to win money. Before you go about betting your money, make sure that you know clearly how the payment scheme works. Most use credit cards or debit cards in placing their bets online. The same is also used to deposit winnings.

Another way to deposit and withdraw money for online poker games is through the Neteller, which works like an ATM. You can actually withdraw your winnings in cash within 24 hours. Also, some poker rooms and gambling sites offer special bonuses when a player uses the Neteller.

For years now, growing revenues from poker play at racetracks have been adding millions to Florida’s tax coffers. The surging popularity of Texas Hold ‘em and tournament poker has added even more fuel to the growth of Florida tax earnings, until now.

Recently, some racetracks decided to up the ante and challenge legal limits on amounts wagered in poker play. Initially, state courts didn’t object to the challenge, allowing the Florida state Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering to increase betting limits at authorized sites. When no-limit wagering at poker tournaments made its debut, however, officials decided to step in and cease all tournament poker activity indefinitely.

Though cash games (mostly low limit) can still be played at the racetracks, some sites, such as Dania Jai-Alai and Melbourne Greyhound Park, have already started to see a drop in patronage. Other card rooms, particularly in southern Florida, reported no significant changes thus far as a consequence of the legal ruling.

There is tremendous competition for clientèle in the gaming industry, mainly from cruise ships, tribal casinos, and online gambling sites. Understandably, then, the ban on poker tournaments has many Florida card room managers concerned. Most of them, however, are hesitant to contest the issue openly since they have a vested interest in the promotion of gambling in the state.

For questions, feel free to contact the OPN Staff.

© 2005 OPN - The best of Online Poker

Games are always essential for the people for enjoyment and relaxation. Gambling is very popular among the crowd as it combines the enthusiasm of a game as well as the thrill of risk. Casinos are present in every nook and corner of the world. However, they were not sufficient to satisfy the gambling quest of the gambling fanatics. With development of communication technology the gambling lovers had a find a room for them in the internet.

Online gambling has become very popular through the online casino with in a very short of time. In the beginning, the success of the online casino was suspected because of the fear that whether gambling lovers could feel the same pleasure of original gambling. However, the fear was in vain since the online casino retain the enthusiasm of the original gambling in online gambling without loosing its thrill. Online casino actually enabled the gambling lovers to satisfy the quest for gambling irrespective of their location. If a computer with internet connection is available, anyone can play online gambling from the online casino sites. Moreover, the convenience of playing online gambling attracted many new players to the online casinos. In the conventional society, gambling was restricted to some class of people or it was difficult for everyone to approach a casino. But online casinos opened the avenue of gambling to everyone. To add on, now the possibility of online casino has reached to a state that online gambling is a home business more than a pastime.

Online casino offer most of the gambling games such as Baccarat, French Roulette, Craps, European Roulette, Red Dog, American Roulette, Casino War, Keno, Blackjack, Sic Bo, Blackjack Surrender, Baccarat online, Blackjack Switch. The online poker games include Texas Hold’em, Omaha Hi-Lo, Poker Omaha, and Tournaments. The online slot has progressed far beyond the traditional games into graphical games such as Triple Profits, Dinosaur Slots, Diamond Valley, Ocean Princess, Crazy 7, Chinese Kitchen, Alien Alert, Party Line, Happy Fruits, Garden of eden, Speed’o'meter, Goblin’s Cave, and many more.

Online casino play can be performed mainly in two ways. The earlier introduced online casino play was to download your favorite game into the computer and whenever you want play the game; you have to run the game. Some casinos have introduced download games in local languages as it will make the person more comfortable to play. However ‘download and play’ online gambling has several drawbacks such as every time you have to resort to a same computer and freedom of mobility will be restricted. Moreover you require more time to download the game if your internet speed is very low. Flash casino games are a better option of online casino games as there is no requirement for the download of the games. You can simply enter the online casino website and start playing. It gives more attraction to the online casino play as people can now enter to casino from any computer and start gambling.

Online casino attained this much recognition from the people with its flexibility in the online gambling payment. Primarily, you have to start an account in the online casino website. The procedure of the account opening is very easy and you can avail the assistance from the website, if you find any difficulty. The money can be transferred using any of the credit cards and online funds transfer services. The money transaction will be safe, secure and you will get promo bonuses occasionally. If lucky enough, you can withdraw your earnings and jackpot through the same account. However the main attraction of online casinos is the free games. You can play whatever you want using the free casino games without opening a money transaction account in the online casino. The free online gambling will also help you to become masters in the online gambling, through repeated playing without the tension of loosing money.

However, online casinos have small differences from the real casinos. While playing online gambling, you have to keep in mind about the differences. The lack of knowledge about the opponents has to be tackled using effective strategies in online casinos to assure your winning in the online gambling. Hence playing online casino can be as interesting as real casinos, if you are conscious enough and it can be more convenient as you become used to it.

Online Video Poker Gambling has become very popular with the masses and almost all the real life casinos are making entry into this online business of poker gambling. Online Video Poker Gambling brings about more comforts along with it, like one can play the online poker and gamble for it while sitting on his bed, sipping a coffee! The Online Video Poker Gambling has fast become an accepted online gambling game, which consists of a basic poker game and a slot machine to gamble. Here are some of the basic rules that are followed while playing Online Video Poker Gambling. However, this online game is much more different than one played at the casinos.

The online video poker gambling has five cards from a deck for each player and a player can put off one or more cards that he has and can also replace them with others. After the draw has been clicked, the cards the players get this time will be the final pack for them. If the final hand is good enough, you win the pot. However, this type of play is fine with players who want to check their guesses with the slot machine. This requires a lot of skill on the part of the player. One can surely win many times if he is very well experienced with online video poker gambling and of course his guesses!

The online video poker gambling allows a player to select the cards, which means that the chances of winning are much higher as the issue of holding and retaining cards lies wholly with the player. Although both video poker and slot machines are housed in the metal cabinet with coins slots, the two games are almost poles apart. While slot machine winnings depend solely on chance and luck, Online Video Poker Gambling games involve a lot of thinking skills as well as familiarity with the game.

In the game of online video poker gambling, bluffers just cannot bluff any more, simple the reason that there are no opponents. The player is playing with a computer as an opponent, which of course know what you hand is. With video poker, it is the strength of the hand combination that you have created that will determine how many times you win the chances.

Of course, there are different hand combinations every time in this online video poker gambling, you will get the hang of it sure enough.

Copyright - 2006 Steve Fransisco