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May 30, 2006

Puttering Along

I thought I would do much more sports betting over the holiday weekend than I ended up doing.  It's not that I didn't try to do more, but I just wasn't finding many good lines.  I found a few, though, and turned a profit.

I busted out of WagerWeb.  Then reloaded and busted out again.  I loaded up $50 at Bodog to play in the casino on Friday, and quit when I was still even.  Put that $55 to work on a sports bet, and won it at Bodog.  Then I had someone take me up on my Bodog bonus sharing offer, which put some additional money in my account.  I bet that twice and won at Bodog both times.  I thought I had met the WR, but got an e-mail from Bodog this morning that I had not, so I guess I'll be looking for some more lines there this evening.

I was going to tackle BetJamaica, but there is some strangeness with my account there, related to me being an affiliate.  Basically, I can't tell if I'm logging in as an affiliate or as a bettor, and I don't want the confusion to cost me the bonus.  I am waiting on some clarification from BetJamaica before I make my deposit.

Still reading Sharp Sports Betting.  It gets more math intensive than I was prepared for, but I can follow it if I focus.  There are lots of good ideas for finding regular betting (not scalping) opportunites, and I may put some of these to work when football season comes around.  The author has only mentioned scalping once thus far, describing an opportunity he once found on a boxing match between two Las Vegas sportsbooks that was an arb - he could bet $100 on every outcome and be profitable.  He finished that paragraph with the remark, "that's not gambling, that's investing."  I enjoyed that.

I am inquiring with some other sportsbooks about expanding the free book offer deal.  Hopefully I can announce it before the end of the week.

May 26, 2006

Happy Trails

Got my cashout from Pinnacle in about 12 hours, and have started betting again.  I am cycling some of it through WagerWeb, but I think I am also going to try another book or two.  Not sure which ones yet.  I have quite a few now to choose from, so I'll look them over and fire one up later today.

I dropped by Mrs Bull's office yesterday, and struck up a short conversation with a guy there who also bets on sports.  He is using Tradesports, and LOVES it.  I checked it out, and it is an exchange where bettors can go and offer or bid on sportsbetting contracts much like they would do a stock futures contract.  I didn't have time to check it out thoroughly, but it seemed promising.  One of the first lines I checked that was being offered would have made a 1.5 point arb on a line at Pinnacle.  There are other sports betting exchanges, too, so these may be the next wave of things to check out.

I also got an indication yesterday that Bullsbetting is gaining a little headway in the online sportsbetting space.  Several months ago I applied for an affiliate agreement with BetJamaica.  They never responded.  I pinged them a few times with e-mails, but they ignored me.  Yesterday I re-applied and I received a notice a few hours later that they would be happy have BullsBetting as an affiliate.  All part of my master plan to take over the internet.  Surprised

May 24, 2006

Quick Update

I have won 12 of my last 14 bets at Pinnacle.  I am a scalper on 'roids or something.  Except all my money is there, and I am having to pay a $15 fee to get it out.  I took cashouts from Will Hill (Poker and Casino), Betfred Poker and Hollywood Poker.  I had a few hundred scattered amongst those three sites, just collecting dust.  I cycled almost all of that through Bodog last night in one bet.  It's now in Pinnacle.  I requested a withdrawal from Pinnacle this morning.  It usually takes them about 24 hours to process that, then I'll be abck at WagerWeb I think.  Or maybe I'll try another book.

Vive la Pinney!

May 21, 2006

Too Much of a Good Thing

I keep busting everything early.  It's pretty sweet, but it's all ending up in Pinnacle, and they only allow one free withdrawal per month.  I made mine on May 5, so if tonight's bet busts into Pinnacle, I may have to wait until June 5 before I can bet again.  Maybe I'll rob my Poker accounts for some excess - now that I'm playing micro-limits again.

YOU CANNOT HAVE TOO MUCH MONEY TO CHASE AT SPORTSBOOKS.

Since my initial goof at WagerWeb, I have reloaded there 4 times.  I busted the first three in one bet, and could make it a clean sweep tonight.  Loving that 15% every Neteller deposit.  I also found a SWEET 16-point arb between Pinney and Players SuperBook, and that busted into Pinney as well.  I was really hoping it would bust into PSB, as I can withdraw from there on Thursday.  As it stands, I'll not need to make a withdrawal from PSB at all.  Surprised

Of course, another option is that I can pay for a withdrawal from Pinnacle.  It's like 2%, I believe.  I suspect I can make more on the amount withdrawn that the 2% fee, so its probably worthwhile to suck up the fee and be earning for the next two weeks.  I just hate paying Neteller fees.  Part of the cost of doing business, I suppose.

 

May 19, 2006

"Life's Tough, It's Tougher When You're Stupid"

That's a John Wayne movie line from The Sands of Iwo Jima.  It applies to me this week.

Turns out I DID bust at WagerWeb in one bet....I just didn't bust OUT of WagerWeb.  I screwed up and made the SAME bet at Pinnacle and WagerWeb by mistake.  I took the under on the first half of the Spurs game at both books, and lost both bets.  Down $285 plus $100 of lost bonus opportunity.  Youch! 

Yesterday morning I only checked Pinnacle before I posted here.  I saw I had lost the bet at Pinnacle, and not yet realizing my error, just assumed my money was in WagerWeb.  When I checked yesterday evening, I discovered what I had done.  CURSES!  Ahhhh, well....the cost of doing busines sometimes.  So, learn from my mistake, and be more careful when placing those wagers! 

This is actually not the costliest goof I've ever made.  I once bet a halftime moneyline against the full game money line on a college hoops game. $750 vs $1250.  I realized my mistake about an hour before tipoff.  I called Pinnacle, and asked if I could cancel the bet there, explaining that I meant to bet the whole game.  The CS rep said that she would need to ask management and would get back to me - its not their policy to allow cancellations, etc.  About 10 minutes to game time there was no movement, but I could not wait any longer - I had to take my son to his scout meeting.  I ran him down there and came back to find that my Pinnacle bet had been cancelled about 2 minutes after I left the computer - so now I had only one open bet for $750 on the dog for the full game.  The game had started and it was too late to place the offsetting bet.

With $750 on the line I found that game on the radio.  The underdog was up by 12 at the half (meaning I would have lost the Pinnacle bet that was cancelled!)  They sucked in the third quarter, though and let the favorite back in.  It was neck and neck throughout the 4th quarter.  With 12 seconds to go, it was tied, and my team had the ball to throw in from mid-court.  They set up the shot, but missed!  But, wait....we get an offensive rebound and he puts it in at the buzzer!!!!  I win $1250!!!!  Wait...wait...no...the ref waves off the basket!  The ref saw a push-off on that offensive rebound...No Basket...NO BASKET!!!!  The other team gets a 1-1 free throw with 0.4 seconds left on the clock.  He drains the first one and I lose $750.  A $2,000 turn on my bankroll in about 45 seconds.  GAHHHHHH!!!!!!!!

In retrospect, I should have just placed another $2,000 in wagers off-setting on the half time and full game lines.  I would have eaten $100 - $200 in juice, but it would have been preferable to the exposure I ended up with.  I was even more of a noob then, and I panicked and called Pinnacle first.  Once the possible cancellation was hanging out there, I couldn't really make any moves until I found out for sure what Pinnacle was going to do - and once I did, it was too late.  Live and learn.

I'd be $1,000 richer right now if I was more careful when I placed my bets.  Don't let this happen to you!

May 18, 2006

WagerWebbing

I signed up for WagerWeb last night and made my $100 deposit for the $100 bonus.  Took a five-point bad deal, but failed to bust it, so I have $420 in there now.  I expect to get it all in again today.  There were only 3 games left on the rotation when i signed up.  Too early to tell if the lines will be friendly vs Pinnacle.

I had to contact customer service via live chat to get the bonus credited.  All I had to say was that I signed up via BullsBetting and it was credited in 2 minutes.  Not too strenuous.

I also found a dead even play on the O/U for the first half of last nights NBA game at Player's Super-Book.  That broke toward PSB, so I seem to be alleviating some of the pressure on Pinnacle, while also giving PSB some overplay.  Not a bad deal.  I still can't cash out of PSB until the 24th, so I may look for some additional opportunities over the next week.

May 17, 2006

Thank You Oakland

Got my last $1,000 in at ActionBets at +150 on Seattle (-1.5) and took a corresponding bet at Pinnacle on Oakland at -155 (+1.5) for $1525 (wins $983.87).  Oakland wins it 12 - 6, and I am bust at Actionbets.  So I took a $16.13 loss (1.6% on the $1K I bet) just to clear ActionBets and be done there.  Betting baseball there was tough.  I'm gonna take a look at them again when football starts, but for baseball (vs Pinnacle) , they are hurting.  I kept $257 of the bonus money by the time I was finished.

WagerWeb is next, I think.  They told me I am eligible for the 100% to $100 deal through my own site - which is cool of them.  I hope I like the book, because I really like the management so far.  Those guys have been very friendly to me, even though I am clearly a small time Sportsbook affiliate (so far!)

Canbet Sports is another company  enjoy working with as a sportsbook affiliate.  Not that it does or should matter to any of you, but I thought I'd throw that out there for consideration.  Very straight-forward and easy to deal with.  Pinnacle, my favorite book for betting, is quite a hassle as an affiliate.  They have an extremely complex payout system, and their online reports are unfathomable to me.  I have spent 30 - 40 minutes at a time going over their online reports, and I still can't ever figure out how much I am owed, or when I'll get paid.  The worst of all time, however, was Hollywood Sports (recently bought out by same company as Sportsbook.com).  Their affiliate site was a wreck and they never answered e-mails from me.  Good riddance to them!

May 16, 2006

No Action at ActionBets

I like the book well enough, but it just may be that baseball season is the wrong time to chase here.  The lines vs Pinnacle are just fugly.  I have about $1,900 left in WR, and only $1K left in ActionBets.  Of the $300 bonus I have about $260 remaining.  Last night I took a game that was a 6 point loser for me, just to get some action.  I'll take the next one I can get at 6 points or better just to finish off there and move on to another book.  I have too much of my roll tied up there to not find any lines to bet on.  It's costing me opportunity to wait any longer for premium lines.  I'll take a 30% cut in the bonus just to move on to greener pastures.

WagerWeb is looking promising.  In fact, they could spell the end of Bodog for me.  Bodog does 10% continuous reloads at 5X (using Neteller).  WagerWeb is advertising continuous 15% reloads at 5X.  They recently got an upgrade at Sportsbookreview.  I also have to say that their customer service to me as an affiliate has been extraordinary.  They have made a special offer available to the members here, 100% to $100 at 10X.  Additionally, WagerWeb has a policy that you can withdraw your deposit and any winnings before your bonus chase is complete.  Just not the bonus.  This seemingly makes it impossible to get your bankroll stuck there. 

I know the old saying - "if it sounds too good to be true...".  But I am excited to check this one out, and see if there is any hidden catches that make it less of a good deal that it sounds.  I could play there often for unlimited 15% reloads and no cashout restrictions.

May 15, 2006

Observations on Actionbets

The MLB lines have not been Bull-friendly so far.  They are far too similar to Pinnacle's lines for my taste.  I think it would have been better to try to chase this one vs Bodog or Canbet if you want to concentrate on MLB.  The ActionBet lines are opinionated, but they seem to have the same opinion as Pinnacle.  Not helpful to the scalper.  I made one MLB wager thus far, and it was at a 2 point loss.  Just clearing bonus.

Everything else about the book is fine.  The interface could use a little work.  Its hard to get from the MLB lines to the Arena Football lines.  You have to surf back to the main menu and then make a new selection.  Basically it requires 4 clicks, whereas I can get from MLB to Arena Football lines in a single click on Pinnacle. 

I made a few Arena Football and NFL Europe bets at dead even.  I am 60% done with the wagering requirement, and have just about split evenly between the books.  About $400 has shifted from ActionBets to Pinnacle.  As it looks like I will have to meet the wagering requirement for this bonus, I would prefer, at this point, to win the rest of my bets at ActionBets, to reduce the burden of my scalps on Pinnacle. I am also going to check the MLB lines vs Bodog and Canbet and possibly make a deposit there to complete the WR.  Looking for a break in the clouds so I can move on to my next chase.  (Which I think is going to be WagerWorks, but I haven't yet decided.)

May 12, 2006

Beginning the ActionBet Quest

My money from Pinnacle and the Crypto sites I cashed out of was all in my Neteller when I got home from work yesterday - so under 24 hours for anyone who was curious.  I put $2,000 into Actionbets yesterday evening after dinner.

Does any one else get that little sick feeling in their stomach when they first put money into a site and then things don't go as you expect?  I made my deposit last night, and my posted balance at Actionbets didn't change, even though I got a screen saying my deposit was approved.  (It also said Neteller made $78 from that transaction, which makes me want to buy stock in Neteller!)  I checked my Neteller account, and I was charged $2,000, but ny balance at Actionbets remained $0.  I refreshed a few times, but that little voice in my head starts saying, "It finally happened, you got swindled.  They took your money and you'll never see it again, etc...".  I called Actionbets and the CS was great, he expalined that they have a short delay in crediting via their automated systems as a protection against other depositing methods, but since I was using Neteller, he would manually credit my account immediately - which he did.  Then he credited my $300 bonus as well.  Everything was fine, and my paranoia went back into hiding for now!

I had a choice between $300 at 3X rollover and $500 at 6X rollover.  I don't have the 6X rollover in Pinnacle, so I had to go with the $300 bonus.  Better safe than sorry.

Actionbets also has a free $21 bet they give all new accounts - no deposit required.  You have to roll it over 10X, and the max cashout is $100, but it's absolutely free.  Even if you have no interest in sports betting, you gotta like free-rolling!  My grand plan is to arb it.  If the free money grows to $100, I'll have to revise my approach - likely switiching over to straight betting to see if i can pick a few winners.

May 11, 2006

Moving On

Busted that $92.xx out of Bodog last night.  I only had one bet, and it went toward Pinnacle.  I have had so much movment toward Pinnacle that I am going to have to withdraw from there to get a deposit together for Actionbet.  I initiated the withdrawal last night when it was evident that the Bodog chase was over.  I also am withdrawing some cash from my Cryptologic Poker/Casino accounts, so whichever money gets back to Neteller first will be applied to the next sportsbook chase.

I found a site called Arbcruncher.  Very interesting, so far, but I haven't experimented with the online calculator yet.  He has some good explanations of arbs, etc.  so if my explanations aren't sinking in, perhaps his will. 

As an affiliate I sent off my first book to a new signup!  Not surprisingly he selected Sharp Sports Betting.  That's likely going to be the first choice of many, I think.  I am about halfway through it, and its quite good.  He even has a section on bonus chasing - although he advocates doing it in addition to picking winners, not as a scalper.  Surprised

May 10, 2006

Bodog-ing

Is that a word?  "Bodog-ing"?  Or would it be "Bodogging"?  Or perhaps I should call it "going Bodoggy-style" - the type of thing that passes for wit in the seventh grade.

No matter, you get the point, I think.  I have been wagering at Bodog of late.  I had made a $400 deposit and then noticed that I already had $200 in there from a refer-a-friend bonus.  With Bodog's refer-a-friend money, the rollover is 3X in the sportsbook.  I made my deposit using neteller, so that $400+$40 has a 5X rollover.  Making the total burden on me $2,800.  I have about $1,000 left in the rollover, but my Bodog balance is just $92 and some change.  I don't think I am going to make the rollover on this one.

I was kind of hoping I would make the rollover at Bodog, busting a chunk out at Pinnacle.  I have been winning at Pinnacle quite a lot lately.  While I am probably small potatoes enough to be under their radar, it would be seriously debilitating to my sports betting to lose Pinnacle by getting banned.  Losing for a while and cashing it out of Bodog seems like a good idea, but the games continue to break toward my Pinnacle picks, so that's who pays me.

Once Bodog is done I am going to give Actionbets a whirl.  They have some good bonuses and reloads and get a high rating from Sportsbookreview.

I still have a nickel+ in Player's Superbook.  I have met the rollover there, but they have a 30-day hold before you can cashout (from the time of deposit) so my $515 is sitting there.  May 24th is the day, I think.  About a week prior to that I am going to start looking for arbs and evens there so that I can do some overplay.  I would hate to lose that 20% reload opportunity for the future.

I saw that VIPSports has started a monthly reload of 10% at 3X rollover.  After reloading you have to e-mail them for the bonus.  I rather dislike that process.  These guys are doing well enough that they should hire a programmer to automate that.  There's also a catch that if you are lifetime profitable at VIP (you have won more than lost) you are not eligible for the reload.  Losers only!  Good grief!  They tell me I am ahead with them, but I honestly don't remember ever wagering at their book.  I smacked down that poker bonus a while back, but don't think I ever bet sports there.  Oh well, c'est la guerre.

 

May 08, 2006

9 for 10

With the way I bet on sports, there is no "bad" outcome, but there is a "better" outcome, and that is if I manage to bust out all of my money from one book before I meet the rollover requirement.  This allows me to proceed to another chase sooner, and I can earn a bit faster.  This past wekend I was on fire in this regard.  My picks were 9 for 10 in busting the way I wanted them to go.  Happy happy!

I suspect in the long run this will all even out.  In fact, this recent run is likely part of the evening out process.  The two times I have got my bankroll stuck in the past were on runs where I couldn't get anything to bust in the 'right' direction.  What goes around comes around.

The only small drawback on my current run is that the one 'black sheep' pick that busted the wrong way was at Bodog.  Given my schedule, its harder to find lines at Bodog to bet on, as compared to other books.  Bodog tends to post their lines later in the day than most books, so I have to find stuff in the evening - there's nothing available in the morning.  There were some baseball moneylines this morning, but they were all so square that I couldn't find anything closer to Pinnacle's lines than 8 points.  (No thanks, I'll wait!)

On the affiliate front, I have decided to mimic internettexasholdem's free poker books offer with a free sports betting books offer.  I want to start slowly with this promotional offer, so I am only offering 4 book selections (all recommended reading at various sports betting sites) and four online sportsbooks (all highly rated for customer satisfaction) for now.  If it proves to be successful, I'll expand it later.  I just don't want to risk biting off more than I can chew on the first go 'round and not be able to fulfill the terms of the offer.  I am in good shape so far, and have even had one new client take me up on the offer! If you've been thinking about sports betting, now's a good time to make the plunge....FREE BOOKS!

May 04, 2006

Sportsbetting FAQ

I wrote this up so that I would have a place to direct people who are interested in sport betting as bonus chasers.  I expect to add to it and revise it frequently.  Substantial changes will be referenced in this blog.

 FAQ

Everything's Daisies

Given my relatively diminutive $8K sportsbetting bankroll, I tend to chase one book at a time.  I use Pinnacle as, more or less, a 'home' book, and then I chase one other book, scalping and arbing against Pinnacle.  The objective is to have enough in Pinnacle to meet the rollover requirement of the other book I am chasing.  It took me getting my bankroll 'stuck' twice to learn that lesson.  By 'stuck' I mean that I had wagered such that it all ended up in one book before the wagering requirement had been met there.  Thus it was in one book, I couldn't withdraw it (WR not met) and I had no money left to bet against it.  That calls for some tough choices.  I don't like tough choices.  Scalping sportsbook bonus money is easy, and should remain easy.  Now I only take on one book (bonus) at a time, and I make sure that I have the rollover all set aside in Pinnacle before I start.  (OK, sometimes its in Netteller, vice Pinnacle, but you get the idea.)

I chose Pinnacle as my home book for several reasons.  1) Reduced juice.  2) Opinionated lines.  By opinionated I mean that they are not going to always be the same as every other book - Pinnacle does not follow the consensus line as many many books do.  I have to find differences in lines on the same contest between books in order to scalp and arb.  Pinnacle tends to make these differences easier to find. 3) From my readings, Pinnacle seems to have a high toleration for sharps and scalps - very few bannings at Pinnacle. 4) Rated A+ at Sportsbookreview.com.  5) I once placed a wager in error.  I called their CS and they let me cancel it.  They advertise that all bets are final, but they let me whine my way out of a mistake, and I appreciate that.

One of the short-term goals of my sportsbook bonus chasing is to lose all my bets in the book with the bonus.  That speeds the chase up, as I don't have to place enough wagers to meet the rollover.  If I deposit $1K for a $200 bonus, I might have a $3,600 rollover before I can withdraw from that book.  Since I can wager with the bonus before it is clear, I will hope that I can lose my first $1,200 in bets at that book.  I don't really lose it, of course.  That money shows up in my Pinnacle account, where I have made offsetting bets against the book I am chasing.  If I lose it all from the book I am chasing, I can proceed to another bonus without having to place all the wagers to meet rollover.  It speeds up my chasing and increases my earn rate.

I have had a good run at this lately.  I have only had to meet the rollover in one book of the last 6 I have chased.  I busted out at Linesmaker in the last week of April.  Linesmaker has a running bonus where you get 5% of your losses returned as a bonus the next month if you make another deposit.  As I busted $1K there, I got a $50 bonus in May for depositing $100.  ($100 was my choice - they do not specify a minimum deposit to get the 5%.)  I busted the $150 in one bet on an afternoon MLB game yesterday, so I moved on to Stan James.  I had some money in my poker account there and I moved it to the sportsbook.  Stan James Sportsbook bonus is a small £25 FREEPLAY, but as I already had money there, I figured I'd chase that £25 down.  You get the FREEPLAY after you make your first bet, so I put all my money on one side, offset it at Pinnacle, and went to bed.  This morning all my money is in Pinnacle.  Waiting for the £25 FREEPLAY credit from Stan James.

FREEPLAY bonuses are played differently than cash bonuses.  I will have to explain that difference some day, but this post is already too long, so it won't be today!

May 02, 2006

Luckier than Smart

The Mets score a run in the bottom of the ninth, and the bets I made (in error) yesterday pay me off. Essentially I busted $510 of my $500 Bodog deposit over to Pinnacle, and I still had the $50 of Bodog bonus left in my Bodog account. I decide it was "freerolling" money and opt to take it to the black jack tables. The Bodog dealers owe me bigtime!

I had unistalled the Bodog Casino software last time I played, having dropped $400 there in a short amount of time. I was going to re-install it, but I notice they have a flash version now, so I decide to give it a whirl. I open it and see that I have $86 in chips. That's strange. Are they running some type of promotion for their flash casino? A promotion where you get $86 chips for the price of $50? What's the rollover on that, I wonder. No matter. I am looking to double, and then go back to the sports book.

I go back and forth on $5 bets for a few hands and then decide to Martingale (double every losing wager). I lose $5, then $10, then $20. I win on $40. Balance is at $96. I pause and look around at the features and options - and BAM! it occurs to me. I click on the cashout button and the $96 gets added to my $50 balance, and I have $146 at Bodog. Apparently I did not bust the last time I was at the tables, and never cashed out what was left of my stack. Undoubtedly one of the perils of normally playing the Bodog Casino when drunk!

Still owing $1K in WR for that $50 of bonus from yesterday, I start hunting for a line. I find a 1 point arb on the O/U for the last NBA game of the night, and put $146 on it at Bodog.

It's looking like $147 in my Pinnacle account this morning.

May 01, 2006

Fun and Noobishness

Finished off the Player's SuperBook (PSB) reload.  It was a 4Xrollover, and I made my betting units all 25% of the rollover ($360).  The first 3 were all won at PSB. I found a 2 point arb on the Yankees / Jays game on Saturday.  I could take the favorite at Pinnacle for this one, so I put $1000 on the dog (Jays) at PSB, to finish of the WR, and the offsetting $1300 on the Yankees at Pinnacle.  The Yankees crushed them by 11, so I busted a good chunk of change back out of PSB.  The WR is complete, but I have to wait another 3.5 weeks before I can withdraw the $550 or so from PSB.  (They have a 30-day withdrawal rule - not terribly uncommon at sports books).  I'll keep checking for more arb opportunities, though.  If I can bust it out then I don't have to wait to make a withdrawal.

This morning I was checking the lines at Bodog vs Pinnacle.  Found one I wanted, so put $300 into Bodog.  Placed my wager at Bodog for $330 to win $516.  Went to Pinnacle and placed my wager for $510, and hit enter.   I forgot that the default at Pinnacle is that the amount you enter is the amount "to win".  Thus, my wager was for about $820. 

Deposit another $200 into Bodog, and try to wager $200 more on the same line - no can do.  The most I can wager on that event is $500 total, so only another $170.  I am a little exposed on one side, but nothing horrible.  (Don't check my numbers, they are not exact, and I can't pull them up at work - I was just throwing them in to illustrate the story of how I got careless and made a bet I didn't mean to make.)  Word of caution to anyone considering sportsbetting - be attentive at all times!  When switching between different sites and softwares, its easy to make mistakes.