Little League World Series
Written August 27, 2001 by Stephen Nover
LAS VEGAS - Mark Del could only describe the amount wagered as "shocking."
Del wasn't talking about the first weekend of college football nor NFL preseason.
No Del, oddsmaker and managing director for Camelot, was discussing his surprising huge handle on the Little League World Series. The series concluded Sunday with Japan beating Apopka, Fla., 2-1.
"People weren't very patriotic," Del said. "They bet Japan."
Camelot, a sports book with offices in Belize and just outside Montreal, drew publicity for putting up lines on the Little League World Series during the past couple of weeks.
Until the semifinals, only around a half dozen bettors at Camelot were wagering on the games. But as word started getting out, a few other offshore books also began to put out a line.
"Once that happened, the scalpers came out of the woodwork," Del said.
Camelot may have been the original pioneer in posting lines on the Little League World Series, but they ended up on the losing end, Del said.
In the championship game, Del opened the Florida squad minus $1.75. The game got as low as Florida minus $1.35.
However, in terms of publicity, Camelot came out ahead.
Thanks to star pitcher Danny Almonte of Bronx, N.Y., the Little League World Series drew tremendous media coverage, especially on the east coast. Almonte threw a perfect game and a one-hitter during the competition.
Art Manteris, one of the most well known bookmakers in Nevada, actually was seriously considering taking bets on the Little League World Series.
"There was so much attention to this kid and the Bronx team," said Manteris, vice-president of race and sports for Station Casinos.
When Almonte pitched on the same day as Arizona's Randy Johnson, Manteris was tempted to put up a prop pitting Almonte against Johnson on who would strike out the most batters.
"It would have been a great prop," Manteris said, "but there would have been too much disagreement and heat."
Certainly Del and Camelot drew their share of criticism for booking action on 12-year-olds. But if the limits are small, which they were, there can be two sides to the argument.
"Anything that's on TV will get action," Del said.
If the climate wasn't so tense in Nevada as far as wagering on college athletics, a few Nevada hotels may have offered it, too.
The state gaming control recently banned betting on high school and Olympics, even though no book ever put up lines on any high school event.
But the gaming control never officially said anything about Little League. A few years ago the Imperial Palace actually put up a line on the Little League World Series.
After heavy criticism, the IP never put up a Little League line again, though.
This year's Little League title game drew nearly 45,000 fans, including President Bush. It certainly qualified as a major event.
"I wouldn't now," Manteris said about putting up a Little League World Series line, "but in all honesty I would have before the NCAA became such a hot issue."
Written August 27, 2001 by Stephen Nover
LAS VEGAS - Mark Del could only describe the amount wagered as "shocking."
Del wasn't talking about the first weekend of college football nor NFL preseason.
No Del, oddsmaker and managing director for Camelot, was discussing his surprising huge handle on the Little League World Series. The series concluded Sunday with Japan beating Apopka, Fla., 2-1.
"People weren't very patriotic," Del said. "They bet Japan."
Camelot, a sports book with offices in Belize and just outside Montreal, drew publicity for putting up lines on the Little League World Series during the past couple of weeks.
Until the semifinals, only around a half dozen bettors at Camelot were wagering on the games. But as word started getting out, a few other offshore books also began to put out a line.
"Once that happened, the scalpers came out of the woodwork," Del said.
Camelot may have been the original pioneer in posting lines on the Little League World Series, but they ended up on the losing end, Del said.
In the championship game, Del opened the Florida squad minus $1.75. The game got as low as Florida minus $1.35.
However, in terms of publicity, Camelot came out ahead.
Thanks to star pitcher Danny Almonte of Bronx, N.Y., the Little League World Series drew tremendous media coverage, especially on the east coast. Almonte threw a perfect game and a one-hitter during the competition.
Art Manteris, one of the most well known bookmakers in Nevada, actually was seriously considering taking bets on the Little League World Series.
"There was so much attention to this kid and the Bronx team," said Manteris, vice-president of race and sports for Station Casinos.
When Almonte pitched on the same day as Arizona's Randy Johnson, Manteris was tempted to put up a prop pitting Almonte against Johnson on who would strike out the most batters.
"It would have been a great prop," Manteris said, "but there would have been too much disagreement and heat."
Certainly Del and Camelot drew their share of criticism for booking action on 12-year-olds. But if the limits are small, which they were, there can be two sides to the argument.
"Anything that's on TV will get action," Del said.
If the climate wasn't so tense in Nevada as far as wagering on college athletics, a few Nevada hotels may have offered it, too.
The state gaming control recently banned betting on high school and Olympics, even though no book ever put up lines on any high school event.
But the gaming control never officially said anything about Little League. A few years ago the Imperial Palace actually put up a line on the Little League World Series.
After heavy criticism, the IP never put up a Little League line again, though.
This year's Little League title game drew nearly 45,000 fans, including President Bush. It certainly qualified as a major event.
"I wouldn't now," Manteris said about putting up a Little League World Series line, "but in all honesty I would have before the NCAA became such a hot issue."
