Columnist Jeff Haney: Follow the betting scene in Sun’s new column

Wednesday, Sept. 1, 1999 | 9:25 a.m.

Jeff Haney's sports betting column appears Wednesday. Reach him at 259-4041 or haney@lasvegassun.com

Sports betting in Las Vegas has been likened to a high-stakes cat-and-mouse game in which the casino -- or "the house" -- scrambles to stay a step ahead of ever-cagier gamblers -- or "the public."

But sports betting in Las Vegas isn't just a romantic battle of wits.

It's also big business.

The amount legally bet on football in Nevada surpassed $1 billion for the first time in 1994 and has held steady since. Thanks to its built-in vig -- precious percentage points (i.e., laying $11 to win $10) that go to the betting parlors -- the house keeps about 3 to 6 percent of that money, or $30-60 million.

The sports books still attract their share of colorful characters. But some veteran gamblers miss with a passion the "Old Vegas" -- a fabled place where free-spirited oddsmakers could legally set a line on who shot J.R. That heritage is part of Las Vegas' sports betting scene, too.

Without a doubt, Las Vegas sports betting has undergone some big changes, and it will continue to evolve. In recent years, odd phrases such as "island line" and "dot com" have crept into the sports book lexicon, as off-shore and Internet betting have become hot issues. It should be intriguing to watch how Las Vegas responds as technology continues to advance.

Sports betting in Las Vegas is all these things. It's also two guys sitting in the sports book having a Corona and a friendly debate over whether Nebraska will cover against Iowa.

Beginning today, each Wednesday in this space the Sun will chronicle the events and people making the news on the Las Vegas sports betting scene. Please join us.

* NFL VICTORY TOTALS: Caesars Palace sports book director Vinnie Magliulo says public response has been strong across the board since Caesars posted its over/ under lines on number of wins for NFL teams.

"We put them up back in mid-June, so bettors have had a couple of months to make their wagers," Magliulo said. "We've really seen a lot of action on all the teams."

Taking into account a tough schedule and the fact that opponents will be gunning for the two-time Super Bowl champs, gamblers bet the Broncos down to 11 wins from an opening line of 11 1/2. Perhaps bettors were also thinking that because the public loves to back Super Bowl winners, there's automatic value in taking the under.

Most bettors felt the Jaguars were also overpriced at their opening line. Jacksonville opened at 12 wins, but under money forced the line down to 11 1/2. The Jaguars have gone 11-5 in each of the past two regular seasons, but this year they get two cracks each at lowly Cincinnati and Cleveland.

The expansion Browns, one of the league's worst teams, are drawing plenty of attention from the betting public. After opening at 5, Cleveland was bet down to 4 1/2, then rebounded to 5.

"Since we moved them back up to 5, we've seen a lot of solid two-way action on the Browns," Magliulo said.

With the stunning retirement of Barry Sanders this summer, the line on the Lions' total wins has seen lots of movement as well. Detroit opened at 7 1/2, then dropped to 7 when Sanders made his announcement. In a mild surprise, Caesars then saw a rush of over-7 money. Since then, however, the Lions' number has settled in at 6 (over minus 125, under plus 105).

"The great thing about these bets is that you're in action for the whole season with one wager," Magliulo said. "Many times they aren't decided until the last game of the year."

The NFL season starts September 12.

* KEY COLLEGE MATCHUPS: A couple of this Saturday's college football games were first posted by the Imperial Palace sports book back on July 18, as part of the IP's "Games of the Year" package: Michigan, originally an 8 1/ 2-point favorite over Notre Dame, opened at 7 on Monday. And Colorado, originally a 10 1/2-point favorite over Colorado State, is now at 13 1/2 against an inexperienced Rams squad.

"I expect all the TV games to receive a lot of action this weekend," Imperial Palace sports book director Jay Kornegay said. "Another game that should receive a lot of action is USC-Hawaii, Saturday's late game. People always look at that one as a chaser, or a bailout game."

By the way, it's the visiting Trojans minus 27.

The most popular game with gamblers at the IP this past weekend was Penn State-Arizona. Although the betting public went home happy when the favored Nittany Lions easily covered the 5-point number (41-7) and the total went over late in the fourth quarter, Kornegay said there was a decent amount of money bet on both sides of the marquee matchup.

In Sunday's Kickoff Classic, professional gamblers won when Miami, a 5-point underdog, beat Ohio State outright, 23-12.

"The wise-guy money was on Miami in that one," Kornegay said. "There were reports coming out that Miami was much faster than Ohio State, and those reports turned out to be true. Miami's speed definitely hurt Ohio State."

* HANDICAPPING SEMINAR: Larry Grossman, producer and host of "You Can Bet On It" (4-5 p.m. weekdays, KBAD 920-AM), will host a football handicapping seminar Sunday at Sunset Station hotel-casino. Scheduled to appear are football handicappers Dr. Ed Meyer and Tim Trushel; oddsmaker Russ Culver; and Las Vegas author and handicapper Andy Iskoe.

"This is the second one we've done, and we've tried to tweak it a little bit to make it even better than last year's," Sunset Station sports book director Tom Smilanich said. "Bettors who attend will be getting a ton of insider information that can help them on the way to a winning football season."

Tickets are $25 and are available at Sunset Station's race and sports book or by calling 547-7777.