Columnist Jeff Haney: Wild Wild West unveils innovative baseball contest

Wednesday, May 10, 2000 | 9:39 a.m.

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

Believe it or not, the biggest challenge faced by sports book directors this time of year is not deciding how high to set the total in a day game at Coors Field with Pete Harnisch and Brian Bohanon on the mound.

Rather, it's attracting foot traffic.

With pro basketball and hockey winding down and the NFL preseason a few months away, this is the slowest time of year for Las Vegas sports books.

That drive to draw summer customers led Micah Roberts, sports book manager at Wild Wild West, to develop his Baseball Handicapping Challenge, a unique contest that begins this week at the hotel-casino on Tropicana Ave.

"Anything you can do to increase business is going to give you an edge, especially in the slow period from now through August," Roberts said.

The baseball contest, which is free to enter and carries a $500 weekly cash prize, has an innovative format: Contestants begin with a mythical bankroll of $100 a week and try to pick the winner in 10 games, Tuesday through Sunday, with no more than five games per day allowed. Each selection is played as a mythical $10 bet.

Whoever has the most "money" at the end of Sunday's games wins the $500 prize.

Selections may be made only on the game's money line; totals and run lines are not used in the contest. And there is no standard line for each game; if the line changes on the board, it changes for the contest.

Wild Wild West had a similar contest during college basketball season, but the baseball contest differs in that scoring is fully computerized on the Autotote system.

"The basketball contest was done by hand, but baseball with its money lines is a completely different story, especially when you're doing a bankroll-type of system," Roberts said. "The Autotote people worked with me for over two months preparing the software for the contest, and now it's ready to go."

Although Wild Wild West is part of the Station Casinos group, the baseball contest is available only at Wild Wild West.

"This is the first year we're offering it, but next year it's possible that the rest of the Stations may be involved," Roberts said.

Roberts, perhaps best known as Las Vegas' resident expert on motor sports wagering, continues to offer a rich array of auto racing proposition bets. Roberts said he has seen plenty of interest in the May 28 Indianapolis 500.

"I put the odds up two months ago, and there's already been a lot of action on the race," Roberts said. "Which isn't surprising, since the Indy 500 is like an American institution."

* WORLD SERIES OF POKER: Professional sports bettor Richard "Richie Ball" Dunberg won the ace-to-five lowball tournament Sunday in the World Series of Poker at Binion's Horseshoe.

Dunberg, of Long Beach, Calif., outlasted 126 other competitors to win a first-place prize of $76,200 in the $1,500 buy-in event.

At the start of play at the final table, Dunberg was in last place among eight players with $9,600 in chips. In fact, he barely made the final table Saturday night when he paired up on an all-in hand. But Dunberg survived when his opponent drew two pair.

Chip leader and eventual runner-up Roger Van Driesen had $49,600 at the start of the final table.

"I knew I was all right when he quit showing me 9-7," said Dunberg, 44.

It's appropriate that a Californian reigns as world champion in lowball, a venerable game that dominated Golden State cardrooms for years before Texas hold 'em exploded in popularity in the 1980s. ...

The World Series of Poker continues through May 18 at Binion's, with the main event no-limit hold 'em tournament, featuring a $1.5 million first prize, set to begin Monday.

There's no official wagering in Las Vegas on this year's tournament due to the demise of MegaSports, which offered pari-mutuel betting in previous years.

But any time a lot of poker players are gathered together, there's, oh, let's say some chance you'll have the opportunity to get a bet down if you so desire.

In one-on-one matchups, expect to lay heavy wood if you wish to back either Daniel Negreanu or Huck Seed, two young sharps among this year's favorites on the "underground" line.

* GOLF NOTES: Tiger Woods is a 5-2 favorite to win the GTE Byron Nelson Classic at Irving, Texas, this week, according to odds posted at the Regent Las Vegas. David Duval, a 10-1 shot, is the second choice in the tournament, which runs Thursday-Sunday. ...

Woods and Duval are paired in the featured matchup, with Woods minus 250 and Duval plus 200. Seven other matchups are on the board. ...

The Regent also offers matchups on this week's Benson & Hedges International Open in England, with Colin Montgomerie minus 180 against Lee Westwood (plus 150) in the featured prop. ...

Woods is favored in the U.S. Open, set for June 15-18 at Pebble Beach, Calif. Woods is 3-1, Duval 10-1. Longest shot on the board is Jack Nicklaus at 200-1. ...

The Regent has a line on the August 28 "Battle at Bighorn" at Bighorn Golf Club in Palm Desert, Calif. In that event, Woods (minus 360) squares off against Sergio Garcia (plus 280) in an 18-hole match play format.