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It is time for the Week 14 installment of BTSC Bookie! This is a chance for the BTSC community to collectively choose games in which to place an imaginary wager of “BTSC Bucks.” Each week I will remind everyone of the rules before voting on specific bets and the type of wagers we want to do next week.
Before I get into the procedure of things, I want to remind everyone that gambling addiction is a serous problem numerous people face. Like many things in life, gambling can be a fun and safe exercise if done in moderation, while obsessive gambling can have destructive and life-altering consequences. If you or anyone you know is suffering from a gambling addiction, help is available HERE.
The Process
- We will start with $500 in BTSC Bucks for the season. If we bust, we may borrow from the BTSC Bookie, but will have to pay 20% interest each week it isn’t paid. It’s a steep price, but there are consequences to failure.
- Games this week will be betting against the spread with commission.
- There will be 10 betting lines for users to place a vote on games against the spread. The values are as of Tuesday evening and they are locked in throughout the voting. The polls will run until Saturday night at 11:59 PM. The top three results for NFL games will have a $100, a $50, and a $25 wager placed respectively.
- A write-in campaign can be staged for voting. If any comment in the weekly article brings up a different game in the comments to make the wager and can receive enough recommendations to place it in the top three vote-wise, it will be calculated accordingly. I know it’s highly unlikely for a comment to receive that many recommendations, but if it does it will count.
- Thursday games will not be included due to obvious time constraints.
- Some games may have the two opposing lines as an option. If so, only the higher vote-getter will be eligible for the wager.
- Betting both for and against the Steelers is always an option.
Last Week’s Wager
For Week 13, we placed a $100 wager on the Pittsburgh Steelers at +2 for a payout of -110 over the Cleveland Browns. The 20-13 victory for the Steelers $90.91 in profit over the original investment. The $50 wager was on the New England Patriots at -120 to win by at least 3 points over the Houston Texans. Not only did the Patriots not cover, they lost the game as we lost $50. As for the final $25 bet, it was a tie between two games so the wager was split as $12.50 for each. The first game was the Ravens winning by 6 points at -110, so their last-second field goal over the 49ers was not enough to cover the spread. The other game was the Kansas City Chiefs winning by 10 points at -110 over the Oakland Raiders. The 40-9 win by the Chiefs earned $11.36 nearly covering the loss form the Raven’s game.
Week 12 Balance: $912.27
Week 13 Net Gain/Loss: +$39.77
Week 13 Total: $952.04
Week 14 Options
Here are the options chosen for the Week 14 betting exercise. Based on your vote, all games will be against the spread. Additionally, there is a second poll on what type of bets you would like to do next week. Since againist the spread has been chosen the last several weeks, it will be replaced with a different option. If you want to play your own game, leave your choices in the comments below and keep track of your total throughout the season.
For this week, payouts are listed in parenthesis. We will place a $100 on the top vote-getter, $50 bet on the second choice, and a $25 bet on the third. If you wish to vote more than once, clear your “cookies” on your browser and vote again.
Poll
On which bet do you want to place your BTSC bucks?
This poll is closed
-
39%
Steelers (-2.5) at Cardinals (-115, 50%)
(39 votes) -
4%
Cardinals (+2.5) vs Steelers (-105, 50%)
(4 votes) -
8%
Ravens (-6) at Bills (-110, 65%)
(8 votes) -
5%
Bills (+6) vs Ravens (-110, 35%)
(5 votes) -
2%
Browns (-8.5) vs Bengals (-110, 43%)
(2 votes) -
11%
Bengals (+8.5) at Browns (-110, 57%)
(11 votes) -
5%
Titans (-3) at Raiders (+105, 49%)
(5 votes) -
11%
Raiders (+3) vs Titans (-125, 51%)
(11 votes) -
4%
Patriots (-3) vs Chiefs (-110, 54%)
(4 votes) -
10%
Chiefs (+3) at Patriots (-110, 46%)
(10 votes)
Poll
What kind of bet do you want to do for Week 15?
This poll is closed
-
57%
Three $50 bets against the spread with a $25 parlay
(34 votes) -
23%
Moneyline
(14 votes) -
0%
Over/Under
(0 votes) -
8%
A combination of spread, moneyline, and over/under
(5 votes) -
3%
Combination plus a small parlay bet
(2 votes) -
6%
All parlay bets
(4 votes)