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By CRIS BARRISH
The News Journal
Delaware's three racetrack casinos will offer three types of parlay bets on a minimum of three National Football League games starting Thursday, the opening day of the season, the state's acting finance director revealed today.
One game will let gamblers pick the winner of three to 16 NFL games, using a point spread, finance boss Tom Cook said. The other two games will let gamblers use updated point spreads that are from 6 to 10 points different than the fixed point spread, for a smaller payout.
A point spread, also known as the betting line, is the number of points by which oddsmakers determine that one team is favored to win. Gamblers must win all of the games they bet to win their wager.
Bets can run from $2 to $100 for cards that are preprinted in advance of the week's first game. There is no limit on the numbers of wagers a gambler can make, Cook said. Depending on the type of game played, gamblers can also bet up to $3,000 on a single wager using "off the board" odds -- updated point spreads listed on a tote board until game time. Point spreads often change depending on factors such as the percentage of money placed on one team, injuries and the weather.
Payoffs for "off the board" bets are slightly less than for preprinted cards.
The scope of the games being offered by Delaware represent a major disappointment for the administration of Gov. Jack Markell and the so-called "racinos." Until last month, buoyed by a law approved in May, Delaware had been planning on becoming an East Coast sports betting mecca, offering wagers on a variety of pro and college sports, including the most popular bet to gamblers -- the outcome of a single game using a point spread. State officials and casino operators envisioned swarms of gamblers from other states traveling to Delaware to place bets on football, basketball, baseball, hockey and NASCAR.
But a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit short-circuited that prospect by ruling that Delaware's plan violated federal law, and that only wagers on at least three NFL games were permissible. Delaware officials have until next Monday to appeal the order to the full 12-judge appeals court. Thomas McGonigle, chief of staff to Gov. Jack Markell, said that the administration is still mulling whether to appeal.
These are the games and payoffs for preprinted cards:
- Half Point -- Bettors select at least three winners using a fixed point spread that will always include a half-point to guarantee a winner. For example, the Eagles could be favored by 2 1/2 points -- about what the line will be Sunday when they open their season on the road against the Carolina Panthers. If a bettor picks the Eagles, the team would have to win by three points for the bettor to win. If the Eagles won by two points or less or lost the game outright, the bettor would lose.
A bettor who puts $2 on a three-game parlay could win $11. A bettor who wins a 10-game parlay would win $1,598 on a $2 bet.
- Teaser -- The bettor can change the point spread by six points in favor of the team they are selecting, and can bet from three to 12 games. For a three-game teaser parlay, a bettor would win $5.60 on a $2 bet. For a 10-game parlay, a $2 bet would win $58,
- Super Teaser -- The better can change the point spread by 10 points in favor of the team they are selecting, and can bet from four to 12 games. For a four-game super teaser parlay, a better would win $2.40 on a $2 bet. On a 10-game parlay, a $2 bet would win $16.
Winners can also redeem their tickets by mail from the racino where they placed the bet, Cook said.
