February 7, 2005
Note to Self: Gambling is Bad
Things were looking so good with my (purely hypothetical) parlay bet of "New England minus seven" and "under 47." With a little under two minutes left in the game, the Patriots were up by 10 and the total score was just 38. And then Greg Lewis had to go and grab that 30-yard touchdown pass from Donovan McNabb, ruining my whole evening.
All of sudden New England was up by just three and the total score was at 45. In other words, with one play I went from looking like a sure winner to having absolutely no chance. To use a poker term, I was drawing dead. In order for the Patriots to cover the spread, they had to score at least four points. In order for them to score four points, the total score would have to go over 47. Ugh.
As anyone who wasn't living under a rock yesterday knows, the Patriots ended up winning 24-21, losing me my (purely hypothetical) point-spread bet and winning me my (purely hypothetical) over/under bet. However, since a parlay bet forces you to win both of your bets to cash in, I was out of luck. Gambling is bad, kids. Even the purely hypothetical kind.
Today at The Hardball Times:
- The Magic Twenty (Second Base) (by Aaron Gleeman and Craig Burley)