Monthly Archives: October 2020

Mississippi State at Alabama Crimson Tide College Football Betting Preview

Two teams going in drastically different directions face off Saturday as Mississippi State (1-3) travels to No. 2 Alabama (5-0). The Bulldogs won their opener before losing three in a row and came off a bye week to face a Crimson Tide team winning by an average of 22 points per game this season.

This primetime game kicks off at 7 p.m. ET on Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala., on ESPN.

The Crimson Tide lead the all-time series 82-18-3 with 12 straight wins. Last year, they beat the Bulldogs 38-7 on the road and won at home 24-0 in 2018. The last MSU win in the series came in 2007, and the Bulldogs' last win in Tuscaloosa was a 24-16 victory in 2006.

Mississippi State Bulldogs Betting Outlook: QB Dilemma

In betting with us at www.A1PPH.com, you’ve gone 3-1 ATS if you bet against Mike Leach’s squad so far this season. The Air Raid offense is sixth in the country in passing (357.5 yards per game) but 79th in scoring (18.5 points per game) and dead last in rushing (28.5 yards per game). The defense allows 26.8 points per game (38th), though they rank 12th against the run at 103.3 yards per game.

Quarterback K.J. Costello had a 623-yard, five-touchdown breakout game to beat LSU in the opener but has struggled since then. He has 10 interceptions with just six touchdowns while throwing for 1,267 yards on a 66% completion rate.

He was benched against Texas A&M for Will Rogers, who went 15-for-18 for 120 yards and a touchdown.

The running game has been very ineffective this season, with 114 yards on 74 carries in four games for a 1.5 yards per attempt. Jo’quavious Marks leads the team with 89 yards on 22 carries, while Dillon Johnson has the lone rushing touchdown.

Wide receiver Osirus Mitchell has 20 catches for 287 and a team-high two receiving touchdowns. Marks and running back Kylin Hill lead the team with 23 receptions, Hill for 237 yards and a touchdown. Four other players have caught a touchdown pass this season, and overall, eight players have at least 100 yards receiving.

Alabama Crimson Tide Betting Outlook: Full Steam Ahead

Betting with us at www.A1PPH.com, Alabama is 3-2 ATS this season with three straight covers. In beating Tennessee 48-17 on Saturday, the Tide were right at their average of 48.4 points per game that ranks second in the nation. They are third in total offense (566.4 yards per game) and second in passing (397.8 yards per game).

The Tide rank first in the nation in scoring (51 points per game), second in passing yards (385 yards per game) and third in total yards (560.3 yards per game). The defense ranks 44th in points allowed (30.3 points per game), 66th in total yards allowed (473 yards per game) and 70th in passing yards (322.3 yards per game).

Quarterback Mac Jones is among the Heisman favorites with +550 odds, the best of any SEC player and the third-best overall. At Tennessee on Saturday, he was 25-for-31 for 387 yards while rushing for a touchdown. On the season, he has completed 79% of his passes for 1,905 yards, 12 touchdowns and two interceptions.

Senior running back Najee Harris scored three more touchdowns on Saturday while running for 96 yards on 20 carries and catching six balls for 61 yards. Brian Robinson Jr. added a touchdown with 29 yards on four carries. Harris has 595 yards and 14 touchdowns on 103 carries this season, while Robinson has 203 yards and two touchdowns.

Wide receiver Jaylen Waddle (25 catches, 557 yards, four TDs) is likely done for the season after a devastating ankle injury on the opening kickoff Saturday. In his place, wide receivers John Metchie III caught seven passes or 151 yards, Devonta Smith had seven catches for 73 yards, and Slade Bolden caught six balls for 94 yards.

On the season, Smith has 45 catches for 554 yards and three touchdowns, while Metchie has 21 catches for 499 yards and three touchdowns.

Mississippi State Bulldogs at Alabama Crimson Tide College Football Betting Line

Head to our favorite pay per head bookie site at www.A1PPH.com, where Alabama is favored by 31 points. The total is 62 points, and Mississippi State is a +4000 underdog on the moneyline.

Betting Analysis

The Tide offense was fantastic against Tennessee even after losing Waddle on the opening kickoff. They have so many weapons, it is hard to see MSU keeping pace with them for long on Saturday. Alabama appears to have fixed its defensive problems and is back to piling up blowout wins.

Free Pick: Alabama -31 (-110)

Slots with High Odds to Win

Slots with high odds to win are always satisfying as who doesn’t like winning frequently? Although usually this means that the payouts will be less, some players prefer the idea of winning less more frequently than spinning the reels time after time with no reward before finally stumbling across a big win.

Punters new to the world of slots with online casino offers may wish to ease themselves in by playing slots that have a high winning potential as this is probably the best way to enjoy slots when first starting out. Even some more experienced players may prefer a game with frequent winning potential, it just depends on what kind of player you are.

How To Spot a Slot with High Odds to Win

There are a couple of different factors in play when it comes to deciphering the odds to win in any online slot. One of these is the Return to Player percentage, or RTP for short. This refers to how much of a player’s overall stakes are likely to be returned to them in the form of winnings on average. For example, if a player bets £100 in one sitting, they could expect to receive on average £95 back if the RTP is 95% for that particular slot.

Another factor is volatility. If a slot has a high volatility, it could be the case in the previous example that the player may take home £500,000 from their £100 or £10. In a low volatility game, it’s likely to be a much less broad spectrum of potential winnings.

Finally, the hit rate of a slot is important in determining whether it has high odds to win or not. The hit rate refers to the percentage of spins in a slot are likely to cause a win. This can be a little deceiving however as a hit rate could be high but the wins very small, so it’s important to analyse this alongside the other factors.

Using these three factors simultaneously when analysing a slot is important to deciphering whether that slot has high odds to win overall or not. But we’ve already done that for you! So here’s a few of our favourite slots with high odds to win.

Our Top Slots with High Odds to Win

• Reactoonz – Hit rate: 54.01%, RTP: 96%
• Gonzo’s Quest – Hit rate: 40.83%, RTP: 96%
• Book of Ra Magic – Hit rate: 30.61%, RTP: 96%

Final Thoughts on Slots with High Odds to Win

The slots that we’ve chosen above were selected because of their low volatility, high RTP and hit rate combinations and also because they’re great slots to play. There are hundreds of other slots available that will present high odds to win overall, so using this handy guide make sure you analyse slots in the right way and choose to play what’s right for you.

2020 NFL Betting Trends

The 2020 NFL season nears its midpoint and already we see a significant number of betting trends. One relates to scoring, which is up again in 2020. Another involves Seattle QB Russell Wilson whose team is off to a 5-0 start.

Let’s examine betting trends we’ve identified in the 2020 NFL season.

Over/Under

As mentioned, scoring is up in 2020. It’s actually way up. Games are averaging 51.4 points this season almost six points over last year. For Totals bettors, it meant backing the Over was a strong play for most of the beginning of the season.

In fact, over the first three weeks of the 2020 season, the Over went 29-19. Since then, the Over has not done all that well going just 17-22-1. It actually makes sense as totals work their way back toward the mean. The more recent trend then is backing the Under.

Division Road Underdogs

Division opponents play each other twice per season, once at home and once on the road. Early in an NFL season when two divisional opponents meet, the road underdog usually outperforms the home favorite and the numbers back it up.

Over the past few seasons, divisional road underdogs playing in the months of September, October, and November are 358-285-33 ATS (53.75%). Let’s compare that to division opponents playing in December and January.

In those two months, the road underdog was just 186-194-10 ATS. The thought is this. Opponents lack enough information about their opponents early in the year. Later in a season, teams have played more games, there is more film available, more information available, and teams are simply more familiar with their opponent. Keep that in mind heading into the second half of this season.

Before we move on, let’s look at what has changed in a few weeks. Here’s NFL betting stats thru Week 4.

Backing Quarterbacks

It is the most important position in football – and likely in all of sports – and it’s no surprise that the performance of the quarterback has tremendous influence on the outcome of games.

Certain quarterbacks are trending in a direction that helps bettors. One of the top signal-callers to back is Seattle’s Russell Wilson. For his career, Wilson is 72-54-7 ATS. This season, he’s off to an MVP-like start, the Seahawks are 5-0, and bettors continue to love Wilson as he’s 4-1 ATS.

Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes is another. He’s the reason why the Chiefs score so many points and win so many games. Since taking over as the starter in his second season, Mahomes is 26-13-2 ATS.

Aaron Rodgers is another big-name quarterback. Bettors love Rodgers, especially when he’s coming off an ATS loss. After a Green Bay loss, Rodgers and the Packers win straight up more than 60 percent of the time. For his career, Rodgers is 40-21-1 ATS in games after a loss.

Don’t Forget the Other QBs

While Wilson, Mahomes, and Rodgers are names most are familiar with, don’t forget the not-so-well-known quarterbacks. Tennessee’s Ryan Tannehill took over the Titans starting job last year. He earned the NFL’s Comeback Player of the Year Award as a result.

Not only has he done well statistically and guided Tennessee to a 5-0 start this season, he’s trending upward for NFL sports bettors. In Tannehill’s 15 regular season starts, the Over is 13-2. In the nine games played at Nissan Stadium, the Over is 8-1.

Carolina’s Teddy Bridgewater has had his share of struggles. Finally a No. 1 starter for the Panthers, Bridgewater is a quarterback bettors should love. His ATS record is almost unbelievable.

Overall, Bridgwater is 30-10 ATS. You can break it down into different situations and find even more impressive numbers. When he’s been an underdog, Bridgewater is 20-5 ATS. As the road quarterback, he’s 16-3 ATS and as a road underdog Bridgewater is 15-2 ATS.

Trust Your PPH Service

You need to absolutely trust your pay per head (PPH) service 100% in the bookie business.

If you have the slightest doubt about whether you can trust your PPH service, you need to switch providers now. The PPH service you choose has a massive influence on your business.

Why You Need to Trust Your PPH Service

Here are just some of the main reasons why you need to have full trust in your PPH provider.

● Software: They manage the software and development. They decide whether to implement new features and they also handle server management. What happens if your site goes down on NFL Sunday? Do they have a team on standby to get your site back up?

● Bookie Support: They’re going to be the ones helping you grow. Are they helpful or do they leave you stranded on your own? The best price per head sites have huge teams with the expertise to make sure your business will grow. Bookie support is even more important for new bookies.

● Player Support: PPH services handle player support for you as well. Do they have a 24/7 team with English-speaking reps? If most of your players are in the US or Canada then it’s important that your PPH service can handle player support in English.

● Odds Management: Can you trust your pay per head to maintain sharp lines? Even having a stale line for a few hours can cost you a bunch of money if your players notice. You don’t want to rely on a PPH service that simply utilizes an odds feed to manage the betting lines.

Switching to a New Pay Per Head Provider

It’s also a daunting task to switch PPH providers and something no one looks forward to doing.

However, in some cases, you have no choice. If you don’t have trust in your PPH service, it’s time to change providers. You should switch to the most trusted price per head service.

Why We Recommend RealBookies

RealBookies has the trust of thousands of bookies already. They’re one of the biggest PPH services in the world and they have been building their stellar reputation up for many years now.

The software they use is developed in-house and filled with features to make your life easier. You can track every wager in real-time and know exactly where you stand financially.

Bookie and player support is available 24/7. RealBookies have a 24/7 call center where your players can not only call in for player support, but they can place bets on the telephone. If your players are living in rural areas with poor internet, they may require a call center to ensure they don’t miss bets.

Lastly, RealBookies have a huge team to manage the betting odds. They utilize the best data feeds in the business and then watch market movements across the industry 24/7. There’s never a stale line at RealBookies and you’ll notice your overall hold percentage increase when you switch.

RealBookies is a name you can trust in the pay per head industry.

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How COVID has affected NBA Player’s Contracts

NBA players are among the most paid professional athletes whose salaries are often a discussed topic amongst fans. It's evident that the pandemic came with some negative economic impacts, and basketball, being a professional sport, was not spared. Even after restarting the season, a lot of revenue was lost as fans could not attend the game events. This has a significant effect on how much the league earned.

That said, the COVID-19 pandemic is speculated to affect all NBA players, mostly the rising and all-star players and the 2020 free agents. Before we look at how COVID has affected the NBA player's contracts, let's see how let's see the formulae used to determine the players' salaries.

How the NBA Players' Salaries are Determined

Based on the league revenue from the previous season, the coming season’s salary cap can easily be determined. Simply put, the 2019-2020 league revenue will determine the 2021 salary cap. Following the 2016-CBA (Collective-Bargaining-Agreement), NBA owners and players take a 51-49 split of the basketball-related-income (BRI): in which players are slightly favored.

BRI consists of all the revenue collected from basketball-related income: brand deals, ticket sales, and sales of branded merchandise. The player's portion, 51% of the BRI, divided by 30 (which is the total NBA teams) gives the next season's spending threshold per team. The remaining 49% of the BRI is shared among the owners. Now that you know how the player's salaries come about let's see how COVID impacted the wage cap.

Speculated Revenue Lost Due to the Pandemic

It was estimated that the NBA would lose between $500 and $700 million in ticket sales. This is without fans in attendance. The fact that many people lost their jobs during the pandemic means that fans had to shift their spending priorities, and the league saw a drastic drop in the sale of licensed merchandise. The total estimated lost revenue in BRI due to the pandemic is something close to $ 1 billion. This is a large figure and would lower each team's next year's salary cap by millions of dollars compared to this year.

How the Contracts will be affected

The considerable BRI loss comes with multiple negative impacts, especially to the players' final salaries and contracts. In April, 10% of players’ salaries were deducted and put into the escrow account, just in case the season's estimated BRI isn't met. The rule was introduced to protect the League’s 51-49 CBA split, and with the effects of the pandemic, likely, players won't receive any amount from the escrow account. In fact, they may still be required to give up a part of their salaries.

Players with expired contracts are likely to be underpaid. This is because the teams will then have limited expenditures, and they will be forced to spend as little as possible. Besides the low pay, some players will be required to pay any amount they owe to club owners from the just-completed (2019-2020) season.

Max contracts are also expected to be lower than earlier expected. This is because it's tied to the percentage of NBA team's cap. Players who signed a super-max contract for the coming seasons will be paid less than the projected amounts, and future contracts will as well be affected. This comes as a disadvantage, especially to rising stars like Sixers' Ben Simmons, Nugget's Jamal Murray, and Raptor's Pascal Siakam, etc.

Moving Forward

Even as the NBA and NBPA try to reach an agreement on CBA modification, various speculations have surfaced on the future of the NBA contracts. A lot has also been taking place on the behind the scenes of NBA max-contracts and negotiations, often involving confidential legal bargains, contract clauses, and player preferences analysis.

The ongoing talks between the union and the NBA aim to resolve the current debate and settle on a favorable decision for both the players and club owners. If you take a smart guess, it's pretty evident that the talks are centered on increasing escrow taken from players' contracts and salaries. The BRI's full audits are yet to be released, which will determine who gets what amount as per the league's 51-49 CBA split.

From these developments, legal advice and representations are proving quite essential, especially for upcoming players and free agents. Coach consultation and contract revisions are also becoming crucial than ever before. Negotiating through the contract process is expected to be tough, considering the tough financial times. This calls for legal professionals who know and understand the NBA landscape better.

Final Thoughts

The CoVID-19 pandemic has been met with devastating effects across all the major economic sectors. NBA is one of the major sports that have had a fair share of the pandemic's economic impacts. As a result, legal consultations and contract revisions are becoming a priority to ensure the players' interests aren't overlooked.

It's worth noting that even with the CBA negotiations and modifications, NBA players are sure to walk away with some big chunk of money. Maybe not as much as they would expect, but the pay would still be very decent.

How gaming has evolved from the humble card game

Gaming has evolved massively over the years and we’re not just talking technology. In fact, the humble card game has been around since the late 14th century. Playing cards are said to have originated in China before spreading through Asia to India and then Persia.

From Persia, it is thought that they spread to Africa to Egypt and from there, made their way to Europe. This was via both the Italian and Iberian peninsulas which is why European laying cards tend to sport an Islamic derivation.

Card games are popular for a number of reasons, they are versatile as they is a number of games you’re able to play whether it’s on Goldenrivieracasino online casino or an alternative platform.

They are also portable but of course, with advancing technology, the majority of games are now portable and card games are now online, available at the many high roller casino sites. So, how did gaming become so big and make its way online?

In 1889, Nintendo was founded. However, it did not go straight into video games and stuck with creating playing cards for several decades. For a while in the mid 20th century, the Japanese company even tried their hand at vacuums, short-stay hotels and instant rice.

At around the same time, or at least a few years earlier in 1952, the first computer game was released. A computer scientist at the University of Cambridge, now one of the best educational facilities in the world and part of the Russel Group, founded the first documented computer game. This was a simple Noughts and Crosses game, simple but at the time of course, very marvelling indeed.

Some twenty years later and we got to see the first commercial arcade game by the same duo who founded Atari. Computer Space was an arcade game and the first ever commercially sold video game. One year later in 1972 and the first home console was coined, the Magnavox Odyssey.

The first video game console that plugged into a television, it featured 12 games. Ralph Baer, the founder of the console passed away in 2014 and remains known as the father of video games.

In 1989, handheld gaming become known to us and the Game Boy catapulted the gaming industry as a result. The handheld device was a hit with gamers, invader the palms of players everywhere. Nintendo has since sold over 400 million Game Boy devices.

Fast-forward into the 21st century and gaming is all around us with a string of constantly advancing consoles upon us, each adapted from the last. Even the least avid gamers have instant access to games via their computer and smartphone.

Whilst nowadays, when speaking of cards and gaming, it’s perhaps more likely you’ll be referring to graphics cards, Microsoft computers and laptops are still loaded with games such as solitaire and hearts. Over half of Americans now play video games in an industry that is totalling billions.

Gaming had come a long way since the humble card game but thanks to smartphones, tablets and computers, any card game you desire is instantly accessible.

Things you should know about College Football

College football betting lines and picks can be tricky, however, if you hang around the sport long enough, the lines can also be predictable. The first thing you must know about college football is this; there are hundreds of teams. There are literally hundreds of schools that play competitive football and along with that means betting lines. Las Vegas leaves no stone unturned and the online bookmakers have followed suit. On any given weekend you will see hundreds of lines along with scores of ways to bet on those games. Not only are game lines presents, but there are also prop lines which involve game props, special props, and player props. On top of all that, you will see scores of betting options such as straight bets, parlays, teasers, super teasers, reverse action, round robins, and many more ways to bet on these games. All of this can be overwhelming is you are not experienced in the world of college football betting. You must have a backup plan and you must have help. There is a way, it’s called the “pay per head.”

What does the pay per head do for you?

· It allows you an immediate online presence along with a custom-built gaming website that’s FREE for your use. You will have exclusive access to a .com address that’s only used by you, and your betting clients.

· Should you be doing business now with a different PPH, your new PPH will integrate your players in less than a day, for free. The PHH will set you up with the best player management software on the internet along with a state of the art user interface that makes maneuvering the website a breeze for you and easy for the player.

· The best per head sportsbooks come with a 24/7 hotline that’s accessible from the USA. The help line is staffed by gaming-friendly agents that understand bookies, and understand the business on every level, they also speak great English.

· The PPH offers you three gaming genera’s. They offer a top-notch sportsbook that delivers all of the bells and whistles and one that gamblers will love to use. They also offer a world-class racebook that features more than 75-tracks from across the USA, and around the world. Along with all of this, you also get a Las Vegas-style casino that offers all of the popular table games, the hottest in slot play, and live dealers. You get all three of these gaming genera’s for absolutely free on your free-custom-built website.

· The best PPH providers on the internet have the best security, and the best guaranteed up time –(running time). In other words, your site will never be offline. Not all PPH websites are created equal so be sure to find the best of the best and do NOT overpay. The median price for the best PPH providers is around $7-$13 per head, per week, per active player.

· The PPH charges you a per head fee, per week. This is based on active players only. Possibly you have 100-players on your client list but only10 of them are active (betting every week), you will only pay for those active players. Your players can place as many bets as they choose per week and you are charged only one time.

· The PPH offers the best bookie software that does all of the daily tasks for you. You do nothing other than take deposits from your clients and make payouts when you owe your clients. The PPH does the rest. They set the daily lines and odds, they set the daily events in the sportsbook and racebook, and they maintain and calibrate the casino.

· The PPH also accepts wagers on the website through the use of your clients personal account, or your client may phone in their bet to the 800-number, of course they can call you as well, you are still in charge. The PPH also grades all bet slips.

When it comes to college football, it’s best to sign on with a PPH that understands the game and how lines and odds should be set. This is a tough call for most bookies with much odds making experience. Call the PPH and get started today. Start earning a six-figure income and turn 2020 around.

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Early look at the Champions League betting market

The world of sport has continued to return and look to prosper, as difficulties continue to arise due to the coronavirus pandemic. Spectators continue to be unable to attend events, but it is leading to popularity online. Illinois online gambling is an example of this, as they have seen a rise in numbers with those looks to get involved in sports betting. This is likely to continue with online entertainment on the rise, as people remain with restrictions in their daily lives.

One event that many sports fans are looking to is the Champions league that is fast approaching. So here we cover the leading sides in the betting markets at present.

As would have been expected, Bayern Munich are the current outright betting favourites to defend their title in the Champions league this season. They are widely available at 4/1 and have been drawn in Group A, which will see them taking on Atletico Madrid, Lokomotiv Moscow and Red Bull Salzburg. Bayern will be the overwhelming favourites to progress through, with Atletico Madrid most likely to follow them through. Bayern Munich are also coming off the back of a dominating Bundesliga victory last season, so will be full of confidence for further success this season.

Next in the market at a general 9/2 is Manchester City, who will again be expected to challenge to the latter stages of the competition. They had a disappointing campaign last year, that included missing out on the Premier league title and being knocked out of the Champions league by Lyon in the quarter finals. Manchester City have been drawn in Group C, which will see them taking on Olympiacos, Marseille and Porto. They will be expected to progress through with Porto most likely to follow them through.

Third in the betting are Liverpool at a general 11/2, who are coming off the back of winning the Premier league title. On top of this, they won the Champions league the previous season and are always a major force in the competition. Liverpool have been drawn in Group D, which will see them taking on Ajax, Atalanta and FC Midtjylland. Liverpool will start as the overwhelming favourites to top the group, with Atalanta most likely to follow them through. The latter of course reaching the quarter-finals last season, prior to being beaten 2-1 by PSG.

PSG are then next available at a general 10/1. They were beaten finalists last season, when losing 1-0 to Bayern Munich, so will be hoping to go one better this time around. The side also won the domestic title, despite the season being cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic. PSG have been drawn in Group H, which will see them taking on Istanbul Basaksehir, Manchester United and RB Leipzig. PSG will be expected to top the group with RB Leipzig then the most likely to follow them through, following a successful run in the competition last season.

Other sides near the top of the betting markets include Real Madrid at a general 12/1, Juventus at 14/1, Barcelona at 16/1 and Chelsea are available at 20/1.

Top Five Shortest Priced Melbourne Cup Favourites & How They Fared

Twenty-four of the world’s most talented stayers line up to compete in the Group 1 Melbourne Cup at Flemington Racecourse each year. It is one of the world’s richest and most prestigious races, run under strict handicap conditions, so it is always ferociously competitive.

It is very rare to see an extremely short priced Melbourne Cup favourite, due to the sheer depth of quality in the field. However, every now and then a supremely gifted stayer emerges as the overwhelming favourite after generating a great deal of interest among punters. These are the five shortest priced winners in Melbourne Cup history:

Phar Lap ($1.73)

The legendary Phar Lap is only horse to have started odds-on to win the Melbourne Cup in the 159-year history of the race that stops a nation. He was priced at just 8-11 ($1.73) to salute in 1930 after embarking on a sensational run of victories that year.

Phar Lap captured the public’s imagination during the early years of the Great Depression, and he was known as the people’s champion. He is the highest rated horse in Australian history, with a 141 rating. That leaves him ahead of Bernborough, Tulloch, Kingston Town, Peter Pan and Winx.

He had won 16 of his past 17 races before the 1930 Melbourne Cup, including extremely prestigious races like the Cox Plate and the St Leger. Phar Lap was so good that criminals tried to assassinate him twice in order to prevent him from triumphing in the Melbourne Cup.

Yet both assassination attempts failed, and Phar Lap went into hiding. He emerged on the day of the race and delighted punters by winning the Cup with ease.

Phar Lap ended up winning 14 races in a row during 1930, and then he won nine out of 10 starts in his five-year-old season. The only defeat came when he finished eighth in the 1931 Melbourne Cup. However, that was because the handicappers assigned him a ridiculous 10 stone 10 pounds, the heaviest load in the race’s history.

In 2015, The Age ran a virtual race between all the greatest champions in Melbourne Cup history, and Phar Lap won it ahead of Makybe Diva.

So You Think ($3)

New Zealand-bred stayer So You Think was the red hot favourite to win the Melbourne Cup in 2010. He pulled off an astonishing feat by winning the Group 1 Cox Plate during his three-year-old season, and he then won it again the following year.

So You Think also won the Underwood Stakes, Yalumba Stakes and Mackinwood Stakes in 2010, leading many people to hail him as one of the greatest Australian racehorses of all time.

He was priced at just $3 to win the Melbourne Cup that year, and more than 110,000 spectators packed into Flemington Racecourse expecting him to surge to victory. You can check out a full list of the 2020 Melbourne Cup horses here – https://www.punters.com.au/melbourne-cup/melbourne-cup-horses/ – and you are unlikely to see a horse priced as short as $3, so it is easy to see why the weight of expectation was so intense.

However, persistent rain made the track sloppy, and So You Think could only finish third. He was more than three lengths behind the winner, a $13 shot called Americain, and the lightly raced Maluckyday finished second.

Makybe Diva, ($3.50)

Tony Šantic, a tuna fisherman from South Australia, named his highly promising racehorse after five of his employees – Maureen, Kylie, Belinda, Diane, and Vanessa – by taking the first two letters from each of their names. She went on to become one of the greatest stayers in history.

Makybe Diva won her first Melbourne Cup at odds of $7 in 2003. She remained in terrific form ahead of the 2004 Melbourne Cup, so she was priced at just $3.50 to triumph, and she justified the odds by winning convincingly.

Many pundits doubted she could win a third Melbourne Cup, but the punters backed her into $4.40 in 2005, and she completed her hat-trick with another sensational performance. That made Makybe Diva the most successful horse in the race’s history, and she also won the Australian Champion Stayer award three years on the bounce.

Makybe Diva was named Australian Racehorse of the Year in 2005 and 2006, and she was swiftly inducted into the Australian Racing Hall of Fame.

Rising Fast ($3.50)

In 1954, Rising Fast became the only horse in history to win the Cox Plate, the Caulfield Cup and the Melbourne Cup in the same year. He demonstrated wonderful adaptability by winning the Cox Plate over 2,040m and the Caulfield Cup over 2,400m, so the handicappers paid him a great deal of respect ahead of the 3,200m Melbourne Cup.

Rising Fast was handed a weight of 9 stone 5 pounds for the race that stops a nation, but he was still backed into $3.50, and he was the toast of punters across the land after romping to victory. Only Rain Lover in 1969 has ever carried a heavier load while victorious at the Melbourne Cup.

Master O’Reilly, $3.80

Danny O’Brien’s Master O’Reilly secured an emphatic victory at the 2007 Caulfield Cup, so he was priced at just $3.80 to win the Melbourne Cup a couple of weeks later. However, he disappointed punters by finishing eighth, finishing well behind winner Efficient, a $21 outsider.

Master O’Reilly ended up winning eight of 48 career starts. He was fourth in the 2008 Melbourne Cup behind $41 shot Viewed and fourth the following year behind Shocking, who was priced at $9.

Master O’Reilly died in unusual circumstances in 2013. “He was a great warrior for our stable,” O’Brien said., He provided me with one of my greatest thrills winning the Caulfield Cup.”

ESports – The New (Virtual) Reality of Competitive Gaming

If there is one form of entertainment that is forever evolving, it has to be gaming. With the release of new technologies such as Virtual Reality, increasing internet speeds, and innovative ways to play and watch others play, gamers make full use of what they are offered. One of these ways has seen the rise of eSports.

While people may argue that gaming is not a sport, especially the games where you are set at a machine playing, the millions of fans around the world would beg to differ. With the likes of League of Legends and DOTA 2 offering huge winning pots for the competitors, the high energy gaming sports are having a huge impact on the gaming industry.

The idea behind eSports is to take the best of the best and to make them compete against each other. For the fans this makes for compelling viewing, though it has yet to find a huge following away from streaming services. This will change though, and the television deals that are being made to bring it into a mainstream environment is playing a big part of that.

So why do people enjoy watching these games so much? The simple answer is that it is entertaining. Whether it be platforms like www.casinoza.com, the latest League of Legends tournament, Street Fighter V battles, or competitive Overwatch, there is something for everybody.

It's the way the enjoyment of the games bleeds into the audience of eSports which makes the tournaments work for the gaming industry.

Then of course, when the tournaments are over, the gamers make their way to the online casinos to play more poker, online roulette, or any of the other games that have caught their fancy.

Money is made through advertising, the games themselves, and the services that have grown from this form of “sport”. Just look at services such as Twitch or YouTube and you’ll see millions of people streaming their games, and homing their skills to be the next eSports star. It may be just a pipedream to some, but to others they are realising their future in competitive gaming.

The beauty of eSports and why it is taking hold in the gaming community is that there is a feeling that anybody could be the next star. There are even tournaments created to allow people to live their dream, or of course go down in a blaze of glory. With the gaming industry seeing just how much money can be made from eSports, expect the future to be very much golden for this form of entertainment.

It’s certainly clear that with all of the coming success, virtual reality may very well become the reality.