It’s an all-new episode of my Wise Kracks sports betting podcast with cohost, Jon Orlando. With the Super Bowl a little over a week away, we’re gearing up for the biggest sports betting event of the year by chopping up the numbers with two of the most knowledgeable sports betting experts in the US.
Jon and I welcome Westgate SuperBook’s VP of Race and Sports Operations Jay Kornegay, and FanDuel’s Director of Trading John Sheeran to give us an inside look at the Super Bowl’s betting numbers.
This episode is packed with exclusive information to help you bet on the 2022 Super Bowl.
A Rollercoaster of NFL Conference Championships Betting
The Cincinnati Bengals broke the hearts of Chiefs fans as well as that of everyone who had the Chiefs in a 7-point teaser, coming back from 18 down to win in Arrowhead. Much of the public bet on Chiefs spread and money line. We discussed how the books really took advantage of live bets during these games.
The 49ers blew a 10-point lead to the Rams, signaling the end of their year and paving the Rams’ road straight to the Super Bowl. QB Jimmy G was unable able to get offensive production, but unfortunately had enough passing yards to kill my passing yards total bet on the game.
Last week’s guest, Coach John Beam, shared he was in favor of Jimmy G remaining the starter in San Francisco. However, after this week it appears that Jimmy G might be done in San Francisco. I like winners and Jimmy G certainly wasn’t that this weekend.
According to DraftKings, 67% of spread bets are on the Bengals (+4.5, -115) in the Super Bowl, with 55% of the money going to the Bengals total. This creates an interesting position for both sportsbooks and bettors. We were joined today by TWO big-time decision-makers at some of the biggest sportsbooks in North America to discuss the numbers.
Insider Super Bowl Numbers with Westgate’s Kornegay
Jay Kornegay has been our guest on Wise Kracks before and he’s always generous with his knowledge about Las Vegas sports betting and sports betting in general. Today Jay outlined Westgate’s process to determine their lines. The last six NFL Playoff games have come down to the last play and that excitement has resulted in huge numbers and high stakes for sportsbooks.
Kornegay described the atmosphere at his Westgate SuperBook and other sportsbooks in Las Vegas as “electric” during the last few weeks.
“When it came to in-game wagering, though, a lot of people like betting the favorite when they fall behind,” said Kornegay.
The favorites were ahead during these games which didn’t really translate to a lot of in-game wagering like we would see if the favorite falls behind. Very few people were betting the Bengals to come back, which would have been the case if the Chiefs were behind.
Jay revealed that there is a large volume of action going down on the Bengals, which is interesting considering they are the underdogs and the public’s money is usually piled on the favorites.
Our conversation covers a lot of ground, including Jay’s break down on how Westgate frequently comes out with the first Super Bowl line in the city, plus predictions for a record-setting 2022 for Las Vegas sports betting.
FanDuel’s US Edge with John Sheeran
John Sheeran is a betting industry veteran of more than 20 years. He’s bet horses and greyhounds professionally, and got his start in oddsmaking in horseracing in Ireland. When sports betting started to become legalized in the US, Sheeran moved to New York to set up trading operations for FanDuel.
In our interview today, John shared exclusive insights into the way that FanDuel operates. He talks in detail about how FanDuel has invested heavily in risk trading and oddsmaking, and that he believes they hold a significant lead over their US competition in those areas. It led to a really interesting conversation about the way I bet and how FanDuel is consistently ahead on sharp lines compared to other US books.
John shared that FanDuel will likely want a Los Angeles Rams win in the Super Bowl in the margin of 1 to 3 points.
Send us your questions on Twitter @BillKrackMan, @JonOrlando and @WSNsports. We pick listener questions every week.
Listen to Bill on his Sports Betting Podcast Wise Kracks by WSN
Check back with WSN weekly for new episodes of Wise Kracks. Subscribe to the WSN YouTube channel or find Wise Kracks on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
