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Jul 9, 2026
A Numbers Game | July 9, 2026 | Hour 3
A Numbers Game | July 9, 2026 | Hour 3
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46:15
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Transcript
0:00
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0:59
[upbeat music] The numbers tell the story. They always do. It's one of those idiots who believe in analytics. This is a Numbers Game with Gil Alexander on VSiN.
1:11
Hour number three of a Numbers Game at VSiN, eSports betting network, vsin.com, Game Plus, iHeartRadio, YouTube TV, and of course, Sirius XM channel 158.
1:20
I'm laughing because I had a pregnant pause there at the beginning, and I think the crew was like, "Eh, what just, what just happened there? Did we finally lose him?" Uh, no.
1:27
Pristine audio and video here in San Francisco. I just forgot what hour it was of the show. Uh, it is Gil Alexander in San Francisco. It doesn't matter that I'm not in studio. You know who is.
1:37
With Kelly Bidlin, Bill Krackomberger unscripted. Let's go. [upbeat music] Aw, yeah. [upbeat music] Hit it. Billy, good morning.
1:54
Hey, good morning, guys. How you doing, man? Good, good, good. You're in, uh, my heart's in San Francisco. I left my heart and Gil in San Francisco. [laughs] That's right. I'll, I'll be back. Yeah.
2:05
By the way, let me just say this. Uh- Go ahead... our buddy Nifty, while you guys are at dinner, he's so nice to, like, call me in the middle of dinner just to, like, make me feel part of it.
2:15
So shout out to [laughs] to our guy Nifty. It's very sweet of him. He's such a sweet guy. Yeah, he's just looking for you to leave tip money. [laughs] Somehow over the phone, even though- And Venmo it to someone, yeah...
2:27
yeah, he's just looking. That's right. Yeah, he can't help himself. That's probably what it is. Yeah. Yeah. Uh- All right. Well, y- you come in firing...
2:32
yeah, we, we ate at Lago last night, which i- it's good, but it ain't Carbone. Mm-hmm. No. I'll just tell [laughs] I'll just tell you. It ain't Carbone. It's beautiful. It's actually beautiful though.
2:41
It's right on the water there, uh, at the, the fountains. I say water like we're like it's, like it's a Atlantic Ocean or a ocean. Well, we all do. Yeah, it's right on the water. Yeah.
2:49
But, um- [laughs] Yeah, so we ate there last night, and, um, it, it, yeah, a- and Nifty called you because we've been, we've been having these, um, weekly, uh, meals.
2:59
And, uh, as a matter, matter of fact, Gil, I'll tell you where I ate on Monday night. Uh, Monday night I ate... Or Sunday night. It might've been Sunday night.
3:06
Sunday or Monday, one of those two nights, I ate at Mother Wolf. Have you eaten there? Oh. Have we talked about this? Yes. Absolutely, yes. Well- At, uh, at Fountain Blue. Packed. Always packed. It's so packed.
3:19
There's more people in Mother Wolf than there is in the casino. Oh, yeah, not even close. It's true. [laughs] Now, Kelly, do you like that there? Have you been there?
3:25
Oh, yeah, yeah, I've eaten there, I'm gonna guess four or five times. It's amazing. One, one of the best, one of my favorite new restaurants in town. I, I did something that's unbelievable.
3:32
I wrote the m- the waiter's name down. Of course I don't... Jonathan. So this waiter, name's Jonathan, he was so good. He's like, "I could do something special for you here. I can go with what I like."
3:44
And I said, "You know what?" And looked over the menu. I said, "You know what? There's nothing on here I wouldn't like." Mm-hmm. I said, "Go ahead." Oh my God, he, he did such a great job that I'm going...
3:54
A- and he, and he picked, like, cheap items. You know, there's two of us. I know it sounds like it's expensive, $200, but that's not expensive. This is a $200 a, per person place, which- Right...
4:05
Carbone, the Mother Wolf, it's, like, 200 a head. Um, it was 200 bucks for the meal, and we ate like we were going to the electric chair, so- [laughs]... you know, we had so much food. It was unbelievable.
4:16
And, um- Yeah... no, he, he, he, uh, brought out so many things that are on the... Now, I love the zucchini flowers. I'm so glad he picked that as part of it. So he picked that.
4:26
He picked the bruschetta, which was, that was unbelievable. It was so good. And the, the, um, the entrees were great. The, the pasta, he had a short rib pasta. I mean, there was so many things he picked.
4:37
Then a- and, and I said, "Listen, no desserts though," because I, I, I can't have a lot of sugar at night especially. And he, he's like, "Well, I gotta have you try something." Oh, I know what happened.
4:47
He brought out this strawberry- Mm-hmm... I don't even know what it was. It, it, it, it... I just had a taste of it, but my, my, um, my, my buddy had the rest. And, um, it... He had to bring out these donuts.
4:58
I said, "You can't. I haven't had a donut in two years." Yep. [laughs] You can't bring out the donuts. But, but these, these fresh-made hot donuts. Ugh.
5:04
And I just had a taste of it, but I mean, anyway, that restaurant is definitely one of the top restaurants in this town. That chef has an interesting story from California.
5:15
I think someone came in and, and liked the food so much, he's like, "We gotta o- we gotta open up more of these." And put up money, and, um, I think there's, like, four or five of them around the country.
5:24
Maybe, maybe even around the world. It might be international even, so. But- Yeah... the good news is- You, you said that-... that- Yeah... I, um,
5:32
so I, I, I know someone over there, and they had some- they had a promotion, um, over there which I played and lost. Wow, someone m- admitted losing? Whoa. I got, yeah, I got whacked at video poker there. What?
5:43
They have 100-play video poker. Got whacked. So the good news is next few months we'll be visiting Mother Wolf at least once every two weeks for free. [laughs] Oh, there you go. Let's go. Oh, man. Yeah.
5:55
No, but, but- Very nice... but, um, yeah, they, they had a promotion there where every 20,000 points, it's on their website- Yeah, I saw it too... yeah, every 20,000 points you get a, um, a, a free bonus of 500 to 2,500.
6:06
But it's, um, like, like I said though, it could be very volatile. Mm-hmm. You could, it could be very swingish. You can get whacked. So, um, I, I've been doing really good at my life at these kind of promotions.
6:18
This is the first one I played this year 'cause of this new tax rule, um- But now I have room to play, uh, because, you know, you have to, you can only write off so much of your losses.
6:27
So, uh, i- it's gonna be a difficult accounting year. Usually I have a lot of, a ton of tickets from video poker throughout the year. I don't have a single jackpot this year. So, uh- Hmm...
6:39
that, i- i- it's gonna be an interesting year. Uh, but I did play that. I usually don't choose to play them because of, of that reason. But anyway, good restaurant there.
6:48
Now, Gil, here, let me just tell you something I don't like, and I've never talked about this before, and I don't know how people are gonna take it. But h- here's what I don't like.
6:59
Two things when I go to dinner, and Gil, uh, this has nothing to do with you. [laughs] I don't like people- [laughs] Quarter eater. Well, listen, 'cause I'm going- Oh, no...
7:09
I'm getting the comp or I'm paying, and I don't like people who under-order. Don't be under-ordering- Oh, that's definitely not me... and then want stuff off my plate. Yeah. Now, I don't mind- Oh, yeah...
7:19
sharing things- Right... but get yourself a meal. Don't just pick. My mother used to say, Italian, just, "I wanna pick a little bit." You know, d- now, here's the, here's the worst thing:
7:30
I don't like people who over-order- [laughs]... and wanna take to-go bags. [laughs] Oh, that's so gauche. On your comp? I know. Yeah. Yeah. So they just wanna over-order and, and, and- Yeah...
7:42
it's like their last meal in their life, and, you know, they, they don't even touch the entree. Now, I'm not saying, trust me, uh, Gil, you haven't been involved in any of these type of dinners. No.
7:51
But- I'm right in the pocket, baby... but- Right in the middle... I am not a guy that, I'm not a to-go person.
7:56
I, I hate leftovers, and imagine me saying that growing up, like r- my, you know, my family, the leftover was great. The next day- Mm-hmm... it's better and, and this is what is the rumor out there.
8:06
Um, I'm just not a fan of putting things in the microwave. I'm not a microwave guy. But I don't like people that over-order.
8:14
Now, I had dinner recently with a guy that can buy and sell me many, many times over, and I took him a second night, only because Gil wasn't here. Gil doesn't even know it.
8:23
Gil wasn't here, so I had to fill a fourth chair, and, uh- [laughs]... he's a really nice guy. I love him to death. Both nights he ordered an entree and took it home. Wow. Oh. And, and better, better yet,
8:35
a- and I'm gonna make fun of him. He's gonna see this video. He ordered a dessert to go. [laughs] Oh my gosh. I am gonna kill him. He ordered- Now, wait, wait a minute. I need a clarification.
8:45
Is he ordering a second entree to go, or it's just his initial entree to go? No, he ordered his entree and took it home- Ah... because he ordered a lot of app, we ordered a lot of appetizers.
8:55
So- What, like, didn't finish it and took it home? Uh, he had a, a bite. A bite, okay. A bite to make it look- So basically a full meal. A bite to make it look good. So- Yeah... so let's be honest.
9:03
He's taking the shot, and he just can't eat it is basically what's happening. How can you order- That's what I think is happening... a second dessert and take it home? "Oh, can you put a slice of pie in a bag?"
9:12
No, you're right. That part's bad. [laughs] What's another meal? Can't do that. Oh, boy. Can't do that. I, I tell you- Yeah...
9:17
the other part for me though, Bill, I don't know, speak for you, the, the h- why I don't take many things home from these restaurants is what are really the odds that I'm going to get out of Mother Wolf into the heart of the Fountain Blue casino, go directly to my car- Mm...
9:31
and go home and get it into the fridge in a manner of time- Without a doubt... right? No, I'm gonna sit there- Without a doubt... I'm gonna end up at the blackjack table.
9:37
I'm gonna end up playing video poker, and then I'm carrying around a bag for three hours f- uh, full of food. Yeah.
9:42
A- a- and to be real serious though too, I don't like food wasted, so I really don't mind people taking food home. I really don't. You wanna take the, if there's l- leftover there, take it home.
9:51
But don't order with the intent of taking it home. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Yeah.
9:55
There is, there is a, no, what you're hitting on is there is an etiquette to everything, and when you're on somebody else's comp, how come some people just don't have the ability to think an extra second and say, "Huh, should I do that when it's on this dude's comp?
10:12
Or will that look bad?" Some people just have no filter on that kind of stuff. They're just like, "Yeah, free for all. I'm ordering whatever I want and I'm taking it home." Yeah. It is very gauche. That's the word.
10:21
Very gauche. Very, like Nifty has never taken anything home. No. He's thought about- No... taking it and, like, maybe, and selling it before we leave the door, but he never took it home. [laughs] So.
10:29
[laughs] That's right. There's, right. Now, you came in, by the way, you said, uh, bruschetta. I will just tell you this for anybody who's in San Francisco, there is a place called Jackson Fillmore in the city.
10:41
The bruschetta is better than anything else on the menu. Like, I will go there and just take out bruschetta. It's so unbelievably good. Wow. Wow.
10:48
But you, you came, you came into the studio, um, we can bleed this into the next segment, but you were pretty hot about something that's been going on on Twitter. Yeah. Yeah.
10:55
You wanna get into a next segment or, or start it now? No, let's start. Let, just give a, give us the, the broad view at this point. There's a- We'll get into it...
11:02
there's a fraud scamster out there that's on all sorts of social media, gets millions of hits, and m- most people know him. He says he has a baccarat system and he killed the casinos for baccarat, and, uh- Sure...
11:15
he's selling his system, by the way. He's just waiting now. It's been a couple years. Um, he's selling his system, and he's waiting for the right person to come along, and he said he's gonna do it for 50 million.
11:25
So $50 million to, to, because the casinos cheat, he's not allowed in the casinos. That's what he says. He's not allowed in casinos for many other reasons.
11:33
I know many executives, um, a- and, and he's not allowed in them because he trashed, tr- trashes rooms, talk about, talks about places and the places he's in, and he just, you know, he, he, he has, um, a long history of, of many different things.
11:45
But so now his latest scam is, uh, he's looking for accounts to bet on. So he put a video out yesterday that's got a ton of views, or it was actually Monday, and he said, uh, "I'm looking for your accounts."
11:58
And I know what that, that's PPH accounts. He wants your private accounts. He said, "We're gonna win, and, uh, I'm paying all the, and any c- you know, I'm paying if we lose, but I want your accounts if we win."
12:08
He's got a lot of followers, a lot of naive people. Um, and, uh, he's not doing the betting, of course. I mean, he, he, he probably did fall into line with someone that's a sharp group, syndicate group or something.
12:19
But, um, the way he worded it was, "I'll put up all the money." There's no putting up money. He says I'll... what it is, is I'll pay the money if I lose.
12:29
Okay, yeah, I'll trust you over the internet and with your history. Um, but yeah, so he's and, and, and kids fall for it. People fall for it. Ugh.
12:36
People that are betting with their local bookmaker, they fall for this stuff, and there's many reasons. When we come back from the break, I'll explain why you shouldn't do this. Yeah. Hold that thought. It's brutal.
12:46
They're always making new scamsters. Uh, coming back on The Numbers Game right here at VSiN. You're here because you want an edge. That's what separates listeners from winners, but let's be real.
12:57
Mindset alone doesn't get bets home. Pros win because they've got the tools, the data, and the discipline, and now so can you. VSiN Pro gives you access to the same real-time insights the sharps use.
13:07
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13:15
[rock music] A Numbers Game on VSiN, the sports betting network.
13:32
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13:40
One winner is gonna receive a $1,000 entry in a Circuit Survivor, and another's gonna win a $1,000 entry into Circuit Millions.
13:47
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13:57
For your chance to win, visit winnerscircleproxy.com/vsin to enter today. That's winnerscircleproxy.com/vsin. I love the VSiN studio tour part of that.
14:08
Uh, I don't know if Kelly Bidlin will be in studio, but maybe some VSiN personality will be in studio at the time you get your studio tour. Look- So there's an added bonus as well...
14:16
Gil, there's not much I would brag about around here, but, uh, you're not gonna get a better studio tour from anybody at VSiN over me, okay? [laughs] It's true. I'm, I'm, I'm, I'll promise you that.
14:26
Would you, would you care to share what your extra flair is for such a studio tour as the tour guide? How- why is yours better than everybody else's?
14:33
Well, because I know every single person that works behind the scenes too and what they do. True, yes. And I can explain exactly what they do. I'm very personable. I think I'm a great guy overall, you know?
14:44
[laughs] And it's just, could really just ta- I can walk you through the whole place to introduce you to everybody, really let you know what they're doing be- behind their, uh- Ah...
14:51
behind the, behind the glass during shows that you're watching. All true. I've never met anybody, by contrast. [laughs] Right? I've never, I don't know anybody back there. Mm.
14:59
Um, Kelly would be the, the best tour guide of all. Um, back on The Numbers Game with, uh, Bill Krackenberger, Unscripted with Krakman. It's Bill Krakman with a K on Twitter.
15:08
The name of the podcast is Wise Kracks, which he does with John Orlando, and we, uh, we left before the break, Bill, talking about, uh, a scammer, a fraudster.
15:17
I combined the words and said scamster, but I, I'll, I'll launch back into it just by saying what's amazing about all of this is
15:25
there always an, there's always a new scammer that rears his head, and usually it is a his, right, not a her, um, that rears his head if you just wait long enough.
15:37
And the, the sad part is there's also the equivalent new generation of bettors on the come up that don't know any better and are always willing to believe someone who's a good enough marketer.
15:51
The amount of people that follow him and praise him, he has done such an unbelievable job of getting on other peoples' shows and getting on a- and, and do- going on their podcast, and what they're doing without realizing it is they're spreading his word, which, you know, is BS.
16:11
Listen, he did win a lot of money. He came to Vegas, got lucky, won millions and millions of dollars playing baccarat and he won a lot of money, but he lost it all back.
16:23
But however, he took all the winnings, put all the cash on the tables and counters and, uh, I think it was The Har- the old Hard Rock when it was here.
16:32
Uh, he, he stacked the money up and, and, and, you know, showed millions of dollars in cash. That is the thing that the kids see, and I say kids, under 30 crowd, people that are new to gambling. Mm-hmm.
16:45
Since PASPA r- was repealed, you have a whole different generation of last eight, nine years of people that are gambling now because of that, and it may have started as sports betting, but of course now it crosses over to regular gambling, casino gambling.
16:58
So all these people see this and say, "Wait a minute, I can't stand my 9:00 to 5:00. How did he do this? I gotta, I gotta get involved with this. I gotta do some..."
17:07
So it's always a different, it's always a different, uh, uh, you know, thing for 'em.
17:12
This latest one just came out with sports betting accounts, and that's my field is I talked about this about a month ago on the show about, uh, people that, the, the PPH accounts, pa- pa- pay-per-head accounts that local bookmakers now use.
17:25
There's hardly anyone in the whole country that answers the phone and says, he, uh, you know, his cigar and, "Hey, how you doing? Hey, what do you want? You got 100 on the Giants, 200 on the Jets? All right."
17:35
You know, there's no one doing that no more. Um, they're, they're, they get pay-per-head accounts offshore and, uh, what happens is the people that are betting, they don't even realize it.
17:46
They, they just think you're betting with a, the bookmakers', um, you know, like they, they just say, "Oh, this is a good line for your bookmaker."
17:52
It's, it's actually a pay-per-head where it's they write the business for the local bookmaker, and it's, it, it makes the bookmaker more money in the end. You know, at first bookmakers were a little bit hesitant.
18:02
Back in the day it was $25 a head, $20 a head, and the bookmakers were like, "I'm not paying someone. I can answer the phone myself."
18:08
Then bookmakers realized, "Oh my God, I don't care if it's $20 and I have 50 customers. I don't care about paying 1,000 a week." They're all betting more because now they see a credit line. Yeah.
18:18
They actually see they have a credit line. They can gamble at night. They can gamble on different things.
18:23
They can gamble without calling and bothering you, and they're actually gonna gamble more, and in the end- They're gonna make much, much more than the, than, than the paper had actually cost the bookmaker.
18:35
So, um, now these accounts have become, uh, well, excuse me, the, the, let me tell you, at the beginning they were great, but now they've become very hard to deal with because nobody pays.
18:45
They have- I, I explained this a couple weeks ago, I'll do it again. Um, you know, everyone says that
18:51
the, what happens in the end of these, these companies that are running the business, they use the same kind of excuses all the time.
18:57
Uh, "You're betting with a different IP address, you're betting steam, you're betting with a bot, you've hacked my system, this is not your work, you're chasing steam." I can go on and on and on. There's so many reasons.
19:08
It's the re- it's I, I, I, I, I don't even use them. I, I, I don't use them.
19:12
I, I, I'm betting with the sportsbooks, um, you know, uh, because the legal sportsbooks, and, and even then it's hard to bet with the legal sport. I only have so many choices.
19:21
Um, I know I'm going into all different areas here, but- No, you s- you said a couple things in there though, Bill, that I, I don't wanna let slide by- Yeah, let's do it...
19:27
which is one, one which is when we did Action on Showtime, the Ac- the, uh, Showtime docuseries Action, you were one of the featured, uh, players in that m- in that movie.
19:38
So was Vegas Dave, and again, I brought this up before as someone who was sort of consulted on, on this docuseries, the, the people who made that documentary thought that by exposing the fraud of what Vegas Dave was doing, that it would be so clear, and by the way, everything went their way, right?
19:59
He ended up losing all these bets. Imagine if he had won- Oh... then it would really have sucked. But it ended up going their way, he lost all this stuff.
20:06
They exposed the fraud, and the, the makers of that documentary were so, so sure that it was so clear in evidence to the viewer that they would, you know, the takeaway would be, "Oh, this guy, scammer, we get it."
20:17
Instead it was exactly what you talked about there, which was, "Oh, but he has a house in Cabo, and he has a, look at that fancy car." Rolls Royce- And that's-... a Rolls Royce F- SUV Yeah. Yeah.
20:28
That's all that people, uh, uh, a segment of the viewing audience cared about.
20:31
The other thing you said about this particular scammer that is currently getting millions of views on Twitter, and Kelly alluded to this off-air, which is the, the first red flag for you as a, someone who might be susceptible to something like this is, he is openly soliciting [laughs] for your, your PPH accounts, uh, on social media.
20:50
Which is like the first sign that this dude is not that bright, right? Yeah, you know, people are looking to stay out of jail, this guy's looking to break in. Mm-hmm.
20:59
I mean, it's, [laughs] it's, you know, like, uh, there's so many different things there. You're betting over state lines, you're bet- I mean, now there's ways around it, though.
21:06
I understand it's a business, you pay taxes, and, um, you know, you file as a professional gambler.
21:11
Um, you know, but there, there's just so many red flags for, for someone like me who's been around, and people that are watching, listening to this show, the more astute crowd.
21:20
However, it's that crowd that follows him that says, "Oh, anything you do is, is, is, you know, you, whatever you think tou- turns to gold."
21:30
So of course they would be interested in it, and I just would say that just to watch, and now granted, he may even pay if he loses. I'm not saying that, but you just wanna be c- here's what's gonna happen.
21:41
He's gonna hand it off to a syndicate, one of the sharp sports betting groups, um, and the, he, he's gonna get you thrown out or banned or limited, but better yet, you're probably not gonna be paid.
21:53
So that's the, that's the more important thing is, um, unless you have a account or a relationship with your bookie that, hey, he, he welcomes the steam, yeah, good luck. No one welcomes steam and welcomes sharp action.
22:05
But just the way he presents it- We-... and, uh- Yes...
22:08
I just know from his history and people that know him and people that know, uh, the things he's been involved with, it just bothers me to see it on, on social media, but you know what? It's the new economy of gambling.
22:19
It's, it's on social media. It's, it's, um, people that make money from their channels. Uh, y- uh, Kelly and I were talking about like even the slot channels, um- Wild... now, now granted,
22:32
I like, like there's a guy in town here, is it Vegas Matt, right? Vegas Matt, yep. I like Vegas Matt. I like he, he's very transparent- Mm-hmm... about his losses.
22:41
He goes on and talks about, "Hey, I, I'm showing you this here, I'm, here's where I'm playing, this is what I'm doing, but this, you're probably gonna lose if you gamble."
22:51
So I, I like, and, and he's very open about how much money he makes, to how he makes on, on YouTube how much he makes, how much, he's very open. He, he makes seven figures a year because of the, um, different gambles.
23:01
He doesn't only gamble on slots, too. He gambles on tables, but he'll show you these big things and these big gambles and, um, but there's a lot that don't.
23:09
There's a lot that, that just glamorize it and glorify it and, you know, there's, there's, I know there's a girl on, on, that, that makes also seven figures a year on YouTube, and she just, um,
23:20
shows the big wins and doesn't really get- Oh... into the losses and how much money.
23:24
So what this does at home, though, is for people that are working their 9:00 to 5:00, they get home and watch these videos, it makes them wanna come to town or go to their local casino and gamble more, but here's what it really does.
23:36
It makes them over-gamble. Because if they're normally 25 cent players or penny machines, well, that's not gonna do it. They just seen Vegas Matt win, uh, you know, 300,000, he won a million-something one time.
23:46
So he has giant five-figure, six-figure swings. O- of course they're gonna come in and they're gonna gamble more, 'cause they wanna be you.
23:53
[upbeat music] So I, I, it, it's some of the things that are, it's give and take for me with, with the influencers. You know what, Bill?
23:59
And it's not just, although it's primarily younger generation, it's not exclusively that. There are people our age who fall victim to this kind of stuff, too. Or even seniors. Yeah. Yep. Yeah, it's amazing.
24:11
Uh, more with Crack on the other side. Bill Krackomberger @BillKrackman with a K on Twitter, Wise Crack's the name of the podcast. It's a numbers game at VSiN, the sports betting network.
24:19
[upbeat music] A numbers game on VSiN, the sports betting network There is no shortage of betting opportunities this summer from daily MLB and World Cup soccer to the countdown to football season.
24:38
That's why now's the perfect time to lock in VSiN's football special.
24:41
For just $175, you get full VSiN pro access through the Super Bowl, including our all-new 2026-27 NFL betting guide to help you attack futures, win totals, division races, in the upcoming season.
24:52
Plus, you get daily best bets, real-time betting splits from DraftKings and Circa, AI-powered prop projections, 24/7 video on the VSiN Watch app, and coverage of every major sport all year long.
25:01
And remember, the earlier you sign up, the more value you get. Head to vsin.com/subscribe now. That's V-S-I-N.com/subscribe. Gil Alexander in San Francisco, Crack and Kelly back in, uh, Las Vegas.
25:15
We got tweets @BeatingTheBook. Coach Brian, "Can't we just call Messi the greatest of the 21st century and Pele the greatest of the 20th century and be happy?" Sure. That sounds good. Sure.
25:26
Uh, Darren Frazier, "Thursday means one thing, Bill freaking Krackenberger. Nothing more needs to be said. Gilly, best host. Kelly, best quote unquote producer if he actually does quote unquote produce."
25:37
Hey, I worked really hard- And Crack is the-... earlier this week, okay? [laughs] That's right. "And Crack is the best guest weekly. Time to learn. Let's go." Chris of St. Barts, "Weekly reminder for a Nifty interview."
25:48
Crack, why are, why are we, uh, why are we banning Nifty? Why are you banning Nifty? Why are you ru- running interference on Nifty? Uh, I don't know. He bothers me. [laughs] He doesn't deserve it yet in Bill's eyes.
26:00
That's great. I love it. No, no, no. You know what? Geez. We will bring him on- Yeah... though when we come back. When you, you're on vacation the next two weeks? Next week. Next week. Yeah. Oh, next week. One week.
26:09
Yeah. Maybe the, the week- Yeah... after we can, uh, you're not here, you're still there, or you come back here? Yeah, let's, let's bring him when I'm in studio in August. Yeah, when you're in studio in August.
26:16
I'd love to do Nifty. Who knows, Bill? He's gonna be live from, like, Tahiti that week or something like that. Yeah, I know. We'll figure, we'll figure that out in a couple weeks. We'll see. Yeah. Cool, cool, cool.
26:23
I'm on an award tour. [laughs] Uh, James Sod.
26:26
Oh, James Sod letting me know that Adam Schefter has tweeted the Commanders are retiring John Riggins' number 44 jersey on Sunday, November 8th, when Washington hosts the LA Rams. Oh, man, can't wait for that.
26:38
Montreal, and by the way, one of my favorite guests of all time on A Numbers Game, maybe my single favorite in terms of just giddiness at a boyhood hero. Montreal- I've never seen you like that before in our, what- Oh...
26:49
five, seven years of working together now? Seven years we've worked together, I've never seen you like that. I coulda, I coulda just retired that day. What happened? Montreal Max. Oh, the interview.
26:58
I had Riggins on the show. Oh, the interview. Yeah. Yeah. John Riggins. Yeah, yeah. He was just so pumped. Just had Riggins on the show. Oh, right, right, right. Oh, of course, of course. Yeah.
27:04
He's like nine-year-old Gil- Yeah... like asking questions. No, when you said Montreal Max, I thought you meant so- something to do with Max. Well, go ahead. Oh, yeah.
27:09
Montreal Max, "Thanks to Bill and Gil for unscripted, but should we start a tennis tout service and just give out [laughs] to, to all the college bros the women they would rather hook up with in these matches since that already is their handicapping angle, same as who they follow on most networks?"
27:22
Yeah, well, that's probably true. Greg, uh, Nersesian, "I wonder who in the Mickey Mouse world Bill is talking about." [laughs] Let me think about this as I, as I eat my- That's good, Greg... as I eat my M&Ms.
27:35
Uh, Xavier82, quote, "We ate like we were going to the electric chair." That's the type of throwaway lines for the brilliant Bill Krackenberger that just crack me up every, [laughs] every week. That was a great line.
27:45
Brian M, Brian Moriannan, "Does the studio tour come with a commemorative ANG glow stick, Kelly, and appearance in the country club in Groupies?" Uh, you know what?
27:54
I can't promise you you're gonna make it into the country club in Open, 'cause that would be impossible. Yeah. But I will promise you a glow stick. How about that? I will promise you. Wow. Yes. Glow stick promised.
28:04
I'm gonna have to buy it- Bullet Godfrey... off Dardel- off Dardel, but I'll, I'll promise it. Yeah. Uh, Bullet Godfrey, "That chef over there at Mother Wolf is Evan Funk." That's it.
28:13
"Did a great interview with Joe Rogan." Oh, wow. Uh, Russell S- yeah, I didn't know that. Russell Smith, "Commanders retiring John Riggins' number 44 jersey on Sunday when Washington hosts the Rams."
28:23
Thank you for everybody for, uh, to everybody for letting me know. Uh, and Meltzer, like seltzer, Mark Meltzer, "Did not expect Gil to have so much hot dog contest info this morning.
28:32
Time to start the day for real this time." Yeah, I got into it. I got into it, for sure. I got a comment- And, uh-... for Meltzer real quick. This is, this is on- Yeah... just to piggyback off of Mother Wolf.
28:42
I- Don Vito's, the steakhouse down there, top second favorite steak in town for me- What-... is the ribeye cap at Don Vito's right now. Wait, wait. Currently, that's my second favorite steak.
28:52
Don Vito's at, at South Point? No, no. Over at, uh, at, uh, I'm not screwing up the name, am I? Um, over at Found Blue, the steakhouse right next to- What's the-... Mother Wolf. Yeah. Yeah, yeah. What's number one?
29:02
Don Vito's is, is at, I know what you, I know what steakhouse you're talking about. Um, Don's Prime, I think it's called. Don's Prime. You're right. Yeah. Thank you. Don Vito's is great, too, though.
29:09
Yeah, Don Vito's is great. That's, that's South Point. Yes, [laughs] that's right. But Don's Prime, yeah, the Don's Prime. They have a couple steakhouses there. That's how big the place is. Yeah, they got two.
29:16
I wouldn't bother with the one upstairs. Okay. It's okay. Kelly, what's your number, what's your number one steak, Kelly? Well, it's for Meltzer. Scotch 80, man. Scotch, uh, excuse me, yeah. Oh, Scotch 80.
29:24
Over at the Palms. I forgot about that place. Oh, love that steak. Yeah. Wow. Never been. Since, since Barry left there- Mm-hmm... I don't, I haven't been there. But that place- It's still great...
29:30
that, that place was really good. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Still is. And, and, you know, I'll just, just to g- give a couple steakhouses I like, too. I, I've been to Don's. It's good.
29:37
At, um, this steakhouse here I think is underrated. I, people- Oh, totally... some people talk like Barry. I think Barry's, that rib cap steak is unbelievable here.
29:45
I still go, my, my go-to is still Joe's at the Forum Shops. I love Joe's. Um, it's J- it, it's Joe's Stone Crab. They re- from Miami. There's, there's three or four locations around the country.
29:55
This is the one at the Forum Shops. Um, I still like, against pushback, I, I like P- Peter Luger's. I think they have a great burger, too. Mm-hmm.
30:02
Of course, Gil and I have been to Bavette's many, many times, and Bavette's is fantastic. We have some really good, uh, we have some really good- Top notch... steaks in town. We really do. Yeah. It's incredible. Yeah.
30:12
Andiamo at the DSW in the Wyn- Ooh, Andiamo. I forgot about that, too. Yeah. So good. So good. Um, Billy, you, you, you were about to say something else.
30:21
You- Yeah, no, I just, I, I wanna, 'cause you, you said Montreal Max. Um, he sends me so much great stuff throughout the week, I c- uh, and it's always so hard to get back to him.
30:28
But today, um, only because he sends so much stuff, but I love it. Keep sending it, Max. I g- I get to it Today he, he, he sent, he tagged me and he tagged a couple other people.
30:38
Um, oh, you too, you got tagged too on this one, along with Chris Andrews and Jonathan Lerner, who I've known for years in Jersey. Rip, R-I-P, Bonnie Tay- Tyler, who- Oh... she had some great songs.
30:50
It's a Heartache, um, Total Eclipse of the Heart. She was like one of those rocker girls that just had that raspy voice.
30:59
Um, absolutely, when I seen that, I was like, wow, I, I remember her, haven't heard of her in years, and, and she passed. And that's gonna happen as we get older.
31:07
Um, and you know, the, the, it's going to happen, uh, when, when, you know, more, the more people, uh, the more old we get, what's the words? We go to more funerals than weddings as we get older, so, um- Yeah...
31:17
thank you to him for that. Uh, also, but he put up an AC/DC post, but they're gonna be in town in a couple weeks, but I seen them last year. I think that's enough for me.
31:27
Uh, it's, it's, it's just, um- [laughs] It's, as I get older, I, I think I said it before, Gil, I'd rather see, like, the Billy Joel types and just some more, uh, you know, a quieter, not, not as head banging k- type of music.
31:42
Uh, but yeah, I will go, g- I just to see the, now they've added some more shows. I think there's, like, up to, like, 40 shows that Metallica has announced at The Sphere, just to see what kind of a show they have there.
31:52
And of course, my wife wants to go, but I will be wearing earplugs for sure. [laughs] Did anybody go see No Doubt when they were at The Sphere? Ooh. Kelly, did you go? No, I wanted to.
32:02
Wow, they had a lot of, a lot of songs. Yeah, I wanted to also. Yeah, I wanted to see that. Um, uh, I don't know what the, the, it feels like they haven't had their biggest act yet, there yet at The Sphere.
32:13
Feels like we're working up to something. Yeah. But I don't know what it is yet. Yeah, yeah. This- Um... this, this maybe, you know, the Eagles were unbelievable there. I never expected them- They were-...
32:20
to be as good as they were. I think, are they co- I think they're coming back for, like, 10 more shows. I'm not positive. I think you're right. I think they're coming back. With Vince Gill.
32:26
But if you didn't catch the Eagles there, and their, their, their singer, uh, they had a country singer, and I w- Vince Gill. Vince Gill. Vince Gill. Yeah.
32:34
Harmonizing and, and, you know, Joe Walsh does his own little, little set there, and, uh, it's just a great, great show that was. And now it's become more reasonable, too. At first, the prices were ridiculous. Yeah.
32:44
Now it's become more reasonable. I always say, too, wait till last minute with shows. Wait till last minute and see if the price goes down. Like Rolling Stones, I seen, it's funny, I s- I seen a thing just now.
32:55
Last night, 82-year-old Mick Jagger on stage with Ronnie Wood, uh, to promote their new album. They had a private show last night. I seen that, uh, a little clip of that, and I said, "Wow, poor Keith."
33:07
That's the reason why Mick says they can't go on tour right now. Keith is not, uh, he's not not, it's not that he's sick or anything, it just, it, it, it's, it's so much wear and tear on his body.
33:18
Uh, which along with other things when he was younger in his life's probably caught up to him a little bit. So that's the reason why they're not going on tour.
33:24
And, um, but he actually said to, uh, you know, be hopeful for next year. So I don't know if they can find some kind of mother of youth or as, uh, what is that what they call fountain of youth? Mm.
33:34
Fountain of youth for, for Keith. But, um, yeah, so, so you s- but you see all these acts and still playing in- into their late years, um, re- really, really cool. And- I'm a big Rolling Stones fan, seen them many times.
33:45
But going back to the reason why I brought this up, I always get great tickets for the Stones last day.
33:50
The day of the show when people were asking 2,000 a seat for, you know, the first section, trust me, the, the, the price on the ticket's 550, by the way.
34:00
Um, the, a- and by game- by, by showtime, they get so nervous they're gonna get stuck with the tickets, I can get them for maybe 200 bucks over face value, great seats. 'Cause who, who's paying 1,500 for two seats?
34:13
I mean, it's not, you know, so, but the, but the price on the ticket face value is like 550, like I said. That was the last tour they had, and I've always gotten tickets last minute for shows.
34:22
So, um, Gil, when we come back, I wanna talk about something. I just seen something when I was driving, the cash out option billboard. It was at William Hill- Oh... and it just, just made me think.
34:34
And that is, I've seen this billboard 10 times probably in, in the last y- you know, six months. I see it a lot, and it just made me think of how bad of a bet it is to take the cash out.
34:49
So you're betting pre-flop with a, you know, five, six, maybe 10, 20% edge on, especially parlays you're betting, and now they want you to take another giant ste- you know, hit, and not, not just William, not to pick on them.
35:02
It's all sports books- Sure, buddy... really. Uh, now you wanna take another hit on your, on your cash out. I wanna talk about that when we come back. Let's do that.
35:10
The math doesn't math, as the kids say, on those cash outs. Coming back with Crack on a Numbers Game at VSiN, the sports betting network.
35:18
[upbeat music] A Numbers Game on VSiN, the sports betting network.
35:37
Back on the Numbers Game, live from both San Francisco and Las Vegas. Gil Alexander, San Francisco, Kelly Bittling, and Bill Krackomberger, uh, unscripted with the Crack man back in the studios in Vegas.
35:47
Kevin Downes on Twitter, my brother from another. "I know, uh, you can't name the scammer, but d- [laughs] but d- but do the dude look like the Pirates of Caribbean guy, tattoos everywhere?" [laughs] I believe- Oh...
36:00
I believe that's an affirmative, yes? Really zero in in on this. Wow. Yeah. [laughs] We really are. We, I think we have targeted the, uh, the, uh, culprit. Um, yeah, so there's that. What did I want to say?
36:13
And I already forgot what I wanted to say. Oh, tomorrow on the show, uh, Luke Swain among, first of all, Fezzik is back, Felika's on the show, the standard Friday fare.
36:22
But Luke Swain is on the show tomorrow, Kelly, 'cause it's the Major League Baseball draft this weekend, so we gotta do the, uh, not only do we have them on for NFL, NBA, and NHL, but MLB. Gotta do that tomorrow as well.
36:34
Looking forward to it. I'm also pretty sure I've seen him put out more bets, I could be wrong. You, you don't know how you see stuff on your phone, right, as you're going about your day.
36:42
I think I've seen him put out more bets for this draft than any recent one that I can remember, Gil. Yeah. Uh, also, uh, Linda Noskova, for those who, uh, tailed on that one, up a set over Marta Kostyuk.
36:55
What could go wrong? As long as, as long as we don't end up in a tiebreaker in any of these sets, we're gonna be fine, I promise you. It's just the tiebreakers, got trouble with that.
37:04
Crack, uh, Billy, you wanted to say something about, uh, these cash out options you're seeing. Yeah, so I, I seen the, the billboard today again.
37:11
It just made me think of how much of a bad bet that is because you're laying so much juice already. You're, you're, you, when you're betting these parlays, now they wanna give you a cash out option.
37:22
Obviously, if you're making a nice little profit on a cash out option, the bet is in your favor, so, so you have a good bet. Why would you ever click the cash out option?
37:35
Unless you see something their algorithm doesn't see, whether it's, I don't know, weather coming in that, that, that, that will affect your bet, um- An injury... an injury, some kind of a- Yeah...
37:47
moving part you see that they don't know. You know what I mean? So I, I just thought to myself h- how bad of a bet this is, but yet I know a lot of people just wanna- Yes... take the cash out and take a profit.
38:00
But it's, it's usually, and I, th- that's not even the right word. I should use a stronger word. Um, but it, it's, it's a bad option, but I understand.
38:08
You know, Kelly said something about, um, during the break about people, a- and I said, "You know, I don't wanna say people are stupid, people are that dumb, but people are that misinformed- Mm... or, or uninformed.
38:21
They, they just don't know any better.
38:24
So if, if they're offering you a cash out, which is a nice profit, not the loss on your bet, um, a ca- and even the loss on a bet, you should never do that, but more importantly, if they're offering you a profit, I, I don't think I've ever used...
38:36
The only time I used a cash out was BetMGM. They, I, I clicked the wrong thing. You ever g- misclick a bet? I, I've done that, especially in the heat of battle. Mm. And, or, or you could cash out for the full amount.
38:50
I, if, if I misclick and they're gonna charge me a 10%, 20% pen, I am keeping the bet, of course.
38:56
If it- I, I have- I mean, real, what if it's 1%, I'm keeping the bet, but- I have so much to say about this because we, we've talked about this, uh, on a myriad of occasions over time here on The Numbers Game, both with you and, and without Bill, which is the first line I always say is this is a personal thing, cash outs, hedging.
39:11
Hedging, yep. Right? It's all kind of under the same umbrella.
39:14
But I have always been consistent about this, and I know not everybody agrees with me, but I feel like hedging, and to a lesser extent cash out options, but it's the same topic because you're, you're right.
39:26
In cash out options, first of all, the math is not proper. It's in their favor. You should know that. Um, you are, you are basically giving away, in my opinion, a favorable position that you handicapped, right?
39:41
Exactly what you're saying, Bill, which is unless there has been a mitigating circumstance in between, unless there's been an injury, something you know of, a, uh, weather, whatever, something that has changed fundamentally your initial handicap.
39:54
I personally, this is just me, I do not like, uh, voluntarily giving up my positive position in, when, when I am, you know, plus EV or really a favorite to win at that point.
40:08
So, you know, I had a, I had a day at Wimbledon. I know it's, it's been a, um, not a good week here at Wimbledon, but I had a great day last week where we hit four, uh, dogs on the men's side one day.
40:21
And yeah, I had them parlayed. And, you know, b- every, I thought to myself, I'm like, "Most people would probably hedge here." And I'm just like, "I'm not hedging this.
40:32
I'm not doing it because I made the bet for a reason in the first place." Now, if it's a life-changing amount of money, maybe it's a different story, but I just don't believe in that kind of thing.
40:43
Leicester City, when they were 5,000 to 1 in the Premier League, was maybe the greatest example of this, how the UK sports books had cash, they had cash out options way before we did here stateside, and they offered these cash out options for people who had these unbelievable bets on Leicester City, and the cash out math just sucked, and some people took it.
41:03
Mm. You know? And it's just like, man, I don't believe in that.
41:06
I think when the, when you have a chance to hammer, when you have a chance to make a big score, you owe it to yourself to take that chance 'cause they don't come along every day.
41:16
I can only think about, uh, that, that was a great expose there, Gil. Um, I only think about the, like I, I only talked about this maybe once or twice on social media.
41:25
On shows I talk about it, where it's verbally and physically and you can, you can watch me, but on social media I've only talked about it a couple times.
41:31
And one time I seen a big influencer, s- uh, she had many more followers than me, just un- it's unfortunate that it was a female, but she was recommending the cash out option a few ti- "Oh, you gotta cash this out and take the profit."
41:45
And I just, I, I probably worded it the wrong way. Yes, I did. I retweeted what her, what she said, and I said, um, "How large is the section of the cemetery that you own that you're killing people like?"
41:57
And she- [laughs]... totally took it wrong and went crazy on me. Oh, man. And her followers went crazy on me. She, like, went to Twitter and said things to Twitter, like, you know, please, uh, take it easy, honey.
42:09
I mean, come on. She, she, she went absolutely nuts on me, and, um, I was just saying this, it, uh, I, I, I worded it wrong. I was wrong. I shouldn't have said it like that.
42:17
I should've said it in a more, of a, a manner that she'd expl- But trust me, after now knowing who she was, she wouldn't have, she just, if anyone goes after her, she's just gonna go after them. But,
42:27
uh, yeah, no, it, her followers were all on her side.
42:31
So it, it, it just, I swear, it makes me not want to teach and learn things and, and, and teach, I'm sorry, teach things off of what I learned in my life and the people that I've been around.
42:42
It makes me not want to even do it sometimes because, but I, like, again, I, I, I said it in the wrong way, and I, I apologize for that. I shouldn't have said it like that.
42:50
I even, uh, I mean, I'll even give you an example. Again, this is just me.
42:53
This is not for everybody, but, you know, 2020 when Ego won the French and I won all that money, um, everybody paid me except one, so I won tons of money.
43:01
And even in the finals match, right, where- It was a perfect hedge where she was playing Sophia Kennon. Kennon was plus money. Even, I, and I did end up betting Kennon just for the outlay, right?
43:13
Just so that I wouldn't lose money in the event that Eagle lost the final. And even making that bet, I remember it was like so against my core. Like, 'cause I just don't like giving away- Yeah. Yeah...
43:25
even the smallest amount when my, when my reason for making the bet in the first place never changed, and has only been corroborated the whole way through. Yeah.
43:34
And when they take the payout- Why would I then voluntarily give it up? And when someone takes the payout and it w- it, it works out for them, that they would've li- would've lost money, they'll never go back.
43:42
They're doing, they're taking cash outs forever. Yeah. Maybe that's what it is. They don't realize what the long-term EV, and they, they'll, they'll never stop doing it. Yeah.
43:50
Yeah, Gil, the only, the only one I wanna bring up, 'cause I, I think Matt Brown's brought this up before, I think it's a great example where w- yeah, like you said, how many times do we get questions about hedging?
43:59
It is so often.
44:00
And if it's, it's a personal decision, if that's something you wanna do, I mean, we h- like you're talking about, Bill, and y- hopefully you understand what your bet, you know, what you're getting out of this if you're gonna take this option.
44:12
But the one nice thing about the cash out option is if you're gonna go, and we're betting a lot of golf, we talk about this all the time, if you're betting 40 to 1, 50 to 1 outright tickets, and this works for futures too in other sports, if you're gonna bet, let's say it's $20 on th- on this bet, there's nothing wrong with splitting this up into four or five dollar bets.
44:32
And if you wanna handle it differently maybe with one of those tickets down the line, gives you a little bit more flexibility. Yeah, yeah.
44:39
Before we get off here, guys, speaking of, uh, females out there, uh, I just retweeted this Jiayang Chen, the beautiful Chinese woman who married at least 14 men in Las Vegas, has pled guilty to bigamy and obtaining over 100,000, over 100, she, she obtained more like half a million, um, with false pre- pre- pretenses.
44:58
Police say she gambled away all the money and, uh, i- in the past six months alone she's lost $300,000. And I did, Las Vegas locally put that out there. Wow. I retweeted it.
45:08
Wait, how did, how did we bury this 'til the end of the show? Yeah, what? When did she marry them? Oh, sorry. She's married- [laughs] Yeah. It's the last tweet I put up... she's married 14 dudes? Wow.
45:17
She allegedly met men on dating apps, pushed a fast, pis- pushed for a fast marriage, then asked for money to help a sick relative in China before cutting off all contact.
45:27
Several victims reported losing 20 to 40,000 each. Uh, a few believe they can still fix her. [laughs] Kelly, I told you, you can't fix her, Kelly. Come on. You can't fix her, Kelly. She took everything, Gil.
45:41
She took it all. Oh. But it, it, this happens, man. I, I don't know how you can get married 14 times in, in a, in one-year period, man. She, she's- [laughs]...
45:50
little, l- um, you know, this, this is, uh, something to say here. She has a lot of moves. [laughs] Wow, did, did we bury the headline. Oh, man. Seriously. Sorry. More on that in the coming weeks. What's the move?
45:59
Billy, thank you so much. Bill Krackomberger, everybody, @BillKrackman with a K. Wisecracks, the name of the podcast. We've done all we can do. Prop Points is next. Enjoy, from VSiN, the sports betting network.
46:15
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