The Largest Sports Betting Weekend Ever?
Saturday May 2nd is going to be a day of sports betting that hasn’t been seen for some time. While some individual events might be bigger singularly, few days are bigger when take as a whole. No matter your sport of choice there is going to be a pretty significant amount of action for you to enjoy betting on.
Mayweather v. Pacquiao – Fight of the Century?
This is either going to be the fight of the century, or it is going to be the fight that is 5 years too late. If it is the latter, then that will be disappointing, and if it’s the former then it is sure to be great TV. The sports books seem to think that it is the latter though as most have Mayweather as about a 2 to 1 favorite to win the match. At Bovada you can get Mayweather at -205 and Pac-man at +180, while at Intertops you can scoop Mayweather for -200 and Pacquiao for +175. The most interesting thing is that on Intertops you can get a draw at +1400, which could be an interesting bet for fun. It’s also not completely unreasonable to think that this match will end in a draw, as boxing can have weird results like that, and many matches are rather close.
The reason that Mayweather is such a huge favorite is because Pacquiao just hasn’t been that good lately and his interests outside of boxing have taken up a lot more of his time. While this fight is sure to be important to him, he still hasn’t been training as long as some might hope for it, and Mayweather is still undefeated. Pacquiao is one of the better boxers in history, but this is going to be a huge test for him, and it would have been even at his peak. It still can be a good match, and I would bet it is, but just realize going in it might lead to a letdown. It can be fun to parlay the result though with a few other things to get a much larger payoff though, if you don’t like the 1 to 2 odds you would get by betting Mayweather.
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The 141st Kentucky Derby
The Kentucky Derby might not have the luster that it once did. Younger people just don’t understand, or like, horse racing like our older counterparts, but it can still be fun to watch. This becomes even truer when you consider that it only takes about 2 minutes to complete, making it a short, but fun experience. One of the most fun bets to make is if there is going to be a Triple Crown winner. Intertops is offering +7,000 on any horse doing it with longer odds for specific horses.
The specifics of the Kentucky Derby itself don’t lend it well to lots of different prop bets, but if you want something that will resolve itself this weekend you can bet on pretty much any combination of horses to finish first and 2nd. Across the different books there appears to be 2 horses that are above the rest with a third that seems pretty good. American Pharaoh and Dortmund appear to be the best with Carpe Diem in a solid third. Betting on some combination of these horses finishing in the top 2 can be pretty profitable for players, especially if you make multiple bets for this to happen somehow. While you will lose some of them, you can still get pretty payoffs. You can also bet specific horses to finish top 3 overall.
Game 7: San Antonio Spurs at Los Angeles Clippers
Everyone expected this series to be something special. A lot of people said that this was a series that was fit for the Conference Finals and not the 1st round. All of those statements seem to have been accurate as the series has provided no shortage of great games, unexpected turns and interesting subplots. Betting on Game 7 seems like a pretty natural thing to do, because it will pay off immediately and would make for a pretty fun parlay as it will be occurring at the same time as the Pacquiao v. Mayweather fight.
As for the actual game, don’t fall into the trap of thinking that the home team has an advantage, or at least a major one. Both the Spurs and Clippers have won 2 games on the opponent’s home floor and the Spurs are veteran enough to not get rattled by a ruckus crowd. Objectively, the Clippers have looked like a better team when only looking at the top players in the series, but the Spurs are much, much deeper. This depth might end up being the difference in this series, especially if Glen Davis is hobbled by the ankle that he sprained in Game 7, thus taking the Clipper down to 6 quality players who don’t hemorrhage points on both sides of floor while playing. Both Blake Griffin and Chris Paul have been playing 40+ minutes in almost every game this series and JJ Reddick and Matt Barnes aren’t far behind. This mileage over the course of the series might have a profound impact on the game, as you have to wonder how things will go, and if the Clippers need to dip into their bench at any point during the game, things could get ugly quick.
All that being said it’s going to be a very close game and the sportsbooks agree. You can get the Spurs at +2 from the different sportsbooks; Bovada, Intertops and BetOnline, as of writing this. I think that is great value, because it really is such an evenly matched series. Also of interesting note is that the Spurs at about 9/1 to win the title while the Clippers are at 12/1, so if you think that the Clippers can win the game, placing a bet on the title might be a pretty enticing opportunity. Regardless, it’s going to be a fun game and just adds to the spectacle that is the weekend.
Stanley Cup Playoffs
While this might be the last thing on our preview, it is far from the least. The Washington Capitals beat the New York Rangers on a last second goal, literally there was 1.3 seconds left in game 1. This is going to make Game 2 important, and likely pretty interesting, because these two teams are clearly very evenly matched. While you can’t get quite as good of a price on Washington as you could when we suggested them in the NHL Playoff Preview, you can still get a pretty good price if you want them for the Cup, and betting on Game 2 as sa single game could be pretty fun, especially when you look at everything else that is happening on Saturday. The game lines are pretty consistent at Washington +1.5, so if you think they are truly evenly matched, that’s a pretty good line. The game is a bit earlier than everything else during the day with a 12:35p puck drop, so keep that in mind.
Summary
No matter what is most interesting to you, this weekend will provide something for you to bet on. Boxing, horses, basketball and hockey are all in their prime right now, at least for one night. When you combine these great sporting events with the bonuses and casino options available to players from sites like BetOnline, Intertops and Bovada then it’s sure to be a fun and profitable night. Our favorite parlay to try would be Mayweather to win, American Pharaoh to finish top 3, Spurs at +2 and Capitals at +1.5. The reason we like that parlay is the sum of the parts should make for a fun whole, while also getting a little bit of action on every sport out there, but keep in mind we don’t know that much about horses, so that is important to note. This particular parlay will pay just over 10:1 on Bovada, which is enough to make it interesting, but still has an okay enough chance to make it not a waste of time and money. What is your parlay going to be? What are you most excited about? Tell us on Twitter or Facebook!
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