VIERA, Fla. -- It has probably been more than 20 years since I placed a bet, after an epiphany that should've come sooner. In Las Vegas to do a story on some San Diego Padres minor leaguers, I dropped about $200 in quarters into a slot machine in a span of about 15 minutes, and as I slumped on the stool, I looked around the room that had some of the many bright lights among the many large buildings, all of it paid for by folks like me. That was enough for me.
But the betting lines that emerge from the sportsbooks are fascinating, because you know that the people who gather all the money for the lights and the buildings are working with some kind of information or algorithm to set those.