Pushkin.

Pushkin.

Oh yay, oh yay, oh yay.

Oh yay, oh yay, oh yay.

May twenty eighteen, the United States Supreme Court strikes down the federal law that has effectively banned sports gambling in nearly every state. What happens next happens faster than anyone imagined, and happens in so many places at once that it's basically impossible to follow it all in real time.

May twenty eighteen, the United States Supreme Court strikes down the federal law that has effectively banned sports gambling in nearly every state. What happens next happens faster than anyone imagined, and happens in so many places at once that it's basically impossible to follow it all in real time.

I ended up picking Mississippi and Kansas as the two states that I really decided to focus on, and nearly was just there, becoming a part of the furniture as the lobbyists were working their magic.

I ended up picking Mississippi and Kansas as the two states that I really decided to focus on, and nearly was just there, becoming a part of the furniture as the lobbyists were working their magic.

That's Eric Lipton, New York Times reporter, who with his colleague Ken Vogel, just sat and watched as lobbyists created the conditions for a new industry to emerge overnight sports.

That's Eric Lipton, New York Times reporter, who with his colleague Ken Vogel, just sat and watched as lobbyists created the conditions for a new industry to emerge overnight sports.

Gambling and you know, buttonholing various legislators, getting them to introduce language that they wanted into the gambling bills and changing the tax rates, getting you know, provisions included that would allow them to entice betters with free bets that they wouldn't have to pay taxes on.

Gambling and you know, buttonholing various legislators, getting them to introduce language that they wanted into the gambling bills and changing the tax rates, getting you know, provisions included that would allow them to entice betters with free bets that they wouldn't have to pay taxes on.

Derek knows that state capitols where the action is. He started his career covering state governments for local papers. When he returns to his old beat, he sees right away how much lonelier state capitals are because his old job, state house reporter, now barely exists.

Derek knows that state capitols where the action is. He started his career covering state governments for local papers. When he returns to his old beat, he sees right away how much lonelier state capitals are because his old job, state house reporter, now barely exists.

There were times when I was in the state capitol where I was pretty much the only reporter there while they were debating you know, sports betting, and I would stay until they wrapped up two in the morning, as the session was closing and they were trying to get the bill passed, and there were no other reporters present.

There were times when I was in the state capitol where I was pretty much the only reporter there while they were debating you know, sports betting, and I would stay until they wrapped up two in the morning, as the session was closing and they were trying to get the bill passed, and there were no other reporters present.

It's like, if you do something at the federal level, there are going to be a lot of people watching, still a lot of reporters who will cover national politics. But if you push things down to the states, you're more likely to just operate in the shadows.

It's like, if you do something at the federal level, there are going to be a lot of people watching, still a lot of reporters who will cover national politics. But if you push things down to the states, you're more likely to just operate in the shadows.

Yeah, and I think the lobbyists know that, and it's actually a lot easier to get things done in state capitals. You can build a national strategy through a collection of states.

Yeah, and I think the lobbyists know that, and it's actually a lot easier to get things done in state capitals. You can build a national strategy through a collection of states.

Eric and his colleague at the Times wrote about Kansas back in twenty twenty two, but he could have written the same piece almost anywhere in the United States. Thirty eight states plus Washington, DC were rushing to legalize sports betting and rolling over for the new sports bookies, who were pushing to minimize just how much of a cut the States took. They cut the tax rate almost in half.

Eric and his colleague at the Times wrote about Kansas back in twenty twenty two, but he could have written the same piece almost anywhere in the United States. Thirty eight states plus Washington, DC were rushing to legalize sports betting and rolling over for the new sports bookies, who were pushing to minimize just how much of a cut the States took. They cut the tax rate almost in half.

They gave them the ability to give out free bets as a promotion to sign people up and not have to pay taxes on that. So essentially the state becomes a lost leader promoter of getting people into gambling by giving them tax free promotions.

They gave them the ability to give out free bets as a promotion to sign people up and not have to pay taxes on that. So essentially the state becomes a lost leader promoter of getting people into gambling by giving them tax free promotions.

And without a whole lot of pushback from anyone.

And without a whole lot of pushback from anyone.

Oftentimes, the legislators weren't even aware that they were passing these things, or they were it was sent, it was you know, given to them in the last minute, just before they were asked to vote on it, and they weren't even fully informed us of what they were voting on.

Oftentimes, the legislators weren't even aware that they were passing these things, or they were it was sent, it was you know, given to them in the last minute, just before they were asked to vote on it, and they weren't even fully informed us of what they were voting on.

Overnight, the States have gone from the bookies cop to the bookies' partner. So of all the pro sports leagues, the NFL, the NBA, and Major League Baseball, the entire sports industrial complex now has a stake in the revenues that flow into sports gambling companies like DraftKings and fan Duel. There's now a vast new machine with one clear purpose to maximize those revenues. By maximizing the number of bets that Americans make on sports.

Overnight, the States have gone from the bookies cop to the bookies' partner. So of all the pro sports leagues, the NFL, the NBA, and Major League Baseball, the entire sports industrial complex now has a stake in the revenues that flow into sports gambling companies like DraftKings and fan Duel. There's now a vast new machine with one clear purpose to maximize those revenues. By maximizing the number of bets that Americans make on sports.

Any sports sequina zus coming for sports one day, one contest that street to the sports cons freely.

Any sports sequina zus coming for sports one day, one contest that street to the sports cons freely.

Con It's as if when prohibition ended, there were these two massive liquor companies sitting there with databases on individual Americans and their tastes for alcohol, and the government ordered them to go wave a glass of whiskey under the nose of every alcoholic to persuade as many as possible to start drinking again. Of course, there are some restraints, some rules. No state has allowed small children to gamble on sports. Eight have declined to allow people to gamble on their phones. And the taxes that the new industry pays varies a lot from state to state. New York takes fifty one percent of all sportsbook revenues. Indiana takes only nine and a half percent. In twenty seventeen, the year before the Supreme Court struck down a federal lag in sports betting, legal sports bookies in the United States generated roughly three hundred million dollars in revenues in twenty twenty three. They took in eleven billion in twenty seventeen. Mericans made roughly five billion dollars in legal sports bets. Last year, they laid down more than one hundred and twenty billion. The numbers are crazy, the consequences are even more so, and we'll be exploring them for the rest of the season. Take your shot at more than two hundred and seventy thousand dollars in payouts.

Con It's as if when prohibition ended, there were these two massive liquor companies sitting there with databases on individual Americans and their tastes for alcohol, and the government ordered them to go wave a glass of whiskey under the nose of every alcoholic to persuade as many as possible to start drinking again. Of course, there are some restraints, some rules. No state has allowed small children to gamble on sports. Eight have declined to allow people to gamble on their phones. And the taxes that the new industry pays varies a lot from state to state. New York takes fifty one percent of all sportsbook revenues. Indiana takes only nine and a half percent. In twenty seventeen, the year before the Supreme Court struck down a federal lag in sports betting, legal sports bookies in the United States generated roughly three hundred million dollars in revenues in twenty twenty three. They took in eleven billion in twenty seventeen. Mericans made roughly five billion dollars in legal sports bets. Last year, they laid down more than one hundred and twenty billion. The numbers are crazy, the consequences are even more so, and we'll be exploring them for the rest of the season. Take your shot at more than two hundred and seventy thousand dollars in payouts.

That's a lot of money.

That's a lot of money.

I'm Michael Lewis, and this is Against the Rules, a show where we look at specific roles in American life and how they're changing. The fans. Roles changing because a powerful new machine has sprung up to encourage the fan to gamble on sports. Sports gambling has never been just a simple and straightforward marketplace. It's more like a jungle and DraftKings and FanDuel are like this invasive species that's been dropped into it by accident. They've disrupted the food chain and overrun the habitat because they feed so efficiently on fan emotion, and fan emotion is the jungle's greatest food source. But they're also vulnerable to a creature that feeds on them. Let's recall for a minute what sports gambling once was in America. By listening to just a snippet of a press conference held back in nineteen sixty one by then Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy.

I'm Michael Lewis, and this is Against the Rules, a show where we look at specific roles in American life and how they're changing. The fans. Roles changing because a powerful new machine has sprung up to encourage the fan to gamble on sports. Sports gambling has never been just a simple and straightforward marketplace. It's more like a jungle and DraftKings and FanDuel are like this invasive species that's been dropped into it by accident. They've disrupted the food chain and overrun the habitat because they feed so efficiently on fan emotion, and fan emotion is the jungle's greatest food source. But they're also vulnerable to a creature that feeds on them. Let's recall for a minute what sports gambling once was in America. By listening to just a snippet of a press conference held back in nineteen sixty one by then Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy.

The report has been since the passage of the legislation, and that's big time gambling by the big time operators has been materially decreased since the passage of.

The report has been since the passage of the legislation, and that's big time gambling by the big time operators has been materially decreased since the passage of.

The legislation, Kennedy celebrating a new law called the Federal Wire Act. The point of the law was to cut the legs from under the mafia by shutting down at sports gambling operations, by giving the federal government the power to arrest and prosecute anyone who booked a sports bet over any phone or telegraph wire that crossed state lines.

The legislation, Kennedy celebrating a new law called the Federal Wire Act. The point of the law was to cut the legs from under the mafia by shutting down at sports gambling operations, by giving the federal government the power to arrest and prosecute anyone who booked a sports bet over any phone or telegraph wire that crossed state lines.

And in fact, head of the Royal mount of Police in Canada said in the speech last week that Canada will now have to pass legislation and take new steps because many of the big time gangsters and hudlums of the United States are now moving to Canada because of the drive that is being made against them here in this country.

And in fact, head of the Royal mount of Police in Canada said in the speech last week that Canada will now have to pass legislation and take new steps because many of the big time gangsters and hudlums of the United States are now moving to Canada because of the drive that is being made against them here in this country.

When you think of Canada, this isn't the first thing that pops into your head, happy refuge for big time gangsters and sports gamblers. But I don't know, it was a different era.

When you think of Canada, this isn't the first thing that pops into your head, happy refuge for big time gangsters and sports gamblers. But I don't know, it was a different era.

I always had an interest in sports. My father coached me in swimming and coached me in tennis. But my world changed when I found out you could gamble on it.

I always had an interest in sports. My father coached me in swimming and coached me in tennis. But my world changed when I found out you could gamble on it.

I became no longer a fan.

I became no longer a fan.

I became interested in gambling.

I became interested in gambling.

That's Michael Roxborough. Everyone just calls him Roxy now. He grew up in the nineteen fifties in Canada in a nice, upper middle class family. He's now zooming with me from a home and rural Thailand, with the ac blasting in the background and a straw fedora on his head and the emotional feel of a man in a witness protection program, a placeless man. But he really did grow up in Canada. When Roxy was a kid, there was a sports gambling market. It was smaller and more constrained than it is now, but very real, and its center was the pool halls of Vancouver, British Columbia.

That's Michael Roxborough. Everyone just calls him Roxy now. He grew up in the nineteen fifties in Canada in a nice, upper middle class family. He's now zooming with me from a home and rural Thailand, with the ac blasting in the background and a straw fedora on his head and the emotional feel of a man in a witness protection program, a placeless man. But he really did grow up in Canada. When Roxy was a kid, there was a sports gambling market. It was smaller and more constrained than it is now, but very real, and its center was the pool halls of Vancouver, British Columbia.

If you envision in the movie The Hustler, if you take a look at the pool rooms of that day, those were the room.

If you envision in the movie The Hustler, if you take a look at the pool rooms of that day, those were the room.

Those were the pool rooms of my day. It was just full of.

Those were the pool rooms of my day. It was just full of.

Wannabees, desperadoes, hustlers, drug dealers, bookmakers, everybody that was operating outside the law.

Wannabees, desperadoes, hustlers, drug dealers, bookmakers, everybody that was operating outside the law.

When you got the bug. What's your parents think about it?

When you got the bug. What's your parents think about it?

Not too happy. My father was a Harvard MBA and my mother was a high school balvictorian, and I think they had higher aspirations.

Not too happy. My father was a Harvard MBA and my mother was a high school balvictorian, and I think they had higher aspirations.

Roxy's dad wanted him to go to Dartmouth and he got in, but he went to American University in DC because he sensed the action was better there.

Roxy's dad wanted him to go to Dartmouth and he got in, but he went to American University in DC because he sensed the action was better there.

I ran a blackjack game in the American University dorm at night, and that's what's the source of most of my profits. But then I got kicked out for what for ready that blackjack game.

I ran a blackjack game in the American University dorm at night, and that's what's the source of most of my profits. But then I got kicked out for what for ready that blackjack game.

Roxy never did finish college. Instead, he went back to Canada, cycled in and out of boring jobs, but never stopped gambling. And then he finally caught a big break by reading a book.

Roxy never did finish college. Instead, he went back to Canada, cycled in and out of boring jobs, but never stopped gambling. And then he finally caught a big break by reading a book.

I was in a Reno airport flying back to Vancouver and I picked up a copy of Ed Thorpe's Beat the Dealer.

I was in a Reno airport flying back to Vancouver and I picked up a copy of Ed Thorpe's Beat the Dealer.

Beat the Dealer was the first book to show how a gambler inside a casino could have a systematic edge by counting cards in blackjack. The other casino games, like slots and roulette, were more or less perfectly rigged against the gambler. Anyone who played them for long enough was sure to lose. Blackjack was an exception. Played blackjack for long enough, at least the way Ed Thorpe taught people to play, and you were sure to win. Betthorpe published his book in nineteen sixty six. A few years later Roxy read it, and it gave him the idea that changed his life.

Beat the Dealer was the first book to show how a gambler inside a casino could have a systematic edge by counting cards in blackjack. The other casino games, like slots and roulette, were more or less perfectly rigged against the gambler. Anyone who played them for long enough was sure to lose. Blackjack was an exception. Played blackjack for long enough, at least the way Ed Thorpe taught people to play, and you were sure to win. Betthorpe published his book in nineteen sixty six. A few years later Roxy read it, and it gave him the idea that changed his life.

I decided that if I'm going to look at sports betting, I need to look at it statistically driven, data driven, not by not visual or instinct or just watching a lot of games.

I decided that if I'm going to look at sports betting, I need to look at it statistically driven, data driven, not by not visual or instinct or just watching a lot of games.

Outcomes in sports were obviously far less regular and predictable than outcomes inside slot machines or even at blackjack tables. But that didn't mean you couldn't learn stuff about sports that would allow you to make better predictions. Not perfect predictions, but better predictions than everyone else betting on games. In the nineteen seventies, Roxy had baseball in mind. The guys who booked baseball legally and illegally everywhere else. Rford Gambler is the chance to bet on not just who would win the game, but how many runs both teams would score. Roxy had an insight that seems obvious now. The number of runs scored in any baseball game dependent on factors like the weather at game time and the size of the fields. San Diego's was a good example.

Outcomes in sports were obviously far less regular and predictable than outcomes inside slot machines or even at blackjack tables. But that didn't mean you couldn't learn stuff about sports that would allow you to make better predictions. Not perfect predictions, but better predictions than everyone else betting on games. In the nineteen seventies, Roxy had baseball in mind. The guys who booked baseball legally and illegally everywhere else. Rford Gambler is the chance to bet on not just who would win the game, but how many runs both teams would score. Roxy had an insight that seems obvious now. The number of runs scored in any baseball game dependent on factors like the weather at game time and the size of the fields. San Diego's was a good example.

You just could not hit the ball out of there, and then the padres went and spent like an outrageous contract to sign a guy like Oscar Gamble. All he did is hit fly balls, and that park was a place where fly balls went to die. So you've soon found out that general managers really didn't know anything about their own ballparks either.

You just could not hit the ball out of there, and then the padres went and spent like an outrageous contract to sign a guy like Oscar Gamble. All he did is hit fly balls, and that park was a place where fly balls went to die. So you've soon found out that general managers really didn't know anything about their own ballparks either.

The idea that the people who run sports teams don't know what they're doing has probably never been a new idea. Fans have always thought that they know better. What was new is that someone in the stands was actually figuring something out the effects of the wind and the humidity and the barometric pressure on a ball that was flying through the air.

The idea that the people who run sports teams don't know what they're doing has probably never been a new idea. Fans have always thought that they know better. What was new is that someone in the stands was actually figuring something out the effects of the wind and the humidity and the barometric pressure on a ball that was flying through the air.

We started to start getting weather reports from all the cities, the parts out in which ones helped scoring or hindred scoring.

We started to start getting weather reports from all the cities, the parts out in which ones helped scoring or hindred scoring.

And dimensions right, I mean just the length of the left field fence.

And dimensions right, I mean just the length of the left field fence.

Dimensions were important, and we found out a couple of the ballpark dimensional drawings were wrong. They had the north pole raw well pointed north. Because we went out and did to ourselves.

Dimensions were important, and we found out a couple of the ballpark dimensional drawings were wrong. They had the north pole raw well pointed north. Because we went out and did to ourselves.

Roxy moves to Vegas full time in nineteen seventy five to bet on sports, and just by taking into account the weather and the size of ballparks, he's able to make a killing while trying to avoid the people who know a thing or two about actual killing. For the Nevada legal bookmakers detectively run by the mob.

Roxy moves to Vegas full time in nineteen seventy five to bet on sports, and just by taking into account the weather and the size of ballparks, he's able to make a killing while trying to avoid the people who know a thing or two about actual killing. For the Nevada legal bookmakers detectively run by the mob.

They'd have LOWITDA had a hand in till about right till well age seventy twelve.

They'd have LOWITDA had a hand in till about right till well age seventy twelve.

Yeah, I just wonder in that environment was it dangerous.

Yeah, I just wonder in that environment was it dangerous.

To win too much now?

To win too much now?

Because actually what they would do is they could find somebody else who could take your bet and they can move it for more money someplace else in the country.

Because actually what they would do is they could find somebody else who could take your bet and they can move it for more money someplace else in the country.

The old sports gambling market inside the United States was shady, but it had its unwritten rules, and one was that they always took your bets if you bet a lot. They eventually moved the lines. These betting lines were all set in Vegas for a very long stretch. They were actually set in a single Vegas casino, the Stardust. The bookie at the Stardust set the odds and everyone else just followed his lead. There was a bank of payphones outside the stardusts that were said to be the most profitable in the country for the phone company because sports gamblers used them to relay the odds to the illegal bookies and betters across the country.

The old sports gambling market inside the United States was shady, but it had its unwritten rules, and one was that they always took your bets if you bet a lot. They eventually moved the lines. These betting lines were all set in Vegas for a very long stretch. They were actually set in a single Vegas casino, the Stardust. The bookie at the Stardust set the odds and everyone else just followed his lead. There was a bank of payphones outside the stardusts that were said to be the most profitable in the country for the phone company because sports gamblers used them to relay the odds to the illegal bookies and betters across the country.

Communications back then it was just with a phone call. That was the only communications there were.

Communications back then it was just with a phone call. That was the only communications there were.

In the late nineteen seventies, the Nevada Gaming Control Board tossed the mob out of Vegas, out of sports gambling, and pretty soon Roxy became old news. By the early nineteen eighties, everyone knew that the weather and the size of ballparks had big effects on baseball scores, and Roxy never found another systematic edge, and his life became a bit of a mess. He'd been arrested for violating rfk's Wire Act, he'd taken crazy risks as an illegal book maker, and he'd run through two marriages. Is a gambling business hard out of relationships.

In the late nineteen seventies, the Nevada Gaming Control Board tossed the mob out of Vegas, out of sports gambling, and pretty soon Roxy became old news. By the early nineteen eighties, everyone knew that the weather and the size of ballparks had big effects on baseball scores, and Roxy never found another systematic edge, and his life became a bit of a mess. He'd been arrested for violating rfk's Wire Act, he'd taken crazy risks as an illegal book maker, and he'd run through two marriages. Is a gambling business hard out of relationships.

Charity why.

Charity why.

It just sort of takes over your mood and your personality. I don't know anybody who's ever been in gambling thought they were a better person for it.

It just sort of takes over your mood and your personality. I don't know anybody who's ever been in gambling thought they were a better person for it.

It's interesting because when you think about why a person would drift into gambling in the first place, it would be because you think it might be an easy way to make money. Yes, it ends up being a harder way to make money.

It's interesting because when you think about why a person would drift into gambling in the first place, it would be because you think it might be an easy way to make money. Yes, it ends up being a harder way to make money.

It does.

It does.

What did they say, it's a hard way to make an easy living.

What did they say, it's a hard way to make an easy living.

People said that Roxy now knew itineteen eighty two, he quits gambling. He creates a company called Las Vegas Sports Consultants. This new company will effectively replace the Stardust Casino in setting the odds for all major sports contests. Roxy's just better at it, and pretty soon he's selling his odds to all the sports bookies, including the Stardust. This makes sense to everybody in Las Vegas. Hiring Roxy to set the odds in sports is like hiring the first card counter to guard the blackjack tables.

People said that Roxy now knew itineteen eighty two, he quits gambling. He creates a company called Las Vegas Sports Consultants. This new company will effectively replace the Stardust Casino in setting the odds for all major sports contests. Roxy's just better at it, and pretty soon he's selling his odds to all the sports bookies, including the Stardust. This makes sense to everybody in Las Vegas. Hiring Roxy to set the odds in sports is like hiring the first card counter to guard the blackjack tables.

So I said, you know, I'm going to try this for a couple of years, but I'm not sure if it's going to work. Because it wasn't given that every hotel was going to have a sportsbook. It was there rather limited business. But that was one of my better decisions because it turned out to be a massive business.

So I said, you know, I'm going to try this for a couple of years, but I'm not sure if it's going to work. Because it wasn't given that every hotel was going to have a sportsbook. It was there rather limited business. But that was one of my better decisions because it turned out to be a massive business.

Sports gambling isn't exactly a financial market, but it rhymes with financial markets. What happens on Wall Street, somehow eventually also happens in sports gambling and Wall Street's about to undergo dramatic change. First computers and then the Internet will allow the markets to become a lot more complicated and the bets a lot more complex. The world's about to speed up, and a new kind of person with a different kind of education is going to enter it. Old school traders with high school degrees and lots of body hair and names like Vinnie and Donnie are about to be replaced by hairless PhDs from MIT with computer models who as kids thought they grow up to be professors, not traders. On Wall Street in the late nineteen eighties, smart old school guys served as a kind of bridge between the two cultures in sports gambling. Roxy was that bridge, but it took a while for anyone to cross it.

Sports gambling isn't exactly a financial market, but it rhymes with financial markets. What happens on Wall Street, somehow eventually also happens in sports gambling and Wall Street's about to undergo dramatic change. First computers and then the Internet will allow the markets to become a lot more complicated and the bets a lot more complex. The world's about to speed up, and a new kind of person with a different kind of education is going to enter it. Old school traders with high school degrees and lots of body hair and names like Vinnie and Donnie are about to be replaced by hairless PhDs from MIT with computer models who as kids thought they grow up to be professors, not traders. On Wall Street in the late nineteen eighties, smart old school guys served as a kind of bridge between the two cultures in sports gambling. Roxy was that bridge, but it took a while for anyone to cross it.

We're here to.

We're here to.

See Rufus Peabody. We're in the right place. We're still in Vegas, but far from the strip.

See Rufus Peabody. We're in the right place. We're still in Vegas, but far from the strip.

We're not gonna be la.

We're not gonna be la.

We're just gonna make a bunch of sports bets. He runs into Lego game win option. I've never even knew that any action. The real action is no longer on the strip. The real action is basically invisible. But here on the seventeenth floor with a sweeping view of the distant casinos. Rufus Peabody lives and works.

We're just gonna make a bunch of sports bets. He runs into Lego game win option. I've never even knew that any action. The real action is no longer on the strip. The real action is basically invisible. But here on the seventeenth floor with a sweeping view of the distant casinos. Rufus Peabody lives and works.

We're here, We're here.

We're here, We're here.

Rufus Peabody is who crossed Roxy's bridge.

Rufus Peabody is who crossed Roxy's bridge.

I never was a better as a kid. I didn't know anything about sports betting.

I never was a better as a kid. I didn't know anything about sports betting.

You need you feel a little little twinge of desire.

You need you feel a little little twinge of desire.

No, most people that got their start, they started losing and they learned how to win.

No, most people that got their start, they started losing and they learned how to win.

But I was never better.

But I was never better.

I never grew up betting like besides NCAA tournament pools, I was always good at those, But for me, it was a game, and I'm not I'm a risk taker, but I'm not a gambler by nature.

I never grew up betting like besides NCAA tournament pools, I was always good at those, But for me, it was a game, and I'm not I'm a risk taker, but I'm not a gambler by nature.

Rufus grew up outside of Washington, DC. Always loved sports, thought he might like to be a sports journalist. He still reminds me a bit of a journalist. He's a watcher, a person whose eyes moved more than his mouth. But even when he was a kid, his mind took him places that journalism usually doesn't.

Rufus grew up outside of Washington, DC. Always loved sports, thought he might like to be a sports journalist. He still reminds me a bit of a journalist. He's a watcher, a person whose eyes moved more than his mouth. But even when he was a kid, his mind took him places that journalism usually doesn't.

So so it was this team one eighty two to sixty four.

So so it was this team one eighty two to sixty four.

But why did they win?

But why did they win?

Basically?

Basically?

I kind of wanted to report on the why it happened, rather than just this guy got eighteen points and twelve rebounds and this team one right.

I kind of wanted to report on the why it happened, rather than just this guy got eighteen points and twelve rebounds and this team one right.

I kind of wanted the story of why right.

I kind of wanted the story of why right.

He want explanation, I want explanations. In two thousand and four, Rufus graduated from high school and went to Yale. He was still obsessed with figuring out why. He studied statistics and built models that predicted the performance of athletes and the outcomes of sport events, not because he wanted to gamble on them, just because it was cool to figure out stuff that even people who run sports teams don't know. He wanders around Yale looking for someone to teach him more.

He want explanation, I want explanations. In two thousand and four, Rufus graduated from high school and went to Yale. He was still obsessed with figuring out why. He studied statistics and built models that predicted the performance of athletes and the outcomes of sport events, not because he wanted to gamble on them, just because it was cool to figure out stuff that even people who run sports teams don't know. He wanders around Yale looking for someone to teach him more.

Rufus wants to do a thesis on, if I remember correctly, behavioral biases and the baseball betting market.

Rufus wants to do a thesis on, if I remember correctly, behavioral biases and the baseball betting market.

He's who rufe has found. His name is Cade Massey. He's a professor of organizational behavior. Was it interesting?

He's who rufe has found. His name is Cade Massey. He's a professor of organizational behavior. Was it interesting?

Oh yeah, absolutely? I mean what's not interesting about trying to find psychological mistakes that people make with like, you know, hundreds of thousands of observations of real money.

Oh yeah, absolutely? I mean what's not interesting about trying to find psychological mistakes that people make with like, you know, hundreds of thousands of observations of real money.

Being bet and he found mistakes.

Being bet and he found mistakes.

I mean, he was finding profitable strategies right off the bet.

I mean, he was finding profitable strategies right off the bet.

Rufus just kept asking questions about the behavior of sports gamblers. He still wasn't placing bets himself. He was just working with this professor to build a model to predict college football scores. They pitched it to the Wall Street Journal, and the journal agreed to publish their college football picks of the week. It was just how they would bet, were they to bet on college football.

Rufus just kept asking questions about the behavior of sports gamblers. He still wasn't placing bets himself. He was just working with this professor to build a model to predict college football scores. They pitched it to the Wall Street Journal, and the journal agreed to publish their college football picks of the week. It was just how they would bet, were they to bet on college football.

And he would then post our picks of the week. We were just posting them because we were working with the Wall Streeter journals, so post him on Tuesday on Wednesday, and then he would watch as the prices started moving on his screen.

And he would then post our picks of the week. We were just posting them because we were working with the Wall Streeter journals, so post him on Tuesday on Wednesday, and then he would watch as the prices started moving on his screen.

Oh my god, which is to say the sports gambling market would see their picks and move in response, because the market figured out that their picks were that good.

Oh my god, which is to say the sports gambling market would see their picks and move in response, because the market figured out that their picks were that good.

Within a year or so, we quit posting college picks because it was getting too much in the way of what he was trying to.

Within a year or so, we quit posting college picks because it was getting too much in the way of what he was trying to.

Do, because he wanted to bet it himself.

Do, because he wanted to bet it himself.

Because he wanted to bet it.

Because he wanted to bet it.

And if they're so good, you would bet them, you wouldn't sell them, right. I mean, it was bound to eventually occur to Rufus that if he could predict the scores of college football games, then he should just bet on them. Himself, but it's funny how he got there. In his head, Roxy Roxboro had started as a gambler who then set out to find some kind of edge to bet. Rufus Peabody started by finding these edges and kind of stumbled into gambling and then found Roxy. During Rufus's junior year at Yale, he read an article in ESPN about Roxy's sports analytics company, Las Vegas Sports Consultants. Roxy's company wasn't used to getting resumes from Yale juniors, but they gave him a summer internship anyway and showed him their world. From their offices right next to the Las Vegas Airport.

And if they're so good, you would bet them, you wouldn't sell them, right. I mean, it was bound to eventually occur to Rufus that if he could predict the scores of college football games, then he should just bet on them. Himself, but it's funny how he got there. In his head, Roxy Roxboro had started as a gambler who then set out to find some kind of edge to bet. Rufus Peabody started by finding these edges and kind of stumbled into gambling and then found Roxy. During Rufus's junior year at Yale, he read an article in ESPN about Roxy's sports analytics company, Las Vegas Sports Consultants. Roxy's company wasn't used to getting resumes from Yale juniors, but they gave him a summer internship anyway and showed him their world. From their offices right next to the Las Vegas Airport.

They would bet on what plane was most likely to land next right, and this is like sort of pre internet days or pretty like being able to see flight plans and stuff like that, and so it was like, okay, American Airlines is like six to one, like you know, Southwest is two to one whatever. What people didn't realize, though, was Roxy actually had a contact in the control tower, and so Roxy won. He made money off of these bets, but he didn't make enough to try a suspicion that was the key. But he would occasionally hit the Japan Air at three hundred to one, right or whatever.

They would bet on what plane was most likely to land next right, and this is like sort of pre internet days or pretty like being able to see flight plans and stuff like that, and so it was like, okay, American Airlines is like six to one, like you know, Southwest is two to one whatever. What people didn't realize, though, was Roxy actually had a contact in the control tower, and so Roxy won. He made money off of these bets, but he didn't make enough to try a suspicion that was the key. But he would occasionally hit the Japan Air at three hundred to one, right or whatever.

Roxy screw would bet on everything. Rufus wasn't like that. He didn't even think of what he wanted to do as gambling, But he did want to understand this other world, this world where people bet on anything that moved.

Roxy screw would bet on everything. Rufus wasn't like that. He didn't even think of what he wanted to do as gambling, But he did want to understand this other world, this world where people bet on anything that moved.

They shared the building with American Wagering, so with LeRoy's, which was a sort of third party sportsbook operator. Lerois didn't have a casino, but they were in casinos like Hooters or.

They shared the building with American Wagering, so with LeRoy's, which was a sort of third party sportsbook operator. Lerois didn't have a casino, but they were in casinos like Hooters or.

Terrible herbst.

Terrible herbst.

Right, Hooters has a casino.

Right, Hooters has a casino.

Yeah, Hooters casino. It's on the strip. It's right Tropic Cano basically.

Yeah, Hooters casino. It's on the strip. It's right Tropic Cano basically.

Right.

Right.

Yeah, So I met, I meet this the head trader there, right, and I have all these questions. A bookmaker can make more money, Let's say, if they know the public's bias. They can make more money setting a line somewhere between the true price and the price the public thinks that's the way to maximize.

Yeah, So I met, I meet this the head trader there, right, and I have all these questions. A bookmaker can make more money, Let's say, if they know the public's bias. They can make more money setting a line somewhere between the true price and the price the public thinks that's the way to maximize.

There's no reason you should understand what rufe has just said there, but let me try to explain it, because it tells you a bit about how this old school sports gambling world works. The line is just the odds or the point spread, the true price is what the odds would be if you somehow knew every possible relevant bit of information about some upcoming game. Of course, no one ever knows everything, so there is in reality, never a perfect true price, just some number that the smartest and best informed betters agree on. Say, they agree that the Packers should be eight point favorites over the Cowboys, but most of the gamblers are Cowboys fans, and the Cowboys fans think the Cowboys are only three point underdogs. Rufus was asking the bookie if he thought he could entice the public to make more stupid bets if he said the line not at the true price of eight points, but it's say five points, because Cowboys fans will think the Cowboys are better than they actually are and bet even more.

There's no reason you should understand what rufe has just said there, but let me try to explain it, because it tells you a bit about how this old school sports gambling world works. The line is just the odds or the point spread, the true price is what the odds would be if you somehow knew every possible relevant bit of information about some upcoming game. Of course, no one ever knows everything, so there is in reality, never a perfect true price, just some number that the smartest and best informed betters agree on. Say, they agree that the Packers should be eight point favorites over the Cowboys, but most of the gamblers are Cowboys fans, and the Cowboys fans think the Cowboys are only three point underdogs. Rufus was asking the bookie if he thought he could entice the public to make more stupid bets if he said the line not at the true price of eight points, but it's say five points, because Cowboys fans will think the Cowboys are better than they actually are and bet even more.

I said, theoretically, you can make more money setting a line like somewhere between the true price and where the public thinks the price is.

I said, theoretically, you can make more money setting a line like somewhere between the true price and where the public thinks the price is.

And he says, theory theory, and theory dick don't fit in an asshole. And this guy, yeah, he was.

And he says, theory theory, and theory dick don't fit in an asshole. And this guy, yeah, he was.

He was probably three hundred pounds five to eight, smoking a cigar in a dark room, looking at a bunch of numbers on.

He was probably three hundred pounds five to eight, smoking a cigar in a dark room, looking at a bunch of numbers on.

A screen, in just a flash. There, you've changed our podcast rating.

A screen, in just a flash. There, you've changed our podcast rating.

Sorry.

Sorry.

Rufus Peabody recently of Yale is no one's idea of a hustler. He's too sweet natured and even and way too open to telling other people about the stuff he's learned. He finishes up at Yale and moves back to Vegas to work full time at Las Vegas Sports Consultants. But now Rufus thinks he might have an edge, and people in and around Roxy's firm think that maybe he's right.

Rufus Peabody recently of Yale is no one's idea of a hustler. He's too sweet natured and even and way too open to telling other people about the stuff he's learned. He finishes up at Yale and moves back to Vegas to work full time at Las Vegas Sports Consultants. But now Rufus thinks he might have an edge, and people in and around Roxy's firm think that maybe he's right.

The Super Bowl was my first big break. Super Bowl two thousand and nine.

The Super Bowl was my first big break. Super Bowl two thousand and nine.

Okay, I had made a friend with a professional sports better guy that bet baseball, and he loaned me ten thousand dollars to bet. I had my own ten to twelve thousand dollars. My boss, Kenny, unbeknownst to everybody else, invested forty thousand dollars in me and gave me a twenty percent free roll on.

Okay, I had made a friend with a professional sports better guy that bet baseball, and he loaned me ten thousand dollars to bet. I had my own ten to twelve thousand dollars. My boss, Kenny, unbeknownst to everybody else, invested forty thousand dollars in me and gave me a twenty percent free roll on.

It, meaning that if it wins, you take twenty percent of the rance, but you've suffered another losses correct.

It, meaning that if it wins, you take twenty percent of the rance, but you've suffered another losses correct.

And so I ended up with close to sixty thousand dollars bet on the Super Bowl, and so I basically was pretty leveraged. Yeah, and I remember being like, this game doesn't work out, you know, I gave it a shot.

And so I ended up with close to sixty thousand dollars bet on the Super Bowl, and so I basically was pretty leveraged. Yeah, and I remember being like, this game doesn't work out, you know, I gave it a shot.

All right? And what is causing you to have such conviction about a game?

All right? And what is causing you to have such conviction about a game?

Oh?

Oh?

Nothing. It wasn't conviction about the game. It was betting the props.

Nothing. It wasn't conviction about the game. It was betting the props.

The props short for proposition bets, not on the whole game, but pieces of the game. The standard story, which is almost certainly not true, was that the prop bet was invented for the nineteen eighty six Super Bowl between the Chicago Bears and the New England Patriots. The Bears were such heavy favorites that Vegas had trouble gitting up interest in the game, so a Vegas bookie created a side bet the odds that a Bear's defensive tackle named William the Refrigerator Perry would score a touchdown. It was a long shot bet, and the betting public loved it, and Vegas bookies lost a fortune when the fridge did indeed score. But back to Rufus and forward to the Super Bowl of two thousand and nine, the Pittsburgh Steelers played the Arizona Cardinals. Rufus wasn't betting the whole game, but pieces of the game. His pro football model spits out odds for all this weird stuff that Vegas bookies are now offering bets on the odds that Steeler's running back Gary Russell will score the game's first touchdown. For example, Rufus has vast troves of data to mine. He can do stuff with it that roxy would never imagine. He could do stuff that even the people who run the Pittsburgh Steelers would never imagine doing. I mean, even Gary Russell likely has no idea that you can calculate the odds that he will score the game's first touchdown. But Rufus can. His model puts those odds much higher than the bookies' odds, So in Rufus's mind, it's a great bet. He makes dozens of similar bets, bets where his model tells him that the bookies are giving him better odds than they should.

The props short for proposition bets, not on the whole game, but pieces of the game. The standard story, which is almost certainly not true, was that the prop bet was invented for the nineteen eighty six Super Bowl between the Chicago Bears and the New England Patriots. The Bears were such heavy favorites that Vegas had trouble gitting up interest in the game, so a Vegas bookie created a side bet the odds that a Bear's defensive tackle named William the Refrigerator Perry would score a touchdown. It was a long shot bet, and the betting public loved it, and Vegas bookies lost a fortune when the fridge did indeed score. But back to Rufus and forward to the Super Bowl of two thousand and nine, the Pittsburgh Steelers played the Arizona Cardinals. Rufus wasn't betting the whole game, but pieces of the game. His pro football model spits out odds for all this weird stuff that Vegas bookies are now offering bets on the odds that Steeler's running back Gary Russell will score the game's first touchdown. For example, Rufus has vast troves of data to mine. He can do stuff with it that roxy would never imagine. He could do stuff that even the people who run the Pittsburgh Steelers would never imagine doing. I mean, even Gary Russell likely has no idea that you can calculate the odds that he will score the game's first touchdown. But Rufus can. His model puts those odds much higher than the bookies' odds, So in Rufus's mind, it's a great bet. He makes dozens of similar bets, bets where his model tells him that the bookies are giving him better odds than they should.

I still remember going it was like Harrah's Caesar's the Rio. I ended up getting down like two hundred dollars at a time like five thousand dollars. Positions on a few things like that were really good, and so I was.

I still remember going it was like Harrah's Caesar's the Rio. I ended up getting down like two hundred dollars at a time like five thousand dollars. Positions on a few things like that were really good, and so I was.

Diversified within the game.

Diversified within the game.

Within the game, I wasn't betting on the outcome of the game, but I was still I still to this day, have never watched that game.

Within the game, I wasn't betting on the outcome of the game, but I was still I still to this day, have never watched that game.

I was too nervous.

I was too nervous.

How did you experience the game if you didn't watch it.

How did you experience the game if you didn't watch it.

I went to this little Part three course that's open at night, right south of the airport, and I played the Part three course twice until I felt like the game would definitely be over. And then I went grocery shopping. And I didn't have a smart this is pretty smartphone. I went grocery shopping, and then I went home and cooked myself dinner.

I went to this little Part three course that's open at night, right south of the airport, and I played the Part three course twice until I felt like the game would definitely be over. And then I went grocery shopping. And I didn't have a smart this is pretty smartphone. I went grocery shopping, and then I went home and cooked myself dinner.

Huh.

Huh.

And then and only then did I open my computer and check and see how the game went.

And then and only then did I open my computer and check and see how the game went.

And were you just going through your prop bets seeing what happened? First?

And were you just going through your prop bets seeing what happened? First?

I went to the boss score and I saw the first score was Gary Russell one yard touchdown run.

I went to the boss score and I saw the first score was Gary Russell one yard touchdown run.

I was like, ah.

I was like, ah.

Right, And it turned out out of like fifty six thousand dollars bet like I profited like twenty three thousand on it.

Right, And it turned out out of like fifty six thousand dollars bet like I profited like twenty three thousand on it.

Rufus figures out how much he's won. Then he physically retraces his steps to the many casinos that had taken his many bets, still driving an old Honda Civic. You aren't all these little.

Rufus figures out how much he's won. Then he physically retraces his steps to the many casinos that had taken his many bets, still driving an old Honda Civic. You aren't all these little.

Tickets you have to write, you go cash.

Tickets you have to write, you go cash.

Each one individually. So you had it. You must have had one hundred tickets.

Each one individually. So you had it. You must have had one hundred tickets.

Oh yeah, probably.

Oh yeah, probably.

He just drives around Las Vegas and the money piles up, and.

He just drives around Las Vegas and the money piles up, and.

I remember having like thirty thousand dollars on that front seat and being like, oh my god, so much money in cash, in cash.

I remember having like thirty thousand dollars on that front seat and being like, oh my god, so much money in cash, in cash.

After that, lots of people in Vegas wanted to lend money to Rufus and take a cut of his bets. Rufus, for his part, was still sitting in his office in Las Vegas Sports Consultants, but pretty soon he was directing an army of people to lay bets in sports books across the city, sports books that got their odds from Las Vegas Sports Consultants. Rufus was in effect betting against the lines created by Roxy's firm. Roxy himself had moved on at this point, but he watched what Rufus was doing and he admired it.

After that, lots of people in Vegas wanted to lend money to Rufus and take a cut of his bets. Rufus, for his part, was still sitting in his office in Las Vegas Sports Consultants, but pretty soon he was directing an army of people to lay bets in sports books across the city, sports books that got their odds from Las Vegas Sports Consultants. Rufus was in effect betting against the lines created by Roxy's firm. Roxy himself had moved on at this point, but he watched what Rufus was doing and he admired it.

He came to Bootcat once I met him, even after one line. She said, this guy's thinking at a higher level than other people. And I learned a lot for a moment, not because he was divulging your secrets, but he was just thinking at a higher.

He came to Bootcat once I met him, even after one line. She said, this guy's thinking at a higher level than other people. And I learned a lot for a moment, not because he was divulging your secrets, but he was just thinking at a higher.

Level to get his edge. Roxy had used weather reports, Rufus was using the spin rates on pitcher's curveballs.

Level to get his edge. Roxy had used weather reports, Rufus was using the spin rates on pitcher's curveballs.

I try to drill things down to their root. Cause it's kind of what you do when you write books. You try to figure out the person, what makes them tick, what's the story. I try to figure out why things happen in a baseball game or a golf tournament. What makes the player good? It's not just their score, Like what are the things that are driving the score, which of those are repeatable, which aren't? And right now you have all this like computer vision, that type of data available now, and with a lot of these sports, I mean we're now talking about bat speed, measuring bat speed and looking at like aging curves for bat speed.

I try to drill things down to their root. Cause it's kind of what you do when you write books. You try to figure out the person, what makes them tick, what's the story. I try to figure out why things happen in a baseball game or a golf tournament. What makes the player good? It's not just their score, Like what are the things that are driving the score, which of those are repeatable, which aren't? And right now you have all this like computer vision, that type of data available now, and with a lot of these sports, I mean we're now talking about bat speed, measuring bat speed and looking at like aging curves for bat speed.

The whole point of Rufus is that he never lets emotion interfere with his process. But that doesn't mean he doesn't feel emotion. He does. He feels it for his process.

The whole point of Rufus is that he never lets emotion interfere with his process. But that doesn't mean he doesn't feel emotion. He does. He feels it for his process.

We're using bat speed to then predict exit velocity, and we're using exit velocity to then predict like weighted on base average and basically whether a ball will be hit or not, and what kind of damage it will be if it is and then you know, use that to predict wins.

We're using bat speed to then predict exit velocity, and we're using exit velocity to then predict like weighted on base average and basically whether a ball will be hit or not, and what kind of damage it will be if it is and then you know, use that to predict wins.

And how did it work?

And how did it work?

How did it work?

How did it work?

It worked well, we made one hundred and twenty five thousand in the first month. I don't know what our volume was overall, and I got twenty percent of it, which was great because my yearly salary was twenty five thousands.

It worked well, we made one hundred and twenty five thousand in the first month. I don't know what our volume was overall, and I got twenty percent of it, which was great because my yearly salary was twenty five thousands.

Come the card counter at the blackjack table, only it was richer than that. He was generating new insight about why things happened in sports. A blackjack dealer knows where the card counter gets his edge. The sports book he couldn't really tell where Rufus was getting his, which made Rufus and what he was doing even more unsettling. And did the M at any point say we're now taking your bets. The M Casino was one of Rufus's favorite sports books. Now they had their whole thing was we're going to take all comers. We want to be we want a lot of volume. We think we're better than people. Then comes the Supreme Court decision of twenty eighteen, twenty three states soon legalized sports gambling. Rufus now has the M Casino and a lot of others right in his pocket.

Come the card counter at the blackjack table, only it was richer than that. He was generating new insight about why things happened in sports. A blackjack dealer knows where the card counter gets his edge. The sports book he couldn't really tell where Rufus was getting his, which made Rufus and what he was doing even more unsettling. And did the M at any point say we're now taking your bets. The M Casino was one of Rufus's favorite sports books. Now they had their whole thing was we're going to take all comers. We want to be we want a lot of volume. We think we're better than people. Then comes the Supreme Court decision of twenty eighteen, twenty three states soon legalized sports gambling. Rufus now has the M Casino and a lot of others right in his pocket.

Fan Duel and their PGA Tour have teams up. Now you can get more action out of every stop on the.

Fan Duel and their PGA Tour have teams up. Now you can get more action out of every stop on the.

Tour, and Rufus of course stands to make a killing. The bigger the markets, the more he can bet.

Tour, and Rufus of course stands to make a killing. The bigger the markets, the more he can bet.

The PGA Tour and make every moment more quit fan, duel sports book.

The PGA Tour and make every moment more quit fan, duel sports book.

But as it turns out, that's not how it's going to go down. This ecosystem is going to change in ways Rufus didn't predict, and he began to sense it in late twenty twenty.

But as it turns out, that's not how it's going to go down. This ecosystem is going to change in ways Rufus didn't predict, and he began to sense it in late twenty twenty.

So I would drive up to New Hampshire to bet at these kiosks initially and then once there was mobile betting, I had an account on DraftKings.

So I would drive up to New Hampshire to bet at these kiosks initially and then once there was mobile betting, I had an account on DraftKings.

Rufus had a girlfriend in Massachusetts. Massachusetts hadn't yet legalized sports betting, so he needed to cross state lines to use the betting app on his phone. The drive took him like forty five minutes, but it was actually easier than running all over in Vegas trying to get cash down. He and his process were built for this new type of casino. He could bet on golf basically all day long, until one day he couldn't.

Rufus had a girlfriend in Massachusetts. Massachusetts hadn't yet legalized sports betting, so he needed to cross state lines to use the betting app on his phone. The drive took him like forty five minutes, but it was actually easier than running all over in Vegas trying to get cash down. He and his process were built for this new type of casino. He could bet on golf basically all day long, until one day he couldn't.

One week, I lost thirty thousand dollars. I got a phone call to tell me that they were cutting my limits on golf.

One week, I lost thirty thousand dollars. I got a phone call to tell me that they were cutting my limits on golf.

He'd lost thirty thousand dollars and DraftKings stopped taking his big bets. By the way, we've reached out to DraftKings and so far they have declined to talk with us. Anyway, it was clear to Rufus back in twenty twenty that this was definitely no longer his old sports gambling world.

He'd lost thirty thousand dollars and DraftKings stopped taking his big bets. By the way, we've reached out to DraftKings and so far they have declined to talk with us. Anyway, it was clear to Rufus back in twenty twenty that this was definitely no longer his old sports gambling world.

Because I had bet enough.

Because I had bet enough.

It spurred them to actually go in and look at the stuff I'd been betting and how I'd been doing. Books are not limiting people just because they win. They're limiting them because they think they're going to win in the future.

It spurred them to actually go in and look at the stuff I'd been betting and how I'd been doing. Books are not limiting people just because they win. They're limiting them because they think they're going to win in the future.

Rufus used data to predict what athletes were going to do. DraftKings was using data to predict what Rufus would do. When they looked at the data, they saw that after Rufus placed his bets, the odds nearly always moved in his favor. These were the bets of someone who knew things before the market knew them, and the new bookies were not like the old bookies. They only wanted to take certain kind of bets, bets that were more like the bets you make when you press the buttons on a slot machine, bets that if you made them often enough, you were sure to lose. The sort of bets a fan would make, the sort of bets Rufus Peabody never made.

Rufus used data to predict what athletes were going to do. DraftKings was using data to predict what Rufus would do. When they looked at the data, they saw that after Rufus placed his bets, the odds nearly always moved in his favor. These were the bets of someone who knew things before the market knew them, and the new bookies were not like the old bookies. They only wanted to take certain kind of bets, bets that were more like the bets you make when you press the buttons on a slot machine, bets that if you made them often enough, you were sure to lose. The sort of bets a fan would make, the sort of bets Rufus Peabody never made.

Refusing a bet wasn't a thing. It never was a thing here, huh.

Refusing a bet wasn't a thing. It never was a thing here, huh.

Like you, if you got kicked out of a casino, or if you couldn't get there, it was because you did something wrong, like you violated the sacred bookmaker better covenant.

Like you, if you got kicked out of a casino, or if you couldn't get there, it was because you did something wrong, like you violated the sacred bookmaker better covenant.

Being smarter than the market didn't used to get you kicked out of the market. But the market's changed. Sports gamling is still a hard way to make an easy living, but now it feels even less fair. Now it feels like someone should step in and help Rufus.

Being smarter than the market didn't used to get you kicked out of the market. But the market's changed. Sports gamling is still a hard way to make an easy living, but now it feels even less fair. Now it feels like someone should step in and help Rufus.

Okay, cool, So I downloaded FanDuel, DraftKings, Fliff Fanatics, Caesar's Bet, MGM, and PayPal. So now everyone has all of my information and my social security number.

Okay, cool, So I downloaded FanDuel, DraftKings, Fliff Fanatics, Caesar's Bet, MGM, and PayPal. So now everyone has all of my information and my social security number.

Oh, your social security number they all asked for I guess.

Oh, your social security number they all asked for I guess.

These new sports gambling apps, they all ask for it, and so we're going to give it to them. In our next episode. Against the Rules is written and hosted by me Michael Lewis and produced by Lydia gene Kott, Catherine Gerdeau, and Ariela Markowitz. Our editor is Julia Barton. Our engineer is Jake Gorski. Our music was composed by Matthias Bossi and John Evans of stell Wagon Sympinet. Our fact checker is Lauren Vespoli. Against the Rules is a production of Pushkin Industries. To find more Pushkin podcasts, listen on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts, and if you'd like to listen to ad free and learn about other exclusive offerings, don't forget to sign up for a Pushkin Plus subscription at pushkin dot fm, slash plus or on our Apple show

These new sports gambling apps, they all ask for it, and so we're going to give it to them. In our next episode. Against the Rules is written and hosted by me Michael Lewis and produced by Lydia gene Kott, Catherine Gerdeau, and Ariela Markowitz. Our editor is Julia Barton. Our engineer is Jake Gorski. Our music was composed by Matthias Bossi and John Evans of stell Wagon Sympinet. Our fact checker is Lauren Vespoli. Against the Rules is a production of Pushkin Industries. To find more Pushkin podcasts, listen on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts, and if you'd like to listen to ad free and learn about other exclusive offerings, don't forget to sign up for a Pushkin Plus subscription at pushkin dot fm, slash plus or on our Apple show

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