Customer Reviews

The Book On Bookies: An Inside Look At A Successful Sports Gambling Operation

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

"The Book on Bookies" is a manual on how to run a sports book in America. It must be noted that such an enterprise is illegal and carries various risk. The book constantly mentions large tax free income which adds tax evasion to your list of criminal activities.

My biggest gripe with the book is its deviation from factual and useful content. The "basics" chapter is riddled with glaring deficiencies - here are a few that I noted

(a) Book: there are no winning gamblers - truth: there are few winning gamblers, but the few winners can really hurt the bottom line
(b) Book: you cannot specify pitchers in baseball - truth: the standard way to book baseball is to offer listed pitchers
(c) Book: Dime line baseball is booked at -110 a side - truth: dime line baseball is booked at -105 a side
(d) Book: Soccer is booked without totals - truth: soccer is booked with totals, 2.5 being the most common number
(e) Book: Nascar is an easy money spinner - truth: Nascar is a sport where the lines are weak and the "wiseguys" can eat you alive
(f) Book: The "field" bet never wins in golf - truth: "No name" golfers are beginning to proliferate the winner's list at PGA and European golf tournaments

Aside from the factual inaccuracies, the book simply doesn't mention many of the important developments that have taken place in the bookmaking world. Important terms such as "beard", "middle" and "steam" are only mentioned in the glossary. Each term quite possibly deserves a chapter of its own. Finally, there is no mention of the ubiquitous "Don Best" screen, which governs the betting line from Vegas to the Caribbean. The way the author describes grading the wagers manually is almost comical.

The lack of professional writing skill is evident and the only thing that kept me reading to the end was the author's quirky sense of humour. My favourite line in the book is when he casually mentions "If you are going to be hiring someone to work with you in this business, you must...accept that at some time, he will probably steal from you". Although the author has a number of character flaws, this nonchalant attitude is something we could all use at times.

In summary I really cannot recommend this book to gamblers and especially not to anyone thinking of becoming a bookmaker!

"The Book on Bookies" was very insightful for those curious about the gambling world and those who want to start their own outfit. It was written as a "How To" book on starting one's own operation detailing the types of action taken, how to not get caught, how to collect, and how to be very successful. There were a few points missing, namely how to deal with smart gamblers (something the author adamantly believes do not exist), and how the offshore and internet casinos have affected the bookie business. There is such as thing as a smart gambler, one who uses legitimate handicapping services, unloads a ton of action on one game every few weeks, bets the same dollar amount each time no matter what, and clears his account once the season is over. I could personally guarantee that I would have ALWAYS taken his money at the end of football season. The question remains: what should be done with a gambler who has control of his wagers and sees sports gambling as a way to consistently turn a profit at the end of a season? Should the bookie not take his action and direct him elsewhere? The author left this point out because he believes the winning gambler does not exist, but I assure him that they do even though they consist of less than 5% of the gambling population. Another question I had was "Should a bookie place a bet with another operation if he has too much action on one side of a game?" Reason dictates that if the same amount is wagered with someone else (preferably with a legit offshore casino) then no matter the outcome, the bookie will turn a profit from the juice. All in all, a good read (didn't much care for the jab at Philadelphia, but every Philadelphian would stick up for their city no matter what), and recommended to those interested in this underworld. I would like to speak with the author if he was available, but no information was given about his whereabouts (go figure).

I had fairly high hopes for this book after reading the online reviews. What a letdown. Don't expect to learn anything that will help you gamble. The most interesting part of bookmaking--making and moving lines--is glossed over (author mentions software to retrieve lines from online sources). Instead, the book is full of inane details such as which color pen to write with while taking bets.

If you are looking for a condescending read describing how to run an illegal business which will continue to become less and less profitable as online casinos flourish, this is the book for you. If you're looking for a book to teach you about sports betting, I would recommend Stanford Wong's "Sharp Sports Betting".

I am amazed to see so many reviews from gamblers stating how great a book this is. This book will not help you win at sports gambling! It will only help you lose your money more slowly.

There are two simple reasons that the better always loses and they are stated on page two. The bookie makes the spread and when you lose you always pay the bookie more than when you win. Mathematically speaking you have to win 53% of the time just to break even. And that's with a juice (the amount extra you pay the bookie) of 10%. On props and parlays and teasers the juice is much higher.

The reason I give this book two stars instead of one is for the pure entertainment value. I read this book cover to cover and this "James Jeffries" is a world class jerk. If anything, this book should make you want to stop betting because of the attitudes of the bookie.

If you want to actually become a bookie then I would definitely recommend it. He does miss a few points though like how much of a bankroll you need to start. And I'm curious why one would pay out the day before he collects.

I must point out that there are numerous errors in the book also. Mr. Jeffries states that he goes by Vegas odds but he has the 3 team parlay only paying out 5-1 when it should be 6-1. He also believes that half of all college basketball games are played on Sunday when in fact only a handful of televised games are played that day.

If you want to know how a bookie acts and feels, read it. Otherwise, don't bother. It won't help you win.

this was a lot of good strategies about winning money on sports betting but it also was full of some damn funny stories. i thought it was a good book. it was worth the money.

This book makes for fascinating reading, and as far as I know is the only book of its kind, thoroughly explaining how a sports book is set up and run. It's written in an interesting, story-telling style that will hold your attention. You don't have to be a sports junkie to read this book; if you've ever bet on a game or wondered how bookies get rich, check it out.

The first thing to make clear about this book is that it is meant to cover sports betting from the bookie's side, not the players, and is therefore very definitely NOT about how to make money betting sports. I have no idea what book the reviewers talking about how this made them better gamblers are talking about, unless they mean to say that they quit playing after reading it (a very reasonable course of action).

The second thing is that there are a few technical details on the lines that are inaccurate or out of date. Further, the idea of manually grading 150-200 customers, many of them playing multiple games and non-straight bets, is a joke in the year 2006. Doing this yourself is nuts, giving it to a clerk (who the author assumes will rob him blind given the chance) doesn't seem like an ideal option either.

Finally, the author in trying to come off clever or hip or wise or whatever his attitude is supposed to convey comes off instead as a 24-carat butt hole, with his utter and complete contempt for gamblers (his customers). Despite all admonitions to keep it professional and courteous in treatment of those making him money, his disgust and condescension drips off page after page, eventually becoming quite annoying.

If you are a gambler, the only point in reading this book is as a form of intervention. If you are a bookie, you learn little or nothing. If you are neither, it is an unusual glimpse into the mind of ONE bookie, anyhow. Not many books cover this subject from this angle.

This book delivers everything that is promised and it's a great read. It really DOES teach you how to start your own book and how to run it professionally. By doing that, it also helps a gambler understand how lines work and why a bookie always ends up winning in the end. The first chapter on "Gambling Basics" (which is much more than "basic") is perhaps the best explanation of sports lines on every sport that I have ever read; this chapter alone is worth the price of the book.

This book was a joy to read. Books on this subject are hard to find...but this one is worth the wait. The only advice that isn't included is how much bank one would need to go into business. Informative, good read, easy to understand and very well organized.

While the author understandably goes to great lengths to emphasize that this is not a "how-to" book, that is essentially what it is. Reading this book cover-to-cover gives you a very realistic idea of what the professional life of a bookmaker is all about. While the book is more or less deficient in discussing the capital requirements of the trade, it does go into great detail about many of the other issues involved in managing a sportsbook on a daily basis. Whether the author intended it or not; reading this book gives you a strong sense of the importance of finding an apprenticeship as a clerk before jumping in on one's own. Hence the title of this review.