Betting on poker tournaments

[bholdr]

I know that it's gotta be -EV, given that the odds are never that good, but i almost put a few bucks on negraneu in the WPO this week, mostly because i have a bodog account now and felt like gambling a bit, not because i thought i could profit. they had him at 30-1 (which is pretty bad for a poker tournament, but at the rate that this guy's winning lately...)

and he's in like 20th place right now.

what's the consensus on poker betting? worthwhile at all, or total crapshoot?

[ttleistdci]

[ QUOTE ]
I know that it's gotta be -EV, given that the odds are never that good, but i almost put a few bucks on negraneu in the WPO this week, mostly because i have a bodog account now and felt like gambling a bit, not because i thought i could profit. they had him at 30-1 (which is pretty bad for a poker tournament, but at the rate that this guy's winning lately...)

and he's in like 20th place right now.

what's the consensus on poker betting? worthwhile at all, or total crapshoot?

[/ QUOTE ]

Definitely a total crapshoot. It's not like betting on the NCAA tourny winner or even a PGA tournament winner where there are some clear cut favorites and the odds of someone coming from the field (outside the top 20 or 30 favorites) to win it are slim (especially when the big names are playing).
Not so with poker. Look at the WSOP last year...most of the big names were long gone by the time the tournament got under 100 people.

It's tough to bet on something where luck is involved.

[Duckstabber]

"It's tough to bet on something where luck is involved."

Short-term, isn't luck involved in any sports event? But you'r right, in a single poker tournament luck is a major factor and I'd never dream of betting serious money on it.

[tech]

I could see it being +EV if you could make bets for/against someone finishing in the money or making the final table, as opposed to just winning or losing.

[DblDownTrent]

[ QUOTE ]
I could see it being +EV if you could make bets for/against someone finishing in the money or making the final table, as opposed to just winning or losing.

[/ QUOTE ]

Have you seen those bets available anywhere? just curious.

[tech]

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Have you seen those bets available anywhere?

[/ QUOTE ]

No, unfortunately.

[MCS]

They had a field bet available for the 2004 WSOP that was like free money. I think the field was something like 2-1, but you could only bet up to $50. (Greg was, in fact, part of the field.)