What Happened to Futures Bets on the Bills and Bengals?

In the pre-season NFL regular-season total-wins wagers, the Buffalo Bills were listed at 11-1/2 wins and the Cincinnati Bengals were listed at 9-1/2 wins. Both teams went over, despite playing only 16 games each. Did wagers on the over for each team get paid or were they refunded because they didn't play the full schedule of 17 games?

During week 17 of the NFL's regular season, the Bills-Bengals game was canceled in the first quarter after 24-year-old Buffalo safety Damar Hamlin collapsed on the field, went into cardiac arrest, and had to be resuscitated by first responders for several minutes to revive his heart. These kinds of situations, understandably, cause some confusion in the sports-betting market and we received several similar questions.

As a rule, any bet dependent on a game that isn't played or finished is voided and the bettor's money is refunded.

We asked Chris Andrews, director of the South Point sports book and author of two excellent books about sports betting, Then One Day and Then One Year, to comment.

"The books I know of in Las Vegas (which include South Point, Westgate, and Stations) all followed their house rule that states, 'Teams must play the entire schedule for the bet to have action’ (I’m paraphrasing).

"It’s unfortunate for over bettors, but it also saved the under bettors. We had two-way action on both teams, so it wasn’t a big revenue difference for us at South Point. But it’s hard to go against a house rule that is so evident."

That settles the rule. But then ...

... we heard from Dapper Dave, who you might remember was a regular blogger for us before the pandemic curtailed his travels to Las Vegas. He wrote, "Just a PSA for your readers. If anyone had under bets on season win totals for the Bengals or Bills, those bets are no action and eligible for a refund, because the teams didn’t play their required number of games.

"William Hill gave me a hard time, but I called Gaming Control to file a report and the Board got me my money in half an hour. I’ve called the GCB several times over the years when I’ve had disputes with casinos and they’ve always resolved issues in my favor, efficiently and professionally."

So even though the rules are (or should be) clear at some books, others might not be so forthcoming. As Dave relates, if you have a problem, you have recourse, of which you shouldn't hesitate to avail yourself.

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Kevin Lewis Jan-27-2023

Totals

I had a terrible bet on the Warriors Over some amount of games in the 2019/2020 season; the bet was already essentially toast when the NBA started shutting down and canceling games due to the pandemic. Stations cashed my ticket by mail (refund, of course).

Dave_Miller_DJTB Jan-27-2023

William Hill

Considering the rules, it makes sense that the overs are no action, since the unders are also no action and due for refunds. 👍

But Dapper Dave’s story makes me wonder if William Hill was refunding the overs and telling the unders that they lost. 🤔

Ray Jan-27-2023

Doesn't make sense

IF the posted rules show that the entire schedule must be played, it's understandable that the books call those bets "no action", but bets on these teams were completed BEFORE the cancellation. That game would have had no affect (did I use the correct effect/affect choice?) on the outcome. In fact, since that game didn't count, shouldn't other teams like KC and BAL be considered since the voiding of the CIN/BUF game may have changed their approach to the final week? My guess is that there will be some modifications to their rules in the future.

[email protected] Jan-27-2023

"Over" Bettors Got Screwed

The sportsbook's "policy" absolutely was unfair in this situation as the "over" wager was ALREADY a winner and should have been paid as soon as it got there, period. And the "under" bettors' refund was also the fair way to conclude that wager.Did DraftKings do the same thing because I recall their "guy" that goes on VSiN with Paulie and Mitch always talks about them being "more than fair" with their customers when this sort of thing happens.

Question of the Day - 27 January 2023

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