Author: Martin Derbyshire

In his over 10 years covering the US online poker, legal NJ online gambling, and land-based casino industries, Martin Derbyshire has worn the hats of award-winning journalist and video and film producer. He has logged countless miles reporting on the world of high stakes gambling.

How To Win Big Betting College Basketball Parlays At BetStars NJ

One customer turned $100 into more than $44,000 last week at BetStars NJ online sportsbook. Want to try your luck at a college basketball parlay?

One customer turned $100 into more than $44,000 last week, proving anyone can win big betting college basketball parlays on BetStars NJ.

On Feb. 7, this particular customer put together a 10-team US college basketball parlay, taking the moneyline on:

  • Cincinnati over Memphis
  • Hawaii over Long Beach State
  • Houston over Central Florida
  • Iowa over Indiana
  • Nebraska of Omaha over South Dakota
  • Old Dominion over UAB
  • Oral Roberts over Denver
  • San Diego over Loyola Marymount
  • Washington over Arizona
  • Wofford over East Tennessee State

All 10 of his picks won and he collected an incredible $44,584.12. A massive return on just a $100 bet.

What is a parlay?

Parlays are a combination of any two or more basic bets, including:

  • Moneylines: Where you pick outright game winners and get paid based on odds set by BetStars.
  • Spreads: Where you pick betting winners with a point spread line set by BetStars factored into the final score.
  • Totals: Where you pick whether the total score will be more or less than a line set by BetStars.

Parlays pay better than individual bets do. However, there is a catch: You must win every single bet that is part of the parlay for it to pay.

As the US college basketball regular season winds down and attentions turn to conference tournaments and ultimately March Madness betting, putting together college basketball parlays on BetStars NJ could not be any easier.

The first thing you need to do is get set up with a Stars Account.

How do I sign up with BetStars?

Just click on this exclusive BetStars link and follow these step-by-step instructions:

  • Click on the green ‘Join’ tab on the top right.
  • If you already have a Stars Account from playing online poker or casino games with PokerStars NJ, click on the ‘Login’ tab and sign in.
  • If not, create your Stars Account by entering your country of residence, email address, new Stars ID and password. Then click the ‘Continue’ tab.
  • Check the boxes accepting the license agreement and privacy policy and pick whether you’d like to receive special offers and updates. Then click the ‘Create Account’ tab.

It really is that easy, and as long as you signed up through our exclusive BetStars link, you’ll be entitled to up to $500 in free bets.

BetStars will match your first bet up to $50. Then, BetStars will give you another $50 in free bets when you bet another $150. You can do this eight more times, giving you a total of $500 in free bets.

How do I make a deposit at BetStars?

BetStars, like a lot of NJ sports betting operators, accepts a variety of deposit methods, including everything from Visa and MasterCard to PayPal.

Then, it’s just a matter of looking through the available college basketball markets and putting together a parlay card.

It’s parlay time at BetStars NJ sportsbook

Just click on the ‘Basketball’ tab, then the ‘NCAA’ tab, and start browsing through the available markets.

Click on a bet you like and it’ll show up on the right-hand side of the page. Then click ‘parlay,’ enter the amount you want to put on the parlay and start adding more bets to the card.

Once you’ve got all your bets together, click ‘Place bet’ and confirm.

It really is that simple.

Generally, the more bets you put together, the more the parlay will pay. Of course, adding a few long shots into the mix will increase the potential payday even further.

Before you know it, you’ll be betting $100 parlays with a chance to win $44,000 or more.

It’s the final month of the regular season and with conference tournaments and the NCAA tournament tipping off in March, now is perfect the time to get in on the college basketball parlay action at BetStars NJ online sportsbook.

How To Bet On The 2019 Oscars For Free At FanDuel Sportsbook

Here’s a quick guide to Oscars betting at FanDuel Sportsbook including best odds, betting tips, and how to get a free bet up to $500.

NJ sports betting deserves an encore.

You can now bet on the outcome of the Academy Awards in New Jersey and FanDuel Sportsbook offers more 2019 Oscars betting options than almost anywhere else.

In fact, you can bet on an incredible 16 Oscar categories at FanDuel Sportsbook.

Several NJ sportsbooks give you the option to bet on the Academy’s big six categories:

  • Best Picture
  • Best Director
  • Best Actor
  • Best Actress
  • Best Supporting Actor
  • Best Supporting Actress

However, FanDuel Sportsbook is also making it possible to put money on a good chunk of the other awards heading into the 91st Academy Awards ceremony on Sunday, Feb. 24 beginning at 8 p.m. ET.

Technical awards such as Best Cinematography, Best Visual Effects, and Best Film Editing show up on FanDuel alongside Best Original Screenplay, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Animated Film.

But the first thing you need to do to bet on the Oscars is set up an account with FanDuel Sportsbook.

Then, you need to be in New Jersey in order to place a bet on the nominee you think will win.

How to register with FanDuel Sportsbook

Just click this exclusive FanDuel Sportsbook link to get to the sign-up page and follow these step-by-step instructions:

  • If you have a FanDuel DFS account, click on ‘Want to register with your FanDuel account?’ and follow the instructions on the next page.
  • If not, enter your details on the sign-up page.
  • Check the box agreeing to the terms of use and privacy policy.
  • Hit the green ‘Sign Up’ button to advance to the app download page.
  • Click on the ‘Download’ button at the bottom of the screen and wait for the download to finish.
  • Click the FanDuel Sportsbook icon on your device.
  • Login using the details you provided on the sign-up page.
  • Click on the ‘Oscars’ tab to see all the FanDuel Sportsbook Academy Awards lines.

As long as you signed up using our exclusive FanDuel Sportsbook link you’ll be eligible for a risk-free bet of up to $500.

This comes in the form of a refund in site credit of up to $500 within 72 hours if you lose your first bet.

You can use this to bet on the Oscars for free.

Betting on the Oscars at FanDuel Sportsbook

Betting on the Oscars at FanDuel Sportsbook is easy. Even someone who is strictly a movie buff and has never made a bet in their life can manage it.

FanDuel Sportsbook has 16 award categories posted with a full list of all the nominees under each. Beside each nominee is either a negative (-) or positive (+) number.

A negative number means FanDuel Sportsbook figures that nominee is a favorite to win and represents how much you will need to bet to win $100 plus your bet back.

A positive number means the oddsmakers at FanDuel Sportsbook think that nominee is an underdog and represents how much you will win for every $100 you bet.

For example, let’s take a look at the odds in the Best Picture category on FanDuel Sportsbook as of Feb. 7:

  • Roma -175
  • Green Book +330
  • The Favorite +850
  • A Star Is Born +1200
  • BlacKkKlansman +1600
  • Black Panther +1800
  • Bohemian Rhapsody +2000
  • Vice +5000

You can see that Roma is the clear favorite at -175. That means you’ll need to bet $175 on Roma to win $100, plus your $175 back.

The rest of the nominees are all underdogs, although none bigger than Vice at +5000. That means a $100 bet on Vice will pay out a whopping $5,100 if Vice goes on to win.

Betting on the Oscars on FanDuel Sportsbook is really that simple. All you need to do is pick the winners. If you’re right, you’ll get paid according to the odds posted at FanDuel Sportsbook at the time you made the bet.

Of course, these odds are subject to change leading up to the Feb. 24 Oscars ceremony as new information that might sway Academy voters comes to light.

The best FanDuel Sportsbook Oscars odds and betting tips

You’re going to want to keep checking the Oscars odds on FanDuel Sportsbook to see if anything has changed.

Plus, get on the internet and look around for a little inside information before you make your picks. There are dozens of Oscars predictions online and different awards and honors being handed out all the time that can be solid predictors as to who will win the Academy Award.

This is particularly true for some of the more technical award categories.

In the meantime, remember that there are upsets at the Oscars every year, so don’t be afraid to go after a big payday betting some of the long shots on FanDuel Sportsbook, the biggest of which currently include:

  • Yalitza Aparicio +4500 to win Best Actress
  • Willem Dafoe +4500 to win Best Actor
  • The Ballad of Buster Scruggs +4100 to win Best Adapted Screenplay
  • Solo: A Star Wars Story +4500 to win Best Visual Effects

How To Bet On The 2019 Super Bowl For Free With DraftKings Sportsbook

DraftKings Sportsbook has made Super Bowl 53 a great opportunity to jump into the legal NJ sports betting market and bet up to $600 risk-free.

The New England Patriots and Los Angeles Rams aren’t the only ones with a chance to win big on Super Bowl Sunday. You can, too.

In fact, DraftKings Sportsbook has made Super Bowl 53 a great opportunity for anyone 21 and older and in New Jersey to jump into the budding legal NJ sports betting market and place up to $600 worth of risk-free bets.

This is all due to the limited time Super Bowl deposit offer going on DraftKings Sportsbook right now.

It includes your first bet matched up to $500 and another $100 worth of free bets with the first deposit of $5 or more.

Sign up with DraftKings Sportsbook

All you need to do is click on this exclusive DraftKings Sportsbook link, sign up for a new account, make at least a $5 deposit, and start placing the bets.

Signing up for an account with DraftKings Sportsbook could not be any easier. Follow these seven simple steps, and you’ll be done in a matter of minutes:

  • Click on this DraftKings Sportsbook link on your computer, iOS, or Android device.
  • If you have a DraftKings daily fantasy sports (DFS) account, click on the “Already have a DraftKings account?” tab and follow the instructions. Otherwise, click “‘Sign Me Up.”
  • Enter your details on the sign-up page, including new login info, US address and the last four digits of your SSN.
  • Check the box agreeing to the DraftKings Sportsbook terms of use and privacy policy.
  • Click the “Sign Up” button.
  • Click the “Download” button at the bottom of the screen
  • Open the DraftKings Sportsbook app and log in using the details you provided during sign-up.

DraftKings Super Bowl 2019 betting lines

Once you’re in, you can fund your account in a variety of different ways and browse around the dozens of Super Bowl 2019 lines that DraftKings Sportsbook is offering.

With just a few days until kickoff, DraftKings Sportsbook had the basic lines on the game as follows:

  • Moneyline: New England -134 / Los Angeles +115
  • Point spread: New England -2.5 (-114) / Los Angeles +2.5 (-106)
  • Over/Under: 56 (-110)

However, the Super Bowl also offers an opportunity to bet on more than just the basics. In fact, DraftKings Sportsbook has posted a huge variety of Super Bowl game props, player props, and parlays.

Here’s just a sample of the kind of action you can get in on:

  • Patriots win and over 56.5 points parlay pays +225
  • Rams win and under 56.5 points parlay pays +290
  • A Patriots win with a final score of exactly 20-17 prop pays +3,300
  • Three or more players will throw a touchdown pass prop pays +1,200
  • Either team will win by exactly three points prop pays +350
  • Opening kickoff will be returned for a touchdown prop pays +8,000
  • Either team will be shut out prop pays +10,000

Free Big Game Squares contest

Additionally, DraftKings Sportsbook is running a Big Game Squares contest offering the chance to win a share of a $53,000 prize pool for nothing.

In fact, the free-to-play Big Game Squares contest is open to anyone who wants in, even if they’re not in New Jersey.

Just click on the Big Game Squares promotion tab on the sportsbook app. Pick one of the blank squares on the grid, and you’re in.

DraftKings will fill out the grid before kickoff, and each square will be assigned a number for each team.

If your numbers match the last digit of each team’s final score, you’ll split the prize money with any other players that chose that same square.

How To Bet The Early Super Bowl LIII Lines And Odds On DraftKings Sportsbook

Within minutes of the NFC and AFC title games, DraftKings Sportsbook was offering a variety of easy ways to bet on Super Bowl LIII in New Jersey.

Within minutes of the New England Patriots squeaking past the Kansas City Chiefs in the second of Sunday’s two overtime NFC and AFC championship game thrillers, DraftKings Sportsbook was offering a variety of easy ways anyone in NJ could place a bet on Super Bowl LIII.

Since the Los Angeles Rams outlasted the New Orleans Saints in Sunday’s first overtime game, the matchup for Super Bowl LIII is the Rams versus the Patriots at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Feb. 3.

Yes, it’s two weeks before kickoff, but the Super Bowl betting action on DraftKings Sportsbook has already begun.

Patriots -1.5 point spread favorites

They’ve been to five of the past six Super Bowls and three in a row.

So, it’s no surprise to see the Patriots as -1.5 point-spread favorites on DraftKings Sportsbook. The line opened as Pats +1 but quickly moved with heavy action on the perennial Super Bowl contenders.

Making a point spread bet is easy. All you have to do is pick the winner with that line factored in.

That means if you bet on the Patriots at -1.5, New England needs to win by two or more points for you to get paid. If you bet on the Rams at +1.5, you win when the Rams do, or the Patriots win in a one-point game.

Of course, you can always do away with the math involved in point spread betting by making a moneyline bet on the Super Bowl.

When it comes to moneyline bets, all you have to do is pick a winner.

DraftKings Sportsbook makes Pats moneyline favorites

Super Bowl LIII moneylines on DraftKings Sportsbook opened up at:

  • New England -127
  • Los Angeles +104

As you can see, DraftKings Sportsbook posts moneyline odds as either a positive (+) or negative (-) number.

The negative number, like the New England -127 odds you see here, means that team is a favorite. It also represents the amount you’ll have to bet to win $100 plus your bet back.

In other words, right now you’ll have to bet $127 on New England to win $100 plus your bet back.

A positive number, like Los Angeles +104, means that team is an underdog and a $100 bet on them will earn you that amount. In this case, bet $100 on the Rams to win Super Bowl LIII, and you’ll win $104 plus your $100 back if they get it done.

Basic Super Bowl betting also involves the over/under. Here, you bet on whether the total number of points both teams will combine to score is over or under a number set by DraftKings’ NJ sports betting app.

The over/under opened up at 58 points on DraftKings Sportsbook. Like most sports betting operations, DraftKings Sportsbook offers -110 for either side of an over/under bet.

That means you must bet $110 to win $100 plus your bet back whether you are on the over or the under.

Beyond the Super Bowl betting basics

Got the Super Bowl betting basics down pat (no pun intended)?

Then don’t be afraid to combine two or more of these bets as part of a parlay on DraftKings Sportsbook. Parlays pay better odds than individual bets. However, you must win all bets that are a part of the parlay for it to pay anything at all.

Keep your mobile device handy and logged into the DraftKings Sportsbook app during Super Bowl LIII. Because, if you’re in NJ, you’ll also find in-play betting options with odds that change as the action does.

Plus, the Super Bowl promises to provide an opportunity to go well beyond the betting basics on DraftKings Sportsbook as well.

It did so for the AFC and NFC Championship game. So, expect DraftKings to offer a wide variety of proposition bets for Super Bowl LIII.

That means you’ll be able to bet on individual player performances. Things like how many yards or how many touchdowns legendary Patriots quarterback Tom Brady will throw for. Plus, there will likely be various game-related props.

Other crazy prop bets at NJ sportsbooks?

You may have heard stories about some rather outlandish props on a variety of crazy things related to the Super Bowl. Illegal offshore sportsbooks have offered some pretty wild props in the past.

However, you won’t find a line on whether friend-of-the-band Christina Aguilera will join Maroon 5 on stage during the halftime show, or how many Pips will help Gladys Night sing the national anthem on DraftKings Sportsbook.

The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement would never approve such bets.

Sign up for DraftKings Sportsbook

You can get in on the Super Bowl LIII betting action safely and legally by downloading the app and registering for an account with DraftKings Sportsbook.

Just click on this DraftKings Sportsbook link on your iOS or Android device to get started.

Sign up, agree to the terms of use, and you’re on your way.

When you sign up, you’ll get $100 free with a $5 deposit in the form of 10 free $10 bets and a free bet matched up to $500 when you make your first deposit.

Now that’s pretty super if you ask us.

NJ Keeps Benefiting From Playing Hare To NY’s Sports Betting Tortoise

Sports betting may still launch in New York, but New Yorkers will still be coming to New Jersey to place bets unless there’s a dramatic change in the law.

Legal sports betting is on its way to neighboring New York. Sort of.

But it looks like New Yorkers will still be coming to New Jersey to place bets for a while. That is unless dramatic changes are made to New York’s state law.

During his State of the State speech this week, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo indicated he intends to use tax revenue from sports betting to help close a $3.1 billion fiscal gap in the state’s $170 billion budget this year:

“We invested in upstate casinos. Let’s authorize sports betting in the upstate casinos. It’s here, it’s a reality and it will help generate activity in those casinos.”

But that good news was followed by more tempered news, keeping sports betting in New Jersey as the spot for placing legal bets in the region.

NY sports betting laws lag behind NJ

New York already has a 2013 law on the books authorizing the state’s four new upstate commercial casinos to offer sports betting on site.

However, that law does not authorize the launch of online and mobile sports betting in NY.

Additionally, compacts between the state and the Oneida and Seneca tribes allow tribal casinos in NY to offer the same forms of gambling as these commercial operations. But that’s about it so far.

Despite that 2013 law, NY has yet to launch sports betting, whereas NJ sports betting is moving forward at a fast pace.

Playing the waiting game

New York casinos have been waiting for the NYS Gaming Commission to put together sports betting regulations to govern the industry as prescribed by the law.

However, it appears the commission has been waiting to see if state lawmakers will pass legislation authorizing sports betting at alternative locations first, including racetracks, racinos, and off-track betting parlors.

Or, they could be waiting to see if the state legalizes online and mobile sports betting.

A few efforts were made in this regard in 2018, but all failed.

Setting up sports betting deals

While operators of most of the 10 casinos are waiting, they are getting their ducks in a row.

All four commercial casinos have now entered into partnerships with various sports betting suppliers:

The Oneida tribe also inked a sports betting deal with Caesars Entertainment.

NJ online sportsbooks for the New Yorker

The governor’s comments have certainly sparked interest for the casinos looking to launch into the sports betting sphere.

But for mobile sportsbooks and apps in the Empire State, those will have to wait.

Cuomo’s budget director essentially told USA Today reporter Jon Campbell that broad sports betting in NJ’s northern neighbor will require a constitutional change:

For now, that means sports betting could launch at as many as 10 commercial and native casino locations in NY this year. But the chances that sportsbooks open outside these casinos, or online sports betting launches in 2019, appear quite slim.

New Jersey’s sportsbook apps, retail sportsbooks close to New York, and the state of New Jersey itself will continue to reap the rewards of getting legal sports betting launched ahead of their slow-moving neighbors in NY.

Case in point: The FanDuel Sportsbook at Meadowlands Racetrack is the top-grossing retail sportsbook in New Jersey. And for obvious reasons: It’s less than a half an hour from Manhattan.

Plus, mobile sportsbooks now account for more than 60 percent of the NJ market.

This is likely because the minute anyone from the massive New York market puts a toe in the Garden State, they will find nine NJ mobile sportsbooks offering lines on almost any sport.

Bottom line, with the way things stand in New York right now, New Jersey is happy to take their legal bets when they come for a visit.

How To Bet On The AFC And NFC Championship Games On DraftKings Sportsbook

AFC and NFC Championship betting options abound now that the Patriots-Chiefs and Saints-Rams games are set. Here’s what’s what at DraftKings Sportsbook.

The match-ups for the AFC and NFC Championship games are now set. And sadly, the Philadelphia Eagles are not returning for a repeat run as Super Bowl champs.

The four NFL teams still vying for a spot in Super Bowl LIII will battle it out Sunday, Jan. 20.

The action between the Kansas City Chiefs and New England Patriots in the AFC, and the New Orleans Saints and the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC promises to be intense.

For anyone in New Jersey, this represents two great opportunities. First, to learn a bit about the basics of NFL betting. Second, to get in on that action at DraftKings Sportsbook.

In fact, DraftKings Sportsbook offers a variety of simple and easy ways even casual football fans can bet on the AFC and NFC Championship games.

AFC, NFC championship betting

The first step is to brush up on the basics. In the NFL, that means understanding how moneyline bets work.

Making a moneyline bet is really as simple as picking the team you think will win the game.

DraftKings Sportsbook will put either a positive (+) or negative (-) number beside each team. A positive number means you are looking at an underdog and a $100 bet on that team will earn you the positive amount plus your $100 bet back.

A negative number indicates that team is the favorite and represents the amount you’ll have to bet to win $100 plus your bet back.

The Chiefs are the home team, and they put together the better regular season record. However, New England won a shootout with Kansas City 43-40 back at home in the sixth week of the season.

As a result of all this, the Chiefs opened up at -159 on DraftKings Sportsbook.

That negative number means Kansas City is the favorite and players betting the Chiefs must lay $159 to win $100 plus their bet back.

In the meantime, the Patriots opened up at +130 on DraftKings Sportsbook. That positive number means that Patriots are the underdog and a $100 bet on New England will earn you $130 plus your $100 bet back if they win.

Over in the NFC, the Saints are the top seed, the home team, and they actually beat the Rams at home 45-35 in week nine. New Orleans opened up at -182 on DraftKings Sportsbook and Los Angeles opened at +148.

The spread at DraftKings Sportsbook

Understanding how point spread bets work is the next step.

It’s almost as easy as the moneyline. The difference with point spread bets is that you have to pick the winner with a line set by DraftKings Sportsbook factored in.

On Monday, DraftKings Sportsbook had the line on the NFC Championship game at New Orleans -3.5. That means the Saints will have to beat the Rams by 4 points or more for bets on the Saints at -3.5 to pay off.

It also means you can take the Rams at +3.5 and if the Rams win, or lose by three points or less, bets on the Rams at +3.5 will pay off.

DraftKings Sportsbook also had the line on the AFC Championship game at Kansas City -3 on Monday.

Over/under bets for AFC, NFC title games

The third in the list of basic NFL bets offered by DraftKings Sportsbook is the over/under. It really doesn’t get much easier than this. DraftKings Sportsbook sets a line on the total amount of points both teams will score.

All you have to do is pick whether the final score of the game will be over or under that number.

The over/under on the AFC Championship game opened up on DraftKings Sportsbook at 57.5. For the NFC Championship, it opened at 57.

Knowing that the Chiefs and Patriots combined to score 83 points in Week Six, and the Saints and Rams put up 80 in Week Nine, might make you think the lines are on the low side.

However, it’s important to remember that things tend to tighten up in championship games.

NFL conference championship game parlays

DraftKings Sportsbook will also allow you to bet on parlays involving the two NFL conference championship games.

Parlays involve combining two or more of the basic bets described above into a single wager. That means all the bets that are part of the parlay must win for you to get paid.

However, the payoff is always greater than it would be with individual bets.

For example, you might combine the Saints moneyline and the NFC Championship over into a parlay. You can expect DraftKings Sportsbook to pay somewhere around +200 on such a parlay. However, we know that the straight Saints moneyline bet (-182) and the price on over/under bets (-110) are not anywhere near as much.

Once you’ve got the NFL betting basics down and make some betting choices, you’re going to want to get set up on DraftKings Sportsbook so you can place the bets.

Sign up for DraftKings Sportsbook

Thankfully, downloading the app and registering is a simple and easy process. It will only take a few minutes following these steps:

  • Click on our DraftKings Sportsbook link on your iOS or Android device.
  • Allow DraftKings to use your device’s location, proving you are in New Jersey.
  • If you have a DraftKings daily fantasy sports (DFS) account, click on “Already have a DraftKings account?” If not, click “Sign Me Up” and enter your details on the sign-up page.
  • Check the box agreeing to the terms of use and privacy policy.
  • Click the “Sign Up” button and finally, the “Download” button.
  • Click on the app icon on your device to open it.
  • Login using the details you provided during sign-up.

As a new player at DraftKings Sportsbook NJ, you’ll get $35 in free bets.

It comes in the form of seven free $5 bets. Plus, you can also take advantage of a free bet match offer of up to $500 when you make your first deposit. Good luck!