Anthony Fontanelle asked:


Detroit’s Big Three has placed big bets at the recently held New York International Auto Show (NYIAS). This is done to boost its standing in the automotive realm. And the Big Three is starting the change in the Big Apple.

In the said auto show, the Chrysler Group has unveiled its redesigned 2008 Jeep Liberty which comes as a top selling compact SUV. The Ford Motor Co. has also introduced its new Flex vehicle which is a large crossover SUV replacing its minivan. And General Motors Corp. unraveled Buick Super series and concept minicars to reach out to the generation Y.

New York offers a huge potential auto market and the territory can influence the entire nation. This is the reason why Detroit’s Big Three is placing big bets in the Big Apple. “There’s always a chance that someone can create some momentum from the show that can help sales,” said Tom Libby, an industry analyst for the Power Information Network. Erich Merkle, an analyst with IRN Inc. which is an automotive consulting company, added, “There’s a huge amount of media attention in New York and from there, the country is addressed.”

The March sales reports say it all - the Big Three’s sales are rather slumping. Compared with last year’s March reports, Chrysler and GM sales dropped four percent while Ford’s declined by nine percent. Hence, the road to recovery is anchored on building new vehicles that purchasers could not reject.

The Chrysler Group has debuted two models: the redesigned 2008 Jeep Liberty and refreshed 2008 Grand Cherokee and these are the brand’s two hot selling vehicles. “We sell about 20 percent of Jeeps in the Northeast,” said John Plecha, the director of Jeep marketing. Plecha said Jeep does not want to shun the future women buyers, but the brand still hopes that the Liberty appeals to more customers in general.

Jesse Toprak, a senior analyst for Edmunds.com, said that the Liberty may run into some problems. “The compact SUV market is getting much tougher to compete in because so many automakers are providing models.”

Jeep’s other vehicles - such as the Patriot and Compass - may also hurt the new Liberty, said Merkle. It will compete too closely with other Jeeps in the same price range, he said. “It’s not that I don’t like the product,” Merkle said, “but there’s too much internal competition.”

Ford has also introduced a new SUV in Flex. The offering of the automaker is to deliver something original to aficionados. Based on the Ford Fairlane concept, the Flex is a calculated risk, Libby said. “This is a progressive move,” Libby said. “Ford really needs this to work. They believe they can fill that part of the market with a large crossover.”

“That’s one of the most critical launches they’ll have,” added Merkle. “The crossover SUV segment has been growing by leaps and bounds. It’s displaced the SUV as we know it.”

While Chrysler and Ford struggle, GM seems to be successful in stepping on the brakes to stop sales declines. It appears that the automaker is making an obvious progress. GM has released the Super series, performance versions of the Lucerne and redesigned LaCrosse to breathe new life.

“They can’t wait for all of the loyal Buick buyers to die off,” said Toprak. “The Super designation is part of that effort. Will it work? It’s too early too tell.” In regard to the minicars, Toprak hopes the General brings them to the United States.

Online Betting UK asked:


West Ham travel across London to the cauldron of Stamford Bridge today and have little chance of defying their 12/1 odds to beat Chelsea. Since West Ham’s re-promotion to the top flight in 2005/06, Chelsea have won all six league meetings between the sides and are 1/4 with BetUK to win again today.

Visit Betuk.com for more details.

With just four goals in six away games under former Chelsea player turned West Ham manager Gianfranco Zola, coupled with Chelsea’s defensive record against non-big four sides, and the chances of a home shut out look likely.

Chelsea to win to 1-0 or 2-0 at 6/1 and 5/1 respectively are therefore tempting scorelines to bet on with BetUK.

It is also important to recognise the importance of Didier Drogba to the Chelsea team at home. His physical presence is crucial in breaking down sides who congest their back line to counter the Blues fluid passing, and after bagging one from off the bench in mid-week, the Ivorian is good value at 7/2 to bag the first goal with BetUK.

There could be value in betting on West Ham to score first in tonight’s game against Spurs at Upton Park. Tottenham have conceded first in six of their seven away trips and five of eight games at White Hart Lane this season - one of the worst records in the Premier League.

By contrast, West Ham are far better at scoring first, having done so in four of seven home matches. Those stats indicate a touch of value about the even money price on the hosts scoring the first goal of the game with BetUK.

Online Betting UK asked:


As the news spread, punters made a dash for their computers to get their bets in with their online sports books. Word was out that the financially troubled Weymouth Football Club was going to field their youth team against Rushden & Diamonds.

It’s being reported that more than £1 million was paid out after heavy betting action came in on Weymouth losing this match…and lose it they did. The rumour was in fact true and the home side cashed big tickets in one of the largest non-league football betting coups.

It all started when the entire team made the decision to go on strike due to not being paid so far this season and that there wouldn’t be any medical insurance for the match. That resulted in the club being forced to start the Weymouth teenage team.

Bookmakers didn’t know what to make of the sudden spike in volume for what would normally be a relatively obscure betting event. They immediately were forced to cut the odds as the money poured in and some even suspended the betting entirely.

Punters were said to be racing from one bookmaker to another and getting all they could down at their online bookmakers as word of the strike leaked out.

The obvious thought was that a team of 17 year olds would have no chance. And that proved to be right as they were drubbed 9-0 and all those who wagered against Weymouth cashed their tickets.

One bookmaker said “Normally £30,000 to £40,000 would be paid out on a match like this across the whole industry. But we paid out in the region of £100,000 and we are 20 per cent of the industry.”

Steve Palmer, deputy sports editor at the Racing Post, said that the match had become “the centre of the betting universe” before the game.

“Nonleague football is one of the few sports where punters can get an edge on the bookmakers,” he said. “They can have superior knowledge and the bookmakers can get caught with their trousers down.”

Visit Sports Betting for more details about online sports betting and many more.

Free Bets asked:


England v Portugal Preview

Although England don’t have a good record against the Portuguese, Sporting Index have still got them as favourites to win by 0.3 to 0.5 goals on their “Supremacy” market. This is influenced by the fact that Portugal are missing both Deco and Costinha through suspension. However, Big Phil has proven to be Sven’s nemesis twice before in the big competitions. He managed to beat England with 10 men in Shizuoka in 2002 when Ronaldinho was sent off. Two years later he successfully changed formation in Lisbon after Rooney was forced off through injury. With the influential Figo available, and Ronaldo looking likely to figure, Scolari could dash English hopes for a third successive tournament.

On top of this, Scolari has never lost a World Cup match. In fact, the 11 straight victories he has enjoyed with Brazil in 2002 and now Portugal is a record. His current team has also not lost a match (competitive or friendly) since the Euro 2004 final. On the other hand, England are still unbeaten in Germany. Although Sven’s team have only scored five goals so far, Portugal have only managed six. On the back of this, and the other low-scoring matches in this round, Sporting Index predict a total of just 2.1 to 2.3 goals will be scored in 90 minutes.

So in this battle of wits between the Swedish iceman and Big Phil, formation will be key. In the Ecuador match, Carrick made more passes than any other England player, (66 in total, 57 successful). He also spent significantly longer on the ball (196.9 seconds) than anyone else - Ashley Cole is in second place with 156 seconds. However, Carrick didn’t make a single tackle (Terry topped that list, with 5). In fact, England’s three central midfielders only made one between them.

Online Betting UK asked:


With Liverpool’s Steven Gerrard yesterday confirmed as another big-name absentee from the England squad for Wednesday’s tough international friendly against Germany things are looking pretty bleak for the Three Lions.

But it is defensively that manager Fabio Capello is really feeling the pinch with skipper John Terry rated only 50-50 to start because of a foot injury. Rio Ferdinand, Wes Brown and Ashley Cole are already sidelined so if Terry misses out, Capello will start without his entire preferred back four against a side who reached the final of Euro 2008 and the semi-finals of the 2006 World Cup.

I’m afraid to say this one looks like going Germany’s way! Taking BetUK’s 11/10 on Germany is the value bet to make here.

BetUK.com is your online gaming site for betting on sports, poker and casino. BetUK.com is the foremost online sports betting line, bookmaker site in UK. BetUK.com offers online betting on casino games; online games; and sports betting odds, betting sports such as football betting, tennis betting, baseball betting, rugby betting, greyhounds betting, golf betting and horse racing. It is a great source for online sports betting UK.

Sunday’s live game on Sky (4pm K/O) sees Manchester City travel to this season’s surprise package - Hull. From a psychological point of view Hull have a distinct advantage, because they were preparing for a dogfight from the moment promotion to the Premier League was won. A run of three straight defeats is disappointing for them - but mentally the players have always expected that type of run of results. The same cannot be said for City’s players, who appear ill-equipped for a trip to an unwelcoming venue to face physical, resilient hosts, as awaits them here.

Taking all factors into account we make Hull narrow favourites - which is why the 17/10 available on BetUK is terrific value. Man City are an implausibly short 7/5, with the draw at 9/4 so the the price on the hosts looks too good to miss.

An even better bet than a home victory, however, is over 2.5 goals. Such an outcome has been a consistent feature of games involving these two sides this season - 20 of 24 relevant fixtures (10 out of 12 games for both Hull and Man City) have had three goals or more this season, making the price of 4/5 on overs tremendous value. Even looking solely at Hull’s home games and Man City’ss away games, the stats stand up: four of Hull’s six fixtures at the KC Stadium and four of City’s six games on the road have had over 2.5 goals.

Geoff Gannon asked:


Over the past few days, there have been several stories written about Warren Buffett’s $14 billion bet on global stock markets. I believe these stories are all in reference to this excerpt form Berkshire Hathaway’s annual report:

“Berkshire is also subject to equity price risk with respect to certain long duration equity index put contracts. Berkshire’s maximum exposure with respect to such contracts is approximately $14 billion at December 31, 2005. These contracts generally expire 15 to 20 years from inception. Outstanding contracts at December 31, 2005, have been written on four major equity indexes including three foreign. Berkshire’s potential exposure with respect to these contracts is directly correlated to the movement of the underlying stock index between contract inception date and expiration. Thus, if the overall value at December 31, 2005 of the underlying indices decline 30%, Berkshire would incur a pre-tax loss of approximately $900 million.”

It’s impossible to evaluate what exactly this means for Berkshire or what it tells us about Buffett’s thinking without knowing more details. But, there are a few things I’d suggest you consider when reading the news reports.

First, the $14 billion headline number makes this bet look larger than it really is. According to the above disclosure, a 30% decline in the underlying indices would only create a $900 million pre-tax loss. One article stated that a decline in the indexes to zero was highly unlikely given historical trends. It’s a lot more than highly unlikely. But, since we don’t know the details of Berkshire’s exposure, we can’t evaluate the real risk of a very large loss.

A lot of these news stories have called Berkshire’s “long duration equity index put contracts” a bet on global stock markets. A few individuals have been quoted as saying Buffett has become bullish long-term. Buffett’s always been optimistic about the very long-term insofar as he recognizes how better things are today than they have been at any other time in history, and how that is likely to remain true for some time. Despite Buffett’s concerns about nuclear war, he doesn’t see a return to the Dark Ages and those kinds of anemic returns on capital.

That’s important to keep in mind, because I’m not sure this bet is much more than that. If you assume returns on equity will be similar to those achieved in the years since industrialization began, and you assume central governments will continue to cause inflation, a long duration equity index put contract isn’t much of a stretch.

Equity will earn returns, much of those returns will be retained by the businesses, and inflation will increase (nominal) stock prices regardless of whether the underlying businesses’ assets are increasing or remaining stable.

So, I’m not sure this is a bullish sign. In fact, it may be a bearish sign, because it suggests Buffett can’t find individual equities to buy, three of the four indexes are foreign, and someone wants to be protected against very large losses in a diversified group of holdings.

Remember, someone is paying for this protection. In my opinion, it’s not the kind of protection investors need. It’s long-term protection on an index. I suppose I can see why a pension fund might want this (to increase exposure to equities), but it seems like exactly the sort of thing an insurance company can make money selling. There’s fear of a very large loss, and a lot of factors that are hard to see that will tend to make that loss pretty unlikely.

We don’t know what premiums Berkshire is receiving, so we really can’t evaluate these contracts. If someone writes hurricane insurance it doesn’t mean they think hurricanes are unlikely, it just means they think someone is dumb enough to pay more than the protection is worth. Knowing the odds of a decline in global stock markets isn’t enough to evaluate Berkshire’s contracts, because we don’t know the price.

I’m not enamored with current valuations in the U.S., but looking out a couple decades it’s not all doom and gloom. Markets tend to overshoot in both directions, but there’s usually someone sane enough to buy when stocks get cheap enough.

What’s remarkable about the way investors move stock prices isn’t the magnitude of the truly major moves (up or down); it’s the frequency of meaningful moves when there’s no meaningful changes in underlying values. Think about the price range of an average stock in an average year - that’s the really irrational part of investor behavior. I wouldn’t want to have anything to do with a one-year contract on a single stock. That’s a very different situation.

Eric Smith asked:


The world’s leading Internet betting exchange is BetFair. BetFair was set up in June 2000. Since then, it has been the largest online betting company in UK and the world. At present, BetFair has over 100, 00,000 clienteles and a turnover of more than ?50million per week.  

BetFair allows punters to set their own odds rather than the odds set by a bookie or bookmaker. However, as with every online betting exchange, there are several dos and don’ts. BetFair to have its own do’s and don’ts, which a punter needs to follow to make profit.

Dos of BetFair Sports Betting: 

The Dos of BetFair sports betting are as follows:

 1.      When betting for the first time on BetFair, begin with a respectable betting bank. Keep a monthly limit of money to bet online and try to maintain the same amount. This is the best way to gain long-term profits through online betting on BetFair. Always try having a professional attitude towards planning a bankroll for betting.

2.      Consider keeping a part of money, which is affordable to invest in betting and will not cause any long-term financial crises. Think of betting only as an entertainment source and not as a monthly income source. The game of betting carries many risks. Punters have to keep a track of the money invested in betting to know whether they are winning or losing.

 3.      There is no point in placing bets in a hurry without proper knowledge. Hence, research a lot before placing bets. This helps in reducing the chances of losing a huge amount of money.

 4.      Place bets for the day and try to stick with them. Try not to return to the same bet with different odds once the bet is lost. Punters have to follow their strategies and staking plans religiously.

 5.      The key to success in BetFair sports betting is having ample amount of patience. It is good to be patient and not lose hope even after losing one or two bets. Patience helps to plan better winning strategies.

Don’ts of BetFair Sports Betting:

 The Don’ts of BetFair Sports Betting are as follows:

 1.It is best not to pursue losses in sports betting. This is an easy way to lose all the money. There may be plenty of bad days, but the most important point is to maintain discipline. Do not go in for the big bets to cover up for the previous losses.

2.Punters need to avoid placing bets on something which they do not understand or have small knowledge. There is no need to shift from one sport to another. For instance, if a punter is highly knowledgeable about football betting, it is no use to shift to horseracing.

3.Do not be greedy, as greediness may ultimately lead to losses. Try to be happy with the amount of money won through sports betting.Never increase your stakes in case of losing bets. It is of no help and only empties the punter’s bank.

 

zbircs asked:

ah i had to try a big bet once in your life and guess what happened? 5 liner i thought it paid more but i think i expected too much outta a pokie machine but win was decent anyways, some people thought i was crazy but the win was crazy as well

randomvids11 asked:

title says it all

texref asked:

Chesebro picks up a MONSTER (queen three) and calls $7 or so pre-flop. The flop gives him two pair and he takes down a big pot against Eric’s flush draw.