Big Dance accompanied by big pool party

[Shame About Ray]

America, start filling in the brackets.

Millions are. Office pools based on “March Madness” are the nation's newest passion, as much a craze as the Charleston, canasta, mah-jongg and hula hoops were in other periods of American life.

By one estimate, made by the outplacement firm of Challenger, Gray and ******mas Inc., as many 37 million American workers are taking part in pools. On Facebook, there are 20,000 online pools. Money being staked on pools makes the $92.1 million that was wagered legally on Super Bowl XLII in Nevada – the figure is from the state's Gaming Control Board – seem like a pittance.

Dan O'Brien of Las Vegas Sports Consultants, an oddsmaking service, said the sum bet on the Super Bowl (Giants 17, Patriots 14) would constitute only 1 percent of the fees fed nationwide into March Madness pools.

In most states, pools are legal, but states have different definitions of gambling. Utah prohibits all forms of gambling, whether it involves 25 cents or $10,000. “Anything that has value could be the basis for a gambling charge,” Thom Roberts, Utah's assistant attorney general, told walletpop.com. Wisconsin is another state that views pools as illegal.

The San Diego Police Department's position is that pools are illegal, according to Detective Gary Hassen.

“But it's one of those 'don't ask, don't tell,' matters,” Hassen said. “There would be no way of policing that.”

Hassen noted that if a pool is put together in a police-regulated business, such as a liquor store or massage parlor, those operating it are committing a felony.

Said legalzoom.com: “Best advice: keep betting 'in': informal, infrequent and insignificant.”

Pools involving minors can draw legal scrutiny. So can pools wherein the house gets a cut. CBS, in partnership with Facebook, is running a March Madness pool with a prize of $10,000. There is no entry fee, so it is legal. A temporary Web site can be counted as an online betting site if it operates a business regularly engaged in setting up pools.

To corporate America, pools represent a distraction that can impact a firm's efficiency. Again according to Challenger, Gray, up to 1.5 million Americans will be following the progress of the tournament online from their desks. Vault.com said 58 percent of the workers it has questioned say they participate in pools and 77 percent say they are aware their co-workers participate.

One respondent to vault.com's study said the pools add a level of excitement on game days and enhance socializing in the workplace. A survey by Harris Interactive found that of those who sift through the pairings, 45 percent named office camaraderie as their main reason for participating.

Thirty-six percent listed “money” as responsible for their involvement, with 15 percent citing “love of game” and 2 percent “peer pressure.”

Most people are not poring at great length over their selections, according to vault.com. The Web site said 68 percent of those it polled said they spend only five to 10 minutes making their picks, which suggests what the pools are for most people – a lottery of sorts. Somebody has to win and it is not necessarily going to be a person knowledgeable concerning college basketball. Upsets occur. A person choosing teams because he or she admires their mascots can outfinish the most schooled of basketball experts.

To David Chan, a handicapper on covers.com, the choice that is most meaningful is the final one, the championship game. As most pools are structured, selecting winners of first-round games is worth one point. Naming second-round winners is worth two points, third-round winners three points, etc., on to the final game, which is worth six points.

“Think reality, not underdogs,” Chan advises. “George Masons don't come along every year. Wait until the second round before going for 'Cinderellas.' ”

R.J. Bell is identified by pregame.com as the only sports bettor on Forbes' list of gambling gurus. Bell counsels placing one or two No. 1 seeds in the Final Four, noting that exactly one or two No. 1 seeds has advanced to the tournament semifinals in 19 of the past 23 years.

No team seeded lower than a No. 6 should be positioned in the Final Four, according to Bell. “Not one has made it in the last 23 years,” Bell says. “For 19 straight years, the champion has been a No. 4 seed or higher.”

By Jerry Magee
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
March 19, 2008