Earlier this week, I reached out to Jay Kornegay, Vice President of Race and Sports at Westgate Hotel in Las Vegas. The SuperBook at Westgate is one of the preeminent sports books in the country. I wanted to get information about the betting trends leading up to the NFL Conference Championship Games. Jay was able to share his thoughts on the following questions.
Mims: Of the four teams in the Championship Games, which one has the most liability for the book as winning the Super Bowl?
Kornegay: Currently, the Bengals are the biggest liability. They’re the only team that would be a loser for us. It’s minimal considering we’re talking about the Super Bowl but nevertheless it’s a red number. The Bengals opened at 20-1 but started the season 0-2 and got as high as 40-1.
Mims: How does the money on these games look so far? What team/ game is getting most of the action?
Kornegay: The Bengals seem to be the flavor of the week. The Chiefs opened at -3 and we’re currently at Bengals -1. This is understandably due to the great performance by Cincinnati and the Mahomes injury. We expect this trend to continue and could push the Bengals to -2 by the end of the week. For the NFC title, the Eagles opened at -1.5 and have been pushed to -2.5. The Eagles have received most of the early support based on their dominating performance over New York.
Mims: What player prop bets seem to have the public interest?
Kornegay: We haven’t posted player props yet but should have them up in a couple of days. We expect the usual suspects to get a lot of attention as we move towards the weekend. Player to score the first touchdown will be the most popular. The QB props for all four teams will also see a lot of attention from the betting public.
Mims: What two teams would generate the most action in a Super Bowl matchup?
Kornegay: The Super Bowl is an event that sells itself. For the most part, it really doesn’t matter. This is an American event that attracts action from top to bottom. We expect record setting handle across the board. As sports wagering expands across the country, the wagering amounts will be staggering.
Mims: What promotions does the book and the hotel have planned for the Super Bowl Weekend?
Kornegay: We’ll have several parties scattered all around our Westgate property in Las Vegas. We have VIP invite only, open to public venues, and private parties. In addition, we’ll have a full-blown entertainment schedule throughout the weekend. We’ll also have special promos, boosts, and bonuses for our mobile app in all our SuperBook jurisdictions. This includes Nevada, Colorado, New Jersey, Iowa, Arizona, Tennessee, and Ohio.
I appreciate Jay taking the time to share information about the NFL Championship Games and information about the mobile app associated with the SuperBook. I will provide a separate analysis of the AFC Championship game. Follow me on Twitter as we lead up to the game.