LAS VEGAS \u2014 Four nondescript soccer matches had already delivered on his five-leg parlay when \u201cJohn the Barber\u201d slipped into my blue booth at the South Point sportsbook.<\/p>\n
He had bet on more than half a goal being tallied in the first half of the AZ Alkmaar-Ilves UEFA Conference Leagues qualifier, at -700 odds (or risk $700 to win $100). Four AZ players scored in the first half to secure the first leg.<\/p>\n
He had also live-wagered on over a half-goal being scored in the second halves of Dila-Riga FC (-380), Banga Gargzdai-Rosenborg (-380) and Spaeri FC-Austria Wien (-400). All covered.<\/p>\n
The final leg of his July 31 high jinks involved more than 17.5 points being rung up in the first half of the Chargers-Lions NFL Hall of Fame game, kicking off in two hours.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust one left,\u201d the Barber said. \u201cI liked the 17.5 at William Hill because it\u2019s 18 here at the South Point.\u201d<\/p>\n
Los Angeles whipped Detroit 21-7 in that opening half.<\/p>\n
For John the Barber, a $24 investment became $104.44.<\/p>\n
Not bad at all for the dog days of summer.<\/p>\n
Cuts, shaves and props<\/p>\n
John Taddio rises at 6. Within 15 minutes, he has perused the day\u2019s sporting menu. By 7, he has pulled into the parking lot at the South Point, in whose barber shop he has worked for 20 years.<\/p>\n
The 80-year-old Buffalo, New York, native, known to many as John the Barber and to South Point owner Michael Gaughan as Johnny Hockey, reviews and confirms his tonsorial schedule.<\/p>\n
And he taps in his plays, usually four- to seven-leg parlays whose moving parts he jimmies into quite favorable odds. When he isn\u2019t trimming hair, he monitors that app and conjures action.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen the odds are close and the dog is at home, and they played a tight game yesterday,\u201d he said, \u201cI\u2019ll boost the home team. Did that with Tampa, to 3.5, the other day. The Yankees won by 1, but I still won with the Rays.\u201d<\/p>\n
He\u2019ll even tap under 0.5 goals for a scoreless second half, with just scant minutes remaining on a pitch, but he must move swiftly to tie that in with other games.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat will only be -180, sometimes,\u201d John says, \u201cand I\u2019ll jump all over it.\u201d<\/p>\n
The multiple plays often create profit of at least two to three times his investment. From Thursday to Saturday, when I see him again, John the Barber played 16 parlays and won nine for sweet profit.<\/p>\n
He has been loyal to William Hill\u2019s app, which he set up 5 miles south of the South Point at the M Resort, for about six years.<\/p>\n
Initially, once or twice, it altered odds the moment he tried making bets. That ended, John said, after a direct note to operators.<\/p>\n
\u201cI told them, \u2018I bet you wouldn\u2019t like gaming [Nevada\u2019s Gaming Control Board] to see what you\u2019re doing because that\u2019s not right. You shouldn\u2019t be doing that,\u2019 \u201d he said. \u201cBeen fine ever since.\u201d<\/p>\n
The beast<\/p>\n
Watching the Barber operate on his app might stun the actual William Hill.<\/p>\n
At the Birmingham Small Arms factory in 1919, Hill ran illegal bets. He was 16. Others noted his acumen at calculating odds and risk, and in 1934, he opened an illicit bookmaking shop in London. He died in 1971.<\/p>\n
Today, William Hill employs approximately 12,000 people in more than 1,400 global outlets.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think he\u2019d be absolutely staggered,\u201d British handicapper Nigel Seeley told me in 2018 for a sports-betting book. \u201cHe wouldn\u2019t believe what a beast he\u2019s become, how the betting market has changed.\u201d<\/p>\n
In Vegas, his company has been known to ban, or limit, successful punters.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not big enough,\u201d John the Barber said. \u201cI\u2019m under the radar. At most, I might win $2,000 or $3,000 [in fall or winter]. \u2018Those\u2019 people are betting big, big money, $50,000 to $80,000.\u201d<\/p>\n
Run into him at the South Point, and he\u2019ll always have action. John\u2019s wheelhouse plays involve the NHL and European soccer, usually $100 parlays with typical cashes of $800 to $1,000.<\/p>\n
He favors NHL first periods over 1.5 goals with high-scoring teams, which he tracks. He follows soccer sides across the pond to guide his first-half wagers, and he gauges matches for second-half live buys.<\/p>\n
These dog days of July and August comprise $20 and $30 parlays for entertainment and to keep his coconut sharp.<\/p>\n
When his Bill Hill account hits $1,000, John extracts $300, which he has done several times this summer.<\/p>\n
Plus, every dollar he bets nets him William Hill points, which translate to periodic deposits into his account.<\/p>\n
The professor<\/p>\n
Amiable and enthusiastic, it\u2019s rare to hear John the Barber utter a negative word. That, he says, might be why customers tell him he looks like he\u2019s in his late 60s.<\/p>\n
He complimented Brent Musburger in a text for his Hall of Fame Game telecast appearance, but he told Brent he needed a better haircut. Musburger responded that he\u2019ll see John in the fall.<\/p>\n
\u201cBy the way,\u201d Musburger wrote, \u201cI love the Knights\u2019 signing of [Mitch] Marner.\u201d<\/p>\n
John responded, \u201cYou\u2019re right on the ball! Love it. We\u2019ll see what he does.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Aug. 21, he and wife Connie will celebrate, with their two daughters and dear friends, their 60th wedding anniversary at the exquisite Hugo\u2019s Cellar downtown inside the Four Queens.<\/p>\n
John invites anyone to learn his methods, but one young dude recently didn\u2019t possess the patience to grasp it.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve got some issues,\u201d John told him. \u201cYou don\u2019t pay attention.\u201d<\/p>\n
That guy was the anomaly.<\/p>\n
\u201cCustomers ask, and I say, \u2018No problem.\u2019 I want them to learn,\u201d John said. \u201cThey say, \u2018John, this is great! I like the way you think.\u2019<\/p>\n
\u201cWell, it isn\u2019t just the way you think because you have to keep on top of it. If you have other stuff going on and you can\u2019t pay attention to this, then don\u2019t do it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Goofin\u2019 around<\/p>\n
Three Leagues Cup matches had already covered July 29, as did an obscure CONCACAF Central America Cup game between Verdes FC and FC Motagua.<\/p>\n
John had bet over half a goal in the first half of every game, at -300, -320, -300 and -550, respectively.<\/p>\n
He had also sliced the totals of the -Diamondbacks-Tigers, Red Sox-Twins and Dodgers-Reds games to 5.5, making those respective odds -429, -454 and -529. Boston (8-5), Detroit (12-2) and Los Angeles (5-4) all won. The seven-team winner turned $22 into $108.54.<\/p>\n
The next day, he live-bet the second halves of two Leagues Cup matches and the USL title tilt between Hartford Athletic and New Mexico United, getting -600, -380 and -450 odds. All hit.<\/p>\n
He tied in over a half-goal in the second half of Portland Timbers-Atletico San Luis at -500. The Timbers had a goal at the half and won 4-0.<\/p>\n
He capped that five-teamer with the Rangers +3.5 runs, at -704, against the Angels; Texas won 6-3. A $25 wager won $35.78.<\/p>\n
\u201cI love it,\u201d the Barber said. \u201cI goof around with it, and it\u2019s just fun. I got it down to where it\u2019s pretty good for me.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"LAS VEGAS \u2014 Four nondescript soccer matches had already delivered on his five-leg parlay when \u201cJohn the Barber\u201d…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":50454,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[556],"tags":[64,63,575,85],"class_list":["post-50453","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nhl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-nhl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50453","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=50453"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50453\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/50454"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=50453"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=50453"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=50453"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}