gambling

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Accused in $2M Theft, NYC's 'Hottest Vegan' Felled by Pizza

She's now in Riker's, accused of stealing millions from her own restaurant

(Newser) - It's a dizzying downfall: Sarma Melngailis went from the Ivy League and French Culinary Institute to near-instant fame and success in the Big Apple when she opened the vegan restaurant Pure Food and Wine, frequented by the likes of Alec Baldwin. Hailed as the city's "hottest vegan"...

$100 Bet on Syracuse Win Could Pay $100K

Wager was placed when no one thought the Orange had a chance

(Newser) - In an incredible run that SB Nation says "doesn't make sense" and Sports Illustrated labels "improbable," Syracuse beat No. 1 seed Virginia 68-62 on Sunday, the AP reports—making the Orange the first No. 10 seed to make it to the Final Four. And one bettor...

Monk Embezzled $200K From Temple to Fuel Gambling Habit

Khang Nguyen Le pleaded guilty

(Newser) - A Buddhist monk accused of embezzling more than $200,000 from his Louisiana temple to feed a casino gambling habit has pleaded guilty to fraud, the AP reports. The Advocate reports that 38-year-old Khang Nguyen Le will be sentenced June 27 after his guilty plea Thursday to one count of...

Gamblers Fix Pro Tennis Matches: Report

Investigators accuse officials of letting problem fester

(Newser) - First FIFA , now this? Yep, evidence has emerged of possible widespread match-fixing in the pristine world of professional tennis. According to documents obtained by the BBC and Buzzfeed , investigators hired by the Association of Tennis Professionals uncovered signs of corrupt betting syndicates and gamblers buying off well-ranked players—but...

Dealers, Pals Charged With Stealing $1M From Bellagio

Authorities say dealers paid out phantom bets at craps tables

(Newser) - Two former casino dealers and two friends are accused of siphoning more than $1 million off craps tables over two years, using phantom bets at Las Vegas' posh Bellagio resort. James Cooper Jr. and Mark Branco were fired by the Bellagio after the scheme came to light, and they were...

Casinos Go to Wild Extremes to Keep 'Whales' Playing

Casinos' rules are nebulous when it comes to their biggest players, dealers complain

(Newser) - One high roller requests a refrigerator full of bananas that he squeezes and throws as he gambles. Another urinates against a wall. Others throw chairs, scream at dealers, and expect rules to be bent. In the increasing competition for the biggest spenders, casinos pull out all the stops with comped...

Gambler Loses $318K on UK Elections

Although he was playing with the house money, after earlier Scottish bet

(Newser) - You win some, you lose some. Just ask Ed Miliband and this gambler: The anonymous bettor was so sure that the UK elections would result in a hung parliament that he put down $316,500 with a bookmaker, reports USA Today via the Independent . Then the Conservatives stunned pollsters by...

Casino to Gamblers: You Owe Us $1.5M

Golden Nugget casino says mini-baccarat cards were unshuffled

(Newser) - So you failed to unshuffle the deck—why is that our problem? That's essentially what a group of 14 gamblers are arguing in an effort to retain $1.5 million they won at an Atlantic City casino in 2012, the AP reports. They filed a motion yesterday in an...

China Arrests 30K in Porn, Gambling Crackdown

Campaign to 'clean up Internet' continues

(Newser) - A sweeping crackdown on porn and illegal gambling has resulted in more than 30,000 arrests in a single Chinese province, authorities say. In the latest wave of arrests in Guangdong province, more than 8,000 people were detained during operations that included smashing a $5 million online gambling ring,...

Why You Should Gamble Before You Chow Down

Hungry people might make better long-term decisions, researchers say

(Newser) - You know not to go grocery shopping on an empty stomach. But making complex decisions while your stomach's rumbling? Go for it, Utrecht University researchers say, claiming that hungry people might delay gratification and make better long-term choices, Pacific Standard reports. A study published in PLoS One conducted three...

Compulsive Sex, Gambling Tied to Parkinson's Drugs

Researchers say dopamine agonists should get black-box warnings

(Newser) - Parkinson's drugs are known for a range of side effects, including hallucinations, psychosis, and extreme drowsiness. But researchers say there's also a clear link between the use of some of these drugs and impulse control issues that result in hypersexuality, compulsive gambling, and uncontrollable spending, reports LiveScience . Looking...

Poker Pro Cheated to Win $12.4M: Judge

Phil Ivey says his way of playing baccarat is legit, but a London court disagreed

(Newser) - A London judge ruled yesterday that a professional poker player used a croupier "as his innocent agent or tool" to cheat a London casino out of $12.4 million, Bloomberg reports. Phil Ivey—described on the World Series of Poker website as "arguably the best poker player in...

What Michael Phelps Did Before His DUI Bust

Went on an 8-hour 'gambling binge,' apparently

(Newser) - What was Michael Phelps doing before he was arrested on DUI charges early yesterday? According to TMZ and its "casino sources," he was on an eight-hour "gambling binge." The sources say Phelps was playing blackjack and drinking beer in a private VIP room at Baltimore's...

Oakland to Drop 80-Year-Old Pinball Ban

Machines were once considered moral menace

(Newser) - The California city of Oakland is about to finally scrap an anti-pinball law nobody has paid much attention to since World War II. The game was outlawed in Oakland and many other cities in the 1930s, when the machines didn't have flippers and were considered gambling devices, the San ...

How Gamblers Manage to Get Lucky Streaks
 How Gamblers 
 Manage to Get 
 Lucky Streaks 
study says
May 18, 2014 9:17 AM CDT

How Gamblers Manage to Get Lucky Streaks

They're not really based on luck: study

(Newser) - Lucky streaks shouldn't really happen. After all, the chances of a successful bet this time aren't affected by a win last time. Yet the phenomenon of lucky streaks—as well as losing streaks—does occur, scientists found after reviewing 565,915 online bets on horse racing, soccer, and...

Las Vegas Casino Boots Ben Affleck for Counting Cards

He's reportedly done for life at Hard Rock Cafe

(Newser) - Actor , director , citizen of the world , and ... card cheat? That's apparently how Vegas views Ben Affleck, who has been banned from gambling at the Hard Rock Cafe for life because he got caught counting cards in blackjack, reports TMZ . What's more, an alert went out to all...

Gambler Sues After Losing $500K While Blackout Drunk

Mark Johnston says casino should not have issued lines of credit

(Newser) - A California man lost $500,000 while gambling at a Las Vegas casino over Super Bowl weekend, but he doesn't think he should have to pay—because he was so drunk at the time. "I feel like they picked my pockets," says Mark Johnston, who is suing...

Things You Can't Buy With a Credit Card (Like Pot)

MarketWatch rounds up 10 examples where plastic is forbidden

(Newser) - Don't give up on cash just yet: There are plenty of items that remain difficult or impossible to get with your credit card, MarketWatch reports. Ten reasons you may want to keep going to the ATM:
  • Neither Visa, MasterCard, nor American Express will let you buy marijuana with plastic,
...

Attention, Sinners: US 'Vice Index' Is a Little Low

Which is actually bad news for consumer spending, says analyst

(Newser) - Brace yourself: Things are about to get tame. So says the vice index, which tracks spending on booze, gambling, and prostitutes: Its September reading was 104, the lowest it's been since February, the Wall Street Journal reports. The bad news may stretch beyond the realm of sin: It's...

15 Years Later, Crazy Bet on Grandson Worth $200K

Little Harry Wilson grew up to be a pro soccer player

(Newser) - Like a good return on your investment? Try betting that a toddler will become a professional athlete—a gamble that turned $80 into roughly $202,000 for a grandfather in Wales, the BBC reports. Peter Edwards, 62, made the bet on grandson Harry Wilson nearly 17 years ago and just...

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