Indiana sports wagers on basketball (both March Madness and the NBA) accounted for more than half of legal sports betting handle for the month of March.
March 2022 turned out to be a great month for legal Indiana sports betting, with real money wagers topping $476.8 million — a 16.5% increase over February 2022 figures. Betting on single basketball games accounted for over $274 million of total March 2022 handle, with parlay betting attracting another $121.3 million in real money, legal Indiana wagers on sports.
Ameristar Casino (d.b.a. DraftKings Indiana Online Sportsbook) led all legal statewide action by garnering roughly $145.9 million in total bets during the month. However, Ameristar was only able to hold approximately $6.5 million (or 4.45%) of that amount.
Blue Chip Casino (d.b.a. FanDuel Indiana Online Sportsbook) came in a close second place with $143.8 million in total March 2022 Indiana wagers. Blue Chip Casino was able to achieve an 8.4% hold, or gross revenue, off of that amount for pre-tax profit of $12.17 million — which led all Indiana sportsbooks in March. The 8.4% hold from March 2022 is a vast improvement over Blue Chip Casino’s February 2022 figures in which the sportsbook only achieved a revenue of $490,136 off of $108.1 million in total bets (or less than 0.5% hold).
Indiana Has Received Over $1B In Year-To-Date Basketball Wagers
Thanks in no small part to March Madness and the conclusion of the NBA regular season, Indiana sportsbooks have taken more than $1,000,000,000 in total basketball wagers so far in 2022. Parlay bets for the year already total $929 million, and football wagers approached a calendar year amount near $769 million according to March statistics.
In all, legal Indiana sportsbooks have accepted over $3.5 billion in total wagers so far in 2022 (January through March), with basketball games accounting more almost one-third of that total handle amount.
Indiana Gaming Commission Approves Three Dozen Settlements (Fines) In March Meeting
The Indiana Gaming Commission (IGC) approved approximately three dozen fines (or settlement agreements) totaling more than $100,000 in their March 8th meeting.
“Findings of Fact” counts ranged from plain-clothes slot machine technicians entering a property and subsequently placing wagers plus failure to make geolocation calls to verify in-state wagering location to gaming entities allowing wagers from previously excluded individuals.
DraftKings was fined over $25,000 for one count alone, because the company allowed an individual who was on the Commission’s excluded list (via self-exclusion: See Count II).
The Horseshoe Hammond received a total fine of $20,000 for five total counts, including allowing excluded players to open new accounts.
The Indiana Gaming Commission’s agents appear to have been kept busy in previous months by discovering a multitude of infractions committed by both land-based and online casino companies. However, many of the fines revolved around very minor incidents such as allowing a slot machine to enter the gaming area and receive real money wagers without having completed the full process necessary for casinos in Indiana to do so.
Cavaliers Miss Chance To Make 2022 NBA Playoffs
The Cleveland Cavaliers, who ended the NBA regular season at 44-38 and tied for 8th place in the Eastern Conference, had one final opportunity to make this year’s NBA Playoffs.
The Cavaliers dropped the first game of the Play-In Tournament 115-108 to the Brooklyn Nets, then lost 107-101 to the #9 seed Atlanta Hawks, who are now competing against the Miami Heat in this year’s NBA Playoffs.
The Indiana Pacers finished the regular season with a disappointing record of 25 wins and 57 losses. Consequently, they will not be competing in this year’s NBA Playoffs after finishing near the bottom of the Eastern Conference.
Purdue Boilermakers Basketball Team Failed To Make NCAA “Elite Eight”
The Purdue Boilermakers were upset by Saint Peters in the “Sweet 16” round, failing to advance after being picked as the #3 seed for their division.
The Boilermakers men’s basketball team unfortunately missed out on a golden opportunity to make the 2022 NCAA Tournament Final Four in March.
The NCAA basketball tournament was ultimately won by the Kansas Jayhawks, who earned a 72-69 victory over #8 seed North Carolina to win it all.
Nearby Major League Baseball Teams Begin Regular Season
The Cincinnati Reds and Cleveland Guardians played each in early April, and their regular season fortunes have changed dramatically since then.
The Reds are losers of ten-straight and have opened the season with a dismal 2-13 record. Meanwhile, the Guardians have started with a 7-7 record.
The St. Louis Cardinals have begun their regular season with a 9-4 record after opening the regular season at Busch Stadium. The Cardinals are currently in first place in the NL Central division.
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