Aussie Fix? -- The Greyhound and Harness Racing Regulatory Authority (GHRRA) in New South Wales will begin an inquiry into the defeat of two horses that were odds-on favorites to win at a Newcastle harness race meeting on Saturday. GHRRA officials say they discovered after the race that an unusually high amount of money had been wagered on those horses to lose on British betting exchange Betfair. One of the horses easily won its previous race and was a $1.80 favorite to win on Saturday, but following the race it was discovered that the horse was suffering from colic and had been taking antibiotics all week. Although GHRAA officials claim to monitor Betfair trends at all races at Harold Park, they only periodically monitor Betfair betting patterns on races at other tracks. Saturday's events, however, have prompted them to expand their monitoring of the exchange. Betfair is probably unable to help GHRAA officials in an investigation because privacy laws prevent the company from disclosing the names of its account holders. If the company becomes licensed in Australia, it will be able to share such information with racing bodies that sign memorandums of understanding (similar to the ones the company has negotiated in the United Kingdom) enabling the sharing of wagering records.
The Buddy System -- BelleRockGaming.com, a Carmen Media Group online casino, reports that over 25 percent of its customers have downloaded the new Belle Rock Buddy instant messaging application since its launch three weeks ago. The application sits on a player's desktop and can be personalized to deliver 24-hour customer support, keep track of gaming transactions and provide information about Belle Rock promotions.
Joining the Network -- Gaming Corporation, owner and operator of gaming portals Gambling.com and Casino.co.uk, has signed an agreement with Ongame's PokerNetwork through which PokerNetwork will supply Gaming Corporation with an online poker room. The fully customized poker platform is accessible via the Internet and mobile devices. Gaming Corp's players will be funneled into PokerNetwork's massive player pool.
Quoteworthy -- "Our turnover has declined because many punters have stopped going racing and instead are watching on TV and using Betfair. The fact that there has also been a fall in attendances shows it has to be linked to the pictures. [Horse Racing Ireland] and the racecourses sold out lock, stock and barrel by signing a contract with At The Races in the face of huge opposition from the bookmakers because owners and trainers wanted to be able to show people their horses running without having to go to the races. I'm not saying that it is all negative. There are benefits, although there are none from the bookmakers’ point of view."
--Francis Hyland, spokesperson for the Irish National Bookmakers' Association. On-course betting in Ireland fell by 8 percent in the first six months of the year, following a decline of about 5 percent in 2004. Attendance fell by almost 1 percent last year and is down 3 percent for the current year.
The Old College Try -- The National College Association of America (NCAA) plans to begin monitoring the sports books at Las Vegas casinos as part of an effort to discourage wagering among student athletes. Rachel Newman-Baker, the NCAA's director of gambling activities, told the Associated Press that the NCAA would try to establish contact with odds makers and try to detect instances in which heavy wagering has caused significant changes in point spreads or even led to casinos dropping matches. The plan is part of a response to a survey released last year showing that about 35 percent of male athletes and 10 percent of female athletes had gambled on college sports during the previous year. The NCAA will also launch a Web site and design new programs to educate athletes about the association's rules which prohibit all forms of gambling.
Poker Beat -- Due to the game's overwhelming popularity, South Australian casino SkyCity Adelaide has brought poker tables back to its floors after a four-year absence. . . . British bookmaker William Hill has announced that it will sponsor its first major table poker tournament, the William Hill Grand Prix, in October. The event will pit 48 top international players and eight online qualifiers against one another as they compete for a piece of the £450,000 prize pool. TV poker production team Presentable Ltd., which is responsible for the Late Night Poker series, will produce a televised program of the event for broadcast in early December on Sky Digital's Poker 425. All entrants are allowed to wear logos and branded merchandise.
Finn Fix -- A July 7 football match in Finland's championship division has led to serious allegations of match fixing. The league's reigning champs, Haka Valkeakoski, beat last season's runners-up Allianssi Vantaa by a score of 8-0 in a match that reportedly received far heavier betting than usual. Allianssi, which had recently been purchased by a Chinese businessman, was led for the first time that day by its new Belgian coach, Thierry Pister, who started the match with nine of the club's regular players on the bench. Pister later explained that he wanted to try out other players because he wasn't very impressed with the existing squad. Although Allianssi had given up only seven goals throughout its previous 11 games, the squad gave up eight on the day. Finnish bookmaker Veikkaus paid out its highest ever return on a single match, but refused to give odds on the Allianssi's next match. Online gaming firm NordicBet said it received 50 percent more bets on the game than usual, with most bettors wagering that Haka would win by more than two goals.