The Blaine County Journal News-Opinion - We've Got The County Covered

Reporter's note: Alert readers will recall I've written about the annual calcutta held at Kennedy's Bar in Harlem for the last two or three years. This year I was able to attend the Calcutta in Harlem as well as the Calcutta at the Mint Bar in Chinook. I decided to compare the two events and share some information about how March Madness also touches the Hi-Line and Montana.

For folks who just landed on this planet and may not know, March Madness refers to the annual NCAA Division 1 basketball playoffs. A Calcutta is a live auction whereby each of the 64 teams that made it to the finals are 'purchased' by participants at the Calcutta. The total proceeds received from selling the teams are then distributed after the tournament according to how one's purchased teams did. The ultimate single team winner has the biggest payoff. Teams that are eliminated in the first round usually have no payoff. To be legal in Montana a Calcutta has to also donate part of its proceeds to a charity.

It would seem obvious the goal of a bettor is to buy teams that have the best prospect of winning. Usually they are also the teams seeded (or ranked) the highest and cost the most to buy at a calcutta. However, there are always upsets and some bettors avoid the high priced teams and look for those 'sleepers' that aren't seeded so high but have a prospect of pulling off a win, at least in the early rounds.

Betting on the March Madness

basketball games is a big deal

The NCAA estimates that one in five adult Americans participates in some form of gaming related to March Madness, not all of it in Calcutta's (Calcutta's are legal in Montana if a permit is obtained). Studies have shown that about $10 billion changes hands during March madness. Of this amount, about three percent is bet through formal, legal channels.

Obviously the prime motivator to bet in a Calcutta is the prospect of your team winning and the payoff. In Montana a Calcutta must contribute to a charity to receive a permit so it's a way to benefit a charity. Some people buy a team just to make the tournament more interesting to watch. And some folks attend a Calcutta for the social aspects, they enjoy the excitement of being part of the process of bidding the teams.

Using bracketology, strategy, statistics and intuition to buy teams

Different folks employee different techniques, to evaluate the 64-team field. Bracketology describes the process of predicting the winners in each of the brackets. The teams are selected and seeded (ranked) by a committee before the tournament begins so potential bettors have some idea of which teams are likely to perform the best.

It's a pretty safe bet that no one will correctly pick all 64 teams. In 2014 Warren Buffet, the CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, offered $1 billion to any person who could successfully pick all 64 teams that would win. He's backed off a bit and now his offer is "$1 million per year, for life," for any of his employees who can successfully pick all 64 teams for March Madness.

Some bettors avoid the higher priced, higher seeded teams and play the odds by buying the 'cheaper' teams, and certain statistical studies show that can work to a point. And there's no shortage of advice about strategies. A single search on the Internet for help completing the brackets for the 64 teams yielded about 1.2 million websites that offer advice for picking teams. That doesn't include all the posts on Facebook that many gamblers make and follow religiously.

And some bettors, like the folks who bought the lowest seeded teams, may be going strictly on a gut feeling that this may be the year a number 16 seeded team goes all the way to the winner's circle. Actually, a 16 seeded team had never beaten a number 1 seeded team in the first round, until this year. It happened when number 16 seeded University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) beat number 1 seeded Virginia. A bettor at the Harlem Calcutta paid $10 for UMBC and already won about $100 on that first round. The purchaser of Virginia, for $1500, got nothing for that top ranked team.

The calcuttas in Harlem and Chinook are a bit different

The Harlem calcutta has been operating for eight years and is hosted by the Harlem Civic Association, a local group that does various projects to help the town. Rod Becker organizes the event each year. He said, "We want the costs of the teams to stay about where they are. We want the prices low enough that just about anyone can afford to participate." The participants vary from young to old, with a couple of teams of seniors that participate every year. The total proceeds to be distributed to winners this year amounted to about $20,000 and $2,000 will go to the Association, the charity the calcutta supports.

The Chinook event started about 12 years ago to support the Blaine County Wildlife Museum. It first was held at the Motor Inn, then moved to the Pastime Bar and for the past four years has met at the Mint Bar. Bruce Butcher said, "We hope the costs of the teams will allow just about anyone to participate, but the total seems to creep up a bit each year." One bettor at the Chinook Calcutta said, "I wish I could have gone to Harlem's, the prices seem better there.

This year the total proceeds at the Chinook Calcutta was about $43,000. Each year a different charity is chosen to receive the donation, this year it will be the Wildlife Museum. Over the years Lions Swim Team, 4-H, Youth Baseball and AAU Wrestling were some of the charities to benefit.

Readers may be interested to know that last year, in Montana, there were 243 Calcutta's issued permits by the Montana Department of Justice. In 2016 there were 201 Calcutta's. Keep in mind these are not all for March Madness, but also be for rodeos or other competitions (Calcutta's by state law cannot be held for middle school or high school sports). A spokesperson for the Montana Gambling Control Division said, "From last July 1 to March 15, we issued 155 permits for Calcutta's. That does not include the ones for March Madness, which we believe are the majority of permits." The spokesperson said the number of calcuttas is increasing each year.

It's difficult to get exact details about other regional Calcutta's. Someone at the Chinook event, which was on a Tuesday night before the NCAA tournament started, said he had attended the Calcutta in Havre the night before and its total was $106,000. At Harlem a bettor told, "Last year the total at Chester was about $90,000." Some say the bar that hosted the Chester Calcutta closed and the event was moved to Shelby. I couldn't find anyone in Shelby who could give me any specifics.

One other anecdotal tidbit picked up during the Chinook event was that the largest Calcutta in the state was supposedly at Red's Bar in Missoula. I called Red's Bar and the guy who answered the phone said, "Our calcutta is tonight (Wednesday) but last year we raised $141,350 and paid out $127,215 to the winners." You can take all that for what it's worth, but no one seems to really track the exact amounts involved in Calcutta's.

March is Problem Gambling Awareness Month!

A group of bettors huddles over the purchase of a team during the Calcutta in Chinook held at the Mint Bar. The Calcutta in Chinook has been operating for about 12 years. Each year it donates to a different charity in the Chinook area, this year a donation will go the Wildlife Museum.

The Montana Department of Justice's Gambling Control Division is working with the Montana Council on Problem Gambling, a non-profit organization, to reach out to raise awareness of problem gambling and provide a 24-hour helpline. When the Control Division spokesperson was asked if it was just coincidence that Problem Gambling Awareness Month was the same as March Madness, they said, "No. March is the month that the most widespread gambling occurs because of the college basketball tournament." They went on to note that in 2016 the Council served 1,400 patients and in 2017 the number jumped to 1,700 and added, "That may mean an increase in problem gamblers or it could mean more people are seeking help now that it is more readily available." Still, it suggests there is a problem that seems to be increasing.

Professionals who work with problem gamblers say the warning signs include, "a preoccupation with gambling, a need to gamble with increasing amounts of money and trying to make up losses by additional gambling." Montana Attorney General Tim Fox said, "Problem gambling is a behavior that damages relationships, runs up large depts and sometimes leads to criminal activity." Individuals who need help are encouraged to call the helpline (888-900-9979).

So, the Calcutta's are done and the tournament, when this edition comes out, will be well under way. Readers, and bettors, won't know the outcome until the final game on Monday, April 2. And if participation in a Calcutta has suddenly raised a need for further gambling, check out the helpline listed above. Save your gambling urge for the next Calcutta next March.