Casino Sportsbook Refusing Basketball Bets on Final Four Week

The casino is following a decision by the owners, the Ontario Lottery Gaming Corporation, after a request from the NCAA to suspend gambling on the men

Caesars Windsor, the casino operated by Harrah's Entertainment in Windsor, Canada, announced yesterday it  will not accept bets on the NCAA basketball tournament for the Final Four. The casino is following a decision by the owners, the Ontario Lottery Gaming Corporation, after a request from the NCAA to suspend gambling on the men's basketball championship.

The Final Four is being held this year in Detroit, across the Detroit River from the casino. A spokesman for the lottery was quoted in the Detroit Free Press as saying the lottery found it an honor to cooperate with the college athletic association.

The NCAA has been known to use its economic power to twist arms as a way to oppose sports gambling. The state of Oregon gave up its legal sports gambling enterprise after receiving NCAA threats that future tournament events would not be located in the state while it permitted sports betting.

The hosting of the Final Four has an estimated direct impact of as much as $100 million on the local and state economy. The NCAA pursues a policy of attempting to limit access to sports gambling as a means of ensuring uncorrupted games.

But Online Casino Advisory gaming analyst Sherman Bradley says the group is not achieving its goals. "The NCAA should work in tandem with online casinos and sportsbooks to ward against gambling corruption, detect unusual betting patterns and dishonest results. Blocking gambling at Windsor only means players will seek Internet casinos and other outlets."