Episode 104

Shane Mercer [00:00:00]:

Trust trust those big programs when you do see them, fall behind to, potentially make the comeback. But but watch to make sure that they have made those adjustments, and they are they have improved.

Andrew Pace [00:00:14]:

Speaking of coaches, that's why I think Saint John's is getting all this hype.

Shane Mercer [00:00:17]:

Yeah. Yeah. I mean, look at them. They're they're they've been through the They can't make free throws. No one seems to care. Yeah.

Andrew Pace [00:00:24]:

No one seems to care. They can't shoot a they can't shoot a three pointer, and they can't make free throws, and no one seems to care.

Welcome [00:00:29]:

You're listening to Behind the Lines, a podcast presented by inplayLIVE and powered by Pinnacle, the number one sports book where winners play and never get limited. Go to pinnacle.com forward /inplaylive to sign up and get engaged.

Shane Mercer [00:00:57]:

Welcome in. It's behind the lines powered by Pinnacle, purifying the sports betting industry. I'm Shane, East Pace, and we've got Goat Sue with us in the house. John Wilson with us for a big time bracket grind this week. Yes. It's officially March Madness. The bracket is out. We're gonna break it all down for you.

Shane Mercer [00:01:14]:

We'll identify some upsets, try to look for some value, maybe even bring up some futures bets. We'll see and help you win your bracket contest, but more importantly, profit throughout March madness. It's much more than just bracket building for us. Alright. Big news here. We'll be making a bracket here on the show, entering it into the inplayLIVE bracket challenge, which all of you out there can enter whether you're part of inplayLIVE or not. You can still enter this bracket challenge. And if the bracket that we make here on the show that we will show you before the end of the show today, If the bracket we make here on the show wins, that prize money will be added into the pinnacle contest that we're running.

Shane Mercer [00:02:00]:

Pinnacle.com/inplaylive to sign up at pinnacle if you haven't signed up yet. And we've been running a pinnacle contest here on the show where, a lucky contestant each quarter is going to get a thousand USD added into their pinnacle account. That contest is already running underway, well underway. But if this bracket that we're creating wins, then that money will be added to the pinnacle contest. Pace, is there anything you wanna tell anybody about the inplayLIVE bracket challenge or the pinnacle contest?

Andrew Pace [00:02:33]:

Yeah. For for the inplayLIVE bracket challenge, I know there's dozens of brackets out there. We have a really cool bonus feature this year where you get to pick a bonus team. And every time that team wins a game, you get the bonus points of their seed multiplied by the number of wins that they get. But the catch is that team has to be a team that you also picked. You don't have to pick them to win at all, but let's say they did win it all and you had them to make the final four, you wouldn't get the bonus for, them going to the final or winning the final. So it's the number of wins multiplied by the seed and provided that you took them to win on your bracket on that next match. Anyone can join.

Andrew Pace [00:03:11]:

It's a hundred dollars Canadian, and the winner takes all.

Shane Mercer [00:03:14]:

Wow. Awesome. Well, I know that in the past, that pool has gotten to be a pretty substantial amount. I think was last year's well over 10 k?

Andrew Pace [00:03:23]:

I don't I don't remember because when it comes to this kind of stuff, Shane, I'm usually eliminated by the end of the first game. I think Auburn was the first game last year, and I think they they they lost. I I think I was done after the first game, so I really don't pay attention to it after that. Well

Shane Mercer [00:03:41]:

Yeah. I I remember I remember it being well into 5 figures, decently into 5 figures because I know people can enter multiple times and, you know, people people really get into it and and, we got a great turnout for it. So, that would be a if this if the bracket we make here today on the show that we'll share at the end wins, it's gonna be a significant amount that would be going into the pinnacle contest. And, I think that'd be pretty cool for anybody who who takes that down. Yeah.

Andrew Pace [00:04:09]:

Yeah. It'll it'll be right now, it's kinda like, oh, cool. But if it actually wins, then people will be interested.

Shane Mercer [00:04:17]:

Oh, yeah. Absolutely.

Andrew Pace [00:04:18]:

So, Shane, you're picking it.

Andrew Pace [00:04:20]:

Peep you know, that gives people a backdoor. Like, if they're if they're entered, you know, that's great. But it gives people backdoor to cheer for your bracket.

Shane Mercer [00:04:30]:

Yeah. Well, the one created here, absolutely. I'll I'll do my own separate bracket. We'll see we'll see how it turns out. I gotta I gotta put a bit more time into it, but I'm hoping today's show will help me sort of start things through a little bit too and figure out where I wanna go. Good. Yeah, the beauty of of hosting this podcast, I I learn a ton, and I enjoy it a lot. Alright.

Shane Mercer [00:04:48]:

You brought up Auburn. Why don't we start there? Because to me, and, John, I'm really interested to hear your take here. When I saw Auburn selected as the number one seed overall yesterday, I was like, are you effing kidding me? I mean, this is a team that's lost three out of their last four. They haven't looked great. They're gonna be playing, the winner of, Alabama state Saint Francis, which is a play in game. And one of those losses those three out of the last four losses was to Alabama state in overtime. So, John, tell me why Auburn should be the number one seed overall, or or do you agree at all?

John Wilson [00:05:31]:

I'll be the first to admit I I don't typically follow the bracketology stuff until, like, the last couple days. So I I did kind of assume that they were the number one overall, like, a week ago or even two, you know, two weeks ago, especially before they lost a couple games. I I guess the criteria is it's not really, like, who the best team is or, like, wins and losses necessarily. It's, like, who you beat and how, like, and who you lost to and all that kind of stuff. I think it's kinda the and they also said that they don't really care about the conference championships and the those tournaments. So it's kinda like the opposite of what the college football playoff committee seems to value. So I guess I don't really have a good pulse real at all on, like, what makes a team, like, ranked higher or lower in their mind. But it it is kinda crazy to me that they they seem to have really struggled the last week and a half.

John Wilson [00:06:22]:

And granted, they played some really good teams, but, you know, I I just thought it to to me, it just seems like common sense that Florida would be number one overall if they're the best team, if they won an SEC tournament and everybody thinks the SEC is the best, or Duke, if Duke was, you know, number one ring number one in the country and, you know, they won their tournament without their best player, you know, stuff like that. So I was I guess I was a little surprised, but I I didn't really it's just not something that I feel like I'm an expert on. So I I guess I kind of curtailed my surprise a little bit.

Shane Mercer [00:06:55]:

Pace, what'd you think? Were you surprised? Did you think that Auburn should be number one overall? I know that you love the SCC.

Andrew Pace [00:07:04]:

It's it's all so stupid, Shane. All this shit is so stupid, man. Yeah. I understand the hype. I get it. I'm a part of the hype. You know, we love we love betting this time of year. You know, the that's that was the most predetermined, nothing else can happen, nothing else matters, one seed of all time.

Andrew Pace [00:07:26]:

Like, what I watched from Auburn was downright disgusting basketball. Disgusting basketball.

Shane Mercer [00:07:35]:

It was bad. They looked terrible. Thank you.

Andrew Pace [00:07:39]:

They looked fucking terrible. And then it's like, and the one seed is Auburn.

Andrew Pace [00:07:45]:

Sweet. I would be stupid to say they don't have a chance, but I am stupid. I don't think they have a chance.

Shane Mercer [00:07:54]:

Yeah. I would honestly, I I don't know that I'm gonna take this on on on my bracket or the behind the lines bracket for that matter, the promo bracket we're doing here on the show. But, Alabama state already beat them in overtime, like, two weeks ago. Not even two weeks ago. It was, like, less than ten days ago, and they couldn't face it again. Guys. And it cost us.

Andrew Pace [00:08:15]:

It fucking cost us.

Shane Mercer [00:08:17]:

You know? So I I I don't know. I've been like, I'm I'm tempted to take Alabama State, but we know that that, you know

Andrew Pace [00:08:23]:

Hold hold on. No. No. They lost Alabama, not Alabama State.

Shane Mercer [00:08:26]:

Was it not Alabama State?

Andrew Pace [00:08:28]:

No. No. They lost Alabama. That was Alabama? Yeah.

Shane Mercer [00:08:30]:

Oh, there there we go.

Andrew Pace [00:08:31]:

I think, Shane okay. We're talking shit about them. I think they'll handle Alabama State or or SFU. We don't know which one's advanced yet when we're recording this. I don't know if that game is on Tuesday or Wednesday. So, yeah. Anyways, it doesn't matter. But, yeah, I I think they're really gonna struggle against Louisville or Creighton.

Andrew Pace [00:08:51]:

I think they can handle Louisville or Creighton. If they have to face Texas A and M or Michigan, Michigan's got a turnover problem, but Michigan's defense down the stretch has just been amazing to watch. Some of those comeback wins and the way they won their tournament was fucking electric. Like, those were some of the most exciting games. You know what? More specifically, they're the exact areas that Michigan excelled that Auburn failed at. It was down the stretch at the end of games, clutch baskets, clutch moments where Auburn just looked terrible. And not only that, their their star player kind of seemed like the quarterback of it all. Missing open layups, taking bad shots, going over two from the line.

Andrew Pace [00:09:41]:

Breaking the free throws is just brutal. Yeah. Like, so I don't know. Like, I think Michigan would be a a a real tough opponent for them. And then, like, getting into potentially the sweet 16, you know, you're looking at, like, a Michigan state, you know, a a Michigan state potential in in the in the sweet 16. That would be tough. And then and then once we're getting to the elite eight, you know, on their side, Saint John's maybe. God.

Andrew Pace [00:10:12]:

They they look fucking amazing.

Shane Mercer [00:10:13]:

Saint John's looks fantastic.

Andrew Pace [00:10:15]:

And of course, Florida. Like, on their side, they they they might have Saint John's or Florida. Like, can they get all the way there? Yes. But just with what I've seen from the clutch metrics with them, it's it's not looking good. Good.

Shane Mercer [00:10:27]:

Yeah. When when you talk about having to play perhaps Michigan and then, a team like Michigan State and then a team like Florida or St. John's, that seems like a gauntlet, especially for a team we've seen lose, so frequently of late.

Andrew Pace [00:10:42]:

Yeah. Well, I think the gauntlet side of the bracket is actually the the the the the the bottom left there. You know, if if you're Florida and you know you have Saint John's waiting for you Yeah. And some of those other teams

Shane Mercer [00:10:52]:

Texas Tech.

Andrew Pace [00:10:54]:

Yeah. Yeah. There's been some really good basketball, played in these last couple weeks. It's been a lot of fun to watch, but, yeah, it's I I'm pumped. It's gonna be fun.

Shane Mercer [00:11:03]:

Yeah. John, what part of the bracket are you sort of most excited about? Is there is there, an area that you're kinda looking at where where you're really sort of, think think it could be very, very close?

John Wilson [00:11:17]:

Yeah. Like, I think that the I mean, I I do think Auburn's definitely ripe to lose to, like, some quality teams. I of all to me, of the four top the four number one seeds, they're kind of the they're, I think, the most vulnerable, for sure. Just kind of the way they play. They're a little erratic at times. The defense kinda slips. They definitely, like, struggled in some tight games. I I'm looking at the bracket right now.

John Wilson [00:11:42]:

I I like the, the the Duke side of the bracket where you've got our guys, Liberty there, maybe the I I just I don't know how good any like, Oregon really is. I don't know how good the big ten real is really. Like, I think everybody kind of agrees the SEC is obviously the best. Though I do kinda wanna fade some of those lower tier SEC teams, I think, because I think maybe, like, kind of the the goodness of the conference or the perceived goodness of the conference kind of maybe will makes people over hype a lot of teams that are basically about 500 a little better than 500 or or and and below 500 in their own conference play. So teams like, like Texas or because I think they're in a first four game. Or Mississippi State plays Baylor. Like, Baylor's got experience, been there. They've done that.

John Wilson [00:12:30]:

They're they're it's a winning program the last several years. So that's in that Duke side of the bracket. I'd I think I'd I wanna kinda fade, Mississippi State there. Definitely wanna fade Vandy, who's really struggled down the stretch. I was surprised they weren't one of the first four. So I think that's, like, a a place I wanna tag some weak SEC teams and some questionable big 10 teams in, in Oregon. Right.

Shane Mercer [00:12:53]:

Right. I'm glad you brought up Vandy there because, Saint Mary's, I think they're they're they're in the trapezoid. We covered we covered the trapezoid of excellence last week with, with Ryan Hammer on. And, yeah, Saint Mary's there in the trapezoid. I I think we could see, like, a a first round exit from Vandy.

John Wilson [00:13:12]:

Yeah. I mean, I think Saint Mary's I I don't I haven't actually I haven't looked really at any of the lines. I'd have to imagine Saint Mary's is a favorite, though. Maybe not because just with the way the the SEC is so propped up. But, I mean, Vannie's been been very bad the last couple weeks. They I mean, they they're they're in purely off of their large like, they they beat Tennessee, and they beat, Kentucky, I think. They've had a couple, like, really, really good wins, and so they, you know, they're they're in from those early season wins. They have not been good lately.

John Wilson [00:13:45]:

So that that area of the bracket, I think Duke's in a really good shape to just kinda walk through there assuming Cooper flag is is healthy because I think there could also be a lot of upsets in that bracket.

Shane Mercer [00:13:55]:

Saint Mary's minus three and a half. That's the line there. Over under one thirty six and a half.

John Wilson [00:14:02]:

That that that makes sense to me.

Shane Mercer [00:14:03]:

Yeah. Yeah. We talked about, you you know, Duke kind of walking through. Is there anybody in this bracket that you think can really challenge them? Because I I don't think there is.

John Wilson [00:14:15]:

You you mean in that in that region specifically?

Shane Mercer [00:14:17]:

In the East. Yeah.

John Wilson [00:14:18]:

Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I I I think, like, may Alabama's a really good team. I think I I don't have actually you know, I'm a big futures person. I actually don't really have them. I mean, I have some free bets out there. I think I have, like, Wisconsin at, 25 to one. I don't really know how I don't remember when I bet that, but, like, at some point, I'd I have a I have, like, a free bet on Wisconsin, a 25 to one.

John Wilson [00:14:39]:

So I'm hoping Wisconsin, can can make a little run there and at least, maybe meet them in the, the elite eight there, but, we'll we'll see.

Shane Mercer [00:14:47]:

Right. Right. Yeah. You brought up, Liberty, our guys, Pace. I think there's just one guy. That's our guy. Last name, Metheny. This guy is, could shoot the lights out as we saw.

Shane Mercer [00:15:02]:

Do you do you do you see that that 12 seed beating a five seed, there with Liberty Oregon?

Andrew Pace [00:15:08]:

Well, I think what's important about March Madness in the tournament is that there's lines makers that are creating spreads on all the games. Yep. And then there's the bracket and the seeds of the bracket. And I think, like, if you're building a bracket and you don't know what you're doing, you know, it might be obvious to think like, oh, okay. Who's a good example on here? You know, Kansas is is a much better team than than Arkansas because it's a seven versus a 10 seed. Or, yeah, Arizona is a much better team than Liberty, specifically the example that you're you're giving there. Well, it is important to go look at what the odds makers think when you're building a bracket because, that's gonna tell you a little bit more information on just how big of a favorite, you know, the the sports bettors or the handicappers of the world actually think that they are. So the seed doesn't necessarily mean that they're they are a favorite or that they're that big of a favorite.

Andrew Pace [00:16:07]:

That would that would be number one. Number two is with with all all these, you know, collegiate conferences, there's a really good chance that these teams haven't played each other before, in the season and and potentially even, like, the decade. Like, it it can it can be a long time where where two of these these matchups have have seen each other. And and oftentimes, that can be because you have a team that, you know, hasn't made the tournament, from from some of these these smaller, conferences. So that creates a real challenge for bookmakers in adequately handicapping a game, and that's why we've seen teams like Saint Peter's a couple years ago. You know, they didn't even have sponsorship. They showed up to the game in, like, Adidas sweatpants that looks like they bought them from winners or Ross, that day to make sure they were matching for being on TV for the first time. They just came out and, like, shit kicked everyone until they they got to the elite eight.

Andrew Pace [00:17:07]:

So, you know, there are games that are missed priced or mishandicapped because of of the fact that these teams haven't matched up before. And, potentially, the juggernaut or the higher seeded school, they really don't know how this team truly plays. And when you watch some of these conference tournament games that have just passed in the last couple weeks, you'll look at a couple teams, like, in particular. What's the team that went out of the, the the California division, John? The, they played Irvine.

John Wilson [00:17:44]:

UC San Diego.

Andrew Pace [00:17:46]:

I thought Irvine looked so damn good during conference week. And then UC San Diego looked unbelievable, in that game. Are they playing UNC, and they're in the first four?

John Wilson [00:17:58]:

No. They're playing Michigan in the first round.

Andrew Pace [00:18:00]:

I'm trying to find them on the bracket.

Shane Mercer [00:18:02]:

It's it's, they're they're in the play in, so it's San Diego, UNC in a play in game.

Andrew Pace [00:18:07]:

No. No. No. That's No. It's a different school.

John Wilson [00:18:09]:

It's different. No. They're they're playing Michigan. They're in Auburn's bracket. Top top left. Okay.

Andrew Pace [00:18:15]:

Yeah. So

Andrew Pace [00:18:17]:

There there there's a good example of a really, really good basketball team playing against Michigan who just won the fucking big ten. Right? And I'm I've I know I just said Michigan could potentially beat Auburn, but I I didn't even look at who they're playing. Like, that UC San Diego team is fucking good.

Shane Mercer [00:18:38]:

Now the the line there is two and a half half that game. Line is two and a half.

Andrew Pace [00:18:41]:

It's Michigan. There you go. So there's a really telling example of a high seed playing. Michigan Michigan got kind of the shitty end of the deal there. That that is no cakewalk against the 12 seed right there. Now, that might be a game as well where if you weren't looking at, say, what the lines makers think and you just snap pick Michigan, I wouldn't blame you for it. But if you do go and look at what the lines makers think and that line was closer to, say, 10 or 15, which which you can sometimes see in these circumstances. I'm not saying to bet on UC San Diego.

Andrew Pace [00:19:15]:

But once that game's tipped, you're gonna get some really telling, really telling things relative to the line on on whether they were right or not. Michigan might run them over. I have no idea. But some of these schools that played really well in their conference tournaments, they're gelling, they have momentum, and they love embracing that underdog role. I think sorry, Shane. I think Liberty is one of those schools. They played tremendous basketball. I don't know that they can beat Arizona.

Shane Mercer [00:19:47]:

Oregon.

Andrew Pace [00:19:48]:

Oregon. Sorry. I don't know if they can beat Oregon, but they were goddamn electric out there. More importantly, when the moment was big, they scored, and that is severely underrated when it comes to these games because no matter how well you've played all season, when it comes to those final five minutes in tight games, whether it's the full court press, whether it's the ability to get that basket in the freaking hoop, whether it's getting to the line and actually making your free throws, they really check the boxes from what I saw in their conference tournament. So they could definitely be an exciting underdog.

Shane Mercer [00:20:30]:

Yeah. The spread on that game, Liberty Oregon is Oregon minus six and a half. So six and a half point spread there. And, that example you brought up there, PACE, sort of, you know, the difference between Michigan and and UC San Diego, a two and a half point spread in favor of Michigan, the five seed versus 12. You go to you go to something where it's like a 14 seed, Lipscomb versus Iowa State, that is a 15 and a half point spread in favor of Iowa State. So, you know, it it's one of those things where, you know, the the spread is so much different even though the seeds are only a couple seeds apart.

Andrew Pace [00:21:03]:

Right.

Andrew Pace [00:21:03]:

Yeah.

Shane Mercer [00:21:04]:

Right.

Andrew Pace [00:21:04]:

Yeah. Well, it's gonna be exciting.

Shane Mercer [00:21:05]:

Yeah. Very much so. So, John, as you kind of look at things and and you're sort of maybe thinking about some wagers to place, what kind of markets do you do you like to look at maybe that are just you know, maybe it's futures, which I know you love to do, and and you can give us some insight there. But are there any other sort of markets that maybe you look at pre tournament?

John Wilson [00:21:26]:

Yeah. I mean, I definitely look at all the different, like, I guess, you know, futures type bets. Like, you can because a lot a lot of books will have obviously, you can bet on who wins it all, but a lot of books you can bet on who win who makes it to the final four. Sometimes you can bet, like, to make it to the sweet 16. I wanna say on books like FanDuel, you can actually just bet them to make every specific round, you know, like sweet 16, elite eight, like, all that kind of stuff. And I you may be able to actually parlay them together on some books, as well. But, yeah, I I definitely look at all of those things because I think sometimes there's some real inefficiencies. Like, I remember this was probably three years ago.

John Wilson [00:22:02]:

I think it was when Houston it was, like, the first year Houston was, like, a top five team in a long time, and they were still in the American conference back then. They weren't in the big 12 yet. And the market was really, really low on them. Like, I think just to make it to the final four, they paid really well, and they were, like, the fur they were the one c or maybe they were the two c that year. I can't remember. But but it's like sometimes you'll get these teams where there's just not a lot of money in the market on them. The public doesn't really respect them or anything. Right? And so they they're you know, everybody if they're in the same side of the bracket as Duke, let's say, where there's probably a ton of liability on the books for Duke to make it to the final four to win the championship.

John Wilson [00:22:46]:

You know, like, if you were to go look at that's you know, if you were to go look at, like, Wisconsin's odds right now or, like, other higher seeds like Arizona in that side of the bracket, like, there's probably really good value on those teams just because there's so much money, I'm assuming, on Duke because they're Duke and they're the best they've been number one for so long that you're gonna find value. And sometimes that's even to just make it to it's it's sometimes that money that's on Duke is influencing the number on that team to make it to the other teams to make it to the final four to win it all.

Andrew Pace [00:23:17]:

Right. Right.

John Wilson [00:23:18]:

But it'll also influence the number on them to make it to the sweet 16, which has nothing to do with Duke. They don't have to play them yet to make it to the sweet 16, but that number is, like, derivative of the other numbers. Right? So you can find, like, a ripple in, the odds there where there's, like, this other team that's there where all this money is, and it doesn't even actually have anything to do with the bet you wanna place. And you're just finding value.

Andrew Pace [00:23:41]:

That's a good point, John. Actually, because you brought all that up, I think it's important you bring up your buddy that has this Duke future. And you recommended on stream last night a method of hedging for the tournament. So this is great advice for people that have a really good future. I I would say for any sport, but it might be a little bit more consistent with a single elimination, playoffs. So, specifically, like, college football, NFL, March Madness. The other thing too with Duke is the last two years, we've basically seen the team that's supposed to win win, and and that isn't necessarily common. And if we rewind the tape to when Purdue lost to the 16 seed, they were the team that was supposed to win.

Shane Mercer [00:24:23]:

That was only what? Two years ago?

Andrew Pace [00:24:26]:

Yeah. So so, no. No. No. They won. They won. They they it was the year before they won that they got bounced, then they won with Zach Zach E and his yeah. They they lost the first year.

Andrew Pace [00:24:38]:

They won the second.

Shane Mercer [00:24:39]:

Right. Okay.

Andrew Pace [00:24:40]:

Yeah. Yeah. So I think that might have been three years ago. But either way, who cares? John, your buddy's got a huge future on Duke. You were recommending a hedge strategy. Do you wanna, like, just maybe walk us through what what you told him?

John Wilson [00:24:50]:

Yeah. And, like, any the numbers I use will just be, like, for, you know, just theoretical purposes. But, like, this is a it's a it's one of my buddies, like, a guy. He I wanna be it's a buddy of a buddy. So, like, he was asking me for for advice on, like, how to hedge a future. Like, let's imagine he basically has, like, let's say, $10 to win, like, 200,000 if Duke wins because he's parlayed it with other national championship type things like Dodgers to win world series, that kind of stuff, and all of those other legs have won. So he's got, like, $10 to win 200,000. And he's like, oh, how do I, you know, how do I hedge this? So, well, you know, the challenge is, like, they have to win, you know, six games, or what or whatever it is to to win the championship.

John Wilson [00:25:35]:

So you can't really, like, bet against them every time. You could. You could take the other team with the points, but then it's like, what if they just cover the spread every time? You know? And it's like, then you've lost everything. So what I suggested in doing is find books, or there's future exchanges. We we have one now in The US, that's regulated, called Kalshi. I think it's, like, the only one that's actually regulated and licensed in The United States. But in other parts of the world, these types of future exchanges are are everywhere. And so you could basically go and bet Duke not to win.

John Wilson [00:26:09]:

And so what my what I suggested was, you know, figure out what would be a a nice little amount of money that you would be happy to get, you know, out of it, assuming they lost in the first round. And then what would be a nice amount of money to get in the next round? And so let's say you have, you know, $10 to win 200,000. So you're free rolling 200,000. I said, well, like, put 5,000 that they don't win to pay a thousand, like, in the first round, you know, for the first round, assuming they're probably gonna win that game. And then the next and then or or you're betting no. So you're betting 5,000 on no at, like, let's say, minus 500. Then the next round, maybe that number is minus 400. So you bet 4,000.

John Wilson [00:26:51]:

And then the next round, they're minus 300 not to win at all. You bet 3,000. So you're kind of slowly getting in at better prices where you have to hedge less. So the further they go, the less you have to hedge, but you're still securing money without eating too much into your stake or how much your how much or, your profit amount early on. So that way you're kind of you know, what's the last thing you wanna do is hedge now, then they make it all the way to the finals. You could get them normal you could get their opponent normal juice if they're playing Auburn or Florida or something, and then they lose there. And it's like, you hedged at minus 500 for, you know, half of the money. You'd feel really dumb even though you won something with your hedge.

John Wilson [00:27:29]:

It's like, well, I could've gotten a much better hedge price later. So it's like getting into that market slowly at a time so you don't regret it later and you feel better about it. And then you're still not using as much money. So when they actually win, your your total payout is higher. You didn't hedge as much. Right? So that's kind of the strategy. Just hedge a little bit at a time as the price gets better and better and better.

Andrew Pace [00:27:48]:

Yeah. My advice would be don't hedge it all.

Shane Mercer [00:27:51]:

Hedging's for gardners. I agree.

John Wilson [00:27:53]:

$200,000 is life changing money.

Andrew Pace [00:27:55]:

Yeah. With the $200,000.

Shane Mercer [00:27:58]:

Yeah.

Andrew Pace [00:27:58]:

Yeah. With the $200,000 payout with Duke to win right now, I do think the best thing that you can do I don't, like yeah. You could sell it on exchange and things like that, but there's nothing wrong with looking at, you know, creative options. And, you know, if you're gonna go, okay. The first thing that I'm gonna do is is bet on whomever Duke plays in the first round on their money line. I probably wouldn't wouldn't take that approach. I think that there is a degree of safety for them to definitely make it to the round of 32. And, also, it should be the kind of game that they could just really curb stomp their opponent where people get a little bit even more hyped on them, right, where the futures prices go down even further.

Andrew Pace [00:28:45]:

But then once you start getting into it, like you said, John, it's like, yeah, you can bet against them. But then the middle opportunities start popping up from the standpoint of spreads and and different things like that where you could be sitting in the elite aid where you've hedged and and actually won money from taking some spreads along the way. And I know that that strategy could can add up as well, but, you know, we're talking about essentially, like, a 200,000 x or, in this case, 20,000 x payout. So, yeah, you you have some wiggle room to to shoot your shot and, may maybe make even more money.

John Wilson [00:29:20]:

Yeah.

Andrew Pace [00:29:21]:

Right? Like, if if they're sitting there in the in the elite eight as a 10 pregame favorite And, you know, you take a little bit of those funds and you take the spread on their opponent. Duke advances and you hit the plus. You know, you have more hedge money for the next round, and you've you've made a profit. And if you lose, you go, hey. Well, that was a part of my budget for the the $200,000, payout that's pending. And by the time they do get down to the final four provided that they do, they might be negative odds by then.

John Wilson [00:29:54]:

Yeah. They they they probably will I think they'll be favored against almost anybody. My suggestion is is more so catered towards people who wouldn't can't afford to lose money hedging. So, you know, we we would have come at it from the standpoint, like, I would I would do what you're saying, which I would take the spread of the of the dog every time. The problem is you can middle yourself with everything. If Duke covers all the way until the final

Shane Mercer [00:30:19]:

Yeah.

Andrew Pace [00:30:20]:

Yeah.

John Wilson [00:30:20]:

And then you and then, you know, you've kind of run out of money, Martin Galing, your hedges, and then they lose, then you've just lost everything. So people who don't have that much money to hedge and want to guarantee money, my suggestion is to always try to directly bet the opposite thing, but to get in slowly in these tournament formats.

Shane Mercer [00:30:38]:

Right.

Andrew Pace [00:30:39]:

Yep. That makes sense.

Shane Mercer [00:30:40]:

Wow. Great great advice there, though. And and, you know, it gives gives a lot of insight into into how you kind of, think about this, which is which is just, awesome to kinda hear. Alright. Pace, you don't, bet pregame. You famously don't put anything down pregame. But I'm sure you're gonna make a pregame bet or two. If you were to tackle anything pregame, what would you look at? Or are you just, nope.

Shane Mercer [00:31:03]:

I'm gonna do it all live?

Andrew Pace [00:31:04]:

I will not make a pregame bet.

Shane Mercer [00:31:06]:

You will not make a single pregame bet this tournament other than building a bracket?

Andrew Pace [00:31:10]:

I'm really on Matt's train right now. If I can't beat him, join him. So all his fanship, all his bullshit, I'm just betting everything he says now. I'm like, okay. So I I think I will have one pregame bet. I think I'm gonna end up having a bunch of money on UNC pregame until it loses because he's I've I've literally I flipped flipped the script. It pissed me off so much. I was finally like, why are you mad about something that is never gonna change? Join them.

Andrew Pace [00:31:38]:

So now I'm like, no. No. They're my guys too. I got them plus eight and a half. I I got them to make the tournament. Like, I made all those bets with them. So now I view it as I'm free rolling. I'm not gonna scale up on the calls.

Andrew Pace [00:31:49]:

I'm gonna I'm gonna take my quarter unit, and I'm gonna have it on I'm gonna have it on UNC pregame. Whatever the spread is, I don't know what it is tomorrow. By the time this airs, you'll know if I won or won or not.

Andrew Pace [00:31:58]:

But I'll I'll he's gonna call it, and I'm I'm gonna take it with him. So but no. That's it. No pregame at all except for what Matt calls on UNC.

Shane Mercer [00:32:09]:

Love it. Okay. Alright. For everybody out there who doesn't know Matt, Matt's one of the pros at inplayLIVE. He makes a ton of calls, but he also, has a lot of teams that he's, fans of, and UNC is is one of them. Alright. So so you're gonna ride with Matt's pregame is what you're saying. That's it.

Andrew Pace [00:32:24]:

Only on UNC.

Shane Mercer [00:32:25]:

Only on UNC. Okay. Okay. Cool. Alright. What's your approach though to actually making money when the tournament begins?

Andrew Pace [00:32:34]:

Yeah. So I think that's really important, and this is the meat and bones of this podcast in my opinion. Shane, you and I did an episode at the start of the new year. Yep. And it's one of our most viewed episodes, and it was basically how to make money from betting on sports. So I'm gonna do a quick rundown on how to make money betting on college basketball, specifically betting on March Madness. So there's things we brought up last year. I'm gonna bring them up again.

Andrew Pace [00:33:00]:

The first is your bracket bias. You have to drop your bracket bias. Now saying that, we talk about execution versus theory all the time. The theory is so simple. The execution is extremely difficult. It doesn't matter if you have $5,000 on the line in a game. You still think, oh, but I bet Auburn in my bracket. It pops up in your head.

Andrew Pace [00:33:29]:

You see it in the chat on our inplayLIVE streams. You see it from the pros. Someone wins. You're like, oh, yeah. I had them in my bracket. They're sitting out with the that chip on their shoulder the whole time. So theory is so simple. Execution is extremely difficult.

Andrew Pace [00:33:42]:

John, you would be the better person to advise on that because you always have pregame bets in, and you have to drop them constantly when we bet live. So any tips you have for dropping bracket bias or pregame bet bias, but that is the most important thing, as you head into a game betting it live. Any advice on that, John?

John Wilson [00:34:00]:

No. I'm all I well, as far as that goes, I mean, I you know, I actually try to avoid, like, a lot of like, I don't really play I don't like fantasy football really. Like, I'll do it begrudgingly. I don't really enjoy it because I think, like, it gets in the way of me of me properly analyzing players and teams and all of that. I tend to not do, like

Andrew Pace [00:34:23]:

I don't know what you're talking about, John.

John Wilson [00:34:24]:

I don't really do brackets.

John Wilson [00:34:26]:

Like I'll do it. I just it's just I don't I don't I don't I mean, it's just but there's no stakes to it, I guess.

Andrew Pace [00:34:31]:

You do bet pregame and you have to bet against it live.

John Wilson [00:34:35]:

Yes. Okay. Yeah.

Andrew Pace [00:34:36]:

It's the same same philosophy. So what would you say for that?

John Wilson [00:34:39]:

Yeah. I just I mean, I like I just forget about it. Like, it's I don't know. It's the same it's the same, but it we also do it live too. So, you know, what great example yesterday, we took the stars minus two and a half because they were out playing the abs. Right?

John Wilson [00:34:53]:

Or was that yesterday or

Andrew Pace [00:34:54]:

Other way other way around. Abs minus two and a half because they were playing the stars.

John Wilson [00:34:58]:

Yes. Thank you. Yes. So we took the abs minus two and a half because they're out playing the stars. They're at home, and they were up too, and we got it. We're getting a good number early. Well, then the stars tied the game, and we look at the overtime data and how they're playing. The stars are better in overtime, and they're outplaying them.

John Wilson [00:35:12]:

So we took stars money line, and we just ignored the previous wager. You know, if I take a pregame And they both lost. Yeah. And they both lost. So he could do both. It's like, if I took a pregame line of, like, a team minus five and a half and then their opponent's coming back on them, and I I I wanna get in a little bit on that opponent money line and the team that I bet on at the beginning of the game, or pregame wins by three, I lose both bets. But it's just different scenarios. You know? It's like, I'm just playing the hand I'm dealt, and the team that I thought was gonna show up didn't show up.

John Wilson [00:35:42]:

You know? Like, that's whatever analysis I had is is over when I am sitting down and watching the game. So I just try to I just I I I'm used to losing bets. So I think you you need to pee you need to be comfortable losing and being comfortable being wrong and and recognizing that you are that and just move on, and then start betting the situation that's currently in front of you.

Andrew Pace [00:36:03]:

I feel like John just proved my point because he made it sound so simple again. It it is really hard, guys. But the the the method is do not worry about your bracket. Do not worry about your pregame bets, or or don't do either of them, so that you can have a clear head going into the actual, betting. The second thing is, like, it's kinda speaks to our episode on chaos theory, but expect the unexpected. In the last two weeks, you guys would be able to add to this list. But a lot of times in the past, I haven't watched a lot of the conference tournament games. I watched as many as I could in these last two weeks, and what I saw was shocking, and I really do mean shocking.

Andrew Pace [00:36:46]:

Officials that call fouls in one game or for one team from one game to the next is unbelievably different. Like, shockingly different. You have refs where a kid is bear hugging, saying to the ref, I'm fouling. I'm fouling. Intentional hacking at the end of the game where you see the ref shake his head and go no, basically saying we're going home right now. We saw a ton of that. We saw officials where if someone breathed on them for both teams, they just instantly call foul, and the teams are going to line. And you're just you feel for the kids.

Andrew Pace [00:37:26]:

You're like, these kids are playing championship level defense right now, and these officials are not giving them the chance to do that. So it doesn't allow opponents to necessarily get back in the game to the degree that they could because the defense is being punished. We watched a team who had won the game already try to be disrespectful against their opponent. The player watched everyone walk off the floor. He looked back. He was under the hoop, saw that all the players were walking off the floor, and he crammed the dunk in with one second left, which in my opinion could warrant a fight. Crammed the dunk in with one second left, and the officials did not count the basket. They just nodded their head and told the scores table it doesn't count.

Andrew Pace [00:38:11]:

But by all, the basket was off with well well in in time. No fouls. No nothing. They're just walking off the floor. He scores a basket. They just said, no. It doesn't count. So there is and then this this excludes some of the comebacks and the craziness and the half court threes and buzzer beaters and everything.

Andrew Pace [00:38:30]:

Expect the unexpected, and don't let it put you on tilt. You have to keep a clear head. So when this shit happens and you're like, that's clearly a foul or whatever it is, react. Sure. But let it go. Move on because there's nothing you can now do about it now that it's come and gone. The rules are different than the NBA. So where it's clearly out on this person or where it's clearly a foul or whatever.

Andrew Pace [00:38:53]:

Some things get reviewed in college basketball, but there are no challenges. So there's a lot of reviews for some shit that might seem crazy, but, yeah, you're gonna see some things that are blatantly wrong or incorrect. That doesn't mean that it's rigged. Okay? Guys, it doesn't mean that it's rigged. Okay. When it comes to sides, so betting on spreads, the most important thing late in basketball games are things that are hard to handicap. How teams handle the press, we don't see it in the regular season. So as the tournament progresses, if you see a team with the lead that is getting pressed really hard and they break it consistently, they don't turn the ball over, they inbound the ball well, and they have a strong free throw percentage, that is a great team to wager on their side provided they have the lead in the next game.

Andrew Pace [00:39:49]:

However, if it is the opposite, they don't doesn't matter what their free throw percentage is. That matters. But do they make them down the stretch? Right? That's huge. The opposite of that is, are they do they struggle with the press? Who did we see struggle with the press in two separate games in the conference tournaments this past week? Do you guys remember? Louisville. Louisville. If Louisville has the lead, they miss their free throws. They can't handle the press. I'm sure they're practicing it right now as I say this, but they were fucking terrible at the end of basketball games.

Andrew Pace [00:40:24]:

So when you're looking at sides, if Louisville has the lead, I would stay away from their side of of a minus, and I would actually consider the plus of their opponent. K. When you're looking at totals, so that's sides. When you're looking at totals, pace of play is important, but it's largely so you think about the trapezoid of excellence. Oh, there's Alabama over there. Does that matter? Hell, yeah. It matters. But what matters most is how they play with the lead late in the game.

Andrew Pace [00:40:52]:

So the pace of the previous fifteen minutes and a half almost gets thrown out the window. It's important, but it almost gets thrown out the window. So that's again where you go, jeez. Look at Florida. They use the entirety of the shot clock when they had the lead. They slow the game down. They shorten the game. And then you look at another team where you go, oh my god.

Andrew Pace [00:41:13]:

They don't know to do that. One could be good for an under. The other could be good for the over. The second is the losing team. What tendencies does the losing team have late in the game as it relates to their desire to come back in the game? And the biggest outlying team we saw in the conference tournaments was? Anyone? Clemson.

John Wilson [00:41:35]:

Oh oh, yeah. Yeah. Well, they they played each other. They played Louisville. You know?

Shane Mercer [00:41:38]:

Yeah. Yeah.

John Wilson [00:41:38]:

In that game. Yeah.

Andrew Pace [00:41:40]:

The Clemson was the biggest outlying team we saw. I won't say why. If you guys wanna make money on on a Clemson game this tournament, you go ahead and figure that out for yourself. But they were the biggest outlying team of the conference tournaments. I cannot wait for my opportunity with Clemson this tournament. So it's not about pace of play. It's how the losing team behaves when they're down. Complete opposite of Clemson.

Andrew Pace [00:42:04]:

Who did we see come through yesterday? Was it against Florida? Who did Florida play? Tennessee. Tennessee. Right?

John Wilson [00:42:10]:

Yeah.

Andrew Pace [00:42:11]:

Now will Tennessee play that same way in the March Madness tournament versus the conference tournament? I don't know. But they didn't press. They didn't they didn't make Florida's life difficult down the stretch. They basically said this game is over. Right? And then as for money lines, I think one of the biggest things to look for is just if you do have a team like Duke that gets down, make sure because this is tricky. You love an underdog that's decimating their opponent. But if you see that they're down and they're figuring it out, trust the best programs to get the job done. Mhmm.

Andrew Pace [00:42:49]:

That doesn't mean you're gonna win, but your percentage of wins will go will be much higher. Now that can be really tricky because if they're a minus 15 favorite, that doesn't mean there's value on them because they're down. You have to pick your spots with the games that don't have these massive favorites. Probably, you still want them to be a favorite, but where they aren't these massive favorites and you go, okay. This is a great spot. They're down late, but they know how to get the job done in these spots. And, hopefully, we'll see exact exactly that. The best example of that that we saw from these past this these past two weeks, in my opinion, as good as Liberty was, was Michigan.

Shane Mercer [00:43:31]:

Right.

Andrew Pace [00:43:32]:

They they played those final few minutes as the losing team in multiple high stakes games better than you could ever ask on both sides of the ball. So keep an eye out for those things. Don't worry so much about the round of 64 when you don't have a lot of information, but then really lock in for the round of 32 and beyond aft after having seen some of those patterns, hopefully, and how they played those games. That will really help you throw the spreads, the totals, the brackets out the window and go, jeez. I can actually make some money doing this.

Shane Mercer [00:44:06]:

Yeah. Significantly more than whatever you have on your bracket.

Andrew Pace [00:44:09]:

And, Shane Yep. You're a better college basketball bettor than I am. So anything you'd like to add?

Shane Mercer [00:44:14]:

Anything I'd like oh, well, I think my favorite part of of it's not maybe not an ad, but an emphasis on what you kind of got into there, is really zeroing in on those better schools, those better programs that fall behind perhaps a little bit early. You know, there and really sort of watch them come out in the second half, see that they've made those adjustments. They'll make the adjustments. They'll they'll make them, and most likely, they'll execute. And that that's the key thing there, I think, is that they have the people to execute. They have the coaching to execute, and coaching matters so much at this level. I I I I can't I can't, you know, I I don't think I can stress that enough, you know, especially as as somebody who, coaches kids myself. I can tell you that, coaching matters so so much at at this kind of at at this level of sports.

Shane Mercer [00:45:16]:

And so I I would trust trust those big programs when you do see them, fall behind to, potentially make the comeback. But but watch to make sure that they have made those adjustments, and they are they have improved.

Andrew Pace [00:45:31]:

Speaking of coaches, that's why I think Saint John's is getting all this hype.

Shane Mercer [00:45:35]:

Yeah. Yeah. I mean, look at them. They're they're they've been They can't make free throws. No one seems to care. Yeah.

Andrew Pace [00:45:41]:

No one seems to care. They can't shoot a they can't shoot a three pointer, and they can't make free throws.

Andrew Pace [00:45:44]:

And no one seems to care.

John Wilson [00:45:47]:

No. They're like the of all the good teams, they're the one with the the absolute worst glaring weakness. Like, they're sixty fifth in offensive rating in the nation, and, like, of, like, any of the top teams. Like, that's by far the worst, you you know, rating on either side of the bowl. So Yeah. Yeah.

Shane Mercer [00:46:09]:

Okay. We've gone we've gone through, I think, everything. I think we've covered off, how we're gonna be attacking March Madness as bettors, and and hopefully all of you out there, tuning in, you know, will be able to benefit from that. I've completed the bracket for behind the lines, the behind the lines promo bracket. So let me, share that all with you now. And, Pace, we have something that's a little bit different, and and maybe you can explain it to people, but a bonus team. And this is what any team that you can pick that that perhaps you don't have making it deep into the into the tournament, you can pick them as a bonus team to to win it. Is that how it works?

Andrew Pace [00:46:50]:

The bonus team is a calculation of how many wins that team gets provided that you pick them to win that game as well multiplied by their seed. So you wanna pick a bonus if you pick Duke as your bonus team, your biggest upside is one, two, three, four, five five bonus points. Whereas you picked if you picked Oregon as your bonus team, one win from them equates to the same as Duke winning it all.

Shane Mercer [00:47:16]:

Oh.

Andrew Pace [00:47:17]:

So you want a bonus team with a higher seed

Shane Mercer [00:47:19]:

Okay. Gotcha.

Andrew Pace [00:47:19]:

That that you think can go far. And it also so who who's your

Shane Mercer [00:47:22]:

I got Saint John's. We got Saint John's here as the bonus team.

Shane Mercer [00:47:26]:

They're two seed. You don't you don't want that. You don't want that. Okay. I I'm happy to change my bonus team here on the fly.

Andrew Pace [00:47:31]:

Okay.

Shane Mercer [00:47:31]:

We wanna pick

Andrew Pace [00:47:32]:

So who who is your it looks like you've got Gonzaga going to the elite eight.

Shane Mercer [00:47:36]:

We got Gonzaga in the elite eight there. Yep.

Andrew Pace [00:47:38]:

Okay. They're an eight seed. They're your highest seed going the furthest. Yeah. And in your final four, you have a four seed. I think Gonzaga's your bonus team.

Shane Mercer [00:47:47]:

Gonzaga? Alright. Let's go over to the Bulldogs. Kenny, if you're listening out there, buddy, look at that.

Shane Mercer [00:47:52]:

Our bonus team. Alright. Let's go up. Boom. Gonzaga. Alright. So there we go. We've got we've got Florida over Duke in the final.

Shane Mercer [00:48:04]:

Game total, one fifty five, and Gonzaga is the bonus team. The final four is, Florida, obviously, Duke. We've got Michigan State, and we've got Kentucky.

Andrew Pace [00:48:18]:

So if anyone wants to cheer along to have a chance to win the prize pool, you want this bracket to win. So you can screenshot it and have some no skin in the game action, but you do have to enter the contest thereafter, which requires the, the entry at pinnacle.com/inplaylive. Right. So, you just take that screenshot, send it over to Raj, and all entries for that will be included as well. Once this happens, all entries that you've already, given will be included for that as well.

Shane Mercer [00:48:47]:

Alright. Bracket submitted. Submitted, Shane. Everybody knows. You're in. Submitted. It's in. And, of course, I'll be doing my own other bracket in in there.

Shane Mercer [00:48:56]:

You guys will be competing with me and Pace. John will have one in there. And, Orion Hammer, who was on last week, is competing with us too, and he'll have his bracket in there.

Andrew Pace [00:49:03]:

So His bracket's in already. He submitted.

Shane Mercer [00:49:05]:

There we go. Boom. He he's in. Yep. And, yeah, we mentioned the Pinnacle contest. And and Payson, before we go, we gotta mention the other thing thing on Pinnacle that I sort of discovered. I knew you were working on it, but it was funny when I logged into my Pinnacle account and I saw it pop up. But I got the I got the message.

Shane Mercer [00:49:19]:

You know, Pinnacle will send you messages in in your account there. I got the message. And, Paste, you're you're you're you got, like, a master class going on in Pinnacle of how to bet live. It's pretty cool. I've I've watched the, the first one through, and the second one is up.

Andrew Pace [00:49:32]:

The second one's up?

Shane Mercer [00:49:33]:

The second one's up, buddy. I got the message, there today.

Andrew Pace [00:49:36]:

Oh I haven't seen it, but I'm sure I'll have seen it by the time this airs. That's cool. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. My I'm most proud of episode four.

Shane Mercer [00:49:42]:

Okay.

Andrew Pace [00:49:42]:

I love episode four. It's a lot it was a lot of fun to do. It was educating for for myself. It's a lot of the things we've talked about on this podcast, but, yeah, check out the Pinnacle Academy. I've I've been super blessed and and been very fortunate to to whether it's my betting setup being featured on, VSiN or Barstool, or, you know, some of the articles that, our guy there, Danny Funt, has has written about inplayLIVE. I I've been so so blessed to to have that exposure. And, Shane, obviously, you were a big part of, you know, getting some of those national, news broadcast coverages, here in Canada, as well. Right.

Andrew Pace [00:50:23]:

Super blessed, but this is by far the one I'm most proud of because those other publications, I think they're amazing. I don't wanna discredit them, but they're not for bettors. Right. And I think that this is information. It's a lot like the podcast, to be honest. Yeah. It's just a new spotlight. And, hopefully, the hopefully, by the time the four episodes are done, there are sports bettors out there that go, holy shit.

Andrew Pace [00:50:48]:

I didn't know about this, or, wow, I never saw this. I knew about it, but I never saw this angle to it, or, wow, jeez. There's a better way that I can be doing this, and and just open people's eyes a little bit more to the ways that you can you can benefit from from sports betting and profitability. John made a really great reference on stream yesterday where he's like, if you just have money sitting there and you plan to invest in the S and P or the Nasdaq or, you know, crypto or whatever it is, and you look at the year on year returns, of some of these categories, you know, as a whole. And he goes, well, this is my future's ROI.

Andrew Pace [00:51:27]:

So you still have to have money sitting in something for an extended period of time, but this is the ROI. And it it's it's real. This isn't like, you know, some some we talked about the touts and the tipsters. Like, this is real. Right? So, there is an ROI. There is a positive expected value. You know, member success stories, they they roll in. We we had one yesterday as someone that I know personally, but never used me as a resource for, like, one on one help or help on the side.

Andrew Pace [00:51:55]:

The guy was a $5 bettor, and he just hit $10,000 in profit. So, he's not a $5 bettor anymore. You know, he's he is spinning 3% units. Yep. $300 is what he's spinning right now. But, man, that's what it's all about. There's people that come in, and they're like, oh, but, you know, I'm sitting on stream all day, and I'm betting $5 units. And I I finished up the day up $7.

Andrew Pace [00:52:18]:

What a waste of time, but they don't understand the impact of of, you know, scaling and how that plays such an important role. So in this guy's example that I just gave, it took him thirteen months to hit $10,000. Shane, we went through your story.

Andrew Pace [00:52:33]:

Yeah.

Andrew Pace [00:52:34]:

Thirteen months is a long time. Time. Only made $10,000. But the next thirteen months, if the scalability remains the same, a $300 bankroll to $10,000 is what this guy did. So factor that scalability into the next thirteen and then the thirteen after that. And before you know it, life's about perspective.

Shane Mercer [00:52:54]:

That really is. And, you know, the other side of this too is is, you know, yes, the there's the the there's the sort of compounding, of how the bankroll grows, but, you know, along the way, he's learned skills. You know? This is a skill that he takes with him throughout the rest of life.

Shane Mercer [00:53:11]:

You know what I mean? It doesn't go anywhere. Right? It it's it's it's something that's with you forever. And and and that's worth a lot.

Andrew Pace [00:53:19]:

Totally. But imagine life's about perspective. Imagine the same situation where you go, oh my god. I'm four years into university. I'm down $200,000.

Shane Mercer [00:53:33]:

Yeah. And maybe you don't even you're gonna go get an entry level job somewhere that's gonna pay you nothing close to what you need.

Andrew Pace [00:53:41]:

Exactly. So if you view it as I just did a year of schooling, I made $10 learning the skills that are gonna take me this next year to hopefully a potential 6 figure income. It's a real different way of of flipping the script that helps you, overcome the obstacles and the challenges of, you know, the day to day, the days where you know, I just referenced the $7 gain after a full day. Well, what about the day with the $7 loss? Yeah. Or in some of our case, John and I more specifically maybe than Shane, but, you know, some of the $30 or 40 thousand dollar days where you're down that much. Right? And John and I both had those, I think.

John Wilson [00:54:21]:

That's a bad that's a bad one. Yeah.

Andrew Pace [00:54:23]:

Yeah. We've both had a few of those, but it's worth it, and it's a part of the the journey.

Shane Mercer [00:54:29]:

Absolutely. Alright. Well well, great advice. We'll we'll leave it there. Guys, enjoy the tournament. Enjoy March Madness. And for all of you listening out there, we've got a couple great guests coming up for you in the next couple of weeks. So so make sure you tune in for those.

Shane Mercer [00:54:42]:

They're they're gonna be great too. Alright, fellas.

Andrew Pace [00:54:44]:

No one's no one's better than John.

Shane Mercer [00:54:46]:

Well, we love having John on. And, baseball's around the corner. John, can we expect you for for some grind sessions on baseball?

Andrew Pace [00:54:54]:

We gotta grind like somehow where John gives them all out for, like, Saturday when the lineups aren't even released yet. Yeah. Terrible advice.

Shane Mercer [00:55:03]:

I know. Yeah.

John Wilson [00:55:04]:

We get it telling you to bet a when you don't even know who the pitchers are and stuff. Yeah. Yeah. No. I know.

Shane Mercer [00:55:11]:

Anyway, well, we'll figure something out, John, and, we'll we'll have you back again soon, I'm sure. Alright, guys. Yeah. Till next week. Keep eating those bucks. Thanks for tuning in to another episode of Behind the Lines. Remember to like, download, and subscribe. We are on YouTube, Apple, Spotify, and everywhere you get your podcasts.

Shane Mercer [00:55:27]:

Have a betting story or wanna be featured on our podcast? Drop a note in the comments below. And if you wanna join inplayLIVE, use promo code BEHINDTHELINES.