Week In Sports Betting: Rhode Island, Denver Broncos, More

It’s information overload everywhere, and there’s not time enough to sleep and eat and stay fully apprised of what’s happening on this crazy blue dot of ours (two out of three ain’t bad). Here’s the weekend (or fashionably late) Sports Handle item, “Get a Grip,” recapping the week’s top U.S. sports betting stories, highlighting some fresh news, and rounding up key stories.

Remote registration coming to RI?

As the U.S. continues to adapt to the new coronavirus world, Rhode Island lawmakers are making a push to eliminate the in-person registration rule for mobile sports betting, according to the Providence Journal. On Wednesday, House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello introduced a bill to do away with the requirement that patrons sign up in person to open an online betting account.

Mattiello was a key sponsor in the House when Rhode Island legalized sports betting in 2018. His Senate counterpart, Dominick Ruggerio, introduced a matching bill, S 2919, on June 18. Both bills have been referred to their respective Finance committees.

Rhode Island was the sixth state to begin offering sports betting after the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act was overturned in May 2018. The first sports bet was placed at the Twin River Casino on Nov. 26, 2018, and the first mobile bet was placed on Sept. 4, 2019. State lawmakers legalized in-person and mobile sports betting with two different proposals.

The seven-page HB 8097 strikes through any reference to in-person registration and would become effective upon passage. The state legislature will reconvene next week, with the House scheduled to have a floor session on Thursday, July 16.

Three’s company

The Denver Broncos announced their third sports betting deal in less than a month on Thursday, this time partnering with BetMGM. As part of the deal, BetMGM will open a sports lounge at Empower Field at Mile High Stadium. BetMGM is already live in Colorado through a partnership with the Midnight Rose Hotel and Casino.

“When we began the process of identifying potential partners in this category, our goal was to provide Broncos fans with unique ways to engage with sports betting,” Denver Broncos Chief Commercial Officer Mac Freeman said via press release. “Together with BetMGM, we can now offer our fans and M life Rewards members in Colorado new opportunities such as in-stadium gaming lounge, VIP travel packages to MGM Resorts around the country and a free-to-play game through our mobile app.”

I’ve got a winning ticket!

According to BetRivers, a bettor in Illinois turned $4,000 into more than $200,000 when he wagered on Collin Morikawa to be the first-day leader at the PGA’s Workday Charity Open. The 23-year-old Morikawa went off at 50-1 odds and shot a 7-under par 65, turning this into a major payday.

Morikawa upped his round 1 performance with a 66 on Friday. The BetRivers press release says the winning bettor has several other open tickets on Morikawa and stands to win more than $1 million if the young golfer wins the tournament.