As the Bay State takes a stab at keeping sports betting above board, Boston's bigwigs are doubting whether the industry's honchos are dealing a fair hand. The Massachusetts Gaming Commission, eyeing reports sharper than a bookie's wit, is probing the underbelly of underage betting in a move that's stirring the pot like a bad beat on a poker night.
During a Monday meet-up that saw titans of the wagering world trot out their quarterly numbers, commissioners, armed with statistics that might as well be etched in the back alleys of bookmakers' haunts, challenged the operators' lowball figures of illicit underage action. A paltry eight accounts have been suspended for such shenanigans across top dogs like DraftKings and Caesars Sportsbook, but as reported by the Boston Herald, the brass ain’t buying these small-time sidelines for a second.
In the wicked web of sportsbook spiels, the likes of Caesars and WynnBet reported a goose egg—zero cases of minors laying down bets through September. DraftKings clocked in with a mere five suspensions, while Penn Sports Interactive reported three, each according to their spiels at a commission hearing—a stark contrast to previous quarters and a whistle that doesn't blow true when national surveys tell tales of more than half of underage respondents taking a gamble despite the law's stern glare.
Commissioner Brad Hill, who carries the skepticism of a man who’s witnessed one too many bluffs, was quoted by NBC Boston stating concern about "individuals who are underaged using computers and passwords who are of age to bet." His fellow watchdog, Commissioner Jordan Maynard, pulled no punches. "The number is zero or single digits," he said, according to the Herald, "Take a look at the NCAA survey, you'll see that (underage gambling) is definitely happening, and it’s happening in high numbers."
Amid the shuffle, DraftKings clings to its "know your customer" safeguards, including uploading IDs and selfies—a tough crack for kids playing high rollers with their parents' credentials. Meanwhile, bigwigs like Adam Kates of Penn Sports Interactive jive about their selfie-check tech, ensuring the mug holding the mobile matches the punter pegged to wager. But the commission, dealing with the hard truths, isn’t just looking at the cards—they're studying the players and planning to educate the clueless about everything from dummy accounts to device diligence, as detailed by NBC Boston.
The game is afoot, and the commission is on the trail, not resting until every player at the table is of age, and each hand is as clean as a pat royal flush. But as it stands, the house might say it's guarding the door against the underage—the bets are on whether that's enough to deal with what’s hiding up everyone’s sleeve in technicalities and oversight.
