WHAT IF ?

[chestrockwells]

The next scenario is not likely to happen any time soon but..... what if Tomorrow you could place sports bets in Nevada with any casino you want and you could do so over the phone or the internet.Basically with the same rules and reasonable (for most of us) limits. By law, the casinos would be prohibited from offering bonuses. All losses on the year would be tax deductible and all winnings would be taxed at say 20% flat rate.
And finally, all offshore books would be perfectly legal in the eyes of the government. Now I know I've left a lot of grey area on purposely, so unless you feel strongly about it lets not tackle it for now. But what would you do?
Would you a) keep playing only offshore
b) close all your offshore accounts and play in Nevada? or c) make up your own response to this.
Why am I asking this? Curiosity nothing more.I'll let you guys post and them come back later.

[Underdog7]

chestrockwells - Very good point. Damn, how come I didn't even think of that before? To answer your questions, YES I will close all my offshore accounts for several reasons.

1.) Peace of mind - since it will be in Vegas you know exactly whom you are dealing with.
2.) 20% Taxes on winning - no problem, there is always a way around it.
3.) Losses is tax deductible - what else do you want? Since it's difficult to hit 60% winning percentage in sports wagering, your losses will offset your winnings.
4.) No bonuses - so what. I am so particular when it comes to bonuses but in this case I care less.

This whole thing is just a matter of paying TAXES, it is obvious that offshores hurt all casinos not only in Vegas and we all know that some of the "big boys" who own huge hotels in Nevada are behind (silent partners)
it anyways so why not make it legal.

***Ceasar's Palace is planning to put one in Australia***

[DeacDoug]

Sign me up with Cal-Neva my favorite sports book in the whole world.

[scott]

DeacDoug:I OPENED THE CLUB CAL-NEVA RACE/SPORTSBOOK FOR MY FRIEND WARREN NELSON IN 1980. I WORKED IT FOR THE FIRST 11 MONTH'S IT WAS OPEN. I CAME BACK HOME TO LAS VEGAS IN 1981. IVE HAD SOME VERY HIGH PROFILE POSISITIONS IN LV BUT I TOO LOVE THE CAL-NEVA. SHOULDA NEVER LEFT!! SCOTTY

[chestrockwells]

I guess I should have prefaced my post with, does anyone even care what if? Thx. to those who responded though.

[Jeff]

Actually it's a great "What if"?.....

For me, it would just mean I'd have several more outs to deal with. The 20% tax wouldn't go over so well, but hey, being able to send large sums to the Mirage or whereever would definely be a big plus.

But I wouldn't stop playing offshore, legal or not. I played with illegal outs long before there ever was an "offshore".

These guys(offshores) have slowly built up very respectable businesses over the years with great track records........

[Hartley]

Jeff I agree. There are a lot of advantages offshore that aren't available in Vegas including:

- ability to bet on a larger variety of sports
- better propositions including non-sports
- ability to bet on Nevada based games
- better odds in some cases
- no tax!
etc.

As for security, I think everyone feels secure with money at places like Intertops or Bowman's who have both been around a long time and for unique bet options noone comes close to WSEX.

[AussieVamp2]

pay taxes on winnings?

No way would it be worth betting there then........

[skeptic]

Taxes

The way it stands TODAY:

You are supposed to report all of your gambling winnings as ordinary income whether it is won on or offshore. Gambling losses are only able to offset gambling winnings, ie if you are negative for the year there is no tax but no write off. The net winnings are taxed at whatever marginal rate you are paying now.

I doubt many people actualy report their offsore winnings. Just because there is no withholding by the entity making the payout doesn't mean it is not taxable income. If you win only $500 in a casino you are supposed to report it. Remember a lot of service people don't report cash tips but that doesn't mean it's not taxable.

The tax advantage of playing online is most places will allow you to produce a detailed summary of your year's activity. This way you can document your losses if ever audited. The IRS doesn't care how you got the money, only that they get their piece. The offshore advantage is that no offshore is going to file with the IRS what the PLAYER has won. Remember, reporting of winnings is the player's responsibilty. Too bad every land based business in the US has assumed the role of tax collector for the state.

[AussieVamp2]

if you are American, perhaps you are supposed to, but
different countries, different laws.......