October/November really is a great time of year if you like to have a bet.

The NFL season is in full swing, so too is NCAA Football, where there’s real money to be made from sentimental fans betting on their alma mater.

My other favorite sport is just about to fire up as well, with the NBA season about to tip off and the Lakers favorites to win it all again with the online bookies.

And poker’s biggest event, the World Series of Poker, is down the final table, known as the ‘November Nine’. Full Tilt’s Phil Ivey is third favorite at 4-1, behind chipleaders Darvin Moon and Eric Buchman. Ivey will be doing well to win the thing considering he is starting with some serious stack envy. Bodog has all the latest WSOP odds.

And one of the world’s biggest horse races is also coming up on the first Tuesday in November – The Melbourne Cup. It stops the whole country of Australia, but the rest of the planet is also becoming more and more intrigued by this great race and you should be too as there’s always great odds to be had as the horses run over two miles and it is often anybody’s race at the final turn.

If you’re in the northern hemisphere things are probably starting to get a little cool now, but if you’re in the tropics like me, things are just starting to heat up. It’s my favorite time of year… NFL… NBA… warm weather… more people indoors up north and playing poker… it’s all good!

Don’t hate me cause you ain’t me!

Shad wrote a good preview of the race earlier in the week – Belmont Stake Preview - but I still can’t decide which horse to have a bet on.

I have my accounts open at both BetUS & Bodog, trying to pick a horse. I haven’t actually bet at Bodog for a while now but thought I may as well take advantage of their free $50 offer. They used to be an okay place to bet. They just used to annoy me with only getting odds up late, but they’ve been doing a better job with that lately and are running some pretty cool WSOP promotions.

And BetUS is giving away a ticket to a poker tournament and a blackjack tournament. I may as well get that even if I’ll probably be too busy to play. I’m going to have a bet anyway, so may as well get something for it.

But back to the race… Who’s going to win?

I’ll be the first to admit I’m no Horse Racing expert. I know a little more than most average joes I guess, but compared to what I know about betting on sports or poker I’m a total noob!

The guy on ESPN just told me that Dunkirk is going to win. He’s third favorite at BetUS at +400.

But on the same segment they showed Mine That Bird and his trainer. That is an impressive beast! Such a strong looking animal. But it’s the favorite and it’s not as much fun to be on favorites when they have such short odds. It’s currently -150 at BetUS, meaning the handicappers think it has a 60% chance of winning.

There’s a strange bet available. You cold bet on jockey Calvin Borel riding the winner in all three Triple Crown races. But that is the same as just betting on Mine That Bird. I guess some people might not realise that and may think it is more fun to bet on the jockey…

Charitable Man is the second favorite at +300.  Chocloate Candy is fourth most favored, out at +1000.

I think I’m going to go for Mine That Bird. I just have a good feeling about it. Although the Belmont is known for it’s upsets over the years. I stil remember Big Brown struggling there last year and missing out on the Triple Crown.

Mine That Bird it is. If the bookies think it has a 60% chance of winning, who am I to argue! If I lose at least I’l have a free poker tourney and blackjack tourney to play. Post me a tip in the comments if you have a better pick.

Have a good weekend folks.

In what did not come as a surprise to the vast majority of bettors, Rachel Alexandra won the 2009 Preakness Stakes. The confidence in her abilities was clearly well founded, and her jockey, Calvin Borel, even noted that she did not perform at her absolute best that day.

While Rachel Alexandra’s win was the expected outcome from most quarters, what may be more interesting is that Mine That Bird seems to have proven his own abilities. So many things pointed to the Kentucky Derby win as being a fluke, but Mine That Bird’s final run from behind in the Preakness Stakes closely mirrored his path to victory in the Kentucky Derby. While he didn’t take the race this time, he still managed to finish second ahead of his former Kentucky Derby competition and only a length behind Rachel Alexandra. It seems clear now that Mine That Bird is a real contender even if he isn’t exactly the greatest colt in history.

Rachel Alexandra’s win means there will be no Triple Crown winner for this year, but there is still one race left in the US Triple Crown. The Belmont Stakes will be run two weeks after the Preakness, on 6 June. We could very likely see a similar outcome in that race if Rachel Alexandra is chosen for the Belmont Stakes, but the prior threats to force her out of the Preakness could materialize this time, especially after how easily she won.

Most of the betting has yet to begin on the Belmont Stakes, as the entrants have not yet been confirmed. Nevertheless, BetUS is getting the betting started with proposition bets on jockey, Calvin Borel. Two bets are currently being offered, a bet on which horse Borel will ride in the Belmont Stakes and a bet on which horse he will win with in the Belmont Stakes. Borel has had a really excellent run of race wins this year. Can we have a human Triple Crown winner? Is that legal? Or would he have to be a three-year-old to qualify?

Well done to Rachel Alexandra, her owners, trainers and jockey, and there’ll be more news on the Belmont Stakes once we know who’s looking to run.