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Archive for month: August, 2021

2nd Annual USNJAC Scores

Here are the complete scores of the 93 matches played over the 3-day USNJAC Event held at Magic city Casino in Miami.

The pace was fast-paced as most days were wrapped up in 4-5 hours vs. last year’s monster long 2- day event.    

The big winners were Matt DiDomizio who walked out of there with $1,500 in his pocket of winnings for his good old fashioned style of play.  Matt, the owner of Connecticut Amateur Jai-alai, drove over 20 hours and 1,378 miles each way for the thrilling event.  He can even deduct 100% of his winnings by claiming the IRS allowed .56 a mile! 

The other big winners were the Langhan brothers and even their dad James.  Douglas, 22, and Benny, who just turned 18 are an unbelievable talent.  They learned to play jai-alai in a batting cage area using North Miami balls I sold to their father four years ago.  I had no idea who James was at the time,  especially shipping balls to a small town in North Carolina.   The huge checks you see in the story tell the story.  And poppa Langhan impressed me more than anybody with his intelligent play.  Yes, we was “leaking oil” at the end, but that was understandable.

One other player that caught my eye was Suits.  He was really exciting to watch out there.

The coverage on the Jai-alai Channel was excellent with Stu and Andrew doing a great job as usual.

I’m currently interviewing about a dozen players who participated and will be providing another story on the event on their thoughts and how to make it even better next year.

DIVISIONDATES/DRNDPLAYER(S)SCORESWINNER
Masters08/27/2021S1Garby vs Geno1-6Geno
Masters08/27/2021S1Suits vs Chewy6-2Suits
Masters08/27/2021S1Big Z vs Lenny4-6Lenny
       
Masters08/27/2021S1Jefe vs Jay6-2Jefe
Masters08/27/2021S1Borechip vs Douglas I2-6Douglas I
Masters08/27/2021S1Jimmy Jam vs Bob6-2Jimmy Jam
Masters08/27/2021S1The Goat vs Rule0-6Rule
Masters08/27/2021S1Okie vs Phat Boy6-5Okie
Masters08/27/2021S1Kullster vs Alex6-5Kullster
Masters08/27/2021S1Adam vs Lorenzo6-4Adam
Masters08/27/2021S1David vs GachDavid forfeitsGach
Masters08/27/2021S1Richie D vs Mikey Mo6-2Richie D
Masters08/27/2021S1Goya vs Gizmo6-1Goya
Masters08/27/2021S1Petro vs LJS6-1Petro
Masters08/27/2021S1Cachin47 vs Ant5-6Ant
Masters08/27/2021S1Richardson vs Casio0-6Casio
Masters08/27/2021S2Geno vs Suits5-6Suits
Masters08/27/2021S2Lenny vs Jefe4-6Jefe
Masters08/27/2021S2Douglas I vs Jimmy Jam6-0Douglas I
Masters08/27/2021S2Rule vs Okie6-1Rule
Masters08/27/2021S2Kullster vs Adam6-0Kullster
Masters08/27/2021S2Gach vs Richie D3-6Richie D
Masters08/27/2021S2Goya vs Petro6-2Goya
Masters08/27/2021S2Ant vs Casio3-6Casio
Masters08/27/2021S3Suits vs Jefe6-1Suits
Masters08/27/2021S3Douglas I vs Rule6-3Douglas I
Masters08/27/2021S3Kullster vs Richie D2-6Richie D
Masters08/27/2021S3Goya vs Casio6-5Goya
Masters08/27/2021S4Suits vs Douglas I3-6Douglas I
Masters08/27/2021S4Richie D vs Goya0-6Goya
Masters08/29/2021S5-FinalsDouglas I vs Goya6-7Goya (Matt)
Masters08/27/2021D1Casio-Geno vs Kulster-Lenny6-3Casio-Geno
Masters08/27/2021D1Ant-Petro vs Alex-Cachin476-1Ant-Petro
Masters08/27/2021D1Big Z-LJS vs Gach-Jefe6-4Big Z-LJS
Masters08/27/2021D1Beach-Goya vs Garby-Rule6-2Beach-Goya
Masters08/27/2021D1Bonechip-Richie D vs MikeyMo-Suits6-2Bonechip-Richie D
Masters08/27/2021D1Gizmo-Okie vs Bob-Jay6-4Gizmo-Okie
Masters08/27/2021D1Chewy-Jimmy Jam vs Adam-Douglas I2-6Adam-Douglas I
Masters08/27/2021D1-Playback(7) Rnd 1 Losers in round-robin rotation to 6-pts (top 2 move on)6-1
Micky Mo-Suits vs Gache-Jefe		Micky Mo-Suits
Masters08/27/2021D2Casio-Geno vs Ant-Petro6-2Casio-Geno
Masters08/27/2021D2Big z-LJS vs Beach-Goya2-6Beach-Goya
Masters08/27/2021D2Bonechip-Richie D vs Gizmo-Okie6-1Bonechip-Richie D
Masters08/27/2021D2Adam-Douglas I vs Mickey Mo-Suits3-6Mickey Mo-Suits
Masters08/27/2021D3Casio-Geno vs Beach-Goya2-6Beach-Goya
Masters08/27/2021D3Bonechip-Richie D vs Mickey Mo-Suits1-6Mickey Mo-Suits
Masters08/29/2021D4-FinalsBeach-Goya vs Mickey Mo-Suits7-4Beach-Goya
Pro08/28/2021S1bye vs Jairon/aJairo
Pro08/28/2021S1Julen vs Gallo7-2Julen
Pro08/28/2021S1Peugot vs Benny1-7Benny
Pro08/28/2021S1Goya vs Goitia2-7Goitia
Pro08/28/2021S1Douglas I vs Urbieta7-3Douglas I
Pro08/28/2021S1El Nino vs Bueno6-7Bueno
Pro08/28/2021S1Zulaika vs Bradley7-4Zulaika
Pro08/28/2021S1Frank vs Erik4-7Erik
Pro08/28/2021S1bye vs Arrietan/aArrieta
Pro08/28/2021S1T Bone vs Spinner3-7Spinner
Pro08/28/2021S1Jeden vs El Barba7-3Jeden
Pro08/28/2021S1Johnny vs Douglas0-7Douglas
Pro08/28/2021S1Ladutxe vs Tennessee7-4Ladutxe
Pro08/28/2021S1CRB vs Anderluck3-7Anderluck
Pro08/28/2021S1Ben vs Brodie7-2Ben
Pro08/28/2021S1bye vs Carballon/aCarballo
Pro08/28/2021S2Jairo vs Julen3-7Julen
Pro08/28/2021S2Benny vs Goitia6-7Goitia
Pro08/28/2021S2Douglas I vs Bueno7-3Douglas I
Pro08/28/2021S2Zulaika vs Erik3-7Erik
Pro08/28/2021S2Arrieta vs Spinner3-7Spinner
Pro08/28/2021S2Jeden vs Douglas1-7Douglas
Pro08/28/2021S2Ladutxe vs Anderluck7-4Ladutxe
Pro08/28/2021S2Ben vs Carballo1-7Carballo
Pro08/29/2021S3Julen vs Goitia5-7Goitia
Pro08/29/2021S3Douglas I vs Erik0-7Erik
Pro08/29/2021S3Spinner vs Douglas1-7Douglas
Pro08/29/2021S3Ladutxe vs Carballo6-7Carballo
Pro08/29/2021S4Goitia vs Erik7-4Goitia
Pro08/29/2021S4Douglas vs Carballo7-1Douglas
Pro08/29/2021S5-FinalsGoitia vs Douglas4-9Douglas
Pro08/28/2021D1Goitia-Arrieta vs El Nino-Gallo7-3Goitia-Arrieta
Pro08/28/2021D1Ubilla-Zulaika vs Ben-Bueno7-2Ubilla-Zulaika
Pro08/28/2021D1Benny-Douglas vs Beach-Goya7-0Benny-Douglas
Pro08/28/2021D1Frank-Johnny vs Anderluck-Bradley6-7Anderluck-Bradley
Pro08/28/2021D1Carballo-Spinner vs El Nino-Gallo7-5Carballo-Spinner
Pro08/28/2021D1Brodie-Kubala vs CRB-Tennessee7-5Brodie-Kubala
Pro08/28/2021D1Erik-Ladutxe vs Mickey Mo-Suits7-2Erik-Ladutxe
Pro08/28/2021D1Jeden-Julen vs Jairo-Urbieta5-7Jairo-Urbieta
Pro08/28/2021D1-Playback(6) Rnd 1 Losers (excl Beach-Goya) Playback, Winner plays Goitia-Arrietan/aEl Nino-Gallo
Pro08/29/2021D2Goitia-Arrieta vs Ubilla-Zulaika7-3Goitia-Arrieta
Pro08/29/2021D2Benny-Douglas vs Anderluck-Bradley7-3Benny-Douglas
Pro08/29/2021D2Carballo-Spinner vs Brodie-Kubala7-4Carballo-Spinner
Pro08/29/2021D2Erik-Ladutxe vs Jairo-Urbieta7-5Erik-Ladutxe
Pro08/29/2021D3Goitia-Arrieta vs Benny-Douglas2-7Benny-Douglas
Pro08/29/2021D3Carballo-Spinner vs Erik-Ladutxe3-7Erik-Ladutxe
Pro08/29/2021D4-FinalsBenny-Douglas vs Erik-Ladutxe9-7Benny-Douglas
Laca

USNJAC Tournament Finals – Days 2 and 3 reviews, results, photos, and links to watch.

USNJAC -Day 2 Review

Saturday, August 28th proved to be a huge day for Magic City in day 1 of the Pro Division of the 2nd Annual USNJAC at Magic City Jai-Alai in Miami, Florida. Reigning singles champion of the 1st USNJAC (Dec 2020), Dania’s Jairo, was eliminated by Magic City’s Julen by a score of 3-7. To top that off, the icing on the cake came when Dania’s Arrieta from the 2020 USNJAC winning doubles team of Goitia-Arrieta was eliminated by Magic City’s Spinner by a score of 3-7 in their singles match. These were huge upsets in the eyes of Dania fans. Magic City Jai-Alai fans couldn’t be prouder of their on-court accomplishments Saturday. It’s a win-win regardless of the final outcome on Sunday’s final events.

Dania’s Erik, eligible for the 2nd annual event as he became a U.S. citizen in the last year, did not disappoint for Dania. Erik bested Frank in his opening round by a score of 7-4 and then proceeded to win against Dania foe Zulaika in the next round by a score of 7-3. Erik has been Dania’s top player in recent years and considered one of the best front-court players in the world. Dania fans expect him to be the singles USNJAC tourney favorite.

James Langhans, playing under the name Douglas I, and father of Magic City stars Douglas and Benny, earned his way into the Pro Division Singles tourney by making the finals in the Master’s Division which was played on Friday, the first tourney day of the three-day USNJAC. Douglas I did not disappoint the Langhans family by winning his first two matches in the Pro Division, besting Dania’s Urbieta by a score of 7-3 in Round 1 followed by a Round 2 win of 7-3 against Magic City’s Bueno (Chris Bueno), son of Dania Player Manager Benny Bueno. Douglas I has some solid talent and superb form and looks great on the court with his serious set of specialty shots. His next match is against Erik on Sunday morning and should be a good one. It’s no wonder sons Douglas (Matt) and Benny have developed their skill sets so quickly with a coach like former pro player James! Dania’s Goita narrowly squeaked by Magic City 18-yo phenom Benny, younger brother of Douglas, by a score of 7-6 in a tightly contested 2nd Round match or it would have been a “Langhans Trifecta” making it to the final 8 for the Sunday showdown.

Connecticut player Goya (Matt, owner of the short-court practice fronton facility in CT) did not disappoint in the Masters Division and was the other player making the finals. Goya advanced to the Pro Division by making the final two but was ousted in Round 1 against Goitia by a score of 2-7. Tourney fans were in awe of Goya’s talent for his age. He’s a former professional Jai-Alai player from 40-years ago and certainly did not disappoint fans from the northeast. Goya plays in the Master’s Division Singles final Sunday morning against Douglas I and is also in the Master’s Division Doubles final match of Beach-Goya vs Mickey Mo-Suits. Jai-Alai fans won’t want to miss these Master Division finals!

The final 8 in the Pro Division singles tourney finals to be held on Sunday, 8/29 are: brothers Julen vs Goitia, Douglas I vs Erik, Spinner vs Douglas, and Ladutxe vs Carballo. Magic City players are in three of the four matches and represent half of the players in the final showdown of these eight players. There were (7) Pro Division Singles matches on Saturday where Magic City players faced off against the seasoned Dania players. The Magic City players out-played their far more experienced Dania opponents in those singles matches by a combined point score of 39-37, even with one of those matches including an early games Magic City player. These (7) 7-point matches of Magic City players vs Dania revealed another interesting statistic. All Magic City players scored at least 4-points in the 7-point matches while the seasoned Dania players scored just 3-points in three of the seven 7-point matches against Magic City. Sounds like another win for Magic City. SayHiLi.com is sure Scott Savin, Stu Neiman and Juan Arrasate could not be any prouder of the Magic City players and how far they’ve come in such a short time. Congratulations Magic City for making an event like this possible!

The Pro Division Doubles tourney has been pared-down to (8) remaining teams. Only the first round was played on Saturday with finals on Sunday. The 1st Annual USNJAC doubles winners Goitia-Arrieta were the last doubles match of the day and faced off against the winner of a round-robin match of the losing round 1 teams. They were victorious against the team of El Nino-Gallo by a score of 7-3 to advance to the final eight teams. The doubles match of Frank-Johnny vs Anderluck-Bradley was perhaps the most exciting match Saturday with a comeback victory by Anderluck-Bradley. They were down by 5-1 and then 6-3 and survived 4-game point attempts by Frank-Johnny to claim a hard-fought victory of 7-6 and make the final eight teams. Congratulations Anderluck-Bradley for sticking it out and earning that hard-fought victory.

The final 8-teams for Pro Division Doubles with the Sunday pairings are as follows: Goitia-Arrieta vs Ubilla-Zulaika, Benny-Douglas vs Anderluck-Bradley, Carballo-Spinner vs Brodie-Kubala, and Erik-Ladutxe vs Jairo-Urbieta. The Dania fan favorite team of Erik-Ladutxe won against Mickey Mo-Suits by a score of 7-2 in Round 1. Mickey Mo-Suits team earned their shot in the Pro Division by making it to the final two teams in the Masters Division on Friday.

Magic City wonder boy, Douglas, played in 3-matches on Saturday (two singles and one doubles) and did not disappoint his huge fan base. Douglas was sitting out for the last week of pari-mutuel play at Magic City, having rolled his ankle in mid-August. His tourney debut was astonishing yesterday as he won 21-points and lost only 1-point for the day, besting all other tourney players by a country mile in that category.

USNJAC -Day 3 Review

It was a historic day in the making at the 2nd Annual USNJAC Tournament at Magic City Jai-Alai in Miami, Florida today. The Langhans brothers, Douglas and 18-yo younger brother, Benny, turned the USNJAC into a family affair by Douglas winning the Singles Pro Championship and Douglas-Benny team winning the Doubles Pro Championship. They defeated much more experienced top Dania professionals in doing so and the Tiger’s Board Magic City short-court naysayers/haters are now placed on permanent “IGNORE” for their ramblings…..enough said!

Benny-Douglas beat Dania’s best team of Erik-Ladutxe by a score of 9-7 in the Doubles finale. They were behind by as much as 3-points at one time, with a score of 3-6, and then went on to win 6 of the next 7 points to clinch the victory by a score of 9-7. Young brother, Benny, who turned pro at age 17 had a solid performance catching in the back-court while Douglas covered the front-court. This was no doubt a match favored by the highly experienced Dania duo of Erik-Ladutxe, however, the persistence of the Langhans brothers paid off by staying the course. Congratulations Douglas-Benny and father/trainer/former pro James Langhans and family!!

Dania’s Goitia, also a part-time ref at Magic City in the Dania off-season, managed to pull the upset of the day by solidly beating Erik in the semi-final round of the Singles Pro Championship by a score of 7-4. Goitia threw an unbelievable chula to go ahead of the huge favorite Erik by a score of 6-4 before polishing off Erik. Douglas had beaten Spinner by a score of 7-1 and then Carballo by 7-1 to get to the finale with Goitia where the Magic City wonder boy Douglas prevailed in the match against Goitia, winning by a score of 9-4.

Douglas took home $7,500 for 1st place prize in the Singles Pro Championship while Goitia received $2,500 for 2nd place honors. The Langhans brothers split the $10,000 1st place prize for the Doubles Pro Championship and Dania’s Erik-Ladutxe split a respectable $5,000 for their 2nd place finish.

SayHiLi congratulates the Magic City professionals for their incredible victories! Scott, Lindsay, Stu, Andrew, JR and crew are to be commended for putting on a sensational event this year! Be sure to watch the event match replays on The Jai-Alai Channel for some great exciting short-court Jai-Alai action. Check out all the tournament scores right here on SayHiLi.com, including the Master’s Division finale scores for more info.  This author has to take a much-needed break from tracking and reporting on the 3-days of short-court action at Magic City.

We are sure that Jeff Conway’s PelotaPress.com site will provide a write-up on the Master’s Division of the USNJAC, and we don’t want to duplicate effort, but complete USNJAC scores can be seen on the SayHiLi blog article about the USNJAC .

Magic City Jai-Alai games resume on Saturday, September 11th with 8-pari-mutuel games at 1:30-pm followed by six exciting H2H doubles matches at 4-pm! Residents of Iowa and Illinois can now do sports betting wagers on Magic City Jai-Alai H2H games at BetRivers.com, the USNJAC tournament sponsor for this 2nd annual USNJAC event. Sports wagering on Magic City Jai-Alai pari-mutuel games can also be done on PrizePicks.com.

US National Jai-alai Championship this Weekend (Aug 27-29) WITH SCHEDULE, PICS and LINK TO DAY 1 ACTION

http://usnjac.com/

(Click Link above for USNJAC website)

*** HERE IS LINK TO DAY 1 OF ACTION IN THE MASTERS DIVISION ***

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XMAoPSHwzg

Magic City Casino in Miami, Florida will be the jai-alai capital of the world this weekend with amateurs, former pro’s and current pro’s will compete with $26,500 in prize money up for grabs.  The USNJAC will be holding their second event, following a very successful inaugural.  Last year’s event was canceled multiple times because of COVID-19, but this year’s event will go on as scheduled.   

Last year’s event had Jairo (Jairo Baroja) as the Singles Champion with Arrieta (Inigo Gorostola) & Goitia (Inaki Goitiandia) as the doubles champions.

This years championships will be held over three days, instead of last year’s two-day event which resulted in a couple of long days.  And because of Dania Jai-alai not opening till September 1st, the schedule will be better balanced.

On Friday –  the first day of the event –  will feature the “Masters Division”, which is open to amateurs and former professionals who have not played professionally since December 31, 2015.   The matches start at 10am.  Entries were limited to 28 singles and 14 doubles teams.  All matches are played to 6 points and the finals to 7 points.  There will be a Playback bracket in Doubles only.

Finalists in Singles and Doubles will automatically be entered in the Pro Tournament Division. 

The Masters Singles is a single elimination tournament.

Singles Prize Money is $1,000 with second place money $500.  Finalist in Singles and Doubles will automatically be entered in the Pro Tournament Division.

On Saturday, the Professional Tournament will begin, also at 10am. This will be open to current professional players and former professional players who have played professionally since January 1, 2016.

Singles Prize money is $7,500 for first place and $2,500 for coming in second.

There will be 24 singles entries and 24 doubles teams with all matches to 7 points and finals played to 9 points.  There will be playback bracket in doubles only.    

Doubles prize money is $10,000 for the winner, and $5,000 for coming in second place.

The finals will take place on Sunday.

Spectators are allowed in the fronton on Friday and Saturday for friends and family of players and Sunday will be open to the public.  They are “requesting” everyone wears a mask except when eating and drinking.

All 3 days of play will be streamed live on the Jai-alai Channel on YouTube for those that cannot attend.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________  

Aug 27th – Photos

Alex and Arra
Kyle Kubala #25
Kyles Space at Magic City
Connecticut Group
Laca

North America’s newest cancha is now open in Cancun.

North America’s newest cancha is now open in Cancun.  Built by the Salas brothers, this fronton has Loren Harris working with them putting on some great events for kids and adults. 

The next big event is Labor Day weekend for their International Fall Festival.  For more details go to Loren Harris and Fronton Salas Facebook pages. 

Laca

“Pack a Trunk”

I was preparing for the 1979/1980 Tampa Jai-Alai season.  It was early December.  I was in the announcer’s booth setting up the equipment when I was alerted to pick up line two. I looked at the blinking light.  I lifted the receiver.

“Marty, Paul Rico.”  It was the voice of the Chief Operating Officer of World Jai-Alai/ General Manager of Miami Jai-Alai and mentor who had been instrumental in saving my job.  Rico, being an ex-FBI agent, got immediately to the point of his call.

“Milt Roth resigned yesterday.”  This news was shocking.  Milt had been the PR director for Miami Jai-Alai for almost 25 years.  He became a corporate director for World Jai-Alai and was a valued consultant for Dick Donovan, President, in all public relations and corporate expansion activities.  Apparently, Milt had gotten a good offer from another pari-mutuel and was leaving immediately.

“We want you to come to Miami and help us with opening,” Rico told me.  Miami Jai-Alai opened around Christmas Day every year and that was just over two weeks away.

“Of course,” I told Rico.  “Anything I can do to help, I will.”  I was not very fond of Miami being a “Tampa Boy.”  It was huge, overcrowded, awful traffic, and lines everywhere.  I loved Tampa and planned on being here the rest of my life, hopefully taking over as General Manager of Tampa Jai-Alai someday.

But Rico and Donovan had shown faith in me in restoring me to my job after my unfortunate incident.  My brush with the law had basically been forgotten.  So, I was honored that they called on me for help at our flagship fronton.

“Paul, how long will I be in Miami?” I asked, knowing Tampa Jai-Alai opened the first week of January.  I still had plenty of pre-opening preparations here.  I had hoped he would say no longer than a few days.

“A while,” he responded.  Rico was rather cryptic.  Gerrity, his old FBI friend and my boss in Tampa, would often tell me, “Rico wouldn’t tell you if your hat was on fire.”  So, I pushed him a little more.  “Paul, how much should I pack?”  He responded, “Pack a trunk… you’re not going back!”

After I hung up, I sat in the announcer’s booth stunned.  “Not going back,” his words echoed in my head.  I had just recently bought a beautiful townhouse just off the Bayshore, less than ten minutes from the fronton.  I had only lived in it about a month.  Now, I have to sell it?

But, even more importantly, I was engaged to be married in March to Sue Baxter.  Sue had come down from upstate New York to be with her boyfriend John who was attending the University of Tampa.  John was a great guy.  He played golf and worked part time in security at the fronton.  We had become friends. 

Unfortunately, the couple broke up.  I say “unfortunately,” except that twist of fate brought Sue and I together.  (John reads these articles and we remain friends today.)

We had decided to get married at the Old Swiss House at Busch Gardens.  The manager, Sid Sherman, was a big Jai-Alai fan.  We booked our wedding there for March 30th.  Now, I was leaving Sue to handle all the wedding arrangements, then move to Miami.  I felt like I was abandoning her.  She said not to worry, she understood, and would take care of everything.  “Just make sure you’re back here on March 30th,” she said with a smile.

I packed as much as I could in my only large suitcase, knowing I would have to face the Miami media upon my arrival.  Paul told me that I would assume Milt’s duties as Corporate Director of Public Relations for World Jai-Alai and oversee the PR activities for Miami Jai-Alai.  I would, also, get a raise to $30,000 for my new position, about $5,000 more than I was currently making in Tampa.

He knew I wasn’t crazy about the idea of leaving Tampa.  So, he tried to sweeten the deal for me by reminding me that the Miami season was only four months long.  While I would be working hard during that period, things slowed down a lot during the off-season.  There would be plenty of golf.  Also, there was a pool table in the player’s quarters.  He told me they moved the table up to the front office during the summer so the execs could shoot some pool.

Paul knew that I was a high school “hustler” and that pool was my game.  He was enticing me with the thoughts of golf and pool during the downtime at the corporate offices.

He, also, told me that I would be assisting Donovan in some of his attempts to get the sport legalized in other states.  I would be traveling with him and helping in the presentations.  That did sound exciting.  But, one of the biggest incentives was the fact that I would be working a normal work schedule, daytime hours, approximately 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

I had been working nights for almost 10 years.  It was getting old.  I wanted a more normal work schedule, especially if I was going to be a married man.  Working until midnight or later just wasn’t appealing anymore.

Rico told me all the details would be worked out when I arrived in Miami. “But get your ass down here tomorrow, we already have a press conference set up to announce the change,” he went on.

I arrived at Miami International on National Airlines, unshaven and in jeans wearing sandals.  My plan was to check in to the hotel, shower, shave and put on my 1979 peach colored leisure suit.  There was one problem.  I arrived on time, my very large suitcase didn’t.   As I watched the baggage carrousel go round and round, I kept seeing the one last piece of unclaimed luggage reappear.  Mine was nowhere to be seen.

So, after everyone left the baggage area, I went to the National Airlines Baggage Claim Service area and showed them my claim ticket.  They said when it arrived, they would bring it to my hotel.  The only problem, the press conference was just a few hours away.

I checked in to the King’s Inn Hotel on NW 36th street, just down the street from Miami Jai-Alai.  I waited.  It didn’t arrive.  In fact, it never arrived.

I was introduced to the Miami Herald sportswriter, the local television stations, and many local radio stations looking like a bum off the streets of Miami.  “And this is your new PR Director??” I could hear them thinking. 

Maybe this was a signal of things to come.  While this was only a minor inconvenience, a stroke of bad luck, it was just the beginning.  Much of what Rico promised was about to unfold.  But there was more, much more.

It would be a decade of incidents that could only happen in Miami.  I had never heard the words “Miami Vice.”  Now, “Miami Vice” was going to be my reality.  Little did I know there would be murders, labor strikes, and national media scrutiny.  “Miami Vice” was, indeed, about to become part of my normal everyday life.

Is Fixed Betting the Future of Jai-alai?

It was a historical evening in the sport of jai-alai – Monday, August 16, 2021 .  For the first time in history, a legal bet could be made on the sport that was not in the form of pari-mutual wagering that has been around for decades.

Pari-mutual wagering is how jai-alai, horses and dog tracks operate.  It is a system of placing bets where winning players divide the total amount of bet in proportion to their individual wagers less a fixed “management expense” or house profit.  In jai-alai today, that fee is usually around 25%.  Pari-mutual wagering was first invented by a Frenchman named Piere Oiler in 1865 and was first used for horse racing in the United States in 1871 in New York.  Florida first allowed it in 1935 and allowed jai-alai to have a long successful run for many decades, mainly in the 1970s and 1980s. 

Today, anybody in the state of Iowa could bet on Magic City’s H2H performance this afternoon.  Many jai-alai fans were wondering what was the purpose of these head to head matches that Magic City was holding  –  partidos at some strange hours – including Monday and Tuesday late afternoons.       

As Straymar first reported today on his Say Hi Li site and the Pelota Press, jai-alai sports betting history was made today at 5pm EST with four Magic City H2H singles matches on the sports betting menu on BetRivers.com in the state of Iowa.  They already have sports betting in the states of Illinois, Indiana, Colorado, West Virginia, Virgina and New Jersey and this jai-alai betting might open in those states as the approval process is completed.

Is this the future of jai-alai?  That is the big question.  Magic City has been hosting a lot of H2H games in order to build up numbers to present to the public a statistic to make bets with.  Magic City is already promising $100,000 in prize money to the players – just for this occasion.  Their schedule is set to not compete against many other sports betting activities at that time.  Betters will bet no matter what.  Heck, ping-pong in China has a lot of people betting on it because of their time difference and no competition.      

Magic City Jai-alai is thinking ahead here and we really hope it works out.  Nothing beats Partido betting.     

As you can see from the image, a game featuring Ikeda vs. Spinner both went of at -117 odds.  The following game featured Carballo vs. Douglas with Douglas +200 and Carballo -286.  Pretty cool stuff! 

We all wish Magic City and Scott Savin the best in this new betting formation of jai-alai.     

Laca

Decoupling not stopping Dania Jai-alai from opening September 1st

Decoupling  of jai-alai went into effect August 1st, but that is not hindering America’s only full-length jai-alai fronton from opening. 

Unless you have been to the moon or somewhere, its likely your aware decoupling was passed this past spring allowing jai-alai frontons to continue other means of gambling without having to run live jai-alai games to keep their permit.  Of course, most of the other frontons will be closing down. Calder is running out their schedule which concludes in a couple weeks.  Miami is free to open year-round Cirque du Soleil or whatever they have planned.  Instead of watching Goiko and Lopez out there, you get a completely different show.  Ocala can get rid of their black curtains and hope a farmer will buy much of their property.  Orlando could give a rat’s ass either way.  Ft. Piece could use some night life now – perhaps turn the court into a nightclub? 

OK, kidding aside, there is one full sized, goat-skin fronton that will stay open.  And that is Dania Jai-alai.  As we first reported several months ago, they fully intend on staying open  – for a while.  They just need your support like showing up! 

The season opens September 1st.  There will be matinees on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday  at 1pm.  The Sunday matinee has been moved from 4pm to 1pm.  Evening performances will run Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 7pm.  Hooray!  Prime Time Jai-alai!  Great schedule.

The roster has some changes.  Bailo has chosen to retire and will not return in the fall.  He will not be replaced by another backcourter as they have two frontcourters in Elgezabal and Aratz that are actually both backcourters currently playing the front.  The decision on which of the two will move to the back will be made soon.     

Dania has brought in two frontcourters to complete in the 26-man roster.  One of the frontcourters is number 16 Goenaga who was here a few season ago but had visa problems and could not return.  The other one is a young player by the name of Cosme.  He is from the same town as Goiko and was heavily recommended by Inali as a prospect for the future.  Unfortunately, Dania applied for the visas in April and they have not been approved yet.  The are hoping that their visas will be approved soon but enable to start the season in September they are currently looking for a couple of players that can fill those spots until those visa applications are approved.

Unlike other seasons, the Dania season will end November 28th, which is the last Sunday in November.  Normally they play two weeks in December but this year they will end at the end of November.  It is too bad that there will be no jai-alai over Christmas thru New Years’ time, usually the busiest tourist season time.

Dania is currently scheduled to return in February and play thru the end of April.  They intend on adding a month to the winter season to make it four months in total – but have not made the final decision if that will be January or if it will be in May.  Nonetheless, the season in the winter time, after the three month fall season will be a total of four months. 

Dania is looking forward to the beginning of the fall season and are also hoping that they will be able to continue the fall challenge with a Partido action that they have had in the last three fall seasons.  Those decisions will be made in September.  Hopefully they bring those back.  Nothing beats those partidos.         

Its time to support Jai-alai folks.  There’s no guarantee how long this will go.  And kudos to Scott Savin at Magic City for all they are doing there!

Laca

The Punishment Did Not Fit the Crime (Part 4 – Conclusion)

The wheels of justice move slowly.  I was becoming more impatient each day.  It had already been weeks since State Division Director Dan Bradley had told my attorney and cousin Richard Hirsch that he would not revoke my license if I was not convicted of a felony.  But Richard was, indeed, doing what good lawyers do.  He was working on a just and fair settlement of the charges.  He was working on saving his cousin’s career.

Finally, I got the call from him.  “My Boy (his affectionate nickname for me), I have good news for you,” he told me.  “The State Attorney’s Office has agreed to reduce the charges to misdemeanor gambling if we plead Nolo Contendere.  Also, the court will withhold adjudication if you agree to pay $1,500 in court costs.”  I took Latin in school and figured out Nolo Contendere meant “no contest,” which it did.  But I asked him to translate the legalese.

“In essence, you are not admitting guilt to the misdemeanor charge and withholding adjudication means you are not convicted of anything,” he told me.  “They were after the main guys who were accepting the bets, not really the bettors.  The State Attorney’s office is offering this plea to all of you, except the bookmakers.  It is a fair disposition, and we absolutely should take it.  I am sending a letter to both the Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering and to World Jai-Alai.  Hopefully, you will be back to work soon.”

It was late April, there were still a few weeks left in the Tampa Jai-Alai season.  The summer season for Ocala Jai-Alai would start in June.  Now, the ball would be in World Jai-Alai’s court, so to speak.  Would Donovan, Rico, and Gerrity take me back?

On April 24th, 1979, I appeared at the Tampa courthouse, pled “Nolo” and paid the fine.  Richard immediately sent letters to Bradley at the Division and William P. Cagney, attorney for World Jai-Alai, confirming the disposition of the case.

Within days, Richard received a letter from Cagney saying I was immediately reinstated and could report to work.  A few days later Ricky Solaun was, also, reinstated.  Our nightmare appeared to be over.

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I walked into Tampa Jai-Alai the following week.  I went straight to Dick Gerrity’s office.  He gave me a warm welcome, was genuinely glad to see me.  He brought me up to date on what I had missed and let me know who had applied for my job.

Some of the names he mentioned surprised me.    But there was one that refused to take my spot, even temporarily.  And he was the most qualified to fill in.  That was Mark Beiro.  I had hired Mark as an announcer a few years earlier.  He had a natural talent and quickly became one of our top announcers.  What I didn’t know was that Mark, also, possessed a tremendous sense of loyalty.  He had told Gerrity that until it was certain that I wasn’t coming back, he would help in any way, but would not take over as public relations director.  In essence, he would not take my job.  Gerrity seemed surprised, I wasn’t.

We concluded another record setting Tampa Jai-Alai season and I moved up to Gainesville for our 1979 Ocala season.  Midway through the summer, it was decided to run an extended schedule.  Dick Gerrity had been titled Ocala Jai-Alai’s General Manager, though Assistant GM Giles Ellis carried most of the load.  Apparently, Dick wanted to stay in Tampa permanently and Giles deserved being named General Manager of Ocala.

The execs in Miami came up with a plan.  They decided to name Gerrity Area Director over Tampa and Ocala.  He would retain the title of General Manager of Tampa Jai-Alai.  Giles Ellis was promoted to General Manager of Ocala Jai-Alai but would maintain his duties of Assistant GM of Tampa.  And Marty Fleischman was appointed Assistant General Manager of Ocala Jai-Alai!  Yes, less than six months after my arrest and suspension, I received a promotion to Asst. GM.  I was thrilled… and tremendously grateful.

Thinking my future was in doubt at World Jai-Alai due to my own stupidity, I was now back on track.  I finally got my first management position, due to the fact that Rico and Donovan saw past my recent indiscretion.  I’m sure Gerrity and Ellis either suggested my promotion or, at the very least, endorsed the decision. 

During the Ocala season, I learned a great deal from Giles concerning managing a fronton.  Now, back in Tampa, I was preparing for the 1979/1980 Tampa Jai-Alai season.  It was early December.  I was in the announcer’s booth setting up the equipment when I was alerted to pick up line two. I looked at the blinking light.  I lifted the receiver.  What I heard on the other end of the phone line would change my life forever. 

BetRivers to Debut Magic City Jai-Alai H2H Sports Betting Monday August 16

Jai-Alai sports betting history in the USA makes its debut today at 5-pm EST with (4) Magic City H2H singles matches on the sports betting menu on BetRivers.com for Iowa residents. BetRivers has sports betting in the states of IA, IL, IN, CO, MI, PA, WV, VA, NJ so other states are expected to be opened up soon in addition to Iowa once their individual state approval process is completed. Approvals can take place pretty quickly for sports betting of new sports, so stay tuned.

This history breaking announcement came during the pari-mutuel performance at Magic City Jai-Alai on Monday, August 16, 2021 after the 7th game had finished. Watch the Jai-Alai Channel on YouTube to hear the full announcement as all past performances can be seen after the live games. This is exciting news for Magic City as they have explored various ways to introduce Jai-Alai into the sports betting market and have a strong desire to keep the sport of Jai-Alai alive in the USA. Jai-Alai was first introduced to the USA nearly 100-years ago in the city of Miami, Florida.

Congratulations Magic City Jai-Alai on this historical announcement!

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