And now for something a little lighter...

When the spread in the paper says Lakers +5 for the line tonight and you have two willing parties accepting either side of the bet and let's say hypothetically LA wins by 5. Who gets the push? Thinking linearly, is it the one to the "right" who believes LA wins by five or more? (or does LA have to win by 6 or more.) Or the one to the "left" who thinks LA can win by 1 up to 5 or the Celtics win by amount?(or is it 1 up to 4.)

Evan spotted this in the paper today and I had no answer. Thanks, db

Depends who you are betting with. Some bookies and sports books try and claim the games that finish as a push fall in their favor, but historically a push is a non-winner for both sides.

This is why spreads are frequently, though not always, specified in half-point fractions to eliminate the possibility of a tie, known as a push. In the event of a push, the game is considered no action, and no money is won or lost.

However, this is not a desirable outcome for the sports book, as they are forced to refund every bet, and although both the book and its bettors will be even, if the cost of overhead is taken into account, the book has actually lost money by taking bets on the event.

Very interesting. Thanks, kleen.