It was revenue source that the state of Maryland never had before the legalization of sports wagering. Maryland Lottery and Gaming Executive Director John Martin reports the largest month ever for the state for sports wagering and helps Nestor recap Crab Cake Row and hitting the big one as the jackpots soar.
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
week, casinos, game, sports wagering, maryland, talk, ticket, win, winner, wife, baltimore, pick, lottery, jackpot, people, state, bet, ravens, john, dollars
SPEAKERS
John Martin, Nestor J. Aparicio
Nestor J. Aparicio 00:01
Welcome home we are wn St. am 1570, Towson, Baltimore and Baltimore positive. I know I’m practicing a new script here at the beginning about setting a place on your dial for AM 15 Seven because it’s so many people say oh you still do radio I get you on YouTube. I get you on Facebook. I get you on LinkedIn. Well we had a week last week. We were out all week long doing crab cake row a cup of Super Bowl week. I because we’re going to have i because we’re going to Roman numerals next year for this. All of them was presented by our friends I’m wearing my window nation shirt eight 690 nation are friends with the Maryland lottery. I gave more of these 10 times the caches away. Ross gave it to me and I was like Oprah you get a ticket. You get a ticket. I had won 10 times the winner but it was like two bucks. It was 20 bucks. But the person felt very very good about it. A Coke goes last week. Also our friends at Jiffy Lube, multi care. I’m not doing a ton of like radio here this week in the aftermath of what was a very exciting Superbowl overtime. Patrick mahomes This guy’s decided to wear a red that you’re wearing that because you heard my believable foundation last week piece was Santa Claus. Right John Martin and that’s why you’re wearing the red today.
John Martin 01:13
Today is as we’re taping this Valentine’s Day, so first and foremost. Okay. Happy Valentine’s Day to you and yours. Nestor.
Nestor J. Aparicio 01:21
Lovely. Yes, I would say read. Good, good call. Every day. You know, John every day today I got full disclosure for you as a primary reason we went out and did this and we gave tickets away. I’m tired. You know, I don’t want to quote Blazing Saddles, and Lily bunch to put on tire. And I got about I thought I was gonna do 100 Cherries last week. I only did. I only did 68. I did 68. Actually there were 70 because two people plug two charities. And then I had 70 pieces of content on my desk. So I’m just I’m not shaving until it’s all done. So I just want you to take over the show this week. We she didn’t come last week and you sent Roz out we had fun and we talked about little kiddies and all of her charities but you talk to me last week a Super Bowl week. Did you have the winner?
John Martin 02:11
Yes, sort of but that that’s for for just non promotional purposes. You know what? You said red actually, it’s Scarlet because of the gray tie. Scarlet and gray you know you can take the boy out of Ohio but you can’t take the Ohio out of the boy that’s new offensive coordinator Do you? Well. Let’s let’s put let’s put a pin in that
Nestor J. Aparicio 02:33
for later. I’ve had breakfast with Chip and my wife went to the same high school at chip went to in Manchester, my wife Parship many years apart, of course, but she follows chips career. So John Martin has been following my career and a cup. So last week we do a cup of Super Bowl. We went out we did all John I cried 10 and a half times I got knocked off the air four times. And only two of them were my fault. I had no equipment. We had like this amazing, amazing week. But I know you had an amazing month in January. So you want to talk about I watched the big game and Hollywood casino up and paired with lots of folks. They actually had the Nickelodeon Super Bowl on in the middle and I got to see sliming and I got to see a big heart drawn around a Travis Kelsey, and the Chiron said, Taylor Swift’s boyfriend. So but we did this for sports wagering right in January, with the first time it’s really been open open. The Ravens were involved their local interest. This was a big month, and I know this is your chance to talk about Yeah, we’re doing the sports wagering thing but you won’t believe where this money goes because it goes to education in our state.
John Martin 03:44
January was record shattering in the in the sports wagering, annals of Maryland history. And all that we’re talking about in January all happened during the playoffs. It wasn’t even the Super Bowl, which we’ll pick up next month. But yes, in the month of January, we set all time record $8.2 million contribution to the state in terms of the the tax revenues they handle was over $545 million, the amount wagered. And then then the hold, which is the key part, you know, how much is waived? Or how much is actually held by the casinos after they pay off their prices? Because that then dictates how much the 15% of that then goes to the state. So it’s
Nestor J. Aparicio 04:33
a tax when the casino does well, you do well, if God forbid, and I know. I just saw the big game in Vegas. They built a lot of casinos out there on wagering, and we can fill in any punch line we want over the last 75 years is saying you go to Vegas lost wages when you land and all that, but when the casino wins, that’s where that’s where this money comes from. Because I never really thought about that intellectually, because I think yeah, You’re a casino you can’t get a business. I don’t know Atlantic City. I mean, I’m, you know, we could talk about things that can go awry in that business. But that business needs to be well managed to, for, for the State to win, correct. You know, there’s
John Martin 05:13
there’s clearly a business part of it. But then there’s also an emotional part of it, you really can’t detach. And I’ll give you a good example. This is not this is meant to be just factual, not emotional from my part. Clearly a lot of people in the state of Maryland bet on the ravens to beat the chiefs. And when that didn’t happen, the casinos or the sports wagering sports books in Maryland did very well. So had gone the other way. To your point would have been it
Nestor J. Aparicio 05:45
might have been less,
John Martin 05:46
boy, a lot less. Oh, oh, yeah. Yeah.
Nestor J. Aparicio 05:50
I mean, I don’t honestly. And you know, I come from this from the heart, right. I mean, I’ve been a sports guy, 32 years, I literally at 620 was at the bar, Hollywood Casino. And I said to my wife, we had some chips, because we’ve been playing blackjack, and we want a little bit, but we have, we’re having a good time, we always have a good time we go, and we responsible, no, our limit, I mean, all of that, you know, I’m not not drinking, when I’m gambling. Like, when I said to my wife, I had a feeling about the chiefs. And I said, if I if I were gonna bet, I would bet the chiefs and my wife’s like, well, there’s 225, our chips there, take them off, and bet and I didn’t, I didn’t, but I’ve never really been on a game in my life, like it was part. And you can fill in whatever punch line you want. After I saw people broadcasting from radio row who were not radio people last week, and I’m here, but I never been on a game. And it would have been the thing that they would have thrown me out for it would have been if you were a gambler, if you were looking like in my industry in my business, and now that it’s sort of on the up and up and the way we talk about it, I have not really piece together all of this. The information that you just gave me about people betting very emotionally here with the ravens, and the same thing would be true in Kansas or Missouri, right with the chiefs. Sure and understandable for California with the 40 Niners last week, right?
John Martin 07:08
It’s certainly understandable. And that’s why we stress that people you know, have a plan, they stick with it, they kind of bet with their head and not their heart, although it’s understandable and situation. But that’s that’s the nature of the game. So you know, be
Nestor J. Aparicio 07:21
a fight about it. So eight point, like
John Martin 07:23
$8.2 million went to the state of Maryland, and as an example,
Nestor J. Aparicio 07:27
what would an October, November December look like for monthly where you can bet on games? Lots of games, college games, all of that. Right? Yeah,
John Martin 07:34
the, I want to say the previous high was 6.5 million and that was in December. Okay.
Nestor J. Aparicio 07:42
So it’s ascending. Right, we’re still there. Right?
John Martin 07:46
You know, you so anywhere between, especially during the peak of football season, you know, in the four to $6 million range on a monthly basis is pretty good. And then during the off months, when you don’t have as much activity, you know, it may be half of that.
Nestor J. Aparicio 08:02
March Madness. We’ll pick it up in a couple weeks. Right. Right. Right. But yeah,
John Martin 08:06
clearly the the amount of wagering that went on in the state and while we don’t break it down by by what they wagered on, you can kind of read between the lines and figure that was a lot of heavy ravens action that when it didn’t materialize, you know, the the casinos in the state benefited from that. But you know, that’s that’s just one aspect of it. You know, you look at it, what, not only from Maryland lottery and gaming. I mean, it’s great to have that in January. But you know, it’s also fun Nesta, people winning lottery prizes.
Nestor J. Aparicio 08:36
My wife and I were talking about this, like literally Sunday we were going to Hollywood actually we drove some back roads. We saw Eagles up a Conowingo has been not the Philadelphia Eagles, birds. And we were we went past literally a ROFO and saw the jackpots at like 300, something 100 There were three digits in both of the windows. And I’m driving along and I said to my wife, I’m like, yeah, the Governor Bush on shops this week, because, like, I’ve known you a couple of years now, we have not had that magic moment where you have to run out to Boonsboro Saulsbury because like someone won 300 million, not 1.8 billion or when you and I get crazy about it, but it’s been a little while since and my wife’s like it’s always Minnesota, California. I don’t know why she picked Minnesota, but she’s like they always win the jackpot. So I’m like some day and if the numbers are coming up, there’s gonna come a point where there’s gonna come a day where there’s gonna be 152 under some measly little $300 million jackpot. We’re like the Maryland the cameras and the lights are gonna be on at a local roof or something right? Like that happens to you when it happens. Right? Well, you
John Martin 09:46
know what, that may be a bygone era first of all, let’s just establish this I don’t run you so you know, I I can’t pull a hamstring. That’s not a good look when the director has to limp into the shock and barely stand this week, bro. Yeah, that That’s not a good look. But secondly, we have become so insulated with with these jackpot runs that it doesn’t even get, you know, attention on on back of the B section. If anybody’s printing newspapers anymore, so it just doesn’t grab that that interest. It’s only the billion dollar plus. And then of course the circus and starts when that that runs. But right we’re at triple digits in both Powerball and Mega Millions. Also multi match or sleepy little jackpot. Maryland State game is knocking on the door of 900,000 Plus
Nestor J. Aparicio 10:38
series, a 457 million and Mega Millions to 85. And Powerball as we as we do this on Valentine’s Day, if someone in Essex or Rosedale hits $457 million dollars on the number tonight. Like that. leads the news here. I come on. That’s a lot of money, man.
John Martin 11:00
It is a lot of money. News, and I would I would be out there with the ceremonial chair.
Nestor J. Aparicio 11:07
Alright. Yeah. And then my wife would say finally, it’s not Minnesota, California. I don’t know why she picked those two. But I said I was going to talk to you. Because it would be it would be a big deal, right? Or what? Sure. Okay. All right. I just mean, you’re like, well, well go to sleep on it. And then my wife also said, Nobody wins a million dollars. And I’m like, no, no, no, no, no, Ani, I had two weeks ago, we had a million dollar scratch off whenever you’re I said people still want a million dollars. You just to your point, you don’t hear about a million, but you would hear about 457 million, I hope right? I
John Martin 11:39
would hope so too. And now that you put it out there, let’s hope that the jackpot gods are favorably listening. And they if they want to anoint some lucky person in in the Greater Baltimore area to win one of these wonderful prizes. I will tell you right now, I guarantee I will get dressed up. I don’t know where the Scarlet and gray I may wear something else. But I will be out there with the ceremonial winners check and hand the ceremonial check to the retailer because retailers get a lovely cash bonus of In either case, it would be $100,000 to the to the retailer, which boy that’ll that’ll keep you in business for a few weeks. So yeah, people are excited about it if it happens in their store, and we will certainly be there to share that excitement with them. All
Nestor J. Aparicio 12:27
right. I’m always excited about having John Martin on. He’s the Executive Director of all things Maryland lottery and gaming. And we talked a lot of sports wagering, you got winners, right. And we get some some big winners here. This week, we talked about million dollar scratch offs and stuff. But I know you have a nice little list of people that come to your door and say, when they win, I always tell people when I give these out, I’m like if it says CMD lottery, go out the side door and you know call Doug Lloyd do not pass go find John. But that’s the big thing. And you have those folks visiting you every day.
John Martin 13:00
Last week, we had a winner of our cash for life game, it’s kind of a niche game, it’s if you happen to to have the winning numbers. You can the top price is $1,000 a day for life. I’ll do the quick math that’s 365 or 366. This year, $365,000. Every year, or you can opt for a we want to live a long time you don’t want Yeah, but we did have a lucky winner of the second tier prize, which is $1,000 a week. Again, quick math, that’s $50,000 a year. If you don’t like to take your your winnings in annual installments for the next Who knows 3040 50 years of your life, depending on your age, when you purchase the ticket. You can cash out for a $20 valuation, which would be $1 million. And you can get that as a lump sum. So that’s something consider that winners not come forward yet. Trump. That’s a good luck. Yeah, yeah. Now that winter in was that a silver spring retailer, we don’t know the winner themselves was in silver spring that could have just been passing through or, or in the neighborhood. But when that person comes through, they will have a decision to make. Do they want to get $52,000 a year for the rest of their life? Or do they want to take cash option before taxes of a million dollars? So
Nestor J. Aparicio 14:28
that’s what we don’t want to take it and you don’t have the winner yet. Right? Right. Well look out for this person. Right. Right.
John Martin 14:34
So so there’s the dilemma. Here’s the interactive part of the show. What would you Nestor would you offer $52,000 A year or would you offer a million dollars before taxes one time?
Nestor J. Aparicio 14:45
You know when I was 23 It was a very good year. I probably would have taken the but I would get lumpy you know, I you know what I would do and this you’re you’re gonna like this I will continue with professionals, this is what I would do. And what I think I would take the lump sum, I think I would take the lump sum. I’d have to talk that over with, you know, my first cancel. And, yeah, there’s no wrong. So if you if you answer it right, I get hit by a car next week, what happens?
John Martin 15:19
Is that you wouldn’t well, you my kid, my passion? Yes, yes, your wife would be the beneficiary of that.
Nestor J. Aparicio 15:24
Okay. All right. Well, so we have a really nice
John Martin 15:29
problem. This problem is how do you spend $50,000. That is a pick five top prize winner. We talked about our pick five game before, relatively new into our lineup last several years. You pick five random numbers, this gentleman decided to use his old zip code. Now I don’t know why he didn’t use his new zip code. There’s there’s an interesting question to ask him on the I got
Nestor J. Aparicio 15:52
into this because I was in Dundalk last week. There’s a real thing over there about whether you’re 212-222-1221 which pushes you across the bridge into Essex because of the Essex Dundalk thing. So I mean, I hate like how to play 21224 Because that’s where I grew up, which is really a highland town, zip code, even though it parts of Dundalk. And then like 21222 or 21221, Hicks, right. So they’re all kind of close. Well, he
John Martin 16:16
chose a zip code of his childhood home, which is 20783 a $1. Straight bet on that will get you $50,000. Wow. And for that, you know, you might consider moving into a new zip code, who knows. But there’s a lot of fun with that. And then the last one I’ll share with you is a Catonsville construction worker, incidentally, all these stories you can find on MD lottery.com. And check out winter stories. I’m just going to tease with a few here. There are many, many more, across the whole spectrum of
Nestor J. Aparicio 16:47
game really do win.
John Martin 16:49
I guess that’s our point. To win. Yeah, absolutely. And this Catonsville construction worker, you talked about your times the cash, scratch off ticket that you have, right here and events, so yep, yep. One on the 50 times the cash, which is a $10. Value ticket. He won the top prize of $100,000 doesn’t always get to do with it yet, which is fine. Take some time. You know, let that sink in. And enjoy your your winnings wisely, sir.
Nestor J. Aparicio 17:20
Well, I had a fella that came by actually in Catonsville who’s running and I’ll promote him. He’s running a run for Ms. Across the country. He’s doing five days of Marathon through your state through Ohio. And Pennsylvania is actually a guy from Jersey. And he came by got a ticket. Three hours later, I get a text and he had scratched the ticket off, take a picture of it, and it sent it to me. And I saw the 10x. But it was a $2. But I learned about it. I’m like, Oh, he wants 20 by looked at it. I’m like, I think he wants 20 bucks. But you know, when I tell people to do I tell them. And I tell them all the time because I gave a lot of tickets out this week, three stacks of five, six days, we did five days. And then I was in Hollywood Casino. I tell people just download the app and do it do it. And the woman was like, that’s like cheating. And I’m like, No, it’s like makes it easier. And then, at Coco’s they said, we always know when you’re here, and this I’m gonna play in you and Ross for this job. All the little silver stuff smudges all over the bar when you’re here, and I’m like, if people just use the scanner, they wouldn’t have this problem. And you made it available. You’ve made it easier for people, but people still like to get a little dirty with it silver stuff
John Martin 18:33
they do. They do and there’s it’s that tactile thing, right you got you gotta feel it. You gotta get you gotta get the schmutz under your nails. And that hey, you know us is also fun. Tongue Twisters. And in your cup of soup or bowl. No, I’m getting better at that. Wait, are
Nestor J. Aparicio 18:49
you waiting for a cup of soup or bowl? Don’t get me see indeed. Come on. Now. Come on. All right. All right. But But yeah.
John Martin 18:59
But that’s kind of, we’ve got one for you. How about this one? Double pay on box play, double pay on Xbox Play?
Nestor J. Aparicio 19:08
It almost sounds like a baseball thing like double play, you know? Well,
John Martin 19:12
right. But it’s not it’s double pay Apple Pay on Xbox Play our pick three, pick four, pick five, you know, the fan favorites out there. And people like to box those numbers. And what does that mean? Well, let’s keep it simple. If I pick three, and my number is 123, and I want to box all the variable combinations, meaning I get, I win if it’s 123321,
Nestor J. Aparicio 19:34
or in my case, 936. And I won the Springsteen tip we talked about that, right.
John Martin 19:38
So if you do all of those combinations on I pick three tickets, it’s called a six way box you bet $1 on that your normal payout would be $80. If however, your ticket as it prints says on the top of the ticket, double pay on box play congratulations. That means you are now eligible should that’d be a winning ticket to double your pay. So your ad dollars becomes $160. And we’re doing that for pick three, pick four and pick five. Now through March 10,
Nestor J. Aparicio 20:11
I actually got like a month to get in on this double action I got Yeah, so
John Martin 20:16
that’s, that’s fun. Also, it’s fun is our fast play tickets. The games that are kind of a hybrid, they play like a scratch. Hey, you know what this would do? Tell Coco’s. Let’s sell some best play out there. There’s no schmutz. There’s progressives on those two, right there are progressive on those. And when in the month of February each Friday, and you still have a couple of Fridays left in the month of February, we have a special promotion. Any $5 fast play game, you have a chance to win a free $10 or $20 Best Play game. So we have five $5 games in market, you pick one of those. You may be lucky enough to win on a random basis a 10 or $20 Best Play game. So that’s a lot of fun. All
Nestor J. Aparicio 21:01
right, well, you can go to Mt lottery I’m I’m on here. Winners in news. How could you not talk about the Eastern Shore man scoring a $5 million prize on 50? Your scratch off? Because I think Ross already talked about it. Alright, that’s fine. We talked about that last week. Okay, fine. Yeah, I had fresh
John Martin 21:14
stuff here. This is This is fresh stuff. I offered your free
Nestor J. Aparicio 21:18
cup of Super Bowl last week and you sent Roz and she cleaned up. I don’t know what else to say, you know, but I’ll get you back out. We’re putting the crabcake tour in a little bit. I’m coming up with ideas. John, I don’t know if you know this baseball season is coming. And yeah, it’s right around the corner. Today. There’s a catcher and catchers. I know. It’s great, isn’t it? That’s why the sun shining behind me. I have to move from the football. I’m going to go back to the warehouse motif here behind me and sunshine. But this whole baseball things. This is going to be very exciting this year for baseball. And I know you guys have homerun riches. Someone on the inside told me exactly what you guys are doing this year. I hear the promotion is going to be a Grand Slam but when are when are we going to fully make that, like known was as to what we’re doing with homerun riches. Pretty soon.
John Martin 22:06
It’s probably scheduled for our March lineup. So hang on a couple more weeks
Nestor J. Aparicio 22:10
tease me with double pay and double you know, I was thinking
John Martin 22:14
yeah, yeah, yeah, we got pleasures. Keep. Keep us all busy between now and March.
Nestor J. Aparicio 22:19
All right. You can find me down at failures in Lexington market before games. I will probably have these. We’re probably going to be doing some crabcake tours at the new fadeless they’re gonna get in there. I swear we were there last week. We were fadeless. On Monday. We were at Costas on Tuesday. We were Coco’s on Wednesday. We were at State Fair all day Thursday, and on Friday, we ended up at Pappas. I cried. 10 and a half times it was all brought to you by the Maryland lottery, our friends and window nation eight 690 nation. Where do you get 0% financing if you purchased for five years, as well as our friends at Jiffy Lube multi care letter Rascon got back from Hawaii. We had Wendy brown find down I had Bill Cole came by and did a couple hours. The segments with Bill Cole at State Fair were unbelievable. Mike Rosenfeld joined us on Friday and we chatted with all sorts of folks. I had Chris Corman editor from the Baltimore banner. So I did 40 hours of content which is like a whole lot. So if you’re checking it out of Baltimore positive you’re listening in. You’re tuning in, we really appreciate it. I did a little bit of a slower period but it’s gonna pick up very very quickly you’re as baseball gets going, we’ve rereleased a Peter principles. I’ve been writing some columnist and I am 70 charities behind on getting stuff up at Baltimore positive so bear with us. Happy Valentine’s Day. John, I will see you next week. I am Nestor. We are wn st am 1570, Towson Baltimore. We never stop talking Baltimore. Positive
