Jai-alai can be enjoyed on three levels. First, there is the thrill of watching an incredibly tense and competitive sporting event. Second, there is the excitement of gambling on a fast action game. Finally, there is the intellectual challenge of pitting your skill in handicapping against the abilities of the rest of the crowd.
This book was written to help you understand, appreciate, and enjoy all facets of the activities at your local fronton. More importantly, however, I wrote this book for those who enjoy the intellectual struggle of minds seeking to out-think each other.
In these pages you will find no mindless formulas that tell you to "bet the 2 if it hasn't come in after the first five games." The people who bet that way are the people you are going to win from. This book will teach you how to evaluate players and odds, and how to think for yourself. It is based on my own experiences, plus sophisticated computer simulations of over 8 million games.
If you apply what you learn here, you will have an edge on most of the people in the audience on any given night. I cannot make you a winner every night. As all successful gamblers know, however, over the long term, the difference between winning and losing is having an edge on your competition. I do not promise to make you rich. But I do offer you a chance to increase both fun and profit if you are willing to make an effort.
Although jai-alai is a very old game and has been in the U.S. since 1904, it first came to Connecticut in 1976. It has been incredibly successful. Most of the specific discussion in these pages will be about the three Connecticut frontons. The principles are universally applicable, however.
No book of this type comes into being without the input and help of many people. It is appropriate to mention the contributions of Bob Levy, Dick Wright, Wayne Dydo, Eduardo Hernandez, and Kurt Honold. Also, thanks are due the managements of Bridgeport Jai-alai, Inc. (particularly Public Relations Director Bob Beslove) and World Jai-alai, Inc. (including Fred McKenna and Bob Weinberg in Florida and Mike Caruso in Connecticut) for their assistance and permission to reproduce their pictures and programs. Fred McKenna reviewed the entire text and gave me many useful facts and comments via several multi-hour phone conversations. Player Manager Ricardo Sotil and Judge Frank Navas at Bridgeport were very kind in granting me a lengthy interview, as did Director of Marketing John Knox at Milford. World Jai-alai's ace frontcourt player, Joey Cornblit, was extremely helpful in verifying technical details and providing unique insights into the only game in America where patrons can legally bet on human beings.
Finally, special appreciation is due to Jim Jacobs who did all of the illustrations, and to my secretary, Mrs. Nancy Blau, who retyped the manuscript so many times.
Hartford, Connecticut
1/1/78
