Yard of Picks: Indy boosts gambling ties with sports lounge

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Alex Kertis browsed a list of Indianapolis 500 favorites -- call it, a yard of picks -- on his phone and the potential bettor found his choice. The Indy resident just needed to brush up on Alex Palou before he tapped the screen.

“I don’t bet IndyCar all the time,” he said Friday. “I don’t follow it like I follow the other sports. Golf. Football. Hockey.”

Kertis had an ideal seat to learn: He soaked in the “Carb Day” scene from a barstool at Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s latest legalized enhancement with the Caesars Sportsbook Lounge.

This is not a sports book in the traditional sense -- there are no ticket windows or digital video walls flashing the latest odds. It is more of a working fan’s VIP suite with a DJ spinning tunes, racing always on the TVs, cocktails and a small arcade room holds a few virtually drivable NASCAR games.

If it's a push for fans to gamble, it is the gentlest of nudges. Simply punch up an app, commit to betting $20, download your credit card information and get to it. Fans can do this anywhere, of course, but the thinking is that an on-site book at IMS will only increase the, ahem, odds of fans placing bets on the likes of Helio Castroneves and Jimmie Johnson.

Few states report betting breakdowns by sport, but auto racing is a definite backmarker in all sports when it comes to betting interest.

Dover Motor Speedway opened an on-site kiosk and became the only track that allowed sports gambling on its property once Delaware legalized sports betting in 2018. The Delaware Lottery said auto racing is the second-lowest wagered sport in the state; Delaware has sold $505.6 million in total sports tickets since June 2018 with $1 million bet on auto racing — just 0.199% of sales, and most bets were placed on NASCAR. Less than $10,000...