New Jersey Becomes First State to Top $800 Million in Handle in Single Month

New Jersey Becomes First State to Top $800 Million in Handle in Single Month article feature image
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DOMINICK REUTER/AFP via Getty Images. Pictured: New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy

New Jersey blew away the all-time record for sports betting handle in a single month, setting a record of $803.1 million bet.

The numbers, published by the New Jersey Department of Gaming Enforcement on Friday, pushed the year-to-date handle to more than $4 billion with two months to go.

That means that New Jersey, which did $4.5 billion in handle a year ago, could be in line to beat the all-time annual record of a $5.4 billion by Nevada just last year. New Jersey has beaten Nevada in handle every month of 2020.

New Jersey's advantage over Nevada comes in the percentage that is bet online, plus the population difference. Nevada's in-person business has been challenged by COVID-19 restrictions and shutdowns, and the state still requires players to sign up for sportsbooks in person, even if they bet online from there.

Of the $803.1 million that was bet in New Jersey, 92.6% of it was bet on the phone or a computer instead of in a retail sportsbook.

The hold percentage, which is what sportsbooks net out, for New Jersey books for the NFL was a dismal 3.3% in October. It was 4.3% for basketball and 4.7% for baseball.

The highest hold percentage, as it always is, was parlays at 13.5%.

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