The Los Angeles Rams scored the first touchdown of Super Bowl LVI on Feb. 13, but holder Johnny Hekker bobbled the snap on the extra point so Matt Gay couldn’t kick the football. No big deal, right? Nobody noticed, eh?

Wrong. The Rams, who were favored to beat the Cincinnati Bengals by four points, ended up winning 23-20 in Los Angeles. Anybody who bet on L.A. to win by four, lost. If Gay kicks that extra point in the second quarter, the game — all things staying the same — would have landed on the number.

Bettors get their money back from casinos if the point spread results in a tie. So that missed PAT funneled millions — maybe billions — of dollars into the hands of sports books — and bookies — around the world. There was an estimated $512.8 million legally wagered on the Super Bowl across 11 states in the U.S.

Those figures have been exponentially higher since sports gambling was legalized in states across the country. Illinois made legal it in 2020.

According to Legal Sports Report, there was $60.5 million wagered on the Super Bowl in Illinois, with books making $9.5 million in revenue. The website claims books in Illinois made 24% more compared to 2021. What if they had to give back all the money that was wagered on the Rams?

“The sports gods giveth, and the sports gods taketh away,” said local bookie “Michael C,” who, obviously, prefers to remain anonymous. “For every bad beat, there are plenty that went the other way.”

But bettors can place their bets above board at their local casino. The Par-A-Dice Casino in East Peoria offers sports betting right inside the front door. There are two windows for patrons wager on almost every sport imaginable with an agent and five kiosks to do so electronically.

There are also myriad phone applications like DraftKings Sportsbook and FanDuel Sportsbook that put betting on all kinds of games at your fingertips. Mobile-only licenses cost $20 million in Illinois, though, so you probably won’t be seeing betting kiosks next to the video poker or slot machines at your local tavern any time soon.

There has been another hitch for bettors because the state has required in-person registration at a casino before you can bet online. That requirement, which was designed to help the brick-and-mortar sports books, is set to expire March 5.

Ninety percent of that $60 million in Super Bowl betting in Illinois was done on mobile apps, which require credit cards.

The Par-A-Dice, which presently works with FanDuel, is “retail only,” which means it does not register bettors for phone apps, for now. Another part of the law in Illinois forbids online betting on in-state schools. But that could change in March, too — just in time for the madness of the NCAA tournament.

On any given month, Illinois has ranked as high as third to longtime behemoths Nevada and New Jersey in gross receipts. On a recent Thursday night at the Par-A-Dice, the sports book appeared empty, but was actually doing steady business as people approached the window or kiosks one by one until the place closed at 10 p.m.

“Weekends are by far our busiest times,” said one of the sportsbook managers on the boat. “We have our regulars who stay in the bar and make their plays and we have others who come and go. Some people might want to make some bets on their way to work.”

Casinos usually charge about 10% on winnings. A $100 bet will pay around $90. The charge depends on the odds of winning. Illinois has a 4.9% flat tax rate on any income from winnings. Gambling winnings of more than $600 are subject to federal income tax.

“We have to charge something,” said the manager at the Par-A-Dice. “Otherwise we’d go out of business.”

The big news in the business is that the Illinois Gaming Board approved a Management Services Provider license for BetMGM to operate in the state. Sportshandle.com reports BetMGM, which is affiliated with the popular Las Vegas mega casino, “will be tethered to Par-A-Dice Casino through its Boyd Gaming connections.” This merger will apparently take effect March 5.

“At this time, we are not commenting on the partnership with BetMGM,” said Par-A-Dice Marketing Manager Alex Davies in an email statement. “Properties have to wait for direction from the Las Vegas offices in regard to commenting.”

All this big business still leaves room for the little guy. Local bookies will still do their thing, albeit illegally.

“I have always been for legal sports gambling,” said Michael C, who has been running his own operation under the proverbial table since 1993. “It’s been very hypocritical of government to say you can go to Vegas or Atlantic City, but you can’t do it here.”

There will always be some appeal to betting behind the scenes if you know a guy who knows a guy, so to speak.

“Back in the day, there were five or six guys (taking bets),” said Michael C, who works a day job. “We were providing a service.”

Business was actually made better for these bookies when slots entered bars. Those establishments pretty much stopped offering the traditional “under the bar” parlay cards because what was once a slap on the wrist for getting busted with those things now jeopardizes gaming licenses.

Michael C does not feel that his business is in jeopardy. He’s betting there will still be plenty of business for his “store” despite the easy access out there.

“It has not really hurt my business,” he said. “There will always be people too lazy to go to the boat. There will always be guys who don’t want their wife to know. And the benefit of a local store is you can always run a tab.”