Cheaters never win

Since March madness has started this is an appropriate time to tell the story about a failed scam at basketball pool.

About a year ago my friend and I entered into a pool to try to get some money from the basketball tournament. It started very innocent. I paid the money, my friend paid the money and we were given the brackets to make our picks. In comes the devious mind of my friend, we shall call him Myer Lanski (after the notorious Jewish Mafia member from the 30's).
Myer comes up to me and says the following:
"looky here see, I got a in on the pool and we should make a move before others notice."

Ok it wasn't exactly like that but you get the point. He devices this plan in hopes the it would work. His plan was as follows:
1. He will make his picks, mainly choosing the favorites.
2. I will make my picks along the same lines but choosing the possible upsets.
Check. And this is when then plan begins.
3. Once we made the first picks then we decide that whatever he picks I would pick the opposite. Brilliant right? Not really. First the odds that he would pick the right teams and I would pick the right teams are astronomical. Then the odds that what ever he doesn't pick I would and for that to work is nonsensical. But, at the time it seemed like a great idea.

The point of the whole thing was that there was a possibility that the favorite could win, which is what he chose. The other possibility was that an underdog could win it all, which was what I chose.

The tournament begins Myer is licking his chops already sensing victory from our devious plan. I'm already spending the money.

The tournament gets to the Sweet 16. Myer is already out with his picks, but surprisingly (not at the time because our plan was so good and so were my choices, at least that's what I thought) I'm still in. I am in second place and I'm already devising the plan for next year.

Then it's the Elite 8. Ouch. Things are starting to look bad, I'm now in 3 place in points, but I can still win it.

Final 4. WHY DID I LISTEN TO MYER, I'm out of the running and now have fallen to 4th place and no chance in winning any money. Unbeknownst to Myer, I kept a separate sheet of the picks I would've made had I not entered into this devious and ridiculous plan. Had I stayed with my original picks I would've finished a respectable 2nd and an easy $80 in my pocket. Instead I sat in my chair in disgust being $5 in the negative. Thanks Myer.

The Gold Nugget of the day is:
1. Never go to business with Myer Lanski.
2. Listen to what ESPN has to say not Myer Lanski.

Since I've been talking about Myer I think I will end this story with an anecdote.
Going into business with Myer Lanski is like driving a Kia. His services are cheap but he is unreliable and in the end costs you more than what you bought it for.