So when research firm Directions Research Inc. decided to run a poll on how much Americans gamble as a way to test the knowledge of its market research clients, the company stumbled upon some interesting data.

Since spring, the Cincinnati firm has begun quizzing clients on their knowledge of various industry trends. After taking guesstimates, the firm runs a poll, measuring how the marketing gurus measured up against real responses. The process generates publicity when the company gets research clients to participate in the quiz and then releases the results of the polls to the public.

Gambling seemed a topical subject because it's football season, Directions Research President Randy Brooks said.

What may have been a public relations afterthought for a research company resulted in a rare result largely free of potential bias. In a high-stakes business as political as gambling, research is primarily commissioned by a gaming company or by an entity that is critical or at least skeptical of the gambling business.

Here's some of what Directions Research found:

• About 67 percent of Americans over 18 have gambled in the past year on casino games, card games and sports. Of that group, 60 percent said they bet on "casino games," 40 percent said they gambled on "card games" and 30 percent bet on sports.

"I would have thought sports betting would have been a bigger deal," Brooks said.

• Of people who bet on sports, 78 percent said they gambled on NFL football games, 45 percent on horse racing, 36 percent on NCAA football, 26 percent on NCAA basketball, 22 percent on Major League Baseball and 20 percent on NBA games.

• When asked where they gambled, 77 percent said they went to casinos as opposed to only 18 percent who gambled at a race track, 10 percent who gambled online, 7 percent who gambled at a church and 4 percent who said they used a bookie.

• When asked how often they gambled, 59 percent said they gambled less than once every three months. (In Las Vegas that's almost the same as saying you don't gamble at all.) Another 23 percent said they gambled once every two to three months. Nine percent said they gambled once a month, 5 percent said they gambled once every two to three weeks and 5 percent said they gambled once a week or more.

• About two-thirds of both men and women said they gambled at least once a year.

• About 53 percent of people who make under $25,000 per year gambled at least once a year, while at least two-thirds of Americans who make from $25,000 to $100,000 a year gambled at least once a year.

"Nationwide we like to gamble. It crosses age, sex and regional boundaries," Brooks said. "Casinos are things people seek, whether it's around the corner or three time zones away. I was struck by that, especially in a country that is dominated by Republicans and 'red states.' "

The American Gaming Association and Harrah's Entertainment, which have been polling gambling attitudes for the past several years, have been trying to say as much for years. The public has come to expect such data from companies that aim to spread legalized gambling in as many states as possible.

Directions based the research on an Internet survey of 1,085 randomly-selected people. The respondents came from a master list of millions of people who have agreed to participate in various surveys.

"The majority of (research) done these days is done on Internet panels. The results match up well" with results using other methods, Brooks said. The interviews are conducted at home, where an estimated two thirds of Americans have access to the Internet.

Liz Benston covers gaming for In Business Las Vegas and its sister publication, the Las Vegas Sun. She can be reached at (702) 259-4077 or by e-mail at benston@lasvegassun.com.