Different Sites Have Different Rules…
The next sports betting tip is how to place your bets. After making your account, learn the process of making online sports bets. It is better to read the rules of the bookmaker because there rules may vary from one website to another. For instance at some of the sites, instead of entering how much you want to bet, you enter how much you want to win. This might lead to confusion at times. If you are unsure of how things work at a particular sports betting establishment you can write an email about anything you are unable to understand with regard to the sports betting. Many of these sports betting sites also provide you with a phone number you can call to help you through the problems.Basic Fundamentals of Sport Betting:
Straight Bets (Used mainly at Sports Prime Time)- Point Spreads
- Moneylines
- Totals
Point Spreads and Totals work on the 110/100 principle (except when otherwise noted), which means the bettor must risk $110 for every $100 wager they want to win. Another common way this is explained is that the bettor must risk 10% (commonly referred to as juice) of what they want to win.
So, if you place a $100 wager then $110 is taken out of your wagering account (this covers the $100 wager plus the 10% juice). If you win the wager then the $110 is returned to your account plus the $100 won. If your wager loses then the $100 wager plus the 10% in juice is kept by the sportsbook.
Point Spreads
How to wager on point spreads:Point spread sports betting is the most common form of wagering. Let's say the Patriots are playing Jets this Sunday, everyone knows the Patriots will easily defeat the Jets.
What point spread wagering asks is not who is going to win. but by how much is a particular team going to win by.
For our example we will say the Patriots are a 7 point favorite over the Jets.
This is the way that the game is portrayed visually (the way you will see it on your computer screen when placing a bet):
| 303 | Patriots | -7 |
| 304 | Jets | +7 |
These two lines are filled with information you must know to wager on the game.
1. The numbers on the left (numbers 303 & 304) are called the rotation numbers. These are the numbers assigned to the teams for the purposes of betting; these numbers are universal throughout the betting community.
2. The Patriots are listed on top of the Jets, this tells the player that the Patriots are the visiting team.
3. The -7 next to the Patriots shows that the Patriots are a 7 point favorite over the Jets.
What this Means:
If you place a wager on the Patriots you need the Patriots to win by 8 points or more to win your bet.
| PATRIOTS | 21 |
| JETS | 10 |
You would win your bet.
| PATRIOTS | 10 |
| JETS | 7 |
You would lose your bet, even though the Patriots won the game. they did not "cover" the point spread.
| PATRIOTS | 14 |
| JETS | 7 |
You would push* your bet.
*A push means that, taking the point spread into account, the game was a tie. In the case of a push all funds are returned to you. your wager plus the juice.
If the final score was:
| PATRIOTS | 21 |
| JETS | 10 |
You would lose your bet.
| PATRIOTS | 10 |
| JETS | 7 |
You would win your bet.
| PATRIOTS | 14 |
| JETS | 7 |
You would push* your bet.
Money Lines
How to wager on the money line:Wagering the money line is different from point spread betting in that you have to pick the winner, that's it! Money lines are usually available on sports that have a point spread.
In this example, the Giants are playing the Cowboys and it's -3 for the Giants. You think the Giants will win by only by 2 points. In this case you might want to bet the money line.
This is how money lines are displayed: (the way you will see it on your computer screen when deciding on what to bet):
| Moneyline | |||
| 501 | Giants | -3 | -155 |
| 502 | Cowboys | +3 | +135 |
Money line wagers are based on a $100 bets, so if you were to bet the Giants on the money line you would have to risk $155 to win $100. The flip side is if you wanted to bet the Cowboys in our example, for every $100 you wager, you would win $135 in return assuming the Cowboys won the game outright.
This is a quick summary of the differences between point spread and money line wagering.
- If you bet on the favorite using the point spread, the favorite has to win by more points than in the spread.
- If you bet on the underdog using the point spread, the underdog can lose by a point less than the spread for you to win.
- If you bet on the favorite in a money line, you risk more money, but the favorite just needs to win.
- If you bet on the underdog in a money line, you risk less to win more, but the underdog must win outright.
Totals (Over/Under)
How to wager on totals:Wagering on the total of a game is very simple. All you are betting on is whether or not the final score will go "over" or "under" the total posted by the sportsbook.
| Moneyline | Total | |||
| 501 | Giants | -3 | -155 | Over 35 |
| 502 | Cowboys | +3 | +135 | Under 35 |
The total of a game is always posted on the same line as the favorite. So what these lines tell you is that the total in the Giants, Cowboys game is 35 points.
If you bet over the total and the final score is:
| GIANTS | 21 |
| COWBOYS | 17 |
| Total = 38 | |
You would win your wager.
| GIANTS | 19 |
| COWBOYS | 14 |
| Total = 33 | |
You would lose your wager.
| GIANTS | 21 |
| COWBOYS | 14 |
| Total = 35 | |
You would push* your bet.
*A push means that, taking the point spread into account, the game was a tie. In the case of a push all funds are returned to you. your wager plus the juice.
Conversely, if you bet UNDER the total:
If you bet under the total and the final score is:
| GIANTS | 21 |
| COWBOYS | 17 |
| Total = 38 | |
You would lose your wager.
| GIANTS | 19 |
| COWBOYS | 14 |
| Total = 33 | |
You would win your wager.
| GIANTS | 21 |
| COWBOYS | 14 |
| Total = 35 | |
You would push* your bet.
NOTE: The normal 110/100 juice applies to totals wagering except when otherwise noted.
Basic Objectives of Sport Betting
On the surface, it’s quite simple – TO WIN. But looking at it more analytically, to accomplish that end, the player must realize some “sub-objectives”, if you will.They are:
- NOT necessarily to pick the best team in a game, but to recognize SITUATIONS which are right for a play, and to exploit those situations.
- To come out at the end with a PROFIT. To do this, the player does NOT have to win every game, or even necessarily a majority of games. If you bet 10 games and lost seven of them, you lost $110 a game, or $770, but on the three you won you played $500 apiece, you would be $730 ahead of the game, despite a record of 3-7, wouldn’t you? The key was the apportionment of funds. Just MAKE MONEY.
- To play SELECTIVELY, meaning that the player doesn’t make a bet for the sake of making a bet, but rather because there’s a good reason to do so. Just because ESPN televises a college game on Thursday night doesn’t necessarily mean you have to play the game. In fact, it’s often the wrong time to play. Players who feel they have to bet a game just so they can watch it probably should not watch it, but go to a movie instead. Also, people who “play the board” do not last long at all. Remember, the more games you play, the less significant your “margin” is going to be. For example, if you go 10-6, and played $100 on each game, you win $1000 and lose $660 for a total of $340 profit. If you went 6-2, still a margin of four games, you’d win $600 and lose back $220 for a $380 profit. The 11/10 can eat you up with more games. Think quality, not quantity.
- To find situations that present good VALUE in the pointspread, meaning, in layman’s terms, that the player has a “good deal” with the line he is playing the game at. Value is KEY to finding success in sports betting.
- Anticipate INTANGIBLES about the teams the player is backing. Knowing when a team is primed for a top effort, when scheduling is in their favor, when they’re tired, hurt, dissension-ridden, etc. is information that means something. Do homework. If you put some time in, you’ve already got a leg up on the vast majority of players.
- To avoid falling into TRAPS on games. The smart player thoroughly examines his options, especially those games that look, on the surface, “too good to be true," or “locks."
- To avoid committing FOOLISH MISTAKES with money. Chasing losers, playing with “scared” money, betting a maximum amount on every game, and betting too much on a given play are just a few of the pitfalls the smart player has to overcome. A classic case is Monday Night Football, which was created, it seems, as a “bailout” night for people who lost over the weekend. Losing players tend to “load in” on Monday night in the hope of getting the losses back. And all novices seem to play it big, whether there’s really a play there or not. The Monday night NFL game is truly a test of the player’s discipline.
- To realize the goal is LONG-TERM results, not those in the short-term. Anybody can win some games over a weekend, but it really takes skill to beat the 11/10 over the long haul. Players should not get too high or too low over any one week, because it’s a long season.
TheJMan