Spread betting is a leveraged product which means investors only need to deposit a small percentage of the position's value. For example, if the value of a position is $50,000 and the margin. The point spread is another form of betting odds that’s very similar to a moneyline bet. The difference is that in addition to predicting who will win the game, the point spread includes a margin of victory. Point spread bets are one of the most popular forms of bets you’ll find in almost any brick and mortar or online sportsbook anywhere in the world. These bets allow the sportsbooks to offer action on games where the teams aren’t evenly matched without losing their butts and having to close their doors.
If you place wagers on US sports, then chances are high that you’ve heard of point spreads. Here’s how they work; if a game has Patriots -9.0 and Vikings +9.0, the Patriots are 9.0 point favorites and the Vikings are 9.0 point underdogs. Unless otherwise stated, no matter which team you bet on, you’ll be required to risk $1.10 for each $1.00 you want to win. For Patriots bettors to prevail, they need their team to win by 10 or more points. A 9-point Patriot victory would be a push (a tie). For Vikings bettors to take home the victory, they need to either win the game or lose by less than 9 points. Diamond jo casino dubuque entertainment.
Point spreads are used since most recreational bettors prefer to wager even money propositions. In the above example, if there was no point spread, only moneyline betting would exist. So, if odds makers are giving the New England Patriots a 73% chance of winning a game, then in order to take bets and still have a small profit margin, the bookmaker would have no choice but to require Patriot bettors to stake $3.00 or more for each $1.00 they want to win.
With a point spread, the odds are balanced, so you usually have to risk just $1.10 to win $1.00. This makes the point spreads appealing to recreational bettors, who often think it’s easy to make money from them. We have to be honest with you; it’s NOT easy, but it IS possible. The strategy we cover in this article should help!
Recommended Reading
We’ve provided a brief explanation of point spreads in our introduction here, but if you’d like to know more about this type of wager then please read our beginner’s guide to betting point spreads.
Simple Tips for Point Spread BettingFootball Betting Odds Explained
Strategy for betting point spreads is obviously different for each sport and league, but these four tips are general enough to apply to them all.
List of poker hands printable. Let’s go over each of these tips in a little more detail.
Take Advantage of Bonus Offers
One way to make money from sports betting is to open an account at an online betting site and take advantage of their sign up bonus. This gives you extra money to wager with, and since point spreads are so straightforward, it can be relatively easy to meet the associated wagering requirements and still come out ahead. Repeating this process at multiple betting sites will maximize your potential returns! We just ask that you please stick with reputable sites, like any of the ones that we recommend.
Use Multiple Betting Sites
We already mentioned how using multiple betting sites allows you to take advantage of multiple bonus offers. That’s not the only benefit either. Since point spreads vary between sites, one of the best ways to beat these wagers is to compare the different spreads in order to find which one is the most favorable. This doesn’t take nearly as long as you might think, and it will make a huge difference to your bottom line over time.
Let’s take a hypothetical game between the Buffalo Bills and the New England Patriots as an example. One site might have the spread as follows.
Point Spread
+7
-7
Another site might offer a slightly different spread.
Point Spread
+7.5
-7.5
If you’re betting in favor of the Patriots, then you should be betting with Bookmaker A. If the Patriots win by more than seven points, then you’ll win with either bookmaker. However, if they win by exactly seven points, you’ll lose with Bookmaker B. With Bookmaker A, you’ll push and get your stake returned.
On the other hand, if you’re betting on the Bills, then Bookmaker B will be your best option. A Bills loss of exactly seven points would be a push at Bookmaker A, but it would be a win for you at Bookmaker B.
It’s only a half-point difference, and that might not seem like a lot. The bookmakers tend to be very accurate with their spreads though, and an extra half-point in your favor can easily add up to extra profits over time.
Be Careful of Road Favorites
Many novice bettors fail to understand the impact of home advantage when wagering on sport events. When looking at the board for potential wagers, these bettors tend to get excited and bet on lots of superior teams favored on the road against weaker opponents. The betting market is so much more advanced than this, and for the most part point spreads are always going to be 50/50 propositions.
How To Bet The Spread In FootballPlease Note
We’re not saying that you should never bet on road favorites. Just make sure that you have good reasons to do so. Keep in mind; they don’t just need to win, they need to win by a greater margin than the spread suggests they will.
Understand Key Numbers
While understanding key numbers is beneficial for betting point spreads on any sport, key numbers are known for having the most significance in football. In NFL football, most games are decided by three or seven points. Therefore, when shopping the odds, the difference between -7.0 and -6.5 is far greater than the difference between -5.5 and -5.0.
With some betting sites odds, certain games are priced differently than risking $1.10 to win $1.00 (which is called -110 odds). For example, you might see the Giants priced at -105 and +7 in a game against the Jets. Now, you only have to risk $1.05 to win $1.00. This is obviously better odds, but it’s very likely that they will lose by exactly seven to give you a push. Taking -110 and +7.5 with an alternative bookmaker is actually the better bet.
Getting your head around these kind of intricacies, as well as knowing the relevant key numbers, is vital if you want to bet on the point spreads successfully.
Now that we’ve got the basic tips covered, we want to provide you with some point spread betting tips specific to two of the most popular US sports: football and basketball.
Point Spread Betting in Football
One of the best ways to beat football point spread betting is to use teasers. A teaser is a form of a parlay bet using modified point spreads. Each point spread you select is moved 6 points in your favor. For example, let’s say you’re interested in betting on the following.
-7
-3.5
+7
A teaser would give you a single wager with the following spreads.
+1
What Does Spread Mean In Football
+3.5
+13
Each selection is obviously easier to get right with the spread moved in your favor, but you do have to get all three correct in order for your wager to win.
Recommended Reading
If you want to learn how to beat this form of wagering, you’ll definitely want to read our article on betting football teasers.
Another way to beat football point spreads is to shop for off market prices. For example, let’s say you’re shopping online betting sites and see every site is offering Vikings +7.0. Then, you stumble upon one site that’s offering +7.5. There’s a good chance that this is a +EV wager, simply because it is out of sync with every other site. Please note that this strategy isn’t quite the same as simply shopping for the best lines. Here, you’re specifically looking for wagers that are +EV because they’re against the market.
It’s also important to consider whether or not there’s any correlation between the point spread and the betting total. If they are, a parlay wager is a good way to get maximum value. For example, a college football point spread +24.5 parlayed with under 48 points in the same game might be a great parlay bet. If the +24.5 team covers the point spread, then there’s an increased chance that the game also goes under the posted total of 48.
Finally, you might want to think about learning the correct strategies for buying half-points in football. While many people are against this method, we’re here to tell you that there are some circumstances where buying points can be profitable.
Point Spread Betting in Basketball
Buying half points is a strategy that can work for basketball too. Most online betting sites offer bettors the ability to purchase half-points at 10 cents each. Let’s say the Lakers are -6.5 at odds of -110 for example. Here of some of the options you can expect to see.
-120
-130
-140
A great strategy for betting basketball point spreads is to shop dozens of betting sites for the best line, and then purchase as many half points as possible (provided they are priced 10 cents each).
When using this strategy, it’s helpful to know the most common margins of victory in NBA basketball and how often they occur.
This information shows us that nearly half the games finish with one of the eight point margins listed, and this isn’t the result of variance. Some margins of victory occur more frequently than others because of end game strategy. The winning team is often found running the clock, while the losing team if often found intentionally fouling.
The key here is to target the point spread five and seven, because these are virtually tied as the most common margins of victory. It’s important to recognize that most betting sites are only willing to sell 2 or 3 half points for 10 cents each, after which point they start charging more. Some sites sell up to four half points at this price though.
To show how this can be exploited, take a point spread of -8.5 at odds of -110. This is a 50/50 proposition. Let’s assume you’ve purchased enough points to move the spread to -6.5 at odds of -150. Now, you’d win instead of lose 6.24% of the time they win by 8, and 6.59% of the time they win by 7. Add these together with the 50% from the original proposition, and we get 62.83%.
Go to our odds converter, and you’ll see that the implied probability of -150 is 60%. This means you need to win 60% of the time to break even. However, our handicapping shows the actual probability of winning is 62.38%.
If we risked $150 to win $100 on this -150 line, 62.38% of the time we would win $100. And 37.62% of the time we would lose $150. This gives us an expected profit of $5.95 for every $150 risked.
Warning
If you only make large +EV bets such as the basketball example above, betting sites will limit the amount you’re allowed to wager. It’s not uncommon for online bookmakers to spot a skilled bettor and say, “Okay you can keep wagering here, but the maximum you’re allowed to bet per game is $500.00.”
If you keep betting and winning, they might decrease your limits even further. That’s why we recommend trying to hide the fact that you’re so sharp. By placing some random wagers and occasionally spending some time at their casino, you’ll have a much better chance of staying under the radar. This is also another good reason for using multiple sites. Since there are so many different reputable betting sites to choose from, it would take you a long time to get limited at every single one of them.
Point spread bets are one of the most popular forms of bets you’ll find in almost any brick and mortar or online sportsbook anywhere in the world.
These bets allow the sportsbooks to offer action on games where the teams aren’t evenly matched without losing their butts and having to close their doors. If they allowed the same bet on both sides of a contest, everyone would bet on the favorite, and the sportsbook would get crushed financially.
If you recall from reading our breakdown of Moneyline Bets, the sportsbook will adjust the amounts they pay out on winning bets to accommodate the unevenness of the two teams.
A bet on a team that is a favorite to win will net you a smaller payout than even money, and a bet on a team that is an underdog will net you a larger payout than even money.
Point spreads are another method the books will use to account for this unevenness and to create a “level playing field”. As you’ll see, this method is sometimes much more “user-friendly” and is easier for sports bettors to understand and follow.
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Remember, just because a method of betting is simpler does not mean that it offers any worse odds or less of a chance to win big.
As we’ve already hinted at, a point spread is a way for the sportsbook to manipulate bets to accommodate for the differences in skills between the two players or two teams. Point spreads allow the sportsbooks to level the playing field and offer bets that reward the bettor appropriately for their predictions.
Remember when you were little and you would play basketball or any sport with someone who was older and bigger than you? Obviously, you stood no chance at beating them so they would “spot” you some points to try and give you a shot to win.
For example:
You might be playing a basketball game where the first to 10 points wins, and they would spot you 5 points. This means that you started the game 5 points ahead of them and only had to score 5 more points to win.
This is pretty similar to what is going on with a point spread. The sportsbook will allow you to bet on either team and will pay you out the exact same amount for picking either side.
However, they will be spotting points to the team they think is an underdog.
Here’s an example:
Let’s say the Dallas Cowboys are playing a football game against the Detroit Lions. The sportsbook knows that the Cowboys are a much better team than the Lions and they assume that the Cowboys will probably win the game by 7 or 8 points.
That being the case, they would offer the following bets to you:
-7.5
+7.5
What does this all mean? Well, the first column is who you are betting on. The second column is the point spread, and the third column is the payout. Let’s look at each bet line by line and talk about what would happen in several different outcomes.
If you placed the first bet, you would be betting that Dallas would win the game by MORE than 7.5 points. Here are the potential outcomes:
You would be paid out at -110 for a correct bet here.
If you placed the second bet, you would be betting that Detroit would either win the game outright or lose by LESS than 7.5 points.
Yes, you can still win this bet even if Detroit loses the game. Here are the potential outcomes:
You would be paid out at -110 for a correct bet here.
So, if you took the second bet and the final score was this:
You would win your bet on Detroit because they lost by 7 or fewer points. Basically, they outperformed how the sportsbook thought they would.
Effectively, that is all you are betting on with point spreads. You are trying to bet which team is going to outperform the sportsbook’s prediction on them. The team doesn’t have to win the game; they only have to not lose as badly as the book thinks they are going to and you will win your bet.
Point Spread Payouts
Unlike moneyline bets, point spread bets are almost always paid out at the exact same rate on both sides. We say almost always because sportsbooks will do strange things from time to time and we don’t want you to lose your mind if you run into one doing so.
Typically, these bets are all paid out at -110. This means that for a $100 wager, you will get $90.91 in profit. If you bet the other side of the game, you will receive the exact same payout.
Why aren’t you getting an even $100 back? This is the house juice. This is how the sportsbook makes their money. If they paid everyone back evenly, they wouldn’t make any money unless they were getting in on the action and taking more bets on one side of the game versus the other.
Sometimes you will see different payout odds listed and sometimes you will see no payout odds listed. When you see no payout odds listed, this almost always means they are paying out at the standard -110. If it were anything different, they would certainly let you know.
Just to be sure, check your ticket before you place your bet if you’re betting online or check it after while you’re at the counter if you are betting in a brick and mortar location.
Occasionally, online sites will offer these bets at -105 which is definitely something to be on the lookout for. This means that for a $100 bet, you would get $95.24 in profit for a correct bet on either side. This might not seem like a lot, but in the long run, it is HUGE. It’s almost a 5% increase in profit which in a game of trying to find slight edges is massive.
We have seen some sportsbooks that will offer point spread bets with different payout odds associated. Sometimes they will offer different odds for different lines, and sometimes they will just have one side different than the other.
Again, these are rare, but just be on the lookout before you place a bet to make sure you are betting exactly what you want.
Additional Thoughts
We added this section as a catch all for the information that we wanted to share with you that didn’t fit neatly into the above sections.
This is a phrase you will hear uttered a lot around sportsbooks or in gambling circles at bars. We wanted to point out that usually when someone is asking this question about a team sport, they are referring to the point spread.
With our above example of Dallas and Detroit, if we asked what the line was on the game, you would respond, “Dallas minus seven and a half.”
The reason we mentioned that this is only the case for team sports is things with individual competitors usually aren’t going to be able to have a point spread based on the nature of the sport.
For example, even though the rounds are scored by points in boxing and MMA, there is no point spread. You can only bet the moneyline so that would be what is responded.
We just want to make sure you’re up to speed with all of the cool lingo!
Betting Spread Explained
If you’re purely a recreational bettor who loves to bet on your own team, this can be a great way to do that without setting money on fire if your team isn’t the best in the league. Even if your team is supposed to lose the game, you can still win as long as they outperform how the sportsbooks think they are going to do.
Betting Lines Explained
Remember, this is really only a perk if you are solely a recreational bettor who doesn’t care too much about your bottom line and just wants to have some fun.
Football Spread Betting Explained
Betting on “your team” has a tendency to involve way too much emotion and can be a bad strategy for those worried about their bottom line profitability.
In Gambling What Is The Spread
But, if you just want to have some fun and cheer on your team in every single game, this is great.
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