If you’re brand new to the world of sports betting, then you’ll want to read up on some tips and tricks before putting any money down. This guide covers some of the main things which beginners need to be aware of. There are many betting options around. The most popular and easy to discern ones are:
Favorites vs Underdogs
The favorite team may not necessarily be your favorite team when it comes to making this bet. Instead, the favorites are the team which the bookie has pegged as the one to potentially win the match. This puts their opponents in to the position of being the underdogs. In order to see which team is which, you’ll see one team has a minus sign besides its name. The minus sign indicates that these are the favorites. The team with the plus side besides their name indicates that they are the underdogs.
Spreads
Used mainly in high scoring sports bets, spreads are a way in which a bet can be placed on the favourite team or the underdogs. In it, a point spread is where you bet on the margin of victory the teams will win by – ie: -7 for the favourites means they’ve been pegged as winning the match with a victory margin of around seven points.
If you bet on the underdogs, it means that you’ll need the team to win the game by 8 or more points in order for you to claim any money back. If the underdogs win by exactly 7 points, then you’ll only get back the money you originally bet on them (known as a push).
Moneyline Bet
A moneyline bet is the second way in which a bet can be placed on the underdog team or the favorite one. It uses American odds usually to calculate the payout ratios. With it, you bet outright which team will win. The underdogs will again have a plus sign besides their name, and you’ll see things like +150 or +200.
So, if they have a +200 besides their name, it means you’ll need to bet $100 dollars on them and if they win, then you’ll get $200 dollars. It’s vice versa for the favorites. They’ll have -150 or -200 besides their name. If it’s -200 you’ll need to bet $200 to get $100 back. This is why many people prefer betting on the underdogs when there’s a close chance they’ll win since the money ratio is higher.
Total Bet AKA Over/ Under Bet
Apart from being able to bet on favorites vs underdogs, oddsmakers will often allow bets of over/under. To make this kind of bet, you’ll need to make a best guess on what the total number of points scored in a game combined, will be. This is the total or over/under bet. For example, if Real Madrid are going head-to-head with Barcelona in a La Liga match, you may have an over/under bet of 4.5. If they score higher or over this, and you placed an over bet, then you’ll win your bet. If it’s below this, however, you lose your bet. It’s vice versa for placing an under bet.
Now you have some basic knowledge of some typical bet types, you may wonder what’s next. How can you start to use this knowledge to make money? The very next step is to learn how to place a bet and figure out how much to bet.
Where And How Much To Bet
To bet effectively, you’ll need to find a legal and reputable online betting site. Check for legitimate credentials of any online betting site before you put any money down – regardless of how good the odds they’re predicting are. This ensures you don’t lose money on an illegitimate site.
When it comes to how much to bet, it’s a good idea to set your budget well ahead of time and to see if there are any bonuses. A Black Lotus casino bonus can add extra value, so a sportsbook bonus will do the same. If you’re new, it’s best to diversify your betting types to see which ones you feel most comfortable making. It will also allow you the chance to see how many bets you were able to accurately predict.
This can be a good starting point before investing any kind of large amounts into your sports bets. A good rule of thumb is that if you have $100 as your lump sum, then using only $5 per bet will give you a good dispersal and the chance to see where you made the most – and which bets you enjoyed the most.