Betting Basics
Automated Betting Systems
- Beginner friendly
- Top performing systems
- Done for you picks
- Over 80% win rate
- Transparent results
- Fully verified
Point Spread Betting
- Comprehensive breakdown
- Easy calculating equations
- Spread chart systems
- Insider tips
- Point spread forecast picks
Over/Under Betting
- Expert tips
- Winning strategies
- Comprehensive explainations
- Approachable betting methods
- How to win like a professional
Fantasy/eSports Betting
- Inside look into the future of sports betting
- Companies that invest in eSports
- Top automated fantasy sports betting systems
- How to get in on the action
Free Betting Systems
- No obligations trial periods
- Free experts tips and strategies
- Free winning picks
- Insiders sports betting eBook downloads
Introduction: All levels are welcome
Money line betting
This is a straightforward bet type. Betting on the money line is to place a wager on the team that you predict might win. When placing your bets, you have two choices, bet on the “favorite” or “underdog.” You can get game predictions from a reputable handicapping service or simply use your own analyzing stats. Either way money line betting is a beginner friendly bet type that gives you a since on how to bet in the sportsbooks.
Odds betting
Three most-common odds are American, fractional and decimal. They’re different formats, but give sports bettors the same information. Even if you’re new to sports betting, it is a skill that is easy to understand.
Learning how to read betting odds starts with knowing the various formats sportsbooks use to display betting lines. Here is a breakdown of the three different formats.
American odds
US odds or moneyline odds, are the lines most commonly used in the United States and Canada.
American odds show how much a wager is worth based on the dollar amount and displays a plus (+) or minus (-) value.
Reading American Odds
How lines are in the sportsbooks
For example, the Las Angeles Rams were facing the Seattle Seahawks, it would look like this at a sportsbook:
- Seattle Seahawks +130
- Las Angeles Rams -110
Real money example
The Seahawks are the underdog, indicated by the plus sign. If you wagered $100 on Seahawks and they won, you’d make $130 in profit. The Rams have a minus sign because they are the favorite. This line indicates how much you need to bet to win $100. In this example, you need to bet a $110 wager to win $100 profit.
(+) and (-) breakdown
The (-) indicates how much you need to bet in order to win a profit. And the (+) indicates how you will win on the dollar amount you place. Odds even the playing field, betting the underdog is worth more since the chances of them winning are slightly less.
Calculating American Odds
Real game scenario
A bet on Vikings would be riskier but offers a bigger payout. This example is from week 17 NFL Pre-season 2021-2022. Packers win 37-10. If you were to bet like the example above on Packers, you would’ve won $320 total profit.
Betting example explained
**We are only using $100 bet as a example. You don’t necessarily have to bet $100, and the profit isn’t always $100 as well. The jackpot is up to the sportsbooks as far as the winnings. But for the purpose of these examples, it’s easier to use nice round numbers. **
Calculating Odds Example
- Green Bay Packers -220
- Bet $220 to win $100 in profit
- Total payout is $320
- Minnesota Vikings +300
- If you bet $100 on Vikings, you would win $300
- Total profit $400
How it Works
Fractional Odds
Fractional odds (or traditional odds) are popular in Ireland and with UK bookmakers. They are represented with a slash (/) or hyphen (-) and the world’s largest bookmakers refer to this method.
Reading Fractional Odds
A fractional listing of 5/1 (five-to-one) odds mean that would you win $5 for every $1 you wager, along with your dollar back. You will receive your bet ($1) plus the profit ($5), which is the total payout amount of $6. For example, if you bet $10 at 5/1 and win, you get a total payout of $60 ($50 profit + $10 bet).
Calculating Fractional Odds
According to the investopedia website, the total (potential) return on a bet can be stated like this:
Total Payout = (Wager ✖️ (Numerator➗Denominator)) ➕ Initial Wager
Fractional Odds Examples
Let’s use the following odds on the three teams most likely to win the 2022 NBA Championship:
- Brooklyn Nets: 13/5
- Golden State Warriors: 9/2
- Milwaukee Bucks: 7/1
The Brooklyn Nets are the favorites, over the Golden State and Milwaukee. You would profit $13 with every $5 you wager on Brooklyn to win. You would profit $9 for each $2 bet for Golden State to win. Milwaukee, you’d profit $7 for every $1 bet.
In the example above, if you bet $100 on Brooklyn to win, you could make a $260 profit (13 divided by 5=2.6 x $100=$260) and get back your initial wager of $100, which is a total payout of $360. If you wager $100 on Golden State to win, you could receive a profit of $450 (9 divided by 2= 4.5 x $100= $450) plus the $100 initial wager, with a total payout of $550.
The potential profit for a Milwaukee win would be even higher because you could make a profit of $700 (7 divided by 1= 7 x $100= $700), plus the initial wager of $100 return in a total payout of $800.
01
Decimal Odds
Decimal odds are a more common format among European and Australian sportsbooks. It can might seem intimidating to those use to US odds or fractional odds, but they’re just as useful when you know how to read them.
02
Reading Decimal Odds
These are a little easier to work with and understand. The favorites and underdogs can be identified easily by looking at the numbers.
The decimal number represents the total payout, rather than the profit. That means your bet is already included in the decimal number. No need to add back your wager, which makes total payout calculation easier.
The decimal point is based on total payout including the initial wager. Whatever you’ve wagered, multiply it by the odds to figure out the total payout.
If a team is posted at 2.00, that means you’ll double your money with a winning ticket. Usually, if a team is lower than 2.00 it’s the favorite, over 2.00 it’s the underdog. You will never see a negative number in decimal odds so a 1.00 is your initial wager.
03
Calculating Decimal Odds
The total potential return on a wager is calculated by using the following:
Wager x Decimal Odd Number = Total Payout
If the Denver Nuggets posted NBA odds of 1.50 on a NBA game, and you wagered $100, multiply it by 1.50 and you’d get $150, a profit of $50. Another example, Brooklyn Nets posted 2.25 odds. If you place a $100 bet and won, your return would be $125, for a total profit of $225. In these examples, we multiplied the amount wagered by the odds to figure out the total payout. Bet ($) times (x) the profit (decimal) equals (=) total profit. Job Done!
Quora Questions
Check out some specified sports betting questions and answers that can help you up your game!
What happens when a bet is a push?
Should sports betting be legal, regulated, and/or taxed?
For the full written answer, checkout the link here:
How are sports gambling winnings taxed?
For the full written answer, checkout the link here:
Do you also think it’s a very profitable strategy to always bet “against draw results” on Betfair?
For the full written answer, checkout the link here:
How exactly does arbitrage betting work?
For the full written answer, checkout the link here:
Which are the best soccer betting algorithms or mathematical strategies?
For the full written answer, checkout the link here:
How can I verify my sports betting picks?
For the full written answer, checkout the link here:
What do numbers like +150 mean in betting odds?
For the full written answer, checkout the link here:
Can you still gamble at the casino where you are employed?
For the full written answer, checkout the link here:
Is it too early to bet on the Super Bowl?
For the full written answer, checkout the link here:
Public Percentage
Fade the Public
- When you become more familiar with sports betting and have more confidence in how sports betting works, you can use a more expert or advanced bet type called fading the public. This is just as straightforward as money line betting, only this requires a lot more strategy. Fading the public is going against what the majority are betting on and betting the opposing side.
- This doesn’t always mean you bet on the underdog, this involves doing some research into the sportsbooks public percentage and finding out what the percentage is for each team and, whichever side has the lower percent, you would place your bet on the lower percentage. This clever strategy results in higher payouts for taking a bigger risk.
- Now if doing all that research seems like a lot of effort and time, then consider using a betting tool that has taken the guesswork and configuring for you. Using a sports beting system that has preconfigured picks will help you place your bets with confidence, and give you the winning edge over blindly placing your bets without any analysis envolved.
Converting Odds
Here are the mathematical formulas for each format
Converting American odds to decimal odds
(+) American odds formula: (American odds / 100) + 1 = decimal odds.
(-) American odds formula: 1 – (100 / – American odds) = decimal odds.
Converting American odds to fractional odds
(+) American odds formula: American odds / 100 = fractional odds.
(-) American odds formula: -100 / – American odds = fractional odds.
Converting decimal odds to American odds
Decimal odds of 2.00 or greater formula: (decimal odds – 1) x 100 = American odds.
Decimal odds between 1.01 and 1.99 formula: -100/ (decimal odds – 1) = American odds.
Converting decimal odds to fractional odds
Decimal odds to fractional odds formula: decimal odds – 1 = fractional odds.
Converting fractional odds to decimal odds
Fractional odds to decimal odds formula: (numerator/denominator) + 1 = decimal odds.
Converting fractional odds to American odds
Fractions greater than 1 formula: (fractional value) x 100 = American odds.
Fractions less than 1 formula: -100 / (fractional value) = American odds.
In Conclusion
Final thoughts
When it comes to odds, no matter which format you use, it’s safe to say depending on who’s playing, you will pay more to bet on the favorite, but you can win more by betting on the underdog. It really depends on your betting goals and how you use the information given to choose your strategy. Try to find that balance between risk and reward.