Unless you have been living under a rock, you are familiar with the concept of online sports betting. Marketing efforts have made it part of every other commercial, featuring sportsbooks that make billions of dollars in revenue each year.
If you plan to get in on the action and begin sports betting, you should go into it with a strategy. Having a strategy means being able to apply logic to your wagers and puts you in a better position to win more often than not.
Know the Odds
Before you run out to take advantage of things like the bet365 UK sign-up offer, you need to know how the odds work. They are largely the same no matter what sport, which makes it a bit easier to keep up for the newer bettors. Ultimately, you need to know what the odds mean before making a bet.
Odds tell you the probability of the result before you make a wager. The closer to +100 you get, the closer to 50/50 the odds are. Know why the odds change, too. Injuries and weather can swing the odds on a game, for instance. It also helps to look into odds calculators when going over the odds, too.
Manage Your Bankroll
No matter what betting strategies you consider, bankroll management is at the top of the list. Think about sports betting as an investment. When you invest both time and money into it, the goal is to win more money (a stronger ROI). A good place to start with managing your bankroll is knowing how much to bet.
Each wager will depend on how big your bankroll is. A good rule of thumb is to stick to 1-2% of your bankroll. Though you may not necessarily score a huge win, you will navigate the losing streaks that inevitably come. “Live to fight another day” is important in sports betting and bankroll management will help ensure that you always have something to work with.
Shop the Lines
Every bettor has their tips and tricks for succeeding. Without a doubt, one of the best things one could do to improve their chances of making money is to shop the lines. Each sportsbook has its own odds and lines, so don’t just settle for one.
Though it may seem like a small difference, it adds up. Getting +460 on an underdog at one site versus +450 at another means an additional $10 in profit should the bet hit. Those small differences add up over time, playing a bigger role on your bottom line as a sports bettor.
Stay Away from Parlays
One thing that you will notice quickly about sports betting is the popularity of parlays. Follow any sports betting account on social media and you will no doubt find a litany of users who are putting together a major parlay with huge payout potential. The fact of the matter is that those parlays are going to fail nearly every time.
Parlays are inherently tougher to hit because you need to get more than one pick right. Even a two-leg parlay is tougher to hit than it seems. The more legs you have, the tougher it is to win those bets. Even throwing a little on parlays will add up over time.
Parlays are going to wind up draining your bankroll more than anything else. They may be fun to do every once in a while but avoid making bets on parlays regularly because they will hurt your chances of growing a healthy bankroll and improving on your investment.
