It’s really not that much of a stretch to think that today’s gamblers are no different than gamblers of yore, the only real difference is what gamblers of yore bet on and what gamblers of today bet on.
Today we gamble on many of the same things that gamblers of yesterday gambled on, with regards to betting on horse racing, cards, craps, and even political elections to name a few, but today’s gamblers have the ability to bet a lot. . wider variety of things including but not limited to church and fire hall bingo, slot machines, poker machines and even state sponsored lotteries, heck, today we even have a state that has an economy built around the gambling halls or what we now call casinos.
It’s a bit hard to believe that it wasn’t all that long ago when a player interested in betting on a sporting event was more or less forced to place their bet through a local bookmaker and therefore had to take the given line if he or she wanted to place a bet, unless of course the same player had access to other “outs”, meaning that this same player had an out-of-town connection that he used to afford himself gain an advantage over the published spread or money line placed in an event.
In days gone by before the invention of the personal computer, a savvy gamer with the right connections could find more than his or her fair share of “Middle’s,” which means if, say, the NFL Blue team was in home against the NFL Red team, it was not that unusual to find the hometown blue team bet with the local books due to hometown sentiment, while the line placed on the visiting red team in their hometown would remain stable or bet downwards.
So a smart guy or gal with the right connections in both the blue city and the red city could find a difference of 2 or 2 1/2 points and sometimes even 3 points on the local town line. to town. if he or she searched long enough and didn’t hesitate to place a bet by finding the difference in posted lines from city to city.
As an example, let’s say the home blue team was favored to win by 5.5 points on the opening line, but by the time of the match, the home city blue supporters had bet the line down to -7 points, meanwhile , fans of the away red team at home bet the line at +4.5 per playing time.
Therefore, the line at game time in the blue city is +/- 7 while the line in the red city is +/- 4.5, this creates what is known as “average”, which which means that there is now a 2.5 point difference between these teams, the worst that can happen is that one bet loses and another bet wins, which means that all one would lose is the “juice” associated with the bet In the meantime, the best that can happen is that the actual score falls somewhere in the middle which allows the player to cash in on both ends.
However, today, sports betting is getting bigger thanks to the availability of the computer at home, cable TV, sports radio and of course the influx of so many sportsbooks abroad. Thus, the days of finding lots of “mids” are long gone, although a shrewd player can still seize an occasional intermediate opportunity if he keeps his eyes open.
The lines drawn on sporting events today are much sharper than in the past, but it all evens out in the end because the odds maker is now not the only one aware of the multitude of information available surrounding any given event. Given sports, this is of course, due to the large number of gamers today who own a home PC that allows the savvy gamer to not only obtain valuable handicap information via the Internet, but also to “shop online”.
So the real question my friend is “Why should today’s smart gambler bet on sports over other games of chance?”
Quite simply because a gambler has a much better chance of winning consistently when playing sporting events than when playing any casino game, slot or poker machine, the state lottery or any other game of chance. except maybe poker or blackjack, but regardless of whether he plays poker, blackjack or sports, the smart player must have a firm understanding of the game itself and must do their homework.
When it comes to betting on major sports like football, baseball, basketball and hockey, usually the linemaker places a spread or money line on the game and then the player bets on this line. spread or money line, however, most newbies, as well as many so-called experienced players, make the mistake of believing that the spread or money line placed on a sporting event is a true indicator of strength and the skill of one team versus the strength and skill of the opposing team.
The truth of the matter is that the spread or money line placed in a game is meant to elicit equal action from the player on both teams involved, the winner wins their wager while the loser pays the “juice” associated with the wager. that he or she placed, thus creating the commission that the broker or bookmaker/sportsbook makes for handling the transaction between winning and losing players.
The serious gambler understands that it is not the bookie or sportsbook that is their enemy, the real enemy is actually the “Joe’s Public” punter who places uninformed and stubborn bets which of course cause what is known as line movement.
Line movement is simply the +/- difference in what the opening margin or money line was in a particular event versus what the closing numbers were in the same event, of course it should be understood that many factors can influence and will influence the opening and closing. numbers in an event, including but not limited to weather and injuries, but always remember that it is the same “Joe’s public” bettor who still influences the established line when they learn of possible weather or injuries, among other things and therefore often creates an overreaction regarding line movement.
My friend it’s all about odds and percentages when it comes to betting and that’s what really sets sports betting apart from other forms of betting, take a moment and think about it, if you bet on a football match, for For example, and the posted line is -3 or -5 or less whatever, it’s still a 50% proposition on a straight bet that you’re right or wrong, making the odds essentially the same as throwing a currency.
Of course, you have to keep in mind that you pay more when you lose, so in a straight bet you pay 11 to 10 odds or 110 to 100 dollars wagered, thus the true “Break even” point or win percentage. what to achieve in the straight line. bets is actually 52.38% to avoid a monetary loss.
Considering that 52.38% is the breakeven point for outright betting, a player should realize that anything above this percentage is money won, most honest professional tipsters achieve winning percentages. 57-60% over the course of a season, often the most experienced handicapper can achieve 60-65% win rates if the ball bounces well here and there over the course of the season.
I pointed out the above regarding what the percentage of “Break even” is versus how honest pros do over the course of a full season for a reason, have you ever noticed those ads placed in the Friday edition of the USA newspaper Today by scammers claiming 80% or 85% or 90% winning percentages?
Ever see those “Can’t Lose” or “Sure Winner” or “Game of the Year” claims? Heck, if you get up early enough on Saturday or Sunday morning, you might even catch a scam show or two on TV with some of the same people whose ads ran in the previous Friday’s USA Today.
Advertisements like the ones described above are designed to fool poor souls who have most likely dug holes for themselves and are panicking. In many cases, these panicked losers will do or pay anything for a “I can’t lose.” or “Sure Winner”, or “Game of the Year”, I would even venture to guess that this type of desperate player knows in his heart that those claims of 80%, 85% or 90% winners are false.
So how did this desperate player get into his situation to begin with? It happens season after season due to the inability to start with a dedicated starting budget that is used solely for sports betting, negating the need to use money marked up for the mortgage or car payment.
A dedicated starting bankroll and a firm understanding of money management are a must if anyone is to survive the peaks and valleys and ups and downs of the season-long marathon that is involved with sports betting.
I’ll talk about the different aspects of money management and other topics in another article, but for now keep in mind the key points presented in this article, the importance of doing your homework, understanding that the line or odds placed in a contest are intended to getting “equal action” which means Joe Public is the reason for the line move, which of course amplifies the importance of seeking the best available line across multiple “exits” while keeping an eye out for possibilities in between .