How to read sports betting lines and start winning
Betting on sports can be invigorating, while allowing you to earn or lose a lot of money. However, if you enter the betting arena armed with an in-depth knowledge of the right betting strategy you’ll then win money irrespective of the fate of the match. One important move that needs to be implemented is on how to read sports betting lines as this will help you to get the most out of your bet and also keep you from losing more money than you should, in case the other team wins.
While betting on sports isn’t legal practically in most states in the USA, you can still bet when you go online. You’ll be able to practically bet on any sports like as football, basketball, baseball as well as on car races and horse racing, whether it’s college sports or even professional sports including those hosted by pros such as the NFL, NBA, and NHL. While sports betting lines differ in accordance with the sports, most have common features that mention the names of the teams including the favored and the underdog, the odds, the over, under and also on points and the spread, if any for the result of the match. While it seems complicated, an example will help in simplifying the issue easily. For instance, a Dallas against Pittsburgh football match could display the following sports betting lines.
Dallas -11.5-130 -180
Pittsburgh +11.5-130 +220
38.5 ov-130
Firstly, the – sign next to Dallas signifies that this is the favored team to win whereas the + sign next to Pittsburgh indicates that they are the underdog. The next figure i.e. 11.5 on both lines signifies that the favored team has got to win and that too at the very least by the figure or points mentioned on the spread. The next number i.e. 130 that may be mentioned on both lines indicates the amount that you will have to bet in order to win $100 on that bet.
The last numbers on both the lines indicate the money line. If you’d like to bet on any team winning the match outright, then you need to bet on the money line. Should you bet on the underdog then the risk is higher and you win extra money for a lower stake whereas if you bet on the favored team then you will win a smaller prize even as you’ll need to put a higher stake. Hence should you bet on Pittsburg, i.e. the underdogs then your $100 stake will give you an additional $220 if they win the match but when Dallas win and you’ve betted on them then this stake of $180 will earn you a further $100.
The last line indicates the over-under, i.e. 38.5. Hence, irrespective of which team wins, in the event the game finishes having a score of 12-10 and if you have bet under, then 12+10=22, hence you win because it’s lower then 38.5. The number 130 next to the ov indicates how much you have got to bet to win $100 on such a bet.
You can start by gambling only on outright results of each game or match before venturing to gambling on spreads and over-under. The above sample is just an example that can help make your entry into sports betting faster and easier. Once you know on the way to read sports betting lines then you can fine-tune your tactic to win huge amounts of money.