article 10. different bets

[grandmaster]

I ran across this article and others, that serve as a useful tool in sportsbetting. They cover all aspects more or less, and it may be beneficial to look these over. Its clear that the contributing authors are very educated in sportsbetting, so take from these whatever you want. They may change your mind about some things, bring to light whole new ideas for doing other things, then again, maybe not. Very interesting reading material nonetheless for people like us here at the sportsboard, who are passionate about our hobby. Post any contributing thoughts you have as well.



10. What are some of the different bet types?

Patton:
Side: A wager on one or the other of the two teams (or "sides") in a particular game or contest, with a point spread.

Example: Betting football nfl sports, Lions -7 or Bears +7. Sport betting on the favorite Lions to win by more than 7 points, or betting on the underdog Bears to win, tie, or lose by fewer than 7 points. In effect, you just add 7 points to the Bears' score at the end of the game and see if that's enough for it to surpass the Lions' score.

Total: A wager on whether the total number of points scored by both teams is over or under a particular number.

Example: Lions-Bears Over 44.5 or Under 44.5. If the combined points the two teams score is 45 points or more, the Over sports betting bettors win. If the combined points the two teams score is 44 points or less, the Under sports betting bettors win.

Money line: A wager on the "straight up" winner of the game, with no point spread. Instead of giving up or getting points, as with a spread betting, you are risking more or less money. A winning bet on the favorite will return an amount less than even money, while a winning bet on the underdog will return more than even money.

Example: Lions -200 or Bears +160. If you are sports gambling $200 on the favorite Lions and they win, you win $100. If you are sports gambling $100 on the underdog Bears and they win, you win $160.

Parlay: Betting where you string together two or more wagers. You win if and only if all of the individual wagers that make up the parlay win. The payout takes into account the number of components in the parlay, and the sports betting odds for each, so that generally the more components, the higher the payout.

Example: Golden State -7, Portland +1.5, Washington-Philadelphia Under 190. This is a three team parlay, which typically will pay 6-1. You win the parlay if and only if you win all three of these components individually. You lose the parlay if you lose any of the components. (If you win some and tie some, you win a lesser amount.)

Teaser: Betting where you string together two or more side and/or total wagers, like a parlay, with the difference being that the sports betting line is adjusted a certain number of points on each one in your favor. In football betting you can generally move the line 6, 6.5, or 7 points in your favor, while in basketball betting you can generally move the line 4, 4.5, or 5 points. More unconventional numbers of points are available at some books.

Example: Consider the same point spreads as in the parlay example, only this time, the bettor is playing a three team four point teaser. He would have Golden State -3, Portland +5.5, and Washington-Philadelphia Under 194. (Note that each line is four points better than what the player received above.) Because the betting lines have been adjusted in the player's favor, the payoff is considerably less than for a parlay. It would be less than 2-1 at most books, as opposed to the 6-1 for the parlay.

Turkoman1963:
If-bet: A set of two wagers, where the second is conditional on the outcome of the first. In one version, the second gambling bet is activated if and only if the first gambling bet is won. In another version, the second sports gambling bet is activated if and only if the first sports gambling bet either wins or ties.

Example: If UCLA +14 risk $33 to win $30, then BYU +2 risk $22 to win $20. If UCLA wins, then you win $30 there, plus the second bet now counts, so you lose $22 or win $20 on BYU, putting you up either $8 or $50 overall. If UCLA loses, then you lose $33 there, and the second bet never happens.

Reverse or Action reverse: Like an if-bet, only operating in both directions. In addition to "if A then B," you are also placing a bet of "if B then A."

Example: If UCLA +14 risk $33 to win $30, then BYU +2 risk $22 to win $20; and if BYU +2 risk $22 to win $20, then UCLA +14 risk $33 to win $30. Determine the payoffs the same as with the if-bet above, just remember to calculate both if-bets that make up this reverse. In ncaa basketball betting, it works out that if both the UCLA and BYU bets win, you win $100. If the UCLA bet wins and the BYU bet loses, you lose $14. If the UCLA bets loses and the BYU bet wins, you lose $46. If both bets lose, you lose $55.

Interactive or Betting-in-progress: Bets placed after the event has already started, on a betting line that is continually adjusted as the event progresses.

Example: Internet football betting early in a Bears-Eagles game with the scored tied 0-0, you may be sports gambling $55 to win $45 on the Bears, or $50 to win $50 on the Eagles. Later in the first half with the Bears now up 21-0, you may sports gambling $90 to win $10 on the Bears, or $15 to win $85 on the Eagles.

The Philosopher:
Halves, quarters, or periods: Sides or totals wagers placed on just one part of a game (first or second half; first, second, third, or fourth quarter; first, second, or third period).

Example: Rams are favored by 15 over the Falcons, with a total of 49.5. But for the first half only, the spread might be Rams -8, with a total of 25. Only the points scored in the first half of the game determine the outcome of wagers placed on those sport betting lines.

Action points: Wagers where the amount won or lost varies depending on the margin by which the side or total beats the spread or loses to the spread. You wager a certain amount per point, with a cap of a certain number of points.

Example: Baltimore is favored over Cincinnati by 7. You bet Baltimore -7, $11 to win $10 per point, cap of twenty points maximum. If Baltimore wins 27-19, you win $10 (because they beat the spread betting line by 1 point). If Baltimore wins 37-10, you win $200 (because they beat the spread betting line by 20 points or more). If Baltimore wins 16-10, you lose $11 (because they lost to the spread by 1 point). If Baltimore wins 21-20, you lose $66 (because they lost to the spread betting line by 6 points). If Baltimore loses 43-0, you lose $220 (because they lost to the spread betting line by 20 or more points).

Pleaser, or Reverse teaser: Betting where you string together two or more side and/or total wagers, like a parlay, with the difference being that the line is adjusted a certain number of points on each one in your favor.

Example: Consider the same point spreads as in the parlay example earlier, only this time, the bettor is playing a three team four point pleaser. Golden State -11, Portland -2.5, Washington-Philadelphia Under 186. (Note that each line is four points worse than what the player received in the parlay example.) Because the betting lines have been adjusted against the player, the payoff is considerably greater than for a parlay. It would pay perhaps 18-1, as opposed to the 6-1 for the parlay.

Buckeye:
Futures: Sports betting on future events, often outcomes of an entire season.

Example: Who will win the Super Bowl? Which horse will win the Kentucky Derby? Who will win the Masters? Who will win the World Series? New York Knicks total victories for the season, over or under 45.

The Philosopher:
Round robin: Combination of parlay wagers, where you are betting all possible parlays for a certain number of teams. Just as an action reverse is simply two if-bets (and thus if your sports book doesn't offer action reverses, you can always create them yourself out of if-bets anyway), a round robin is simply multiple parlays.

Example: Round robin of two team parlays with Golden State -7, Portland +1.5, Washington-Philadelphia Under 190. This round robin would yield a total of three such two team parlays, namely 1) Golden State -7, and Portland +1.5. 2) Golden State -7, and Washington-Philadelphia Under 190. 3) Portland +1.5, and Washington-Philadelphia Under 190. The wager is graded exactly the same as if you were sports gambling each of these three parlays individually.

Buying points: This is not a type of wager in itself, but is a way to modify a wager. The player pays less favorable sports betting odds in exchange for moving the spread in his favor. (Much more rarely offered is selling points, which would mean that the player gets more favorable betting odds in exchange for moving the line against him.)

Example: The line is Chargers +7 for the conventional odds of -110. The player buys a half point. So his wager becomes instead Chargers +7.5 at odds of -120.

Props: The miscellaneous, or "none of the above" wagers.

Example: Pretty much anything we haven't already discussed. Holt over or under 5.5 receptions in the Super Bowl. Woods or Azinger to finish ahead of the other in the British Open. At least one team will or will not score three consecutive times in the Packers-Steelers Monday Night Football game. Rams points scored in the Super Bowl versus Bryant points plus rebounds in his basketball game the same day.