Understanding sports betting odds before making a killing
If you have entered the betting arena without a clear strategy in mind then you could emerge out as a very unhappy bettor, not to mention that you could also lose a lot of money at the same time. Just like a doctor would need the right skills before operating over a patient, you also must work tirelessly to understand sports betting odds before making a killing inside the betting arena.
Each fascinating sport such as boxing, tennis, golf, baseball, football, basketball, horse racing, car racing, and several such more qualify for betting. Even when the sport is college football games handled by the ncaa or pro football handled by the nfl, bets may be placed, even though the odds will surely differ in every sport and every game too. Odds are also displayed differently in various countries. For example, USA displays odds as American odds, i.e. -100, -230, etc, while Canada, Australia and Countries in Europe display odds as Decimal odds, i.e. 2.50, 1.30, etc, and also the UK displays odds as Fractional odds, i.e. 8/8, 8/4, etc.
Sports betting odds also display the underdog team along with the top-dog, the over-under and the spread by which you must win if you choose to bet for or against the spread. A simple example will show you betting odds easily. For instance in a nfl match between the Buffalo Bills and the New York Giants, the odds could be displayed as under
Buffalo Bills -11.2 -120 -160
New York Giants +11.2 -120 +270
The first sign near the teams name indicates the underdog and also the top-dog. Hence, Buffalo Bills would be the top-dog because of the "-" sign whereas the Giants would be the underdogs because of the "+" sign beside it. The figure 11.2 signifies the spread and the favored team has to win with the points mentioned on the spread. The figure 120 means that you will need to bet $120 to win $100 on that spread. The last figure of 160 next to the Bills signifies that you need to stake $160 to win $100 together with your stake on that bet since the Bills are the favored team to win. On the other hand, you only have to bet $100 to win $270 should you bet on the Giants as it is the underdog team.
The above mentined was an illustration of betting odds from the American odds format. Each bookie will display odds in different formats but you could quickly convert it in your format when using the odds converter available in most websites. The Internet has today definitely made betting easier although you will definitely have to work towards understanding and calculating the betting odds prior to placing your bet.
You will certainly be able to bet efficiently and convert most of your placed bets into huge wins in case you read and understand sports betting odds. Each sports book will display odds and you will have to choose sites which have the best odds that you can bet on. Understanding sports betting odds is vital if you want to beat the odds and the bookies and make a killing by winning the maximum amount of bets.