If you have entered the betting arena without a clear strategy in mind then you might emerge out as a very unhappy bettor, not to mention that you might also lose a lot of money at the same time. Just as a doctor would require the right skills before operating over a patient, you also must work hard to understand sports betting odds before making a killing in the betting arena.
Each exciting sport including boxing, tennis, golf, baseball, football, basketball, horse racing, car racing, and many such more qualify for betting. Even if the sport is college football handled by the ncaa or pro football handled by way of the nfl, bets can be placed, even though the odds will certainly differ in every sport and each game too. Odds are also displayed differently in different countries. By way of 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 the UK displays odds as Fractional odds, i.e. 8/8, 8/4, etc.
Sports betting odds also display the underdog team together with the top-dog, the over-under and also the spread through which you must win if you choose to bet for or against the spread. A simple example will show you betting odds easily. For example in an nfl match involving 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 signifies the underdog and also the top-dog. Hence, Buffalo Bills is the top-dog due to the “-” sign while the Giants are the underdogs due to the “+” sign next to it. The figure 11.2 indicates the spread plus the favored team has got to win with the points mentioned on the spread. The figure 120 implies that you will have to bet $120 to win $100 on that spread. The last figure of 160 near the Bills indicates that you need to stake $160 to win $100 along with your stake on that bet because the Bills are the favored team to win. Alternatively, you only have to bet $100 to win $270 should you bet for the Giants as it is the underdog team.
The above mentined was an example of betting odds from the American odds format. Each bookie displays odds in different formats however, 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 need to work on understanding and calculating the betting odds prior to placing your bet.
You might certainly be in a position to bet efficiently and convert most of your placed bets into huge wins if you read and understand sports betting odds. Each sports book will display odds and you’ll have to choose sites that have the best odds that you can bet on. Understanding sports betting odds is essential if you wish to beat the odds and the bookies and make a killing by winning the highest number of bets.
