The sports betting industry has increased in national popularity since the Supreme Court overturning the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) in 2018 and opened the door for individual states to legalize sports betting.
Currently, there are 21 states (plus Washington D.C.) with legal and operational sports betting.
If you're a first-time bettor, the whole sports betting world can be an intimidating place, with a separate language, culture and customs. Don't worry, we're here to help.
In this introduction to sports betting, we'll help you familiarize yourself with key terms and bet types, explain how oddsmakers set lines and teach you the steps to properly make a sports bet.
Table of Contents
- Learn The Language Of Sports Betting
- Sportsbooks, Oddsmakers And Setting The Line
- What is a Power Rating and How to Create Power Ratings
- Favorites, Underdogs and the Point Spread
- What You Should Know About Moneyline Bets
- Point Totals For Games, 1st Half, 2nd Half, Teams, And The Over/Under
- The House Takes Vig, Vigorish Or Juice On Every Bet
- What Betting Advice You Should Take And Avoid
- How to Place a Bet at a Sportsbook or Online
Learn the language of sports betting
Whether placing bets on the Super Bowl, March Madness or an MLB game, bettors need to know some fundamentals about how sports wagering works, along with which options are available. This means learning the basics and understanding some of the language and terminology bettors use. Let’s look at a few of the must-know terms in the sports betting glossary.
Betting Odds
If you are new to the sports betting scene, you will want to get acclimated with all of the different types of betting odds you’ll see. Whether you're looking for NFL odds, NBA odds, NCAA basketball odds, or the odds for any other sport, there are a whole host of different types of betting options. Below, we have highlighted the four main types of betting to give you a basic how-to guide to help you get started:
Favorites vs. Underdogs
For every game, regardless of the sport, oddsmakers first must decide which team is the favorite and which team is the underdog. Many factors go into the process, and it’s not as simple as the team with the better record being favored. Things like home-field advantage, injuries and public perception can help oddsmakers decide one team is more likely to beat the other on a given day.
The favorite is considered the one that is expected to win the game. The underdog, also known simply as the 'dog, is the one expected to lose. However, because favorites are the better team and win most of their games, oddsmakers must make betting fair by providing pros and cons to betting favorites and underdogs; otherwise, everyone would always bet favorites, and the sportsbooks would go bankrupt. As a result, oddsmakers level the playing field by creating risks for betting favorites and providing advantages for betting underdogs. Or put another way, you'll win more money betting $100 on the underdog than on the favorite.
The Spread
You have two basic ways to bet on a favorite or an underdog, which is referred to as betting “the side.” The most popular bet type is the point spread, also known as the spread. The spread is a certain number of points taken away from the favorite and given to the underdog to level the playing field. The spread has nothing to do with which team wins the game — the only thing that matters is the margin of victory.
The favorite “gives” or “lays” points to the underdog while the underdog “gets” points. The favorite will have a minus sign (-) in front of its odds, while the underdog will have a plus sign (%plussign% ) in front of its odds.
Favorites win spread bets by winning the game by any margin greater than the spread they are laying. For underdogs to win spread bets, they need to win the game straight up or lose by a number less than the spread they are receiving. If the favorite or underdog fits this criteria, that is considered a “cover,” meaning they covered the spread and won the bet.
For example, let’s say the New England Patriots are 7-point favorites (or -7) against the New York Jets. If you bet the Patriots -7, they would need to win the game by eight points or more for you to win your bet and cover the spread. If the Patriots win by six points or fewer, or lose the game straight up, you lose your bet. If you bet the Jets %plussign% 7, they would need to win the game straight up or lose by six points or fewer for you to win your bet and cover the spread. If the Patriots win by exactly seven points, that would be considered a “push,” in which case the sportsbooks would refund the money you bet.
So if the Patriots won the game 24-20, the Jets would have covered the spread.
The Moneyline
The spread isn’t the only option available to bettors who want to bet either side of a game. The second-most popular way to bet is on the moneyline. The moneyline is based only on which team will win the game straight up — the margin of victory does not matter. It could be one point or 100 points; all that matters is winning the game.
Because favorites win most of their games, oddsmakers force bettors to assume more risk and pay a more expensive price when betting favorites. In other words, a favorite lays “minus money.” On the flip side, because underdogs win less often, oddsmakers need to make them more attractive to bet on, so they add a sweetener to underdogs in the form of a bigger payout, popularly referred to as “plus money.”
Let’s say the Seattle Seahawks are 3.5-point favorites against the San Francisco 49ers. You like Seattle to win but aren’t sure it will cover the spread. You could instead bet Seattle -150 on the moneyline. This means you would need to risk $150 to win $100. If Seattle wins, you win $100 and get your $150 back. If Seattle loses, you lose the $150 you risked. On the flip side, the 49ers might be %plussign% 140 on the moneyline. This means if you risk $100 on the 49ers and they win the game, you would win $140 plus get back the $100 you risked.
So if Seattle won 17-14, you would win on a Seahawks moneyline bet, but lose if you bet Seattle -3.5.
The Total
Betting on favorites and underdogs to win or cover the spread isn’t the only way to bet on a game. You can also bet on the combined number of points scored by both teams. This is called betting on the total, popularly referred to as the “Over/Under.”
Once a total is set by the oddsmakers, bettors can wager on whether the number of points scored will be above or below that total. This is popularly referred to as betting the “Over” or betting the “Under.” Just as for spreads, totals can involve not just whole numbers but half-points as well.
Betting on totals is a completely different way of betting compared with spreads and moneylines. Instead of rooting for one team to win the game or cover the spread, you are rooting for both teams. If you bet the Over, you are cheering for both offenses and rooting for both teams to score a lot of points. If you bet the Under, you are cheering for both defenses and rooting for both teams to score few points.
Let’s say an NFL game between the Giants and Eagles has a total of 47.5, and the Giants are -2. If you bet the Over, you would need the teams to combine to score 48 points or more. If you bet the Under, you would need the teams to combine for 47 points or fewer.
So if the Giants won 21-20, the Giants won on the moneyline, the Eagles covered the spread and the game stayed Under the total of 47.5.
Futures
While moneylines, point spreads and totals generally focus on the short term and specific matches, futures are long-term betting odds. They focus on events that will happen further down the line … or in the future. In this case, you’re betting on things like who will win a division or who will win a championship weeks or months in advance.
There are some benefits and some risks associated with betting on futures. If you win, you can earn a hefty payout. On the flip side, however, your money is locked up for a long period of time. During that time, a lot of things can go wrong. If you bet on a particular team to win the championship and one of their star players is injured, suddenly their prospects of winning don't look as good. Sometimes, the team may just hit a slump partway through the season and lose a lot of valuable momentum. Just like with all betting, it’s important to calculate the risks and possible rewards.
In this kind of bet, the odds are set at the beginning of the season, but they can go up or down as time goes on. Once you make your bet, however, it is locked in at whatever the odds were at the time you placed the bet. This is why making a bet on a long shot early on can bring a potentially substantial payoff. At the beginning of the season, it isn’t entirely clear how well the team will do over the season, and so the odds are longer, offering higher rewards. If, over the course of the season, though, a team is showing that it has a good chance of winning, the odds for them improve, the risk goes down and the payoff gets smaller. Choosing exactly when to make this sort of bet is important.
Futures betting can be applied to more than just national championships. It can also be applied to things such as who will win the MVP award or other events that might happen down the line.
Prop Bets
A prop bet, or "prop" for short, is any kind of bet outside of the traditional spread, moneyline and over/under that isn’t tied to the final score. Props for individual player over/unders are referred to as "player props" and have grown in popularity in recent years.
For example, say the Baltimore Ravens are facing the Pittsburgh Steelers. The oddsmakers might set Lamar Jackson's passing yard over/under at 298.5. You could then bet on either the over or the under. Other popular NFL prop bets would include over/under receiving yards, rushing yards and touchdowns for specific players. In the NBA, you can bet on specific players going over or under a certain amount of points, rebounds, assists, blocks, steals and minutes. LeBron James might have point total prop of 25.5. You could then bet on either the over or the under.
Player prop over/unders can also be season long bets. For instance, popular MLB props include how many home runs, hits, RBI's or steal a player will hit in a season, along with how many wins, strikeouts or saves a pitcher will have. For example, maybe the oddsmakers set Mike Trout's home run total at 35.5 for the year. You could then bet the over or under.
Player props are a way to bet on a game in which you don't see value on either team winning or covering, or the total going over or under, but instead identify value on a specific player's performance. Instead of betting on a team, you are betting on a player.
The Juice
Oddsmakers place an additional price or tax on every bet, popularly referred to as the “juice.” It is also called the vig, which is short for vigorish. The juice is a commission you must pay the sportsbooks for them to accept your bet.
Juice is added to all bet types, including spreads, moneylines and totals. It will appear as a three-digit number to the right of the spread or total, usually in parentheses. The juice won’t appear in parentheses next to a moneyline price because it’s already factored into the line.
Standard juice is considered to be -110. This is known as 10-cent juice. It means that for every dollar you wager, you have to pay a fee of 10 cents to the sportsbook.
The juice is almost always a negative number that bettors have to pay, but on rare occasions the juice might be a small plus money number, which means bettors could win a few additional cents if their bet wins.
For example, let’s say the Broncos are playing the Raiders. The line will appear as Broncos -7 (-110) and Raiders %plussign% 7 (-110). The -110 number in parentheses is the juice both sides must pay. This means if you wanted to bet on either team, you would need to risk $110 to win $100. If you lose your bet, you lose the $110 you risked. If you win your bet, you win $100 and get back the $110 you risked.
Juice doesn’t stay static. Sportsbooks are constantly adjusting the juice based on the action they are taking in, raising or dropping the juice depending on which side is taking in more money.
Many new bettors assume that to turn a profit betting on sports you have to win only 50.1% of your bets. On the surface, that sounds correct. Just win slightly more games than you lose and you’ll make money. Unfortunately, this isn’t the case. Why? Because of the juice.
If you assume standard -110 juice, this means bettors actually have to win 52.38% of their bets to break even. This is considered the magic number in betting. To turn a profit, you would need to win at least 52.39% of your plays.
Bettors should always shop around and try to place bets at books providing the best and lowest juice.
But how do you know which sportsbooks offer the best and cheapest juice? In the old days, you would have to physically travel to each sportsbook and check out the prices they were offering. Not anymore. The rise of the internet in the 1990s changed everything for sports bettors. With it came a revolutionary invention called a Live Odds Page.
The Live Odds Page compiles all lines and juice prices from dozens of different sportsbooks together in one easy to view place. Consider it like an E-Trade platform, but instead of showing the prices of all stocks, it displays sports betting lines and odds. The Live Odds page also updates in real time as sportsbooks change lines and adjust the juice. It is considered a bible and a must-have for sports bettors. It allows bettors to read and anticipate line movement and shop for the best odds and juice prices.
Be sure to visit the free VSIN Live odds page to view all lines and odds across the market. Just go to www.vsin.com/odds.
You can also check the current lines and odds in your particular state by visiting https://vsin.com/odds/by-state/.
Other common sports betting terms defined:
Action: A bet or wager.
Against the spread: The result of a game, including the point spread.
Bad Beat: A bet that looks like the bettor is going to win but doesn't.
Book (Sportsbook): An place where someone can bet on the outcome of sporting events.
Buck: A $100 bet.
Chalk: The favorite in a game.
Consensus: Percentage of the betting public on each side of a game. Some bettors will bet against the "public money" (whichever team more bettors have placed their bets on).
Cover: The betting outcome on a point spread bet. For a favorite to cover, it must win by a number higher than the spread. An underdog can cover by losing by a number less than the spread or by winning the game outright.
Dime: A $1,000 bet.
Dollar: A $100 bet.
Edge: The advantage a bettor has before a bet is placed.
Even (Even Money): A $100 bet to win $100.
Favorite: A team favored to win a game.
Future bets: A bet on events that will happen further in the future, like who will win a division or who will win a championship well in advance.
Handle: The total amount of money wagered on a game.
Handicapping: Researching sports statistics to pick winners.
Hedging: Betting opposite of a previous bet to guarantee a profit.
Hook: A half-point in the spread.
In-game wagers: Bets made after a game started.
Juice: A commission books win on each bet.
Limit: The maximum allowed wager on a single bet.
Lock: A large favorite.
Long Shot: A large underdog.
Moneyline bet: A bet made if a team will win or lose outright with no point spread.
Nickel: A $500 bet.
No Action: A game that is no longer taking bets and all wagers are refunded.
Oddsmaker (Linemaker): Someone who sets the opening line on a game.
Off the Board: A game bettors cannot wager on.
Over: When the combined score of two teams is more than what the sportsbook set.
Parlay: A bet that combines multiple games for a higher payout. The more games, the higher the risk but the greater the payout. In order for the parlay to win, each game must win or push (tie). If any of the games lose, the entire wager loses.
Pick 'em: A game with no favorite or underdog.
Point spread: Margin of victory set by oddsmakers to attract bets action on both the favorite and the underdog. A favorite must win by a number higher than the point spread to cover the spread. An underdog can cover by losing by a number less than the spread or by winning the game outright.
Puckline: Hockey has a point spread of -1.5 for the favorite and 1.5 for the underdog.
Proposition bets (prop): A bet on anything that is not directly tied to the outcome of the game. For example, it can be the first team or the first player to score in a game.
Push: When neither team covers the spread (the actual margin of victory lands exactly on the spread), no one wins the bet and all wagers are refunded.
Runline: Baseball has a point spread of -1.5 for the favorite and %plussign% 1.5 for the underdog.
Sharp (Wiseguy): A professional sports bettor.
Steam: A quick change on a line due to heavy wagering.
Taking the points: Betting an underdog against the spread.
Teaser: Similar to a parlay, spreads are favored towards the bettor but has a lower payout.
Total bet (over/under): A bet on the combined number of points scored by both teams in a game, including overtime/extra innings.
Under: When the combined score of two teams is less than what the sportsbook set.
Underdog ('dog): A team not favored to win a game.
Wager: A bet placed at a sportsbook.
Sportsbooks, Oddsmakers and Setting the Line
No one becomes a sports betting expert overnight. It takes months, if not years, to turn from a rookie bettor into an experienced veteran. The first step is learning how sports betting works and understanding some of the language and terminology that bettors use.
Let's start by focusing on a few basic fundamentals, including sportsbooks, oddsmakers and how lines are set.
The most common way of placing a bet is through a sportsbook, popularly referred to as a "book" or simply "the house." These are the facilities that accept bets and give out money.
There are two kinds of sportsbooks.
The first is a physical place like the South Point in Las Vegas, where you walk up to the cashier, known as "the window" and place your bet in person. Physical sportsbooks are usually located inside or next to a casino. They are considered a sports bettor's paradise because they are filled with wall-to-wall big screen televisions showing dozens of games that bettors can watch and root for their bets, also known as a "sweating a game."
The second type of sportsbook is located online. Once you create an account with the online sportsbook, you can place your bets through a computer, tablet or a mobile app. Mobile apps have become increasingly popular in recent years due to the immediacy and convenience.
Physical sportsbooks employ a vast staff of employees to make the operation run smoothly. This including cashiers (known as ticket writers), supervisors, accountants, risk managers, security officers, betting analysts and technicians. But the most important person at a sportsbook is the head oddsmaker. They are math experts with unparalleled betting knowledge and decades of experience in the industry. They know betting and money like the back of their hands.
The head oddsmaker is the person who creates the odds for all the different games, matchups and events that bettors can wager on. Creating the odds is popularly referred to as “setting the line.” It’s important to remember that there are hundreds of different sportsbooks and not every book posts the same odds a given game. This is due to a variety of reasons, including the region, the clientele and a basic difference of opinion on what the line should be. Some books cater mostly to casual or recreational bettors who bet for fun, known as "Average Joes" or simply "the public." Other books cater to more serious, professional bettors who win at a higher rate and bet large amounts. These are considered sharp bettors, known popularly as "sharps" or "wiseguys."
To determine what the odds should be on a given game, oddsmakers rely heavily on advanced mathematics, scientific formulas, computer algorithms, power ratings and experience. By comparing each team's power ratings and crunching the numbers, oddsmakers will get a rough estimate of what the line should be.
Oddsmakers then adjust or tweak the line based on home-field advantage, injuries, specific head-to-head matchups, scheduling and even weather. If a team suffers an injury to a star player or a team is playing their second game in consecutive nights, known as a back to back, that is factored into the odds. If a football team with a bad offensive line is facing a team with a great defensive line, that is also factored into the odds.
Once oddsmakers set the line, it is then released to the public. The initial line is called the opening line, or "opener" for short. Bettors can then pick which team they want to bet on. Generally speaking, the goal of the oddsmakers, also known as bookmakers, is to set a line that garners balanced 50/50 money on both sides. This way they can limit their risk and mitigate their liability.
Once a line is released, the limits are low. Limits are the amount of money the sportsbooks will accept on a given wager. The sportsbooks use this initial period when the line is first released as a “feeling out” period to see how the early market reacts. Sportsbooks want to protect themselves from professional bettors betting big amounts early and taking advantage of an incorrect or off line, known as a “soft “ line. The books allow professional bettors to bet on games at low limits to help them shape and mold the line to its strongest and most accurate number. Once a universal line is established, known as a "consensus line," then the market takes over.
It's important to know that betting odds are fluid and constantly changing based on the money and bets or "action" the sportsbooks are taking in. The books will adjust the line up or down based on which side is taking in more money. Once books have gotten a read on the market and are able to identify which side the sharps are betting, where the public is and where their liability exists, they will then raise the limits closer to game time and allow bigger bets to come in. Once the game starts, the full-game odds close and you can no longer bet on them.
Full-game odds are the most popular odds to bet on. But sportsbooks also offer other odds to bet on, including first-half odds and first-quarter odds. At halftime, the books release a second-half line based on how the first half went. For halftime bets, bettors must quickly place their bets before the second half begins. Throughout the game, many sportsbooks also offer live lines that are constantly being adjusted based on how the game is playing out. This is known as in-game wagering and has grown in popularity in recent years.
What is a Power Rating and How to Create One
Power ratings are numerical values assigned to each team in each sport, with the best teams at the top and worst teams at the bottom. It is a way to rank and rate all of the different teams based on their overall strength and then compare them. Power ratings are subjective and professional bettors can have differing opinions. They also use different formulas and styles, with some pros leaning more on "feel" and the eye test while others lean more heavily on data, analytics and advanced algorithms.
No matter the style, the thought process is the same: The goal is to have a starting point to go off of and then constantly adjust the ratings based on how each team is performing throughout the season. There are typically bigger adjustments at the start of every season, then fewer adjustments as the season progresses.
Pros will lean heavily on specific statistical categories when setting their power ratings. In football, this would include offensive vs. defensive statistics, yards per play, turnover differential, point differential (especially first half point differential), third-down conversion rate and more. Power ratings also take into account coaching, positional rankings, depth and of course, the most important player on the field, the quarterback.
If you're new to power ratings, a good sport to start with is the NFL because it's the most popular and there are only 32 teams, which means there is so much information and coverage to lean on.
If you're looking to create your own NFL power ratings, a good launching pad is just ranking the teams from 1 to 32 in terms of win totals. For example, the team with the highest win total of any team in an upcoming season would be the No. 1 team, and the team with the lowest win total of any team would be ranked last at 32 overall.
Power ratings are especially important when it comes to college sports because there are over 130 different teams to rank and rate. Typically the top 30 and bottom 30 will be the easiest, but the middle 70 can be tougher to judge.
Many sharp bettors will set power ratings where the best and top teams in the country would be a 100, with the worst teams around 50. For example, in college football Clemson might be a 98 while Alabama and LSU are a 97 and 96; the worst team in the nation might be a 45.
VSiN Plus All Access subscribers can always consult the latest issue of Point Spread Weekly to view power ratings for the current games on the board. We also offer daily updated power on VSiN.com. Just click the sport you’re looking for and you’ll see “Daily Power Ratings” in the drop down menu.
Once the power ratings have been developed, pros will then compare any two teams, make adjustments and come up with a number of what the spread should be. In other words, the power ratings help bettors set their own lines.
For example, let's say Clemson is playing Michigan. One sharp bettor has Clemson's power rating at 98 while Michigan is 90. Clemson is also at home, which typically means you would add three points for home-field advantage. Plus there are some injuries to Michigan and Clemson has a specific edge in terms of defensive line vs offensive line. As a result, the spread would be Clemson -8 to start (98 vs. 90), then maybe it would be tweaked up to Clemson -12 as a result of home field and adjustments. Power ratings aren't the end-all, be-all for pro bettors but they are a huge piece of the puzzle and a great starting point in terms of handicapping any matchup.
Once the oddsmakers release a line, professional bettors will consult their own numbers and look for actionable discrepancies. If the oddsmakers release a line that is far off from the line that pros think it should be, professional bettors will bet the game immediately once the lines are available. For example, in the hypothetical Clemson-Michigan game mentioned above, a professional bettor might have their power ratings showing Clemson as a 12-point favorite.
Let's say the oddsmakers open Clemson as a 10-point favorite. Pros would immediately bet Clemson -10 as soon as the odds are released because they have the game pegged at 12. As a result, they see an edge on Clemson of two points, which means it's a smart bet to jump on. On the flip side, maybe the oddsmakers open Clemson as a 14-point favorite. Since the pros have the game pegged at 12-points, they would instead jump on Michigan %plussign% 14 because they are predicting a 12-point game, which means getting 14 points with the Wolverines would constitute a smart bet.
A common phrase to describe pro bettors is that they bet numbers, not teams. They view betting through the lens of value. If value is there, they will make a wager. If it isn't there, they lay off.
At their core, professional bettors are mathematicians at heart. Their No. 1 goal isn't just to pick the right side, but to also get the best possible odds on a game. While a public bettor might only bet through one sportsbook, professional bettors bet through multiple sportsbooks, up to a dozen or more. This is so that they have access to a wide range of different lines and can shop for the best line. This is also referred to as having multiple "outs."
In the end, creating your own power ratings might feel like a daunting task. But that shouldn't stop you from giving it a shot. In doing so, you will find yourself studying the teams in much greater depth, which will pay dividends down the road when you start handicapping specific matchups. Over the years, if you stick with it, your power ratings will get better and better with more experience.
Favorites, Underdogs and the Point Spread
For every game, regardless of the sport, the oddsmakers first must decide which team is the favorite and which team is the underdog. Many factors go into the process. It’s not as simple as the team with the better record being the favorite. Things like home-field advantage and injuries can help the oddsmakers decide that one team is more likely to beat the other on any given day.
The favorite is considered the better team that is expected to win the game. Favorites typically have superior players, more experience, better coaching, a better track record of success and match up better against their opponents. The underdog, also known simply as the “dog,” is the worse team that is expected to lose the game. They might be less talented, less experienced and have inferior coaching.
The spread is available in almost all sports, but it is most popular in football and basketball because the margin of victory can be vast. Baseball and hockey also have a spread, but they aren't as popular because many games result in a margin of victory of one run or one goal. In baseball the spread is known as th
