Moneyline Betting Simplified – Everything You Need To Know
If you are looking to place a bet on a sporting event, any sportsbook will generally accept various types of wagers and you can place the type of bet that you wish to take. Essentially, there are different types of sports bets and the moneyline is one of the popular types.
Moneyline Betting Basics – What is a Moneyline Bet and How to bet a Moneyline?
If you are looking to place a bet on a sporting event, any sportsbook will generally accept various types of wagers and you can place the type of bet that you wish to take. Essentially, there are different types of sports bets and the moneyline is one of the popular types.
In fact, a moneyline bet is one of the most elementary types of sports bets where you place a bet on which team will win the sporting event/fixture. It does not matter what the score was, how individual players performed, how close the game was, etc.
All that matters is whether or not you picked the winning team. If you placed a moneyline bet on a team (or individual competitor) and they won, your moneyline bet is a winning bet.
As explained above, a moneyline bet is pretty easy to comprehend but if you wish to make some real profits with your moneyline bet, there are various factors to consider. Just picking the clear favorite and placing a moneyline bet may seem like the way to go, but this approach generally will not pay worthy dividends.
So, if you’re looking to step up your sports betting game, you’ve come to the right place. We’re going to go over all things moneyline betting. Not only will you understand how to read moneyline betting odds and which sports moneyline betting is applicable, but you will also understand what tactics you can employ to increase your chances of winning a moneyline wager.
How to make sense of the odds?
One of the key aspects to success in sports betting is finding bets that offer good value. When it comes to perceiving the value of the bet, being able to intuitively read and comprehend the odds offered is arguably the single most important factor.
If you log on to any sports betting website right now and look at some of the bets being offered, you may see numbers corresponding with each bet, these are the odds. The odds may either be represented in a fractional format, decimal format, or US format.
Most modern online sportsbooks will even allow you to change the format in which the odds are displayed. In the UK, odds are generally represented as fractions whereas a sportsbook targeting consumers from India or Europe would tend to display odds in the decimal format. In the USA, the odds format is referred to as American odds, US odds, or moneyline odds (these odds make use of (-) minus or (+) plus symbols).
We believe that the best way to understand how to read odds are by considering and breaking down some examples. For the purpose of understanding moneyline betting, we will consider examples where the odds are represented in decimal format (most commonly used format in India).
Thankfully, decimal odds are generally accepted as being easier to calculate than the other formats. Why would decimal odds be easier to calculate, you wonder?
Well, if you needed to understand which odds are better between 7/5 and 9/6 (fractional odds), you probably may take a few seconds to mentally calculate which one is the higher number. However, if you had to figure out which odds are higher between 2.45 and 3.15 (decimal odds), then you don’t even have to think about it – 3.15 is higher.
Now, let us consider a hypothetical IPL cricket match where Chennai Super Kings are up against the Kolkata Knight Riders. The odds offered for the moneyline bet on this match by a certain sportsbook are as follows – Chennai Super Kings (1.57) and Kolkata Knight Riders (2.25).
You, as the bettor, have good knowledge of the game, insights into the depth of the squad, understand who the pitch may favor, and based on this knowledge, you have a hunch as to who will win. You have a feeling the Knight Riders, the underdogs, will win. The sportsbook, on the other hand, doesn’t seem to think so and therefore offers higher odds (2.25) for a moneyline bet on Knight Riders as opposed to a moneyline bet on the favorites, Chennai Super Kings (1.57).
Going with your hunch, you place ₹1000 on Knight Riders to win using your preferred mode of payment. Now, if your prediction comes true and Knight Riders do win, how much money do you stand to make? Well, the formula to calculate this is really very simple:
(For decimal odds only) Returns = Stake x Odds
So, as per this example, the stake amount is the bet or wager amount which is ₹1000 and the odds for Knight Riders is 2.25. Therefore, the returns = 1000 x 2.25 = ₹2250.
Pro tip: If you are faced with fractional odds and you want to convert them to decimal odds, you solve the fraction and simply add 1 to it. For example, fractional odds of 9/2 = 4.5 +1 = 5.5 in decimal format. To convert American odds to decimal format, we would recommend using an online odds converter. There are many free odds converters that you can choose from.
Which Sports Offer the Moneyline Betting Option?
Now that you understand what a Moneyline bet entails, you will intuitively understand that any sport where two teams or individual competitors play each other is eligible for a Moneyline bet. Some popular examples are Cricket, Basketball, Football, Rugby, Tennis, Waterpolo, Netball, Volleyball, American Football, Hockey, etc.
Moneyline Betting Strategies & THINGS TO WATCH OUT FOR
One of the major differences between a Moneyline bet and a Spreads bet is that the latter will also involve points and factor in how accurate your wager was instead of simply wagering on which team will win. Since this is understandably a harder prediction to make than just predicting which team may win, spreads bets generally have better odds and thus payouts when compared to Moneyline bets.
However, there is a time and place for Moneyline bets and they can pay well when certain strategies are employed. Here are a few basic things to consider when placing a Moneyline Bet.
Opening Odds
This may take a little while to read and understand but tracking the odds published by sportsbooks from the time the odds are released until the start of the fixture when you place the bet is a good way to understand the inclination of the betting public and how oddsmakers think a game will pan out.
Underdogs fetch big money, but not always
Placing moneyline bets on the favorites are generally safer but they don’t usually way great. Underdogs come with much better returns for your stake, but choosing the underdog every time is a sure way to empty your pockets efficiently. If you’re betting on an underdog, you must have some insights into why the underdog may win and your bet should be based on such deep understanding and knowledge of the match-up. Basically – you are seeing something the bookies and the betting public are seemingly oblivious to.
Shop for the best moneyline odds
Usually, the odds offered by different sportsbooks for a sporting fixture don’t vary substantially. However, you should always make it a point to check the odds for a moneyline bet you are considering at multiple sportsbooks because you may just find significantly better odds for the same bet.
Make use of sportsbook bonuses
Many online sportsbooks will offer various bonuses, especially for new players. Sometimes you may even get a bet on the house. You should always keep an eye out for such offers and utilize them to take risk-free bets.
