Fortunately for sports bettors there are a wide variety of sports betting strategies available for almost every sport (Football, Soccer. Baseball, Basketball, Hockey, Tennis, Golf, etc.).  Most of which rely on gathering information about the two opponents in hopes of knowing or considering something that the bookmaker (AKA. Sportsbook or bookie) isn’t.  These types of strategies are commonly referred to as ‘handicapping’, and they take into consideration factors such as player and game statistics, current weather conditions, players travel schedules, and various other factors with hopes of finding a flaw in the bookmakers predictions. 

Unfortunately for sports bettors reliable statistics need to be collected over a long period of time, and they don’t always reflect how a player or team is currently playing.  Teams and players have ups and downs, and in professional sports major changes can happen before, during, or after any game.

For example, just before Barry Bonds broke the home run record he struck out 25 straight times.  Bettors wagering that his slump would continue solely based on his previous weeks play are misreading the statistics because everyone knows Barry Bonds can hit a home run on any given day.  On the contrary bettors making a wager that he would hit a homerun based on his statistics over the past few years are also misreading the statistics because they are failing to consider his slump.  This example is meant to show that statistics do help, but relying solely on statistics and not considering other conditions is a mistake.

The other flaw in handicapping is that a lot of the conditional factors considered such as the weather, and travel schedules may just be a coincidence. For example, if the forecast calls for rain and a bettor is betting against team A because team A has lost the past six games under the same conditions, the bettor is taking a risk, it can never been known if rain was the only factor that contributed to the loses.

It is also important to consider, in most professional sports almost every team has a few superstars, and that almost anybody that can make it to the ranks of any professional sport has an incredible talent.  This equates to very competitive games where both opponents have a chance, it is very uncommon in professional sports that one opponent is sure to win based on talent alone.  These days the winner is often decided by who wants it more, or which team or player is better mentally prepared.  These factors are greatly influenced by the things that happen in players personal lives, which is an other reason that statistics are not always reliable.  For example, if a player has family problems this may affect his or her performance during a game.

The only successful way to handicap sporting events is to emerge yourself into the sport and the players, referring to the statistics and reading the sports page every Sunday is not enough.  The most successful handicappers are usually also sports loves or athletes that have a long time passion and knowledge of the game. These types of bettors consider the statistics, but they also search for other types of information that could effect the game.  Knowledge is key, and the secret to winning money on sports betting is knowing more than the average fan.  It is not necessarily a difficult task but it does require time.

Sports Betting Arbitrage

An arbitrage opportunity exists when two bookmakers' odds differ just enough that bettors can back all outcomes and make a profit. A sports betting arbitrage is commonly referred to as an "arb".

In order to create an arbitrage opportunity the better must compare the odds at two or more different bookmakers, no one bookmaker would ever offer odds that allow bettors to cover all outcomes and make a profit.  Before the Internet it was not so easy to find arbitrage opportunities, but now with so many online bookmakers from all over the world arbitrage opportunities exist in great numbers.  Many people make their living with sports betting arbitrage, and with a relatively small investment sports betting investors can work part time and still make a six figure income.

What is an Example?

Bodog offers - 2.20 for Dallas and 1.72 for Miami
BetUS offers - 2.39 for Dallas and 1.91 for Miami

You could back both teams for a guaranteed profit by backing Dallas with Bodog and Miami with BetUS. Let us assume you want to wager $500 total. The amount to wager on each is $232.36 on Dallas and $267.64 on Miami.

As shown in the table above, no matter who wins the bettor still makes a profit, if Dallas wins the player wins $278.83 at Bodog and loses $267.64 at Betus for a profit of $11.19, or if Miami wins the player wins $243.55 at BetUS and loses $232.36 at Bodog for a total profit of $11.19.

Tips

Bet at a reputable sportsbook.  See our Sportsbook Reviews

Know the betting rules before betting for real money.

Bet on sports that you follow and understand, never just guess.