Why Are Most Sports Bettors Losers?

July 22, 2008

Sports Betting and Losing Yes, actually, but no offense. Statistically speaking, most sports betters are “losers” financially because (1) the bookmaker’s odds are hard to beat and (2) even if they have a strategy they mismanage their money. How does the bookmaking process work? Understanding this process will be important to planning your sports betting strategy.

The belief is that bookmakers will adjust their price so they can get the same amount of money on both the winning and losing sides of the game. However, this is not always the case. Some bookmakers are willing to take more of an initial risk in order to maximize their bottom line. Sometimes making a bigger profit is worth facing some big losses, at least from their perspective.

Realize that bookmakers, like any working professional, will capitalize on the naiveté of their public. Usually, the majority will want to back the favorites, and many will only show up at the most pivotal of sporting events, like the Super Bowl. In person, some bookmakers will actually offer different prices to different customers, and some may even refuse to accept bets from a professional gambler. Bookmakers can be influenced by the bets being placed, and have been known to change their line based on several large wagers made during a game. In person, bookmakers will carefully look for syndicates (groups of gamblers who work together and target multiple bookmakers) or even “beards”, which are ordinary people hired by pros to inconspicuously place bets.

Of course, sports betting online eliminates many of the in-person interactions that formerly were a major part of gambling. However, certain facts still remain true, such as bookmakers cautiously analyzing fast line movements. You will notice as you search for sports betting sites online that there are generally two types of websites: the site targeted to “squares” who don’t seriously gamble and who are easy to make money from, and sites targeting professionals who gamble for a second income or maybe even for a fulltime career. If you want to be a winner then start reading more about serious sports betting, such as blogs like Sports363.com.

Until Next Time
Andy B