Beginner’s Guide to Sports Betting

15/09/2021 | Categories: Gambling Guides | Published by: cmk4 | Last updated: 01/04/2022

No form of gambling can be compared to sports betting. The thrill and excitement of watching your favorite athletes compete while placing bets is one of the most entertaining forms of gambling. But for someone new to sports betting, it can be tricky to understand the terminologies used in sports betting and what different betting markets mean. This guide is dedicated to exploring every bit of information you might need to start your sports betting journey, whether it’s doubts over the markets like Asian handicaps or it’s regarding the different odds formats.

Most Common Terminologies in Sports Betting

There are certain terminologies used in sports betting which might sound strange at first. Below are some of the most common terms used in sports betting along with their meaning.

Favorite & Underdog

As a sports bettor, you will often hear these words; the favorite & the underdog.

In simple words, a favorite is a player or a team that is likelier to win the match.
An underdog on the contrary is the one who is expected to lose or perform inferior in comparison to the favorite.

Tailing and Fading

Tailing means to copy or follow a bet. So, if you follow a tipster and you bet on their picks, you are tailing the tipster’s picks.
Fading means to either bet on the opposite or avoid betting on that slip. If for example someone shares their pick and you aren’t confident in that, you will fade that pick.

Parlay/Multi-bet

A parlay or a multi-bet is one where you combine more than one market to get bigger odds. The combined markets are mostly from different matches since combining markets from the same match is not allowed.

Sharp

Many times, you will come across people commending fellow gamblers by using the word sharp. A sharp gambler is one who makes the right bet at the right time, usually in live betting. For example, if you see a tennis player getting tired, you will bet against him which is a sharp move.

Void

A bet settled as void means the bet was refunded. This happens in cases where your bet was neither won nor lost. This can happen for many reasons but the most common reason is the cancellation of the match.

Hedging

Hedging is the process of securing your winnings by placing a bet on the opposite market.

For example, you made a $100 bet on Djokovic against Federer at 2.00 odds before the start of the match.

Once the match has started and the odds have shifted in favor of Djokovic, let’s assume the odds for Federer to win are now 2.1. In such a case you can simply place a bet of $100 for Federer to win.

Doing this guarantees that you won’t lose money and in the likely outcome, you will get a small profit. This is usually done when you aren’t confident enough while the game is still in your favor.

Hedging can be used for under/overs in soccer and other sports.

Betting Markets

Now that we have understood the basics of sports betting, it’s time to take a look at all the markets that are available and what they mean in the context of sports betting.

1 X 2 Market

One of the most common betting markets in soccer. You are essentially betting on 1 (home team) X (draw) or 2 (away team) with this market. This market is offered for sports where the draw is a possibility.

Winner or Draw No-bet

This market basically eliminates the possibility of a draw. The winner market is available for sports where the draw isn’t a possibility like Baseball for example, where extra innings are played to determine the winner.

The Draw No Bet is offered to allow the bettors an option to bet on the winner of the match. The bet is voided in case of a draw and usually, penalties or extra time is not counted for this market unless specifically mentioned.

Totals & Under/Overs

As the market name itself suggests, you are betting on the total score of the match. It can be total goals, points, runs, or anything in general. This is one of the most popular markets for matches where one team is a heavy favorite and there’s no value in betting on the winner.

Player Props

A recently popular market where you can bet on particular players to score points or achieve some milestones. For example, you can bet how many 3-pointers Steph Curry will score in a game or how many passing yards Tom Brady will gain.

Halftime/Fulltime

This market combines the winner at halftime and full time into a single bet. You can choose who will lead at the end of the first half and who will eventually win the match.

This market is very useful in sports like Soccer, Basketball & American Football where a team might lead at halftime but easily surrender the lead in the second half.

Asian Handicap

Asian handicap is a more customized way of betting on the regular handicap markets. The regular markets are denoted by +0.5 or -0.5 and you either win the bet or lose it. But in Asian handicap betting, you get additional options with the +/- 0.25 and 0.75 handicap markets.

Let’s take a look at the handicap markets and how they work. Both the handicap and totals work in the same way. You can check the table below to understand how exactly the markets work.

Half-Win: Half the stake is won and half the stake is returned.

Half-Lost: Half the stake is lost and half the stake is returned.

Similarly, the Asian Totals work, if you bet over 1.75 and there are 2 goals the bet will half win.

Odds Formats

There are dominantly 5 types of odds formats you will find in sports betting. Most sportsbooks will have the option of switching the format as per your convenience.

Decimal

Concretely, decimal odds show the amount you will win on wagering 1 unit.

Example: If you bet $1 at 1.7 odds, you will win 70 cents if your bet wins.

In the above bet(screenshot), 3.5 XRP were wagered at 1.7 Decimal odds for approximately 2.4 XRP profit.

Fractional

Fractional odds reflect the amount you will win as compared to the wager you make. It shows how many units you will win(numerator) for wagering how many units(denominator).

Example: If you bet $1 at 70/100 odds, you will win 70 cents if your bet wins.

In the above bet(screenshot), 3.5 XRP were wagered at 70/100 Fractional odds for approximately 2.4 XRP profit.

American

As the name suggests, this odds format is very popular in the United States. Indicated by a (-) or (+) sign, it shows the amount you need to wager in order to win 100 units. If you betting with +350 odds, you are essentially risking 100 units in order to win 350 units.

Example: If you bet $1 at -143 odds, you will win 70 cents if your bet wins.

In the above bet(screenshot), 3.5 XRP were wagered at -143 American odds for approximately 2.4 XRP profit.

Indonesian

Just divide the American odds format by 100 and you will have Indonesian odds. It indicates the amount you need to risk in order to win 1 unit.

Example: If you bet $1 at -1.43 odds, you will win 70 cents if your bet wins.

In the above bet(screenshot), 3.5 XRP were wagered at -1.43 Indonesian odds for approximately 2.4 XRP profit.

Hong Kong

One of the simplest formats of odds for sports betting. Almost similar to the American and Indonesian odds but these don’t have a (-) sign. It shows the number of units you will win by placing 1 unit.

Example: If you bet $1 at +0.7 odds, you will win 70 cents if your bet wins.

In the above bet(screenshot), 3.5 XRP were wagered at +0.7 Hong Kong odds for approximately 2.4 XRP profit.

We really hope the guide helped you understand sports betting. If you have any questions related to sports betting, please comment below and let us know.

This was just a beginner’s guide, soon we will be posting some tips and tricks for sports bettors. Stay tuned and keep winning.

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