Myth of Sports Betting: Something for Nothing
Something for Nothing
There are those who believe that sports betting is the ultimate something-for-nothing action. However, in fact, gambling pro football to win is a business and has to be treated like one to be successful. The basics of making money at this business are the lines put out by the oddsmakers are made to not predict the actual outcomes of matches, nor to educate the general public about the relative strengths of teams, but to try to divide the betting public by making one team as appealing as the other. Since the public’s perspective of a match-up is occasionally incorrect, lines are sometimes wrong in terms of the real differences between two groups. A bettor that is specialist looks for all these lines that are incorrect. When he finds such lines he wagers on themand that is the only time he wagers. And how does a winning handicapper find those lines? By dispassionately viewing as many games as possible, in addition to post-game coverage of match-ups you could not tune in to. By keeping records of game statistics and scores, lines, injuries for research that is later. By the tracking of motivational factors and analysis of game stats. By educating yourself on how oddsmakers set lines so you are able to detect real value. And most important, by shopping for the greatest possible lines on matches you’ve resolved to bet. Virtually all the sports that are successful bettors that I know work hard at handicapping. We don’t simply roll out of bed and make stakes. We don’t go by»inside information.» The advice I use is available to anyone who makes the effort to receive it. You need to expect to generate a similar effort to profit from handicapping the NFL. ?? Dan Gordon is the author of a book. He’s a record as a professional sports bettor for over two years. His sports betting columns have appeared in the New York Daily News, San Francisco Examiner, Boston Herald, Los Angeles Herald Examiner, College and Pro Football Newsweekly, and a number of other publications and papers. From 1984 to 1991 he served as handicapping consultant to Pete Axthelm of NBC, ESPN, and Inside Sports magazine, and more recently as an oddsmaking adviser for sportsbooks worldwide. Read more: