Before you begin risking real money, developing a sound sports betting strategy or strategies could be the difference between winning and losing.
Here, we’ll cover all the best sports betting tips and strategies you can use the next time you’re playing at your favorite online sportsbook.
Choose One of Our Top-Rated Betting Sites
On top of using the best sports betting strategy, you’ll want to find your favorite sports betting sites. You can make an account at any or all of the sites we recommend, which could be helpful given their different sports betting systems.
Creating accounts at different sites also gives you more opportunities to deploy various sports betting strategies and sports bet tips.
Sports Betting Strategies Everyone Should Know
Learning the Point Spread
If you’re new to sports betting, you’re probably still getting familiar with the different terminologies and betting vocabulary.
One of the main bet types to know and understand is the point spread and how it works.
You may know how a moneyline wager works — picking the winner outright.
Example: The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are playing the Jacksonville Jaguars. On the moneyline, the Buccaneers are -650, so you’ll need to wager $650 to win $100. However, the point spread is Buccaneers -12.5 but with betting odds of -110. So, if you think the Buccaneers can win the game by 13 points or more, you’ll win and have better betting odds at -110.
The -110 line is essential as this is the standard betting line. All online sportsbooks used this line as the additional -10 is the “vig” or “juice” — this is considered a “fee” for betting as you’ll need to wager $11 to win $10.
When you’re reviewing point spreads and see a line different from -110, this is something to note.
Example: You saw the -12.5 point spread with -110 betting odds earlier in the week. However, it’s the night before the game, and you see the Buccaneers are still -12.5, but the odds are now -115.
When you see that -115, you’re losing five points of line value, but this could also indicate that the spread is about the change to 13. The spread will change to 13 because the betting odds have suggested that the -12.5 spread receives more action, and the sportsbook adjusts to regain additional value. In addition to the spread, understanding how betting odds work, such as in this situation, could make a difference in deciding your wagers.
Money/Bankroll Management
All sports bettors, whether new or longtime veterans, have an available budget. While betting more money can lead to bigger wins, it’s important to understand that making sporadic bets for an arbitrary amount will, over time, lead to more significant losses.
That’s why you’ll need to develop money and bankroll management skills if you want to sustain your sports betting budget and give yourself the best chance to succeed long-term.
Example: You have a budget of $1,000. In general, we’d advise you to wager 1% of your budget per bet. At $1,000, that’s $10 per bet. With this determination, you can identify $10 as your betting unit.
In sports betting, you’ll often see sites or guides mention something like “I’m up four units” or “I bet two units” — for you, with a $1,000 budget, that $10 is a unit.
By staying consistent with your unit amount, you can track your wins and losses easier. This’ll not only provide that longevity but also make you more aware of where you stand financially, which leads to more well-thought-out wagers.
Look at the Injury Report
Injury reports impact the game differently depending on the sport you’re wagering on.
For baseball or basketball, with moors betting online every day, the betting odds and lines are up to date with injury information in mind for the most part.
However, if you wager when lines open on Monday or Tuesday for the NFL, things could change leading up to that Sunday game.
A player being out could have a ripple effect in a sport like the NFL. It stings a little in the MLB or NBA, but it won’t really have the same impact, depending on who the player is.
Example: If a cornerback is out in the NFL, this could lead to lineup changes and move players around into a different scheme. For offense, if a wide receiver is out, this’ll lead to someone else getting a shot or perhaps leaning more on the running game, which could impact how the over/bet works for that particular game.
Keep up on injury reports daily, regardless of the sport.
Look at Recent Performance
There’s something to be said about hot streaks in sports. As these begin, some online sportsbooks may be more pessimistic than others, leading to betting line value for you until their odds adjust for a string of recent performances.
Not only can you look at the last few moors betting online for a team or consider the injury report and how that impacts a team, but also how a player does against particular teams.
Bet Sober and Sensibly (TSG)
It should go without saying, but for your well-being and without running the risk of spending money you don’t have, it’s vital to only bet when you’re sober.
When it comes to tips for sports betting or betting strategies, ensuring you’re in the right state of mind is easily the most important.
Don’t bet when you’re inebriated.
Advanced Sports Betting Strategies
Line Shopping
If you were to look up the “best sports betting strategy,” line shopping would be toward the top of the list. Simply put, line shopping is comparing odds for specific bets across multiple sites to see which are most profitable.
You can create an account at as many sports betting sites you like. With accounts at multiple online sportsbooks, you can compare and contrast betting odds, point spreads, totals lines, and more.
If you have a bet in mind, you can browse each of these to see which would be the best place to bet.
Example: You look at one online sportsbook and see that the New York Jets are +4.5 (-110) against the Baltimore Ravens, and you’re willing to bet that. However, you have accounts at three other sportsbooks and check the lines. There, you find the following odds:
- Sportsbook A: Jets +4.5 (-110)
- Sportsbook B: Jets +4.5 (-115)
- Sportsbook C: Jets +4 (-115)
- Sportsbook D: Jets +5 (-115)
If not for line shopping, you’d have missed out on the Jets getting that extra 0.5 points in value. From there, you’ll need to decide whether that extra 0.5 point is worth more than the five points of betting line value.
Fading The Public
By fading the public, you’re doing the exact opposite that the online sportsbooks want you to do, which can only be a good thing.
While online sportsbooks develop a totals line or point spread using different mathematical algorithms, chances are they’ll have an idea of who everyday players bet on.
If you can find public betting numbers on different bets and their lopsided — 70/30, 80/20, or higher, for example — you may want to go on the opposite end to try and snag that value.
It’s not fool-proof, but if you understand that bookmakers likely understand where the public goes, this can be one of the best sports betting tips.
Look for Reverse Line Movement
It doesn’t happen often, but when you see reverse line movement, you should immediately perk up and take interest.
Example: The Dallas Cowboys are playing the Baltimore Ravens. The Cowboys are -3 home favorites and have 80% of the public bets. However, as game day approaches, you see that instead of going -4, the Cowboys go to -2 — why is that if there’s no injury, suspension, or coaching changes?
It’s important to know that while the 80% may be quite lopsided, this number represents the number of bets taken instead of the amount of money.
When this happens, you’ll still want to fade the public as the sportsbook is more convinced of the sharp bettors’ influence.
Zig Zag Betting
The zig-zag strategy only works in niche situations, such as a playoff series with seven moors betting online. It can be done in shorter series, but seven offers the most upside. This strategy isn’t applicable for the NFL, where it’s single-game elimination in the postseason.
With this strategy, the idea is to bet on the team that lost the most recent game. Ideally, if they lose and play at home, that usually leads to the best outcome.
The rationale is that the losing team will make a comeback in front of the home crowd and win the game or cover the spread.
This is a more niche betting tip but something to consider, especially during NHL, MLB, or NBA postseason action.
Common Sports Betting Strategies to Avoid
Martingale Betting Strategy
Mostly used for online casino moors betting online, the Martingale strategy is a concept in which you double up on your wager after losing. So, if you bet $10 and lose, you’ll want to bet $20 on your next wager.
It’s often used with online casino moors betting online like roulette, which is totally up to chance. However, sports betting introduces a host of new variables with every game, making it different from betting on roulette.
Remember the bankroll management — stick to consistent wagers.
Avoid Buying Points
It happens frequently — you see an NFL point spread that’s 3.5, and you wish it was 2.5. Per the chance of a team winning by less than three is less than 5% across the board, so that’s why 2.5 is a key number.
At some online sportsbooks, you’ll be able to buy that additional point, but it’ll cost you in terms of value.
It wouldn’t be uncommon to see a bet at -3.5 (-110) go to -2.5 (-140) or even higher.
You never want to get so overconfident in your evaluation that you want to risk precious value and still potentially lose anyway — just stick to what the sportsbook is naturally offering.
Waiting Until Game Day
For sports like the NFL, where the odds are available for nearly a week, if you wait until the day of the game, any potential value that wager had could be lost.
You can bet on a line before a resolution on an injury. An online sportsbook could have a certain line because the star quarterback is listed as questionable for the next game but ends up playing after all.
If you can, avoid betting on game days.
