Casino & Betting Expert

Beginners Guide To Sports Betting

In sport you generally have two teams. Obviously, it depends on the sport. Horse racing has multiple horses and no teams. However, in every sport there will be the one or team that is the favourite and the one or team that is considered the underdog. In the case of horses, for example, there is also then everyone that falls in between the favourite and the underdog, ranked specifically from favourite to underdog.

Identifying the favourite and the underdog is probably the most important thing you need to know. But how is it decided who is the underdog and who is the favourite? A very simple system of looking at the track record shows you that the favourite will be the team with the most wins below their belt and the underdog then is the one that generally struggles to keep head above water.

 

The Importance Of Favourite V.S. Underdog

 

On the betting slip or television screen there will appear a + or a – next to the names of the teams. The + indicates the team that is the underdog and the – indicates the team that is the favourite. Next to those respective symbols you will find number like 120 or 140. You figures would then be +140 next to the favourite and -120 next to the underdog. Now this is where it gets mathematical and we need to keep our wits about.

 

Calculating Your Wins

 

These figures mean that if you are betting 140 dollars on the favourite you will win 100 dollars but if you place that 100 dollars on the underdog you stand the chance of winning 120. I all sounds very confusing but luckily there is a formula to help us keep track of how the winnings are calculated. For example sake, we are going to take 50 dollars as your betting amount.

 

Placing your 50 dollars on the favourite the formula will be 140 over 100 multiplied by 50 over x. We will cross multiply 100 and 50 giving 5000 and 140 with x giving 140x. Solving x, we need to divide 5000 into 140, which equals 35,7 dollars. Plus that your original bet of 50 and you will win 85,7 dollars if you bet on the favourite. However, working out the winning for the underdog is slightly different.

 

Still betting 50 dollars you now place the 100 over the 120 multiplied by 50 over x. so cross multiply the 120 and 50 to give 6000 and the 100 and x to get 100x. Working out x you will divide 6000 into 100 giving you 60. This plus your original bet of 50, makes your wining on the underdog 110 dollars. It’s quite easy to know, once you understand the formula.

 

Difference In The Winning Totals

 

You will see that your win on the underdog is higher than on the favourite. That is because the underdog is less likely to win, based on their past track record. Should they therefor win, it will pay-out more than the favourite. Understanding how the betting works is essential to anyone that wish to start their path on sports online betting NZ.