The betting world was turned on its head in 2001, when the U.S. government banned sports betting. The government claimed that it was trying to keep gambling away from “young people,” but the decision was widely publicized and criticized as a form of censorship. Since then, sports betting has been illegal in most states, and the NCAA has cracked down on collegiate gambling, levying massive fines on schools that engage in it.
Despite all of this, the desire to bet on sports has not disappeared. Many people believe that the stigma associated with gambling has prevented the industry from growing, but that may be changing. Thanks to the legalization of sports betting in various states, as well as the relaxation of NCAA regulations, interest in betting on sports has increased significantly.
One of the most popular sports to bet on is golf. Since the beginning of the 21st century, online golf betting has skyrocketed in popularity, and in-play betting, where you make wagers as the game is being played, has become a prevalent form of gambling.
If you’re a golf fan, you no doubt know what the terms e.w. and evens and odds mean. They’re pretty self-explanatory—the e.w. is the evens (2, 4, 6, 8, etc.) and the odds are the odds (1.5, 3, 5, 7.5, etc.) that you’ll get the outcome you’re predicting. If you’re new to golf betting, don’t worry—we’ve got you covered. Here’s a quick primer on what these terms mean and why they’re so important to know.
The Difference Between E/W and O/U
If you’re unfamiliar, e.w. and odds stand for evens and odds. Evens are the numbers (2, 4, 6, 8, etc.) that appear the most frequently in golf. For example, a $10 win bet on a $100 golf tournament would yield $10 x 2 = $20 in profit, and the $100 win bet would produce $100 x 2 = $200 in profit.
Odds are the opposite—they’re the numbers that appear less frequently in golf. For example, a $10 win bet on a $100 golf tournament would yield $10 x 1.5 = $15 in profit, and the $100 win bet would produce $100 x 1.5 = $150 in profit.
So what’s the difference between e.w. and odds? It comes down to how you’ll be paid out. Most sportsbooks will pay you out in evens, while some will offer you odds (with a little bit of leeway, of course). Typically, you’ll earn more money—in some cases, a great deal more—if you bet on odds. That’s because most sportsbooks that offer wagering on sports will give you a greater percentage of your wager (usually, but not always, in the form of a free bet) if you bet on odds.
For those interested in online betting, you’ll notice that most sportsbooks that are popular and trustworthy offer both e.w. and odds (at least, they used to). That’s because, as stated earlier, interest in online golf betting has increased, leading to more people wagering and, therefore, more revenue for the sportsbook.
Why Are E/W and Odds Important To Know?
If you’re new to golf betting, you may wonder why these two important concepts are so significant. After all, you’ll often find them in the same sentence when checking out golf betting information. That’s because, even if you’re experienced in sports wagering, odds and e.w. can still be tricky concepts to understand. Let’s take a look.
First, let’s discuss evens. As the name implies, evens are the numbers that appear evenly throughout a golf tournament. Since they appear equally frequently, you may find it difficult to know what the odds are to get a certain result. For example, a $20 win bet on a $100 golf tournament would yield a $20 profit no matter what happens. That’s because the $100 golf tournament has an even distribution of 2s, 4s, 6s and 8s.
Evens are what’s known as a “combinatorial wager,” which means that your profit is based on a combination of events. That’s different from an “individual wager,” where you’re making a profit based on the outcome of a single game. Most likely, you’ll hear people use the terms evens and odds interchangeably, but keep in mind that they’re not the same thing. An even is a wager where you’re combining two or more outcomes to make a profit. For example, you could bet $10 on the Red Sox to cover the spread (they’re +145) in the ALDS, and you would win $10 if they win the game or lose the game by fewer than 10 runs (the over under was 10 runs).
Odds are the opposite. They’re the numbers that appear less frequently in golf, which gives you an idea of how likely it is that you’ll get the outcome you’re predicting. Let’s use the previous example to illustrate—you’re betting $10 on the Red Sox to win the ALDS, and you would win $10 if they win by more than 10 runs or lose by less than 10 runs. In that case, your $10 wager would produce a $10 profit, but you would also lose $10 if they win the game by less than 10 runs. Most likely, you’ll hear people use the terms odd and even interchangeably, but keep in mind that they’re not the same thing. An odd is a wager where you’re expecting one outcome to occur more frequently than another.
On the surface, it may seem like the best strategy to simply bet on odds, as that seems to give you the best shot at making money. However, there are times when betting evens can be beneficial. For example, if you’re playing in a golf tournament and you notice that a few of the holes have an odd number of greens—like, say, an odd number of par-5s—you might want to put on a bit of an even wager. That’s because, if you hit the ball safely on the par-5s, you’ll need to finish even or beat the odds on the other holes. Most likely, you’ll hear people use the terms even and odds interchangeably, but keep in mind that they’re not the same thing. An even is a wager where you’re combining two or more outcomes to make a profit. For example, you could bet $10 on the Red Sox to cover the spread (they’re +145) in the ALDS, and you would win $10 if they win the game or lose the game by fewer than 10 runs (the over under was 10 runs).
Betting On Expected Outcomes
This is a huge concept in sports betting, and one that can be difficult to grasp, especially if you’re new to this game. Sometimes, it’s easier to bet on the likelihood of an event rather than trying to predict what will happen. For example, let’s say you’re playing in a golf tournament and you have a 4-stroke handicap. You’re not very good at golf, so you don’t want to play it too aggressively. However, you also don’t want to play it safe either. Let’s say there are 10 players in your group, and you’re on the 1st hole with a 4-shot lead. You want to hit a certain shot to maintain your lead, but you also don’t want to risk losing.
In that case, it would be best to bet on the outcome. In other words, you could bet $2 that you’ll shoot 77-81 (77+4 = 81, 81-4 = 77) to win the tournament.
Most sportsbooks will let you set different odds for each individual player, making it easy to wager on the outcome instead of trying to predict what will happen. This is a huge advantage if you’re not sure what will happen at the end of a golf tournament.
The Importance Of Reading The Fine Print
One of the main reasons that the odds and e.w. are so important in golf betting is that they can vary so much from book to book, and it’s important to understand what those odds are before you make a wager. It’s also crucial that you check out the terms and conditions of the book before you make any wagers. You don’t want to get into an argument with the bookmakers because, in the end, you didn’t know what odds they were offering at the time you made your wager.