We have all heard of “likes” and “dislikes” when it comes to social media, but have you ever considered how these numbers work in relation to betting? If you are looking to get into sports betting, you need to understand what exactly is middling in this niche. Here we will discuss the different types of bets and how they perform relative to each other, along with some general guidelines for laying down a winning wager.
Middling-Spreads
We often think of a spread bet as being akin to betting on a football team to win or lose. With the rise of the National Football League in the United States, combined with the incredible draw of the Super Bowl, spread bets have become quite popular. If you are looking to get into sports betting, this is a great option, as long as you realize that most bookmakers have eliminated these types of wagers from their offerings. The reason behind this is simple: Even though NFL games are great to cover, their results are quite inconsistent from game to game. For this reason, bookmakers prefer to offer fixed odds on the Super Bowl, instead of taking on the risk that the spread might end up being worthless.
So, what exactly is a middling spread? A middling spread is when a bookmaker spreads the odds of one team beating another by a certain amount. For example, the Seattle Seahawks might be given a spread of -2.5 points, which means that the over/under on their game is set at 2.5 points. If you were to back the Seahawks and win your bet, you would earn 2.5x on your wager, or $5.25. In this scenario, the bookmaker takes on the risk of the game, and profits if the spread turns out to be correct. If you were to back the Green Bay Packers and win your bet, you would earn 2.5x on your wager, or $5.25. In this case, the bookmaker makes a risk-free profit of $2.50.
Middling-Odds
Odds are another popular type of wager in relation to sports. When someone places an odd on a specific team to win, they are betting that the team will come in above the odds set by the bookmaker. If you are looking to get into sports betting, odds are the perfect choice, as long as you realize that the returns are quite low. For example, you might see an odds of 1.5 on the Detroit Lions to win, which means that you are backing the Lions at 2-to-1 odds. In this case, you would win $5 on a $10 wager, or $0.50 on a $20 wager. So, in theory, you are making a risk-free profit of $0.50, but in practice it is not going to be easy to earn $0.50 on a wager. For this reason, odds are not for the faint of heart. Like spread bets, most bookmakers shy away from offering odds on sporting events due to the high risks involved. However, there are still opportunities to wager on the Super Bowl and other major sporting events through odd agencies, like Betfair.
Middling-Over/Under
Finally, we have over/under bets, which are quite similar to middling-spreads, but with one crucial difference: With an over/under bet, the goal is not to beat the favorite, but to get as close to the number as possible. For example, if you were to bet $10 on the Seattle Seahawks and win, your payout would be $20, as there would be 20 points scored in the game (2.5x your bet). If you were to bet $10 on the San Francisco 49ers and win, your payout would only be $10, as there would only be 9 points scored (1.5x your bet).
The benefit of an over/under wager is that, in most cases, you do not need to be right on the money to come out a winner. For this reason, over/under bets are ideal for those who are looking for a way to wager on sporting events and do not want to take on the risk of the spread.
As you can see, this is a bit of a risky business, but if you are looking for a way to make some money off the betting odds, then it is quite easy to find a way to make that happen. Just make sure that you keep these different types of wagers separate in your head and do not mix them up. This will help you to make the right decision when laying down a wager, and ensure that you are not under any illusion about the kind of bet that you are making.