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-Choosing the right online sportsbook
DIFFERENT SPORTSBOOKS FOR DIFFERENT
BETTORS:
All sportsbooks are not the same. Where you
place your bets is as important as who you bet on. There are a
number of ways to analyze a sportsbook and though this may come
as a surprise to most readers, bonuses are the LEAST
IMPORTANT factor to consider when choosing an online sportsbook. They
come with HUGE strings attached and offer little true value (for
instance having to roll your money over
5 times before being able to make a withdrawal). The most important factor to consider when
evaluating a sportsbook is the type of bettor the sportsbook
caters to. This answer will affect your bottom line more
than anything else.
The following article examines the various
types of sportsbooks and the sports bettors they cater towards.
SportsInsights.com leverages its 8 years of sportsbetting
knowledge to help sports bettors find the correct internet sportsbook for
their betting style. We have broken down the sportsbooks into 4 major
categories: Loose Lines, Sharp Lines, Reduced Juice, and Bonuses
WHY DOES IT MATTER?
Taking a look at the above categories, even in their shortened
version, it becomes fairly obvious why you should have multiple
outs to wager with. Let’s start with the most obvious, the point
spread. If you like to bet favorites and you’re playing at a
sportsbook that has pegged you as a square, you may end up
laying ½ point to a full point more on games. It might not sound
like much, but when you might end up giving 7 points instead of
6.5 on an NFL game, it’s huge.
Conversely if you like to bet underdogs, those loose line sportsbooks
can be a savior. But if you play almost exclusively on ‘dogs and
the sportsbook you’re with deals a double line, you won’t be
getting those favorable numbers for too long. That’s when you
might need an account with a sportsbook that doesn’t shade their line
based on what everybody else is doing. Sharp sportsbooks take plenty
of underdog action so they’ll be less likely to shade their
lines. If you only have an account at one sportsbook, you will
have no choice but to either play the line offered or just don’t bet.
Multiple accounts are an absolute must for the serious sports
bettor.
SPORTSBOOK CATEGORIES
1. Loose Lines – Sportsbooks that are considered loose will deviate
from the ‘real’ line. In some cases this is because they’re
taking heavy favorite action and will shade their lines
accordingly. However it could also be they just don’t follow the
crowd.
2. Reduced Juice - A
sportsbook that offers reduced juice; that is
something other than the standard -110 juice on sports.
3. Depositing Bonuses – A
depositing bonus sportsbook usually doesn’t cater to the sharp,
high-rolling player. Bonus sportsbooks will try to entice new
accounts with a solid bonus and/or loyalty program. Throughout
Sports Insights bonus sportsbooks may also be referred to as 'square'
sportsbooks.
4. Sharp Lines – A sharp
sportsbook deals its own line and caters to sharp
players. They will not move on air, they don’t follow the crowd
and they take huge bets.
SPORTS INSIGHTS RECOMMENDATIONS
| OVERALL |
| # 1 |
BetUs.com |
Solid bonus program and
incredible underdog lines |
| # 2 |
Pinnacle |
-105 (-104 for NFL) All the time
makes this a great everyday book |
| # 3 |
CRIS |
Overall solid value - lines,
bonuses, and customer service |
If you only have a couple of outs make sure you
include at least two of these sportsbooks. As
has always stressed, professional
sports betting is a grind it out process.
Professional sports bettors work within winning
percentages of between 55%-58%. By placing your bets
with the correct sportsbook, you will increase your
winning percentage by 3-4%. This could be the
difference between profit and loss. The above 3 sportsbooks represent outs that consistently give players
that bet against the public the best chance
at long term winning.
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| LOOSE LINES
|
| # 1 |
BetUs.com |
Great, great ‘dog lines but don’t
get greedy |
| # 2 |
Sports Interaction |
A lot of games ½ pt. to a full pt.
off the market average |
| # 3 |
CRIS |
Also willing to shade lines |
How important is that ½ or full point? Check out these numbers:
in a recently studied 2 + year period in the NBA, 5.5% of the
games landed within a ½ pt. of the posted spread and a whopping
9.7% of the games landed within 1 pt. of the posted spread.
That’s right, nearly 10%! That could mean the difference between
a losing season and scraping out a nice profit.
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REDUCED JUICE |
| # 1 |
Pinnacle
|
-105 everyday with -104 on
NFL sides |
| # 2 |
Canbet |
-107 everyday |
| # 3 |
Cascade |
-105 on NFL/NBA/NCAA football |
As we’ve gone over in detail elsewhere on Sports
Insights, the winning percentage needed to break
even on games with -110 juice is 52.38%. So let's
assume that you get smart and take advantage of
reduced juice betting. Now, rather than having to
hit 52.38% to break even, one could drastically
reduce that number. Reduced juice brings this number
down, -107 = 51.67%, and -105 = 51.22%! If you can’t
find an off number at one of your outs, instead you
can bet the same game with reduced juice somewhere
else. By placing the same bet +3 -105 instead of +3
-110 you’ll add
1.16% in your favor.
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DEPOSITING BONUSES |
| #1 |
BetUs.com
|
Tiered from
15% with a 1X rollover up to 50%
with a 6X rollover |
| #2 |
Sports Interaction
|
10%, 3x rollover |
| #3 |
Pinnacle
|
10% initial deposit,
up to $500, 3x rollover, 1 free
payout per month, plus -105 pricing
all the time! |
Originally contrived as a marketing ploy aimed at attracting new
players, bonuses are now considered an industry norm. Depositing
bonuses help the player and cut into the house's edge. (Note
that all bonuses will come with strings attached, usually
requiring a rollover minimum of anywhere between 3X to 10X. The
lower the rollover number the better the bonus. Try and steer
clear of sportsbooks that also require a 30 day hold on your money,
that’s just too long.)
A 10% bonus is now the standard, but if you do a little leg work
you can find sportsbooks that offer 20% with only a 3X rollover.
The rollover number is a key factor when evaluating
a bonus offer. A lower rollover number means fewer times you are required
to place your money in action, and a higher chance of eking out a
profit. A real world example will help drive home this point.
Initial Deposit = $1,000 Initial Deposit + 20% = $1,200 3X
rollover requirement Assuming that you are flipping a coin to pick winners and win
exactly 50% of your bets, you'd have to place $3,600 worth of
bets before you can pull any money out. Day 1: You place 20 bets at -110 to win $100, 20 x $110 = $2,200
in total action. You win 10 and lose 10, (lose -$1,100 but win
$1,000) bankroll -$100, total bankroll now $1,200-$100=$1,100. Day 2: You place 14 bets at -110 to win $100. 14 x $110 = $1,540
in action, $1,540 + $2,200 from Day 1 = $3,740 in total action. You
win 7 and lose 7, (lose -$770 but win $700) bankroll -$70, total
bankroll now $1,100-$70=$1,030. So by just breaking even you scratch out a profit of $30. Not
impressive, but having to roll it over one more time would put
you in the red. So rollover requirements are indeed a big
consideration when evaluating a bonus offer.
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SHARP LINES |
| # 1 |
CRIS
|
Originate their own line and take up
to $50,000 on a single bet |
| # 2 |
Pinnacle
|
Unique lines and take up to $30,000
on NFL sides |
| # 3 |
Olympic |
Originate their line, have tons of
betting options + welcome professional
action |
For the same reason a ½ or full point is important when betting
underdogs, it also works to your advantage if you like to bet on
favorites. The above sportsbooks take so much wiseguy action, they
can’t afford to mess around with their lines.
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