A game has four (4) straight wagering
situations. You can wager on the 'side' of the
game or the 'total' of the game. When wagering
on a 'side', you can choose to wager on (a) the
favorite team (the team most likely to win the
game, or has the odds in its favor) or you can
choose (b) the underdog (the team most likely
to lose the game, or has the odds against it).
A 'total' (or over/under) is the combined amount
of points both teams will score in a game. When
wagering on a 'total' (or over/under), you can
choose to wager on (c) 'over' or (d) 'under' the
total points scored.
The different types of lines:
The Point Spread: Point spreads are used in football
and basketball. The point spread (or 'line') will
try to make the game an even game by adding points
to the score of the underdog or subtracting points
from the favorite.
The Total ('over/under'): Totals are used in football,
basketball, baseball, hockey, etc. The Total is
set, and periodically adjusted, to insure that
half of the people will wager on the 'over' and
wager on the 'under'.
Example ------------------------Cowboys
-4Redskins 48----------or------------(these two
situations are identical)Cowboys -4Redskins +4Over/Under
48------------------------
The line in the above example would read: "Cowboys
are favored by four points against the Redskins
and the total (or over/under) in the game is forty-eight."
There are four (5) possible straight wagering
outcomes. You can wager on:
1. The Cowboys to win by more than 4 points
2. The Redskins to lose by less than 4 points
3. The Redskins win
4. The total (or over/under) to be over 48 points
5. The total (or over/under) to be under 48 points
Results:
Side Wagers
· If you wagered on the Cowboys (the favorite)
and the Cowboys won the game by more than four
points the wager is a winner (the Cowboys "covered
the spread").
· If you wagered on the Redskins (the underdog)
and the Cowboys won by less than four points the
wager is a winner (the Cowboys "did not cover
the spread").
NOTE: If the Cowboys won the game by exactly 4
points, then the game ends in a 'tie' or 'Push'
and all money is refunded. You do not win nor
lose any money.
Total (over/under) Wagers
· If you wagered on over the total (or
the over) and there were more than 48 total points
scored in the game (including all overtimes) then
the wager is a winner.
· If you wagered on under the total (or
the under) and there were less than 48 total points
scored in the game (including all overtimes) then
the wager is a winner.
NOTE: If the game concludes and there are exactly
48 total points scored, then the game ends in
a 'tie' or 'Push' and all money is refunded. You
do not win nor lose any money.
'Juice' or 'VIG' (Vigorish):
When wagering on a straight wager (point spread
or total), you lay a certain amount of money to
win a smaller amount of money. The difference
between what is wagered and what is won is called
the 'Juice' or 'VIG'. This 'Juice' or 'VIG' is
one of the ways a sports book makes its money.
In football and basketball the 'Juice' (or 'VIG')
is 10%. In other words, for every $110 wagered
you will win $100. If you lose the wager, you
lose $110. If you win the wager, you get the $110
'Juice' refunded to you, plus the $100 in winnings
($110 + $100 = $210 total paid back to your account).
Pick'em
When there is no favorite team (both teams are
considered to have an equal chance of winning
the contest) the 'point spread' is a 'PK' ('Pick'
or 'pick'em') in which case there is no point
spread. In a 'PK' you may wager on either team
to win risking $110 to win $100. If the team wagered
upon wins, your wager is a winner.
Straight Wagers (Page 2)
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The Money Line
The 'Money Line' can be used with all traditional
sports and just about anything else you can wager
on (football, basketball, baseball, hockey, boxing,
tennis, golf, NASCAR, soccer, etc.). In a 'Money
Line' there is no point spread. The money line
determines the amount of money laid and the amount
of money won when wagering on either the favorite
or the underdog. The highest negative money line
determines the favorite team, and the lowest negative
money line and all positive money lines determine
the underdog. The most common case is the favorite
with a negative line and the underdog with a positive
one.
Example
------------------------
Dodgers +110Astros -120
------------------------
In this example the Astros are favored by -120
and the Dodgers are the underdog +110. When wagering
on the favorite (Astros), you have to lay $120
for every $100 you want to win. And, when wagering
on the underdog (Dodgers), for every $100 wagered
you would win $110. Notice that on a negative
money line you must lay more to win less and on
a positive money line you lay less to win more.
The money line used in this example is called
a 'dime line', termed so because of the 10-cent
difference between the favorite and the underdog.
Example -----------------------------------------Mets
-240 7 -120Astros +220 EV-----------------------------------------
The line in the above example
would read: "Mets favorite minus two-forty,
total seven, over minus one-twenty."
On the side:
For every $240 you wager on the Mets (favorite),
you will win $100.
For every $100 you wager on the Astros (underdog),
you will win $220.
On the total:
For every $120 you wager on the Over, you will
win $100.
For every $100 you wager on the Under, you will
win $100.
Puck Line or Goal Line:
The puck line is used in hockey and the goal line
is used in soccer. There are two types of Puck
Lines: the American Puck Line and the Canadian
Puck Line. The Canadian Puck Line is a combination
of the point spread and the money line (there
is not only a point spread between the two teams,
but also a different price to lay, determined
by the money line).
Example (Canadian Puck Line)----------------------------------------------Canadians
-1 1/2 -140 5 -135Redwings +120 +115----------------------------------------------
In the example above, if you take the Canadians,
not only does the chosen team have to cover the
spread of -1 1/2 goals, but you have to lay $140
for every $100 you intend to win. Instead if the
Redwings are chosen, the team gets +1 1/2 goals
and for every $100 laid, you get $120.
In puck lines, the favorite team is determined
by the point spread, not the money line. There
are cases in which the favorite has a positive
money line and the dog a negative money line.
In some cases both the favorite and the dog will
have the same point spreads, one being negative
and one positive, in this case the line is simply
the favorite -1 1/2.
The money line for the American Puck Line will
always be Even on the side. There is also 1/2
point difference between the favorite and the
dog, the favorite always being 1/2 point higher.
The total works the same as the Canadian Puck
Line.
Example
(American Puck Line)----------------------------------------------------Sharks
-1 1/2 EV -105Oilers +1 EV 51/2 -115-----------------------------------------------------
Run Line
The Run Line is another type of line used in Baseball.
There are two types of run lines. These two types
of lines follow the same idea as the two puck
lines except that instead of goals, the spreads
and totals are based on runs. Wagers on Total
Runs or Run Lines are based on listed pitchers.
If a non-listed pitcher starts for either team,
the game is scored as no action for both wager
types. The game must also go 9 innings (8 1/2
if the home team is ahead) to have action for
both wager types, otherwise the game is scored
as no action. If the game does go 9 innings (or
8 1/2 if the home team is ahead) and the game
is called or suspended, the final score will be
determined as the score after the last completed
inning unless the home team scores to tie or take
the lead in the bottom half of the inning, in
which case the final score is determined as the
score at the time the game is called.
Example ----------------------------Mets -1 1/2
-130Red Sox +120-------------or-------------Mets
-2 EVRed Sox EV----------------------------
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