All About Sports Gambling

I'll never forget when I learned all about gambling, specifically, wagering on professional sports. At the time, I was a young 22-year-old who worked at a job that had not one, but two, "bookies" that took "action" on just about every professional sport there is.

After getting an in-depth tutorial from my good friend Rich Preston, whom I will forever be indebted to, I began a three-year love affair with betting that was more than prosperous to me - and ended only because of a lifestyle change and not mounting losses.

Heck, to be honest about it, I got so good at betting, specifically on NFL games, that I won over $900 three consecutive years - and have just recently been trying to figure out why I stopped in the first place.

Now, with the advent of "online" gambling, there is no need to deal with any shady characters who might want to break you legs because of a debt you're late on (not that that ever happened to me).

At any rate, with the advent of online gambling, people of age all over the globe can make a wager on just about anything imaginable. But before you put your money on the line, you definitely need to know everything there is about the gaming industry and how it works.

Having said that, here is everything you need to know to get started with online gambling.

The basics

The main object of sports gambling is to beat the "Odds makers" and win some money. Of course, placing a bet on your favorite team or sporting event makes the game even exciting and enjoyable - although I strongly discourage betting on your favorite team because it throws off sensible judgment because of the often-powerful allegiances.

Betting online is done through Sportsbooks (US) or Bookmakers (UK), entities that legally accept bets. These businesses accept bets on almost every sporting even there is too. From baseball, basketball and football to hockey, tennis and soccer games, most online betting entities offer bets covering a multitude of sports.

Remember, that a sports book is not the same as an odds maker. The sports book simply accepts sports bets. An odds-maker is a person who sets the betting odds.

When betting online, you need to make sure what you are betting on by making a selection, the type of bet and the amount you are wagering. Your selection will obviously depend on the odds offered, so you will want to examine the range of odds available before you make a decision.

There are many types of bets you can place. Some sportsbooks may offer more betting varieties and combinations than others. However, here is a list of the most common types of bets.

Straight bet.

This is the simplest and most common bet. You bet on a winner at given odds.

Point Spread.

This bet allows you bet on a winner from two selections that have been supposedly made equal by allocating appropriate points to the underdog team. The point spread is the number of points allocated and is shown with a + sign for the favorite and a - sign for the underdog.

The favorite has to win by more than the Point Spread for you to win, otherwise you lose your bet even if the team wins. Inversely, if you bet for the underdog, that team has to lose by less than the Point Spread for you to win.

If the favorite wins by the exact Point Spread, then it is a "push" or a tie. You get your bet back. To eliminate a tie result, the odds makers sometimes include a half point spread. Since scores use full numbers only, one team has to win outright.

Buy Points.

With this type of bet, you can move the point spread favorably for a price.

The money line.

This establishes the odds for each team but inversely proportional to what would have been a Point Spread, and is indicated by a + for the underdog and a - sign for the favorite. Say team A is favorite and quoted at -180 and B is the underdog at + 120. The bets offered would be 10:18 odds-on for the favorite, and 12:10 for the underdog. For every $180 you bet on A, you would win $100 or lose $180, but for every $100 you bet on B you would win $120 or lose $100.

Total.

Over/Under.

This is a bet on the combined number of points scored by the two teams in the game. Select either, over or under, the total set by the odds maker.

Parlay or Accumulator.

This a multiple bet. A kind of 'let-it-ride' bet. Making simultaneous selections on two or more games with the intent of pressing the winnings of the first win on the bet of the following game selected, and so on. All the selections made must win for you to win the parlay. If a game is a tie, postponed or cancelled, your parlay is automatically reduced by one selection; a double parlay becomes a straight bet, a triple parlay becomes a double. A parlay bet can yield huge dividends if won.

Teaser.

It is like a parlay, but with the option to add or subtract points (called 'moving the line') from one or more spread bets. When betting a teaser, additional points are either added to the underdog or subtracted from the favorite. The odds vary according to the number of points the spread is moved and the number of teams combined to form the teaser. As in the parlay, all selections must win for the teaser to win. Teasers odds are generally worse than a parlay.

If-wager.

This is a bet that allows the bettor to make a second wager, up to an equal amount, pending a win on the first selection.

Open Wager.

An open wager allows the bettor to play teasers or parlays making a selection at different times and even different days.

Future.

Simply put, this is a bet on a future event. At the start of each season, the sportsbooks give out odds for teams to win a certain championship. The odds change as the game date approaches and in most cases get shorter, but if you win you get paid at the original odds that you took. This is possibly one of the most profitable bets if you have considerable knowledge of the sport that you are betting on including the players, and a good sense of judgment.

Exotic Bets.

Betting on unusual events. Some sportsbooks post odds and take bets on a wide variety of other sports related events and activities. A few others will take bets on just about anything you can think of.

Proposition Bet or Prop Bet.

An offer of bets at odds and conditions chosen by the sports book, usually on 'Exotic' bets.

There are numerous excellent online gambling casinos out there. To find a really good online gambling casino, take your time searching and find one your comfortable with in every way and then, you're off to the races - literally.This bet is for the total number of points scored in the game by both teams combined, including points scored in overtime.