Sports Betting Guide and Terms - Odds

Definition

The term ‘odds’ refers to the probability that an event will occur in mathematical terms. In sports gambling, odds are used extensively and are calculated for most of the major sports.

Las Vegas

The linesmakers at the Las Vegas Sports Consultants (LVSC) are the people who make the betting lines for the majority of the casino sportsbooks and many of the offshore, internet sportsbooks. These people are the professionals who make the lines of all the major sports of the world. Although one may think that all lines are created equal, and that the true favorites should really win, the reality is that oddsmakers often create false favorites—for if every heavy favorite won, then sports gambling would cease to exist (for if this were the case, everyone would simply bet the huge favorites and cash in consistently). The sports of football and basketball (both college and professional) often have ‘false favorites’ and should be looked at with a discerning eye. If the savvy sports bettor is keen to trends and specific angles, then one can bet against these false favorites and make great profit in the long run.

Baseball

Unlike football and basketball, Major League Baseball (MLB) betting lines are true to the true odds of the game. Except for perhaps the playoff lines, most baseball lines are actually based on the odds of a team winning. It has been the experience of the author that heavy juiced favorites (>200) do actually win at a higher rate than the ‘normal’ baseball favorite. The betting line is mostly based on the starting pitchers of the event, but the author suggest that the bettor look into other angles such as the bullpen, number of runs scored by such a team, and the current streak of such a team before placing a bet.

Spread games

In the spread games of football and basketball, oddsmakers try to fool the average bettor by shading the lines—meaning that they intentionally increase the favorite’s (or decrease the underdog’s) line to dupe the public. For example, in heavily publicized games on national television, many spreads are influenced by public money. In other words, a team will usually be favored more (shaded) if it is on television more times than not. Teams who are public darlings (such as the Lakers, Yankees, etc.) continue to have shaded lines.

Summary

In closing, in the sports betting industry, the odds are the mathematical interpretation of who will win a sporting event.