Basketball Betting

Purchasing Sports Betting Peace Of Mind

By Jim Jardine

One of the more fascinating sports betting statistical studies recently done regarding sports betting on pro football is that 60% of pro football games are decided by point margins of just 10 different numbers with three-point margins being the most common of all, (17%), with seven-point margins a distant second at 6%. At first glance a sports betting player about to make a sports betting wager on a pro football game with a sports betting line of three or seven points would seem to be inclined to purchase an extra half a point from his sportsbook or online sports betting website. But before a sports betting player surrenders an extra 10% juice to purchase that half a point on the sports betting line he should do some deeper sports betting research.

How often does that extra half a point actually help a sports betting player and is it worth a sports betting player’s extra juice purchased to have that extra half a point on the sports betting line in pro football wagering? A recent study reveals that when the closing sports betting line was six-points the favorite on the sports betting board either won by less than six points or lost outright 82 times. 93 times the six-point favorite won and covered the sports betting line. Five times the six-point favorite pushed which would have made the half-point purchase by a sports betting player worth it as a push would have become a win against the sports betting line with that extra half a point. The downside is when a sports betting player purchases that extra half a point and the 10% juice that comes with that purchase against the sports betting line. In our six-point scenario here the half point purchases produced an extra $500 for a sports betting player but that same sports betting payer would have lost $820 laying the extra juice for that half point against the sports betting line which makes for an overall loss to the sports betting player’s bankroll by purchasing the half a point every time on six-point pro football favorites against the sports betting line.

There are some sports betting line numbers, however, that have proven profitable for a sports betting player to purchase. Sports betting players purchasing underdogs and an extra half a point from two ½, 3, and 9 ½ have profited against sportsbooks and online sports betting sites through the years as have sports betting players purchasing half points on favorites of 2 ½, 3, 3 ½, and 10 ½ points. Many sportsbooks in Vegas and some online sports betting sites no longer allow purchases from a 3-point sports betting line.