The Advanced Guide to Betting

Anyone can place a basic bet on a sports game or a horse racing event, but it takes strategy and analysis to really see success. If you’re looking to step up your betting game, here are some advanced tips that you can put into action next time you head to the bookmakers.

Work Out How to Spot Value in Practice

When you’re trying to work out the value of a bet, there’s a certain method that will come in very handy, particularly for sports betting. Estimate the chances of your team or horse winning in terms of a percentage. Find the best decimal price for that choice to win and then multiply the percentage you estimated by the decimal price, or simply use an odds calculator. Any result of 1.00 or higher will mean the choice you’ve made has value and would be worthy of consideration in terms of placing a bet.

Note the Home and Away Form

It’s understood among sports fans that around half of all sports games end in home wins, with another quarter ending in draws and the rest in away wins. Across virtually all professional leagues, these figures tend to be the same, showing that home advantage is a definite fact. A common method for forecasting for professionals is to look at previous match results from the current season and maybe the previous season, so as to estimate what the chances are of a winning result.

Do Your Homework

One of the most important strategies that sets amateurs apart from professionals is research. You never want to place a bet without thoroughly educating yourself on the sport and the particular choices you’ve made. In the long run, it will pay dividends in terms of your success and profits. So, in order to fully understand the market, you need to look at stats, identify trends, create betting systems and analyse past performances – in other words, find every bit of information you can in order to have the best knowledge you can when you place your wager.

Don’t Fall for Bait

Anyone who has been betting for a while will know that you’re never far from a betting website selling you a dummy and if you manage part of your betting activities offline, there are still pitfalls. From unrealistic bonuses to special promotions, there are always tricks used to lure bettors in and it pays to be aware of them and do your research. Before you sign up to a network, read reviews and look for demos so you know exactly what you’re getting into. Any expert bettor knows not to go into anything blindly.

Adjust Your Percentage Bet Size as You Win or Lose

Whatever you’re betting on, whether it’s sports or casino games, this tip works wonders, and it can work for anyone, regardless of their betting budget. However, it does require a bit of maths. The concept is quite simple – you alter the percentage of the amount you’re betting with depending on your budget. So, if you have £100 to play with, you’ll bet £1 if you go for the smallest bet and then you can set thresholds as your budget adjusts depending on wins or losses. For example, change to 0.60 if it drops to £60, 0.30 if it drops to £30 and so on.