Different Ways To Gamble
The Super Bowl is the USA’s biggest sporting event (when the Olympics aren’t in tow, anyway). And the great thing about the Super Bowl is that it’s held every year.
Gambling has been a popular activity in the United States for centuries. It has also been suppressed by law in many areas for almost as long. By the early 20th century, gambling was almost uniformly outlawed throughout the U.S. And thus became a largely illegal activity, helping to spur the growth of the mafia and other criminal organizations. Competitors are always looking for ways to gain a bigger market share, which corresponds to a reduction in the company’s market share. A Porter’s Five Forces analysis of the Procter & Gamble Company shows that competition is a major external factor that affects the consumer goods business. Faced with slow growth, commoditization and global competition, many CEOs view innovation as critical to corporate success. William Ford Jr., chairman and CEO of Ford Motor Co., recently announced that, “from this point onward, innovation will be the compass by which the company sets its direction” and that Ford “will adopt innovation as its core business strategy going forward.”1.
What makes the Super Bowl such a spectacular event for many people is all the hoopla building up to the big game.
For some people, the Super Bowl is a bigger, much more meaningful event than New Year’s Eve. US bookmakers report that Super Bowl Sunday is the biggest betting day of the year, and billions of dollars exchange hands.
Wagers based on sporting events are usually divided into two types, sports betting and prop (or proposition) betting.
- A typical sports bet is about who will win. The game itself is the point of the bet.
- A prop bet is a side bet, something that makes the wagering a little more entertaining.
Some Basic Sports Betting Terminology
The “point spread” is a handicap the bookmaker (or market maker) offers on the presumed underdog. It’s a way to make an uneven bet more even. If most people expect a certain team to win, a point spread benefits bettors who want to make money on the team most likely to lose, even if it loses by fewer points in the spread.
The “juice” or “price” determines the payout odds on your point spread. An even money bet’s juice is 0. If the juice is negative (like -110) that is how much money you must wager to win $100. If the juice is positive (like +150) that is how much money you win on a $100 wager.
The bookmaker may have standard or default odds on its point spreads. NOTE: I’m using American odds in this example. See below for an explanation.
A “moneyline” wager is a prop without a point spread. The payout odds are adjusted to reflect which competitor is more likely to win. In other words, you’ll get better odds on the underdog in a moneyline bet but the underdog must win.
There may be special rules or minimum requirements for each sport before moneyline bets are paid.
The “totals” for a game are the combined final scores for both teams or competitors. Wagers may be placed on whether the final score goes over or under an expected total. These bets are called “over/under” bets.
You May Run into Three Types of Odds in Sports Betting. They Are:
- American odds – Another name for moneyline odds, which are preferred by American bookmakers.
- Decimal odds – Instead of using whole dollar (or currency unit) amounts, decimal odds are given as a multiplier. Payout = Wager x (Decimal) Odds.
- Fractional odds – If the payout is a multiple of the wager, a fractional odd may be used. “Bookies are offering 4-to-1 odds on Curtis.”
Prop Betting Covers Everything Else
Bettors can usually pick from hundreds of prop bets, but you can set up your own through popular sports betting sites.
And every office with two or more sports fans usually has a pool. What are some of the cooler bets people can make on the Super Bowl?
Prop Bets Fall into Two Categories:
- Skill bets
- Fun bets
Skill bets are more popular than fun bets because the bettor leverages his knowledge of statistics and athlete or team capabilities. Sports betting sites and bookmakers set up the skill bets.
I can’t list them all but here is a breakdown of different types of fun prop bets anyone should be able to find.
1 – You Can Bet on How Long It Will Take
Whether it’s the national anthem, the coin toss, or the halftime show, someone somewhere has collected statistics on how long every part of the game has taken.
People like to bet over/under the average or predicted length. A variation on “how long will it take” is “how long before?”
- How long will be before the first touchdown is scored?
- How long until the first field goal?
- How long until the first sack?
There’s a first for everything that happens in a game.
2 – You Can Bet on Colors at the Super Bowl
Perhaps the most popular color bet revolves around the Gatorade that is poured over the winning coach’s head at the end of the game. But there are usually other color-centric props.
If either the anthem singer or the halftime show star has a reputation for wearing unusual colors—hair, shoes, clothes—there will be prop bets on which color is most likely to appear where.
If You Don’t like the Limited Selection of Color-Based Bets, Suggest a Few of Your Own:
- What color uniforms will be shown in the first commercial using old game footage?
- What color stage lighting comes on first during the halftime show?
- What color ties will the announcers wear?
- Which team is more likely to win based on the color of their uniform?
3 – You Can Pick the First
From which team will score first to which quarterback will be sacked first, people love to put names on who will be first in everything.
- Who receives the first pass?
- Who gets to 10 yards rushing first?
- What will be the first song in the halftime show?
- Which player will score the first touchdown?
Betting on the first anything is less certain than an over/under bet. When you only have two choices, your chances begin at 50/50 and are adjusted up or down based on other criteria
A multi-choice prop bet is more random. Kickers have scored touchdowns so anyone on the field might be the first player to score. We know which running backs and receivers are most likely to be sent to the end zone but anything can happen once the ball comes loose.
Which team fumbles first is a good prop bet. Or which team forces a fumble first. Or which team recovers a fumble first…
4 – You Can Bet on How Many of Anything
Winning teams usually dominate in either passing or rushing. A crushing win is typically accomplished by dominating both the running and passing games.
How many yards passing, rushing, or both will take for the winning team to clench victory?
Penalties can also affect the outcome of a close game. Good penalty props include which team racks up the most penalties, how many penalties are successfully challenged, and how many penalties the game tallies overall.
Ways To Gamble
Looking beyond the game, there’s room for many “how many” bets.
A Few Suggestions Include:
- How many puppies score in Puppy Bowl?
- How many dancers will be in the halftime show (unless the number has been published)?
- How many shots of celebrities in the crowd will be shown?
- How many players will greet their mothers on camera?
- How many past Super Bowl games will the announcers discuss in passing?
- How many field goals will there be?
How Does Prop Betting Work?
If you’re not familiar with prop bets, here’s a quick introduction.
The world of props (propositions) gets complicated, but there are ways to break yourself in slowly. The best advice I can offer you is to start learning early and practice with a small bankroll before the big game. The sooner you get started the better.
Bookmakers and sports betting sites offer prop bets on every kind of legal sport. I’m sure there are underground bookies who take props on illegal sports but let’s keep it safe and legal.
Best Places To Gamble
Props come with their own vocabulary. When you begin researching props, you’ll find online forums and tips articles that toss words around like crazy.
Bookmakers offer props on some non-sporting events, too. There are usually prop bets in every presidential election. Most prop bets are done “off the books” between bettors.
Legal bookmakers are regulated. Nevada’s sports betting laws limit the kinds of bets bookmakers are allowed to handle. This prevents props from becoming too wild and crazy for American tastes.
You’re more likely to find these exotic props offered by foreign bookmakers. Prop betting is still growing in popularity in the US, but it’s fully adopted in many other countries. Most US prop betting revolves around the Super Bowl.
Who Makes the Proposition?
Depending on where you go for betting, the props may be made by the bookmaker, or they could be made by the bettors.
Online bettors can join independent exchanges. They become what are sometimes called “market makers.” A market maker sets the odds and posts the bet. Either someone else accepts the prop, or it’s ignored.
The independent props may be offered by people who have no idea of what they are doing. But there’s a good chance the person offering the prop knows more than you do and has an edge over you.
Betting sites offer some basic tutorials in how to use their software and what is expected of you. Read their terms and conditions carefully.
It can be difficult to find detailed guides on prop betting. Bettors are expected to learn as they go.
Conclusion
Ways To Gamble
The Super Bowl is an exciting time for many sports fans. Interest in the game has spread around the world.
It’s easy to learn the basics of sports betting. There are more sophisticated markets and tactics awaiting anyone who wants to get into serious props and futures.
How To Gamble
But for most of us, the Super Bowl is a singular event in every year. It’s a good time to have a little fun with some pocket money.