Betting Predictions

Betting predictions involve a lot more than just guessing. Thorough research on team statistics, player performance, injuries, historical matchups and relevant trends is key. Keeping a detailed record of your bets and the results is also helpful in refining your strategy.

Point spreads even the odds between two teams to give bettors as close to an even matchup as possible. A number is then set, and bettors wager on whether the game will go over or under that number. The higher the total, the more money you can win on a bet. Typically, oddsmakers take into account the history of the two teams, current form and past performances in similar weather conditions when setting the line.

A bet on a team to win outright is one of the most popular wagering options in sports betting. A team must win by at least as many points as the spread in order to cover, and bettors can also place a bet on individual players.

Props — short for proposition bets — are any wager that isn’t a standard point spread, moneyline or total. Bettors often pay a premium price to bet on these wagers. For example, a pitcher’s strikeout total may be set at 7.5, but you can expect to pay more than 3-to-1 odds to wager on the over.

Parlays are a great way to combine point spreads, over/unders and game and player props for a more diversified bet with lower odds than single-game wagers. They’re especially popular in football, where bettors can add 6, 6.5 and 7 points to a game’s lines for increased chances of success at a lower cost.