We all know that in sports betting there are NO situations that work all the time. There are also NO situations on their own without other reasons that would constitute a bet. Finding a spot that consistently wins over 55% of the time well that is something to focus on.
I assume all of you are in this to make money either as a business or a hobby. I also assume like myself you love to watch as many games as you possibly can in every sport you bet. Not only games you have bet on but games that provide scouting opportunities for potential future bets of teams to bet on or against.
We all get them. They are part of the tax we pay in this business for turning a profit. Let us be clear about this topic. Bad beats DO NOT even out. Yes you will win some games you do not deserve to win however the bad beats will outnumber those so called lucky wins.
Reminder for record keeping purposes this is the last betting day of 2015. Reset your consolidated numbers and begin anew starting tomorrow. Of course your individual sports tracking continues as usual until their respective seasons end.
The last sports betting day for this year will be next Sunday January 3rd. We close off every week on Sunday nights. January 3rd will be the last day of week 52 for 2015. We track our overall stats as well as the same stats broken down for each individual sport. The overall stats are closed off and started anew every calendar year while the individual sports stats are closed off when that sport ends for a particular season.
I have talked to many sports bettors who were very skilled at winning finding value and making very smart bets. However guess what that is not enough. Without solid money management and discipline a sports bettor will not survive long term.
Over the next several weeks starting on Dec 19th the college football bowl games will be played culminating with the 4 team (for now) playoff format to determine a champion.
Handicapping bowl games is a totally different beast than handicapping games during the regular season.
Remember a unit is 2% of your bankroll. Your bankroll is the unencumbered amount of money you have allocated to this business. It is not money you need for essentials such as food and housing. Your unit is the amount you RISK on each play not the amount you can win. Flat betting risking the same amount on each game is the only way to long term success in this business in my opinion.
Ask yourself the following questions in order to become a more successful sports bettor.
1)What do you do that other bettors fail to do?
2)What is your edge over the general public recreational bettor?
3)What is your edge over the sports books?
The secret to my handicapping is no different to a conventional business. Long hours (but I love it) hard work (but I enjoy what I do so is it really work?). Persistence Perseverance work ethic all the qualities you will find that create success in most endeavors.
Bettors often fall into the trap of looking at the team name, logo, or color of the jerseys. Just because a team was great last year or even 1 month ago is NOT relevant TODAY. ALL teams good and bad go through peaks and valleys over the course of a long season.
Focus on current results the last 5 games in particular. Once you hit the one quarter pole of a season year to date stats are as meaningless as trends.