There are 3 general ways to handicap a sporting event:
1)Got a feeling got a hunch bet a bunch.
2)Statistics.
3)Intangibles including motivational, situational and psychological issues.
When someone tells you they are very good at something it probably takes you less than a minute of listening to figure whether they are boasting, bragging, egotistical exaggerating call it what you want or even just plain lying. We all come across these people all the time. Experts on every topic or endeavor. It is probably even more pronounced in sports betting industry where touts scam artists are shouting from every social media platform possible to state how great they are. The old adage applies still today it is the quiet ones you have to pay attention to watch out for.
There are 3 general ways to handicap a sporting event:
1)Got a feeling got a hunch bet a bunch.
2)Statistics.
3)Intangibles including motivational, situational and psychological issues.
During the course of a long season often teams will go through a major change. This could come in the form of how the team plays or from personnel changes. Even the best teams will go through a slump and even the worst teams will go on a mini win streak. The markets are slow to react and struggle to catch up. This will give you a window of time to find value on a play on or play against mode of a particular team.
Always always bet LISTED pitchers unless I specify differently in my game analysis. This will ensure that from the time we place our bet to the time the game goes off if something were to happen to either starting pitcher and he does not throw at least one pitch to start the game our bet will be refunded. The last thing I want is to risk money based on a pitching change that I did not handicap.
* Be a contrarian. Bet against popular opinion. This is where you will find value and weaknesses in the line.
* Do not CHASE! Do not increase your wagers when losing.
* What you save is what you earn. Shop! Shop! Shop! Have a minimum 3 sports book accounts to ensure you get the best lines possible regardless of the size of your bets. Everything is relative.
* Be prepared. Do your homework. You are only as good as your information.
* RISK the same amount on each game. Flat betting at 2% of your bankroll per game is the long term money management plan to success.
Every year I am asked for advice regarding filling out your brackets and pools for the NCAAB tournament. Not only is March Madness great and presents us with betting opportunities but it also means baseball is about to begin.
Obviously filling out a bracket is a different beast than handicapping individual games of the tournament with point spreads. Next week’s grapevine I will help you with your bracket this week we will deal with the spreads.
1)Forget about the recently finished conference tournaments. March madness is a different beast. There is no carryover of momentum for teams that performed well in those tournaments. In fact some coaches could care less about those tournaments and focus on getting their teams ready for the big dance.
Look for an additional Grapevine Monday or Tuesday regarding betting NCAAB conference tournaments that get underway this week.
We are now 2 months into our 2014 betting year. Although we have not had a MAJOR run good or bad yet this year (there will be both ways at some point) both months were profitable.
We often talk about timing the market in regards to a particular game. This is all about watching the line predicting which way it may go before pulling the trigger and making the bet. No one times the market with 100% efficiency. If the line is moving in your favor wait for it and hit the game when it reaches a peak therefore getting the absolute best line and achieving maximum value.