Moneyline Bets

Moneyline Bets

Moneyline bets are the simplest and most basic way to wager on sports. It is a straightforward bet with two or three potential outcomes depending on the sport that is being wagered on. It can simply be defined as a bet on picking the outright winner of a particular game. Moneyline doesn't come with any condition nor point spread, it's just a bet state winner of a game irrespective of the scoreline or winning margin.

Sportsbook set moneyline odds based on the chances of each team to win the game. There's always a favorite and an underdog in a specific game. The favorite is the team with higher implied probability of winning the game due to some crucial factors, which includes team quality, recent form, etc, while the underdog is the team with a lower chance of winning the contest much due to the same factors.

Moneyline bets are the least complicated kind of bet available on sportsbooks, bettors only have to make an outright decision on the game's conclusion. It's a very common way to start wagering among new sports bettors because it's the easiest kind of bet to understand. Moneyline is easily the most popular form of betting on sportsbooks irrespective of the sports, alongside points spread and total

How to Read Moneyline Odds

Moneyline odds are calculated by sportsbooks based on the implied probability of each team winning the contest which makes it differ from one game to the other. The odds in a moneyline bet are most time presented in the American odd format, which displays odds with negative and positive numbers with a confluence at 100. Sportsbooks separate the two teams involved in a tie into favorite and underdog. The negative integer is used in signifying the favorite team, which has the higher winning chance and the positive integer is used in signifying the underdog, who is more likely to end on the losing side. Typically, moneyline odds for games that are close in terms of competitiveness will have less variance between the two integers.

Practically, a game with a moneyline odds of:

Team A; +140

Team B; -180

It is pretty obvious here that Team A is the favorite to win the game and a bet on the team will obviously pay less than betting on Team A. In calculating the potential payout, the $100 factor is pretty important. The odds with the negative sign signifies what a bettor would have to stake to win $100, while odds with the positive sign signifies what a bettor would win if $100 is staked. Using the scenario above;

A winning bet with $100 stake on "Team A" will return a profit of $140 and a total payout of $240 (stake + profit).

A winning bet with $100 stake on "Team B" will return a profit of $20 and a total payout of $120 (stake + profit).

Three-way Moneyline Bet.

In some sports, there can be a three-way moneyline, these are sports in which the result of the game could end in a draw. Soccer is a very good example here. In three-way moneyline bets, the third option of a draw is included. The option of a draw in three-way moneyline bets only relate to the results of regulation and not the overtime. An example this case is:

Team A; +250

Team B; -120

Draw; +300

Bettors have the extra option of wagering on a draw here. The odds for a game to end in a draw comes with a positive sign just like that of the underdog.

Moneyline Parlays.

Moneyline parlays give bettors the opportunity to link together multiple moneyline bets and stake a single amount on them, in order to earn large possible profit in return. Parlays are also known as accumulators in some other betting climes. The more individual games added to moneyline parlay, the bigger the return is expected to be. Sportsbooks also offer bonuses on moneyline parlay bets the longer they are.

Moneyline parlay can offer bettors a huge profit on wager, but all involved picks have to be correct for the bet to be considered a win. One incorrect parlay pick could ruin the whole show; the bet is lost as soon as one of the picks brings out a wrong result. Moneyline parlay could span several days, comes with high risk and could be highly rewarding. The more parlay picks added to the list of a moneyline, the higher the risk that comes with it; nonetheless, the biggest the payout will be if all ends up correct.

Moneyline FAQs

How is a Moneyline Bet Won?

Winning a moneyline bet is pretty straightforward, bettors only have to outrightly pick a winner of the particular contest. The amount of money that is won in a moneyline bet is dependent on the odds as well as how much was staked on it. A team with the higher chance of coming out victorious gets a lower odds which means a smaller amount of money in return; while the team with the lower probability of winning has the high odds that signify a bigger amount of money in return should the team win the game.

How do Moneyline Bets Work?

Sportsbooks determine prices on one team or the other practically on the level of competitiveness or talent available on each side based on a specific matchup. In other words, prices are assigned based on what they believe accurately reflects the cost of picking each side by bettors. The closer to "100" the price in a particular game, the closer the competitiveness of the two teams involved. Teams are thought to be evenly matched by the sportsbook when odds get to the range of "-120 to +120" as there is less variance between the teams.

What Differentiates a Moneyline and Point Spread Bet?

Moneyline involves making a bet of which team wins a particular regardless of the scoreline and winning margin. Point spread bets on the other hand require bettors to wager on a team to win a contest by a specified margin. In point spread, the favorite is handicapped by a specific number of points but none of that is involved in a moneyline. On sportsbook's platforms, point spread comes with higher odds than money which means there's a bigger chance of winning more money wager on spread than moneyline.

What is a Three-Way Moneyline Bet?

While moneyline betting is all about picking the winner of a specific game, there are some sports that end in a draw. The game of soccer is a very good example here, a good percentage of games in soccer ends with both teams sharing the spoils. A three-way moneyline bet therefore offers bettors the opportunity to pick the team that wins a contest or whether the game ends in a draw. In this moneyline betting scenario, there's an option of the favorite, underdog and even for bettors while wagering.

Can Moneyline Bets be Put in Parlays?

Multiple moneyline bets can be involved in the same parlay bet. In a parlay bet, two or more individual bets are linked together on one slip with all the wager having to win together. Moneyline parlays bring in more money in return on wager than single moneyline bets, however, there's a higher chance of losing as all individual bets are interdependent. Also, picking heavy favorites in a moneyline parlay will yield a lower payout than picking slight favorites or even the underdogs.