The most common mistake amateur and professional sports gamblers make is betting too much on individual events. A simple hard and fast rule is to never bet more than 2.5% of your sports betting balance on any given sporting event. However, before we get to the details of how much to bet there are a few basic rules that any sports gambler must remember:
Rule 1: NEVER bet more than you can afford to lose. This is the one rule that too many people ignore before it is too late. Ignoring this the rule creates all the horror stories. In sports gambling you must remember that there will be hot streaks and cold streaks and you do not want to subject your rent money or mortgage payment to any risk what-so-ever. If the money you are using to gamble is earmarked for a necessity then you should not be gambling with it. Only gamble with discretionary income.
Rule 2: NEVER bet with your heart. This, again, is one simple rule that many gamblers seem to ignore. If the Dallas Cowboys are your favorite team, you must recognize (despite what you may think) that you WILL be biased in trying to determine the winner of any of their games. The common (mistaken) logic is that because they are your favorite team you know more about that team and therefore, you should be able to make a determination about the winner of their games. Nothing is further from the truth. The problem with this logic is that you listen to biased Sports Radio regarding your team, you read biased Newspaper articles regarding your team and most importantly, you are biased about your team. The best rule to follow is to avoid betting on any game that involves a team that you have ANY allegiance toward.
Rule 3: NEVER bet on a game because it is on Television. It is okay to bet on a game that is on Television, but do not bet on a game SOLELY because it is on television.
Rule 4: ALWAYS bet the same amount on every event that you bet. To state it differently, do not play $250 on Pittsburgh versus Dallas, $150 on New England versus Indianapolis and $500 on Oakland versus Chicago. The only reason Sports Gamblers do this is because they feel more confident about Oakland versus Chicago, less confident about Pittsburgh versus Dallas and slightly confident about New England versus Indianapolis. All too often, the “best” pick of the day, turns out wrong, a back door cover creates a loss or a late interception causes a change in the result of the game. DO NOT FALL FOR THE 5 STAR LOCK OF THE DAY. This is why: Say Steve bets $500 on Oakland +7 versus Chicago; $250 on Pittsburgh +4 versus Dallas and $150 on New England -3 versus Indianapolis. Further say Tom makes the EXACT three same picks, but bets $300 on each game. Both gamblers have bet $900.00. Assume Oakland does not cover but Pittsburgh and New England do cover. Steve won 2 games and lost 1, but has lost $100.00 ($250+$150-$500). Tom on the other hand has won 2 games and lost 1, but has won $300.00 ($300+$300-$300). There is nothing more frustrating than having a winning percentage, but losing money.
Rule 5: NEVER bet more than 2.5% of your bankroll on any single event. If your balance in your sports betting account is $1000.00 then you should bet $25.00 per game. The reason is very simple. If you bet $25.00 per game you would have to lose 40 straight games before your account busted. If you bet $100.00 per game (10% of your balance) you would only have to lose 10 straight before your account busted. In other words, by betting 2.5% of your account balance on any given game, you INSURE yourself that you will be able to withstand even the worst losing streak. Make sure that you follow Rule #4 as well…Do Not bet more money on one game and less on another.
Rule 6: Once you increase the amount you bet per game, DO NOT reduce the amount you bet per game. Further, you should only increase the amount you bet per game once you have increased your bankroll by 25%. Taking our example above further. If the bankroll is $1,000.00 then the bet is $25.00 per game UNTIL the original balance is increased to $1,250.00. At this point, the amount bet per game is increased to $31.25 per game (or 2.5% of $1,250.00). You would continue at this amount until the balance is increased against by 25% (to $1,560). If you would begin to lose and you fall below the last benchmark YOU DO NOT REDUCE the amount bet per game. If you do, you will find yourself in a never ending cycle.
Following these 6 simple and rather basic rules you will find that sports gambling will become less stressful and more fun.
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