How do you win with the spread?

For point spread betting purposes, the value of the point spread is added to the team's total as part of the wager. Bettors who choose the underdog win their wager when that team either wins the event outright OR loses by an amount less than the point spread.

What does +7 spread mean?

The underdog odds will be +7, meaning the team can win outright or lose by less than seven points to win the bet. A loss by exactly seven points would cause a push bet.

What happens if a team wins by exactly the spread?

Spreads and odds might adjust after you place your bets. Your wagers will be settled based on the numbers at the time of bet placement. If the final score of a game lands exactly on the margin of the spread — i.e., 30-27 for a three-point spread — then the bet is a push, and the sportsbook will refund wagers.

What does a +3.5 spread mean?

A spread of +3.5 means a team must win outright or lose by fewer than four points to cover the spread. A +3.5 spread is particularly enticing in football because, as noted earlier, 3-point victory margins are extremely common. An example of a +3.5 spread: New England Patriots +3.5. Miami Dolphins -3.5.

How does +3 spread work?

The point spread is the expected final score difference between two teams. It is represented as both a negative and positive number; if the spread is 3 points, you'll see that as both -3 and +3. The team that is the favorite to win gets the minus-number (-3); the underdog gets the plus-number (+3).

Point Spread Betting Explained: Sports Betting 101

How do you read a spread?

How do I know if I won a spread bet?

Bettors who choose the favorite win their wager when that team wins by an amount greater than the point spread. For example, if the Colts are favored over the Titans by 5.5 points and the Colts win by 7 points, the Colts have “covered the spread.” Bettors who wagered on the Colts will have won the bet.

What does a negative spread mean?

A point spread is a bet on the margin of victory in a game. The stronger team or player will be favored by a certain number of points, depending on the perceived gap in ability between the two teams. A minus sign (-) means that team is the favorite. A plus sign (+) means that team is the underdog.

What does a minus 4 spread mean?

Betting Line

Following this example, the Chiefs are at -4.5. This means that in order to win on the point spread or cover, Kansas City would need to win the game by five points or more.

What does a minus 7 spread mean?

A favorite will always be surrendering points, i.e. a -7 spread for the Buffalo Bills against the Miami Dolphins means that oddsmakers have labeled the Bills as the favorite by seven points.

Do you win if you hit the spread?

Each team has a favorite and an underdog, and if a bettor wagers that the favorite will win by more than the point spread, thereby covering the spread, then they'll win their bet.

Can a team cover the spread and still lose?

To place a bet on the favored Giants means they must win by at least 10 points to cover the spread. The underdog Jets can lose by eight points and still cover the spread.

Who wins a bet when the spread?

For example, with a 4-point spread, the favorite team must win by more than 4 points for bettors to get paid. Conversely, the underdogs can lose by 1, 2, or 3 points (or win the game outright) and still win the bet. However, if the underdogs lose by more than 4 points, the bet is a loss.

What does +200 mean for odds?

They are American money line odds; for example, +200 signifies the amount a bettor could win if wagering $100. If the bet works out, the player would receive a total payout of $300 ($200 net profit + $100 initial stake).

What does +4 spread mean?

Cincinnati was a 4 point underdog. This appeared as Bengals +4. That means the Bengals would have needed to win the game outright or not lose the contest by 5 points or more. The final score was Rams 23, Bengals 20, so bettors who bet Bengals +4 would have won their bets considering Cincinnati only lost by 3 points.

Is spread better than Moneyline?

While a point spread requires the team you bet on to win by a specified margin, moneyline does not. However, point spread bets typically have odds somewhat close to even money, meaning you would win about as much as you bet if you won. Moneyline bets have a wide range of odds.

What does a minus 6 spread mean?

The favorite is the team projected to win the game. They are assigned a point spread with a minus symbol (-) in front of the number, such as Pittsburgh Steelers (-6.5). If you were to bet on the Steelers to cover the spread in this instance, Pittsburgh would need to win by seven or more points for you to win your bet.

What is plus minus in NFL?

The minus sign (e.g.-130) always indicates the favorite and the amount you must bet to win $100. The plus sign (e.g.+120) always indicates the underdog and the amount you win for every $100 bet.

How do NFL spreads work?

In spread betting, the favorite has to win by a certain number of points for the bettors who pick them to cash in. Spread betting is a go-to wagering option for sharp sports bettors compared to other betting types like NFL moneyline betting, totals betting, NFL futures, or player prop bets, for example.

How do you win a minus spread?

If the team has a minus sign, that means they're the favorite and they'll have to win by the specified number or more for you to win your bet. If the team has a plus, that means they're the underdog and they'll have to either win the game or lose by less than the specified number for you to win.

What is point spread for dummies?

The point spread is the number of points sportsbooks believe the favorite to better than the underdog. Example: If you bet $100 on the favorite (Chiefs) to cover the spread at -9.5. The favorite would have to win by 10 points or more to win your bet. If you bet $100 on the underdog (Texans) to cover the spread at +9.5.

How does spread bet work?

Spread betting is any of various types of wagering on the outcome of an event where the pay-off is based on the accuracy of the wager, rather than a simple "win or lose" outcome, such as fixed-odds (or money-line) betting or parimutuel betting.

What does +3 spread mean?

On the other side of the bet, if a bettor chooses the underdog (+3), that team must either upset the favorite and win the game or lose the game, but by fewer than 3 points for the bettor to be successful.

What do the spread numbers mean?

The spread, also referred to as the line, is used to even the odds between two unevenly matched teams. Bookmakers set a spread with the hopes of getting equal action on both sides of a game. For example, the Colts are a -3 point favorite against the Texans. The -3 points is the spread.

What does covering the spread mean?

A handicap of the point spread value is given to the favourite team so bettors can choose sides at equal odds. “Cover the spread” means that a favourite wins an event with the handicap taken into account or the underdog wins with additional points.