What does minus 3 bet mean?

A minus 3 spread means that the team that is favored is expected to win by 3 points. This means that if you bet on a team's spread at -3, then the team must win by at least 3 points for you to win your bet.

What does Cowboys minus 3 mean?

This means, in order for the wager to win, the Cowboys would need to lose the game by fewer than three points, or win outright.

What does minus 4 mean spread?

The minus sign denotes that that team has to win by more than that margin while the plus sign indicates that the other team can lose by that margin, or win the game, and they cover the spread in either case. Following this example, the Chiefs are at -4.5.

What does +3 mean in a bet?

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 does a minus 2 spread mean?

In the simplest terms, a negative spread indicates the favorite, which is the side that's expected to win the matchup. A negative point spread really means that team has some work to do. For a negative spread bet to hit, the team has to beat its opponent by a margin greater than the point spread.

Point Spread Betting Explained: Sports Betting 101

What does a negative 3 spread mean?

In football, a minus 3 point spread means the team that is expected to win should win by 3 points. For example, take the following game: Kansas City Chiefs -3 (-110) at Arizona Cardinals +3 (-110) In this example, the Kansas City Chiefs are favored by 3 points (-3) at odds of -110.

What is minus 2.5 spread?

For the team getting -2.5 to successfully win the bet against the spread, they will need to win by three or more points. The team with +2.5 odds would have to either win, or lose by two points or less. Why use a point spread for betting?

What does minus 3.5 spread mean?

Therefore, -2 means that a team must win by more than two points in order to cover the spread. If they win by exactly two points, the bet would push and the stake would be returned with no winnings. Similarly, -3.5 means the team must win by more than four.

What's a +3 spread mean?

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).

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.

What is a +4.5 spread?

In basketball, you might see a point spread of -4.5/+4.5, which means the favored team will need to win the game by five points or more for your bet to cover the spread. If you bet on the underdog, they simply need to win the game or lose the game by less than four points. If they lose by five, your bet won't cash.

How do you read a negative spread?

How do plus minus spreads work?

The Money Line: Odds for a game based on $1. A "minus" (-) preceding the number indicates the team is a favorite. A "plus" (+) preceding the number indicates the team is an underdog.

What does minus 3.5 mean in football?

A team with a negative spread number must win by more than that amount. If the line is Cardinals -3.5, they must win by 4 points or more to win the bet. A positive spread (ex: Bengals +3.5) means one can win the bet if that team loses by less than that amount.

What does +3 bet mean in football?

If the player bets Washington (+3), Washington must win the game outright or lose by two points or less for the player to win. If Philadelphia wins by exactly three points, it is considered a wagering tie or “push” for wagering purposes and all straight bets on the pointspread are refunded.

What does it mean if a team is minus 5?

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 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 does +8.5 spread mean in football?

Let's say that a team is favored as 8.5 point favorites or written as -8.5. For the favored team to “cover the spread,” they must win by at least nine points. If they win by eight points or less, it doesn't matter that they won because they didn't cover the spread.

What happens if the spread is 3 and they lose by 3?

A spread of -3 means that that team must win by over 3 points to cover while a spread of +3 means that the team must win or lose by less than 3 points to cover. If a spread is +3 and the team loses by 3, the bet would be a push.

Is a negative spread good or bad?

It's not possible to have two of each sign for a spread. The team with the negative (-) number is the favorite, or team predicted to win the game. The team with the positive (+) number is the underdog and is expected to lose the game.

Is a negative spread bad?

Betting on a team with a negative point spread means they are the favorites. If they still seem likely to win and cover, they can start to pay out pretty well. Some hate the idea of trusting the underdog team to stay competitive in a matchup.

How does a +7.5 spread work?

If you bet on them to win, they must beat the opposing team by at least 7.5 points. On the opposite side of the wager, the New England Patriots are the underdog to win. To beat the spread, they must close the point gap to within 7.5 points or win outright.

What does plus minus mean in spread?

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 minus 1.5 spread mean?

The team with -1.5 is the favorite, while the team that is +1.5 is the underdog. In this particular spread, the two teams are pretty close. Point spreads can vary, but this is one of the most common point spreads. It essentially means that the underdog pays out as the winner, but also if they only lose by one.

What does minus 9 spread mean?

The negative value -9 indicates the Giants are favored by 9 points. The positive value (+9) indicates the Jets are underdogs of 9 points. 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.