Shopping for odds is – surprisingly enough – still ignored by many sports punters.  When shopping for a new car one would not simply purchase the first available car at the car dealership closest to home.  Most of us would drive from one dealership to the next, looking for that perfect balance between price and value. Sports betting should be no different.  It is, after all, a market place like any other.  Prices must be compared, benefits placed in the tipping scale – the best possible profitable outcome will only be reached by following sound practical principles, as is the case in any business environment.

The Edge Is Found In Buying Cheap

Shopping for odds is often compared with grocery shopping.  Why would anyone buy an expensive product when a cheaper product, of equal quality, is available at a store just down the street?  Especially since the birth of the internet and the online gambling arena, there are no longer any excuses for placing a bet with the first available bookmaker that comes into view.

Improving The Means

Most online bookmakers offer attractive incentives in order to get players to join their sites. Signing up with a number of different bookmakers, instead of just one or two, will prove to be advantageous as far as the collateral benefits are concerned.  Why receive 2 joining bonuses when you can have 10 different ones at your disposal, with which to do your bidding?

Signing up with various different bookmakers enables punters to continuously compare benefits as well as make use of the best possible odds at the best possible price.

A Significant Impact On Overall Profits

Shopping for the best possible odds is key when trying to achieve betting success in the long run, as it can (and most probably will) have a significant impact on your overall betting profits.

Understanding The Concept Of Value

What then, must punters consider when shopping for the best possible odds? The starting point to successfully shopping for odds is obtaining a solid understanding of the concept of value.  Shopping for the best possible odds with the best possible value is, realistically speaking, a punter’s only hope of achieving long-term success. Not betting for value will eat into that hope at a frightening pace.

Betting for value is not the same as crown oaks betting on the most likely possible outcome. Successful sports betting isn’t dependant only on predicting the winner accurately every time, but also (and even more importantly) on finding the spots where the odds are best in your favour.

This is exactly where value betting enters the equation. A positive value exists whenever the probability of a bet being a winning bet is greater than the probability reflected in the odds. The basic concept is that all wagers with a positive value should be profitable in the long run.

Constant research is crucial in order to gain an understanding and feel for the matter of accurately pin-pointing probability. Keep in mind that it’s a matter of to each its own – research must be performed in a sports-specific way. The probabilities of a game of Tennis will not necessarily apply to a game of Rugby League.