First Look at Super Bowl 46
Even before New York Giants kicker Lawrence Tynes booted his game-winning field goal, odds for the Super Bowl were released. The Greek posted an early number of New England -3.5 points over New York with a total of 55.5.Now that bettors have had a few days to wager on the Super Bowl, the spread has settled in at New England -3 and the over/under is 55.
Point Spread/Money Line Combination
While nearly all sportsbooks have New England as 3-point favorites, there is a difference in price, as most sportsbooks are using a combination of the point spread and money line for the game.While in traditional point spread betting, you risk $11 to win $10 regardless of which team you wager on, for the Super Bowl, bettors who want to take the Giants +3 are being asked to wager $12.50 to win $10 at The Greek and $12 to win $10 at Intertops Sportsbook. Those wishing to take New England -3 will risk $10 to win $10.50 at The Greek and $10 to win $10 at Intertops.
The point spread/money line combination isn't used that often in pro football, but it does occur, especially when the point spread falls on one of the key numbers of 3, 4, 6 or 7.
The favored team has fared well in winning previous Super Bowls, as the favorite is 33-12 straight up and 27-19 against the point spread, but the underdog has covered the spread in three of the last four and seven of the last 10 games.
Money Line Betting
In addition to the point spread, you can also wager on the Super Bowl using the traditional money line, which simply means to pick the winner of the game. The Patriots are currently -145 at The Greek, while the Giants are +125. If you are new to sports betting and are unfamiliar with the concept of point spread betting and money line betting, I would read Introduction to Money Lines and Understanding Point Spreads to help clear things up.
Different sportsbooks will have different money lines for the game, so the smart sports bettor will look to find the most advantageous number before placing their bet.
Over/Under Bets
The over/under, or total, is holding steady at 55. Totals, which are described in greater detail here are simply wagers involving the total combined points of both teams. In this case the total is 55 and bettors can wager that fewer (under) than 55 points will be scored or more (over) than 55 combined points will be scored in the game.Over/under wagers are a distant second to traditional point spread betting, but some bettors feel more comfortable with totals.
While the total of 55 seems to be a high number, there have been seven previous Super Bowls with an over/under in the 50s, but five of the seven games went under the total, including the Feb. 3, 2008, game between the Giants and the Patriots, as New York won 17-14 as 12-point underdogs and the total was 53.5.
Proposition Bets
The Super Bowl has become famous for its proposition bets, where you can wager on everything from the toin toss to the length of the National Anthem to the halftime show, along with a number of player and team wagers. While these wagers are starting to be released, as of Wednesday, Jan. 25, most of them have yet to be released, but should be out in the next few days.Just Another Game?
Despite the frequent admonishments of myself and others that the Super Bowl is just another game for wagering purposes, it's obvious that few people listen, as the Super Bowl is traditionally the heaviest bet game of the year. While there is no way to get an accurate dollar amount of how much is wagered, estimates traditionally are in the $8 to $12 billion range, when everything from office pools, legal bets, illegal bets, friendly wagers and more are factored in.Personally, I tend to go with the higher end of the spectrum and use $10 to $12 billion as an estimate, but there really is no way of knowing for sure.
No matter how you slice it, it's a mind-staggering sum and the involvement of two high profile teams this year will have the Super Bowl up there once again.
