Sports Fans Aren't Always Good Sports Bettors
One of the biggest differences in the sports gambling world is that of a sports fan to that of a sports bettor. While many people who place their hard-earned money down on a game are also sports fans, serious sports bettors aren't about to get caught up in wagering on teams because they want them to win. As the old saying goes, "Bet With Your Head, Not Your Heart."
While sports fans live and die with the same team year-in and year-out, sports bettors have to realize the team you cheered for yesterday could very well be the team you're betting against today. Bettors simply can't afford to get caught up too much in one team or player.
This especially holds true for bettors who wager through local bookies. If you have bet through the same bookmaker for any period of time, you can be pretty sure that he has an idea of your betting patterns. If you wager on the same team on a consistent basis, all the bookmaker needs to further increase his advantage is to shade the line a half-point or a point against you.
This also holds true for bettors who wager consistently on favorites or on underdogs, as well as on overs or on unders. Many successful local bookmakers have different odds they give out to different bettors, which makes sense from a business standpoint.
If I'm betting on 80-percent favorites, why not shade the line a bit against me? My past betting pattern shows that I'm much more likely to bet the favorite and if I suddenly start betting on many more underdogs, all the bookie has to do is give me the actual line that isn't shaded.
Many local bookies who live in close proximity to a major sports city are notorious for shading the line against the home team. If the Celtics are 5-point favorites in Las Vegas, a bookie in Boston probably has the Celtics favored by six points.
While a point may not seem like that big of a deal, just think how many games you've pushed or won by one point over the course of a basketball season. If those pushes became losses and those one-point wins became ties, your profits would certainly drop. And if the Boston bookie is getting hit too hard with money on the Celtics, he can always lay off some or all of his Celtics money with another bookmaker and only have to give the five points.
If you have to wager on your favorite team, make it for the minimum amount your sportsbook or bookie will accept. Too many times smart sports bettors turn a winning day into a losing one for the primary reason of not only having to bet on their favorite team, but by wagering the same amount, or more, on them as the games that are actually good bets.
The Televised Heroes
Another area where bettors who have a sports fan mentality can get hurt is in watching a televised game where one player or team turns in a dominating performance. While this type of performance may not be a very good indicator of the player or team's true ability, the sports fan has a difficult time letting go of this image.
Say an average baseball pitcher throws a three-hit shutout on a nationally televised ESPN game. It's logical that the pitcher will revert to the form that made him an average pitcher in the first place, but the sports fan will remember his performance on ESPN and will be likely to wager on this pitcher for the next few starts. Even if the pitcher gets roughed up while on the mound, in the yes of the sports fan, he's still a quality pitcher.
Many average teams will get extremely psyched up for a nationally televised game, especially college teams who seldom get national exposure, and many times will give an inspired effort. While sports bettors know the team probably played above its head and isn't as good as they may have looked, the sports fan believes this team is better than it actually is and will only find out the truth after several losing wagers.
The key to successful sports betting is to look for as many advantages as possible. One of those advantages will be to not blindly wager on your personal favorites on a consistent basis and don't be afraid to bet against them if your betting knowledge leads you to believe the opposition is a good bet.
