Did you know that American attitudes about gambling are constantly improving? 90% of us believe that gambling is a mainstream and acceptable form of entertainment. About 70% also note that it benefits our economy and helps to keep people employed.
If you have a favorable view of gambling, it’s likely that you’ll want to place some bets for yourself. Your success here is contingent on your ability to read betting odds. Read on to understand these odds so that you can place solid, smart bets in 2022.
The Basics of Betting Odds
When you think of your desired gambling outcome, you likely have a mental image of walking away from a bet rich. Unfortunately, you winning the multi-million-dollar grand prize is less likely than you getting struck by lightning. However, you have a great chance of steadily winning some cash if you prioritize odds over prize size.
The odds of winning a game are your chances of winning anything. They have nothing to do with how much you will win but rather whether or not you will win at all.
If you bet on a game with a hundred-million-dollar prize, you still have low odds of winning assuming that you have a 1 in 14,000,000 chance of winning. You’re almost certainly going to lose the price of your ticket. If you bet on a game with a $10 prize but a 1 in 20 chance of winning, you’re playing your odds right.
While betting on high-reward games can give you an adrenaline rush, it isn’t a very good way to make money. Your best bet is to play at high-odds but low-reward games frequently. That’s how to turn a profit over time.
How Can You Read Betting Odds?
You can usually learn the odds of a game online. If you’re playing the lottery, the specific lotto website will tell you the previously calculated odds of winning a prize.
Experts have also calculated the odds of various casino games and sports bets. You can find these numbers online and determine which game will give you the best shot at a prize.
Still, it can be challenging to determine which games have the highest odds when you don’t know how to read these figures. There are three distinct formats that you may see odds presented in when doing your research. American odds are the most common in sports betting, but reading decimal and fractional odds will also be necessary for casino games.
American Odds
American odds are those that have a + or – sign in front of them. These odds are generally used in sports betting. These symbols indicate two things:
- The prospective payout that you may get from betting
- Whether you’re betting on the favored team or the underdog
If the number features a + sign, it is positive. Positive betting numbers indicate that you’re looking at betting on an underdog. The number after the + sign indicates the amount of cash you would win if you were to bet $100 on that team or event.
If the number has a – sign in front of it, you’re betting on a favorite team or event (rather than an underdog). The number after a – sign indicates the money you’d win if you were to bet on the favorite team and win.
You’ll notice that + signs usually precede a larger number because the payout for underdog teams is larger despite the odds being lower. Betting on the team with the – sign generally increases your chances of winning. This team is favored by experts and players, so it’s more likely to win.
Decimal Odds
Decimal odds are usually used to calculate and display the odds of winning a sports bet, casino game, or lottery ticket. They’re not only versatile but also easy to read.
Let’s say that you have two hypothetical teams: the Cats and the Dogs. Their decimal odds are:
- Cats 1.75
- Dogs 2.20
The team with the lower decimal is always the favorite team here. This means that betting on the Cats is the right choice if you’re going to bet on the team with higher odds.
You can calculate your winnings by multiplying (your bet) x (the decimal). If you were to win betting $100 on the Cats, you would win $175 (turning a $75 profit).
Fractional Odds
Fractional odds are fairly uncommon in the US, but they’re a staple of UK and Australian casinos. They also are common when it comes specifically to horse racing bets in the US.
You would say a 9/2 fractional odds figure aloud as ‘9 to 2.’ The first number on the left (9) indicates how many times the sportsbook has predicted that the outcome will be a failure for a bettor. The right number (2) is the prediction of how often the bettor will find a successful outcome.
Let’s say that the decimal odds of our hypothetical teams are:
- Cats 9/8
- Dogs 20/9
The chances of a Dogs bet succeeding may look higher than a Cats bet, but the Cats have better overall odds. The closer that the two numbers are to each other, the higher odds you have of winning that bet.
TrustGeeky can help you to calculate the exact odds of all types of bets. They can also help you to select the right online casino or sportsbook to fit your needs. Working with these experts maximizes your chances of winning by helping you to understand many facets of gambling.
Take a Gamble Today
While trying to read betting odds may seem like a daunting task, it’s much simpler than it looks. Now that you know the truth of reading these numbers, it’s time to get more gambling tips and tricks so that you can cash out big.
Getting ideas on how to place smart bets and choose casinos with GTBets Bonus Code is essential. Check out the ‘technology’ tab on our home page to learn more about the apps that you’ll need to place bets on.