What are Total Bets? Total Bets Explained
Totals betting is one of those love/hate type bets in the world of sports gambling. Now that you know all about point spreads and straight bets – totals betting offers a completely different look at the game. When you bet totals, you do not even have to concern yourself with who wins the game. All that matters to you is how many points, runs or goals are scored in the contest.
This type of betting can also be referred to as the “over/under.” In the National Football League; the average is around 37. So, oddsmakers will place a total for each game being played every week. It will depend on a lot of factors; we will never know all of them. Once the total has been set, bettors have the ability to bet “over” or “under” that number. Most totals bet are paid out in the -110 format, which takes juice for the house.
So, let’s look at a few examples. If the St. Louis Rams/Seattle Seahawks total is listed at 38.5, and you bet the under – the two teams COMBINED have to score 38 points or less. A 24-14 game would win the game. A 24-17 game would not. In the National Basketball Association – the Chicago Bulls and New York Knicks are slated to play and the total is set at 200. You bet the over. The final score is 104-99; which totals 203. You win the bet.
There are a few factors to consider when betting on totals. Teams often start slow, so they may not be halfway there at the “halfway point.” Also, often cases when games are blowouts, the scoring may slow down at the end. But, think back to a game or two – and you know teams quit playing defense, which is also a factor. The weather is certainly a factor for totals in both football and baseball. In hockey pulling the goaltender may cause that fewer than 5.5 bet to go over to 6. While you may get frustrated with teams and their inability to “cover” a spread; a totals bet could be double the frustration. The reason is because they don’t know or care what the total is. That meaningless three-pointer at the buzzer just set you over for a loss. What do the players care?
Totals betting is good in all of the sports you will find online. In the world of the NFL and College Football you are obviously talking about how many points, MLB has runs, the NHL is talking about goals scored, and the NBA is also with points.
Be sure to find information about totals betting, or in other words the “over/under” for all the latest action in professional sports today. Totals betting can be a ton of fun to just sit back and calculate how the scoring pace is going. Be sure to do your homework before you start betting on totals. Just like spread betting, totals are not an easy way to make money, that’s a misconception of many.
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