The point spread (referred to as the runline in baseball) is the handicap, or head start, that the linesmaker gives to the underdog. Oddsmakers set the odds in hopes of getting bets on both sides of the game. Many oddsmakers create their own power ratings on each team and with help from a computer software program will create a pointspread. Pointspread software will factor statistics, weather and injuries to name a few. Oddsmakers may tweak the computer-generated pointspread on a case-by-case basis. Other factors are involved when setting the line. Often times you will hear references to public teams when you are in a Las Vegas sportsbook or listening to sports betting radio. This is defined as teams who receive more betting action consistently on their sports betting side. You will often see oddsmakers increase the pointspread on the public teams to help balance the action and to give the sportsbook a better shot of beating the public. Sports betting professionals will often view online sportsbooks to track the amount bet on each team. They want to track the sports betting action in hopes of betting against public teams the next time they play, as their betting line will be inflated giving online or Las Vegas sports betting professionals an advantage. You may want to visit http://freefootballpicks.biz for more information on sports betting.
The sportsbook wants to balance each side because Las Vegas and online sportsbook earn a 10% commission for taking the sports bet. That’s why it will cost you 11 dollars to win 10 dollars when you bet against the spread in a sportsbook. So if you bet $11 on team A to cover the spread and Team A is successful you would win back $10 plus receive your original $11 dollars back for a total of $21. If Team A fails to cover the pointspread you are out of your $11 sports wager. An online or Las Vegas sportsbook projected profit margin is 4.5% of their total sports betting handle.
Rather than just winning outright, the favorite in the betting must win by more than the point spread ("cover the spread") for bets on the favorite to win. Let's say the Oakland Raiders are playing the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL. The oddsmakers open the line with the Cowboys being the favorite and the Raiders being the underdog. The linesmaker might decide to give the Raiders a four-point head start, which would look like this in the Las Vegas or online sportsbook:
Cowboys -4
Raiders +4
If you bet on the Cowboys, you'll win your sports bet if the Cowboys win the game by more than four points (i.e., if their score is higher even after you subtract four points from it). If you bet on the Raiders, however, you'll win your bet if they lose by no more than three points (i.e., if their score is higher after you add four points to it). If the final score results in a tie (in this example, if the Cowboys win by exactly four points), the wager will be graded "Push" and your money will be refunded. How much you stand to win is determined by the moneyline odds attached to the point spread. When no odds are listed, the line is standard (i.e., -110) meaning you will have to bet $11 to win $10.
The moneyline will factor in a payoff if the pointspread is set at a key number of 3. Since many close games are decided by a field goal Las Vegas and online sportsbooks are reluctant to move the line off of 3. Instead the sportsbook will attach a moneyline to the game. Often times sportsbook managers will make the sports bettors pay from $12 to $13 dollars to win $10 on the betting side the sportsbook is getting the heavy action on when the pointspread is set at 3 in a football game. To help meet their projected 4.5% return on their betting handle sportsbook managers will move the line to help balance the betting.
Author Resource:-
A good source for sports betting individuals to research for more information on this topic is http://freefootballpicks.biz
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