By Sports Handicapper Ron Raymond

February 3^rd 2013

What is your Game Plan when it comes to betting on sports?

If this is your first experience betting on sports, this article is for you. As we go along, I’m going to reference “sports bettors” as “Players”. In fact, did you know Bookmakers call new players/bettors, “squares”? Anyway, you will find at the end of this article, a crash course on terms bettors use and the definition of the meaning.

Step one, before you even think about placing a wager, answer one simple question; “Why do I bet on sports?”

The most common answer I hear; “because it is fun or I like having a rooting interest while watching a game”. The right answer should be because it’s simply a recreational hobby for entertainment purposes or I consider it an investment.

If you consider it fun, treat it as such and know your limits. If you’re looking at it from an investment point of view, then you need a “Game Plan”. Now, I’m not going to pretend I’m a fortune 500 Company President or the CEO of a major bank. Trust me, I’m not trying to paint something I’m not, but I do have business sense and street smarts on how to survive in the online gaming industry. I’ve been in the online sports handicapping industry for 17 years and I’m very happy with my daily routine in life.

Now that you’ve established the why, let’s get settled on the where? It’s important you wager with a reliable online gaming company or with your Provincial or State lottery commission. Because, the worst feeling is winning your wager and not knowing if you’re going to get paid. One of my favorite slogans is from Olympic Sportsbook; “Sweat the game, not the payouts”.

OK, so we’ve settle the Why and Where, know let’s talk about the how?

The one thing you should put into action right off the bat, set limits and don’t bet the farm on one pick. The worst thing you can do to ruin your wagering experience, placing your entire bankroll on one pick and if it loses, you’re done betting! Give yourself a long shelf life to enjoy sports betting and I would recommend you wager 10% of your bankroll. If you have $100 in your sportsbook account, then wager $10 a game and hope to live another day!

Most inexperience bettors want that “home run” feeling on that first bet; the one that allows them to retire or buy that expensive toy they’ve been dreaming about. One of my friends is a sportsbook manager and he told me, 90% of bettors lose their entire bankroll in 10 days and the other 10% are the ones who make money in the long run.

One of the biggest mistakes novice bettors make, they will deposit $100 or $200 dollars into their account, make a $20 bet and lose. Then, they will double up on the next bet to make up for the $20 they just lost and lose that bet as well. Now, they are down $44 bucks if you use the 11/10 rules, so now they feel they must triple up and when they lose that wager, their bankroll is done in 3 bets and I would say anywhere from 65% to 80% of those type of players will not return because of the “bad experience”.

In order to avoid that pitfall, you must have a game plan. Have a strategy in place and stick to it, because patience will be your ultimate test during a losing streak, but proper money management and using reliable sources to find winning picks will be the key to your success.

Nothing wrong on being the “weekend warrior” bettor! The weekend warrior is the person who simply likes to bet on TV games during the weekend and getting on with life. If that’s a way to stretch your bankroll into a few months, more power to you! Have fun and do your research, because it’s still real money and why not make money if you’re going to place a wager?

If you’re finding it tough to make money betting on sports, then consider investing with a sports handicapper who’s been around the block and simply follow the trend on how they make their wagers.

For example, I have a few rules when betting on sports. If I’m going to bet on hockey, I won’t lay another over $1.40 or I will consider betting on OVER/UNDERS. In fact, I would say 80% of all of my NBA picks are on totals and most times, the money line is -110 to -120.

Another angle I find very useful, I use the “law of average” when researching a game. Find a team who’s coming off an ATS win vs. a team coming off an ATS lost and consider taking the team coming off the ATS lost, because most of the public will consider the team coming off the ATS Win and you will have more “value” on betting on the other team.

I’ve written a book called “Ron Raymond’s 50 Greatest Sports Betting Secrets”, I highly recommend it to the new players, as this will give you a head start on which traps to avoid when making your bets.

In conclusion, if there’s one thing I hope you have taken from this piece, know why you wager on sports, stay within your limits, understand the house is in full control and learn how to take days off. Realize if there’s only 4 games on the Vegas board, it’s not written in stone you must make a bet that day, get your rush by playing Streakcatcher!

Sports Gaming Terms

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Sports Betting Portals

Every now and again I like to share with my visitors the other sports betting portals I own and it could help them with their College and Pro Football handicapping. Everything from a Parlay Calculator to a Sports betting calculator and get your sports betting stats with the ATS Database. Plus, want to sharpen your mind, play twologos!

Related Links

• Phoenix Sports Ticket
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• Parlaycalculator
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• ATSCalculator
• JustWordit
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• Canada Sportsbook