Understanding the Odds

The challenge is that the oddsmakers know a lot too. They have access to detailed statistics and sophisticated systems for generating odds. They study the player’s health, team matchups, the weather, and anything that may influence the outcomes and they incorporate those factors into the odds of a particular bet.

Don’t be fooled, chance still plays a big part no matter your skill level. 

The term Dynamic Odds within sports and events betting relates to the circumstance that odds for an event can potentially change prior to the event commencement.

Depending on a number of factors such as weather, playing conditions, injuries, previous bets placed, or other unpredictable events, the odds for an event can change at any point in time until the game starts. When you bet, you lock in your odds and pay out rate for that specific event. Someone placing the exact same bet at a different time could have considerably different odds.

Example:
If the home team’s star player is injured right before a game, the odds of that home team winning may go down (reflected by a higher payout). While the odds of any outcome occurring may change prior to or during a game, your initial betting odds will remain the same.

Decimal Odds is the most common display for sports and event betting retail here in Canada as well as Europe and Australia.

With decimal odds, you simply multiply the amounts of your bets by the value of the odds to determine how much you stand to win including the amount of your initial bet. If two outcomes are listed, the one with the lower number is more likely to happen.

For example: if the odds given are (2.00) and you bet $10, the calculation is:
The odds (2.00) x your bet ($10) = your total payout is $20 (Remember that your total payout includes the amount you initially bet, so your profit on this wager is $10.00)

To determine your potential winnings on a parlay bet of multiple outcomes, you simply multiply the values of all the odds, then multiply that by the amount of your bet.

Example: if the odds of your parlay bet on two outcomes are 1.50 and 3.00, and you bet $10.00, the calculation is:
The odds for outcome one (1.50) x the odds for outcome two (3.00) x your bet ($10.00) = your total payout is $45 your profit if you won both of these bets would be $35.

As the name suggests, fractional odds display the wagers and payouts as a fraction.

The second number (denominator) shows the amount that is wagered, and the first number (numerator) shows the potential winnings.

In fractional odds, your initial wager is not included in the calculation, so the total payout would have your original bet added to it.

Example: If the odds given are 10/15, and you bet $15, a successful wager would win $10. You then add back in your original bet and the total payout is $25.

American odds are centered on the number 100. An outcome that is favored to occur will have the odds displayed as a negative value. The value shows how much you would need to wager to win $100.

An outcome that is less likely to occur will be displayed as a positive value. This value shows how much you could win if you bet $100.

In American Odds, your initial wager is not included in the calculation. When you win your bet, you also get your wager back.

Example: if the odds given are +250, and you bet $100, a successful wager would win $250. You than add back in your original bet and the total payout is $350.