What is a Moneyline Bet?
A moneyline bet is simply a wager on which team or individual will win their game or match. In every moneyline bet, there is an underdog and a favorite, and both have odds that reflect their chances of winning. Almost all sports that have two teams or individuals playing one another will have moneyline bets available. If you place a moneyline bet on one team, at Caesars Sportsbook Georgia, for example, and that team wins, you win your wager. Simple as that.
The simplicity of the moneyline has made it one of the most popular betting markets out there, along with the point spread bet and totals bet. Novice gamblers will like the moneyline because it is easy to understand, while advanced bettors like it for the opportunities it can provide.
How Does Moneyline Work in Sports Betting?
Now that we have covered what a moneyline bet is, let's take a look at how they work. As we mentioned earlier, moneyline wagers consist of two sides, a favorite and an underdog, each with odds. If you were to bet on the underdog, you would win more than double your money, and betting on the favorite would win less than double your money. Many factors go into moneyline odds, like stats, performance, home team advantage... etc.
Understanding Moneyline Betting
There are three main scenarios for a moneyline wager, the favorite, the underdog, and pick 'em. All three of these scenarios affect the odds and therefore affect your potential payout.
The Favorite
The favorite, as the name suggests, is favored to win. You can identify the favorite by the negative odds next to their name. The negative odds signify your potential payout will be less on them because they are favored. Betting on the favorite can be a successful wager because they are expected to win the game.
The Underdog
The underdog is the team that is expected to lose the game. Players can identify the underdog as the team that has plus odds next to their name. The positive odds reflect the high potential payout if they win. Betting underdogs provides gamblers the opportunity to win large amounts due to their high odds.
Even, EV, or Pick ‘Em
On certain occasions, neither team is the favorite or the underdog. This is called a pick 'em or even odds. You can identify a pick 'em by both teams having -110 odds. This means that both teams are equally as likely to win the game. Pick 'ems are good opportunities almost to double your money if you feel strongly about a side.
How to Read Moneyline Odds
Reading moneyline odds from any Georgia betting app or site, can be confusing for new bettors due to their foreign nature. American odds are displayed as a number of 100 or more with a plus or minus sign next to it. Here is a full breakdown of moneyline odds with examples.
Positive Odds (+)
Plus odds (+) help identify which team is the underdog. Positive odds denote how much money you would win on a $100 wager. The higher the number, the higher the payout. For example, if the Atlanta Hawks were +300 on the moneyline, you would potentially win $300 on a $100 if they won.
Negative Odds (-)
While positive odds denote the underdog, negative odds identify which team is favored and by how much. The negative number signifies how much money you would have to wager in order to win $100. If, for example, the Georgia Bulldogs are -450 on the moneyline, you would have to wager $450 to win $100.
Even Odds
When two teams or players are evenly matched, there may be no clear favorite. When this happens, the moneyline will be a pick 'em and will have what is called even odds. Theoretically, even odds would be +100 for both teams. In reality, sportsbooks take a percentage of every bet to push the lines to -110 for each side. If the Atlanta Braves and LA Dodgers were a pick 'em the moneyline odds would be -110 for either side.
Understanding Implied Probability of Moneyline Odds
The odds provided by operators do more than reflect how much money you could win. They also reflect the implied probabilities. This is what the sportsbooks think is the likelihood of the event. Here are the two formulae to calculate implied probability from odds.
Negative Odds
Negative odds / (Negative odds + 100) * 100 = implied probability
Positive Odds
100 / (positive odds + 100) * 100 = implied probability
Example: Atlanta Hawks ML -200
200 / (200 + 100) * 100 = 66.67% probability
Potential Outcomes of a Moneyline Bet
There are only three outcomes for the conventional moneyline wager, win, loss, or draw.
Win
To win your money line bet, the team you wager on has to win their game. If you bet on the Atlanta Falcon's moneyline, you will only win if they win. How much you win depends on their odds. While winning a moneyline bet isn't necessarily hard if you pick a heavy favorite, the payout might not be very big.
Loss
Your moneyline wager will lose if the team or player you wagered on loses. Bettors will lose their full wager amount when they lose a moneyline bet. Sports are unpredictable, which makes betting money lines difficult and losses common.
Push or Draw
A push or draw occurs when the game you bet on ends in a draw. In this occurrence, you will be returned your original wager in full, neither winning nor losing. The moneyline push only happens in sports where a draw is possible, like soccer.
What is a 3-Way Moneyline?
The three-way moneyline is a moneyline bet but with three options. In a three-way money line wager, gamblers can be on either team to win, and a third option, a draw. Three-way moneyline bets are very popular in sports like soccer, where draws are very common. For example, the three-way moneyline for an Atlanta United FC game might look like this:
- ATL = -120
- LAFC = +150
- Draw = +300
In this instance, if you bet on Atlanta, a draw or LA win would end in a loss for you.
Sportsbooks also provide three-way moneyline odds for sports that don't usually end in a draw as well. In these bets, instead of betting on either team winning or drawing, the three choices are either the team to win in regulation time or the game to go to overtime/draw. An Atlanta Hawks three-way moneyline would only win if the Hawks won in regulation time. If they lost or even won in overtime, your wager would lose. Three-way moneyline bets offer bettors a higher payout by introducing a third option.
Moneyline vs. 3-Way Moneyline
The three way moneyline is an entertaining variation of conventional moneyline betting because the potential total payout may be higher. The main difference between the two bets is the number of scenarios they provide, two vs. three. In money lines, sports bettors can only pick which team will win the game, whereas three-ways introduce a third option, will there be a draw/overtime? Because of this third option, a Nashville Predators ML will have different odds than Nashville 3-way ML, even though they will both win if Nashville wins in regulation.
How Moneylines Connect to Other Bet Types
Moneylines are the simplest bets you will find at sportsbooks, but they are deeply correlated with other bets that you will come across. The moneyline is most connected with the point spread bet, so let's examine how they're related.
Moneyline vs. Point Spread
While moneyline odds show who is the favorite in a game, point spread bets show how much they are favored. Let's start with an example of an NFL moneyline and point spread, Atlanta Falcons vs. New Orleans Saints. Let's say Atlanta is -200 on the moneyline, with a point spread of -3.5. This means that Atlanta is favored by 3.5 points in the game. Atlanta must win by four or more to "cover the spread." Every game will have a point spread, with the favorite identified by the negative sign spread and the underdog with the plus sign spread.
If a team is favored on the moneyline, they will also be favored by the point spread. The higher the moneyline odds, the higher the spread will be. The two bets tend to move together as well, as moneyline odds change, so will the line. One can see how these two popular wagers are very connected.
Formula to Convert Point Spread to Moneyline
There is no single formula to convert the point spread to the moneyline. This is because the point spread bet is different for every sport, from low point spreads in hockey and baseball to high point spreads in college basketball. There are online tools that help bettors convert spreads to money lines, and this helps them find value in moneyline bets. Using our above example of the Falcons vs. Saints, if we were to plug Atlanta -3.5 into a spread-to-moneyline converter, we would find that the moneyline should be -165 based on the spread. This means the -200 moneyline odds offered may be misvalued.
Moneyline Parlay Odds Explained
Multiple moneyline bets can be joined together to create a moneyline parlay. As individual money lines are added, the parlay odds multiply and increase. Moneyline parlays are a great way to increase your potential payout. Bettors beware, though, if one leg of the parlay loses, the whole parlay is toast.
Moneyline parlays have their pros and cons versus straight-betting parlays. A popular moneyline parlay is parlaying multiple heavy favorites to get better odds. This may seem like a good idea, but there are still risks. When it comes to parlaying vs. straight betting parlays, it is ultimately up to your preference. Parlays offer large potential returns but are hard to win, while straight bets offer smaller returns, but you can win more consistently.
Moneyline vs. Over/Unders
Over/under bets ask you to decide whether the total points in a game will go over or under a set amount. Over/unders can affect the moneyline in a number of ways. Some teams play better in low-scoring games, whereas some play better in high-scoring shootouts. If a game total is low, then the team who plays better in low-scoring games will have the advantage.
Tips for New Moneyline Bettors
Moneyline betting is the easiest way to start at sportsbooks, but they can still be difficult to win. Following these tips will help beginners who want to play like professional bettors.
Understand Home-Field Advantage
Home team advantage is one of the biggest factors that goes into who wins a game. There is nothing like the home crowd's ability to will their team to victory. When betting moneylines, be aware of who the home team is and how they perform at home vs. how the other team performs on the road.
Consider the Spread & Total
As we covered earlier, the spread and total are very much related to the moneyline. Bettors should be aware of the spread and total betting lines and take note of how they might affect the moneyline odds. If the moneyline odds that are implied by the spread and total are valued more than the actual odds, it may be smart to avoid the bet.
Shop Around
Line shopping is a great strategy for all sports betting, not just moneylines. Line shopping is when you pick a certain bet and look at its odds at multiple sportsbooks to find the best odds. If the Atlanta Braves are +150 at one sportsbook and +250 at another, it is better to wager at the second and get better odds. Review different sportsbooks, including but not limited to FanDuel Georgia, BetMGM and more.
Take Advantage of Sportsbook Promotions
Sportsbook promotions are a fantastic way to shift the odds more in your favor against the sportsbooks. One of the most common sportsbook promos is the odds boost which will increase the payout of selected wagers.
Get Started Betting the Moneyline
Moneyline wagers are the simplest bets in all sports betting, but that doesn't mean it doesn't offer the same excitement as other wagers. Whether your underdog pick makes you look like a genius or the favorite pulls through for you, there is nothing like hitting a moneyline bet. Once of the best things about these bets is they are easy and you can use a Georgia sportsbook promo code or bonus offer on your first one!
All online sportsbooks offer money lines for any sport with two players or teams playing each other. While sports betting isn't legal yet in Georgia, that doesn't mean you can't learn how to bet moneylines. When comparing the moneyline to spread betting, the moneyline gives you the option to go for the safe pick or take a chance on the underdog and win big.
Moneyline betting is one of the best betting markets out there, and it's easy to see why it's one of the most popular wagers for new and experienced bettors alike.
Georgia Moneyline Betting FAQs
Author
Lukas Shaw is a betting analyst for BetGeorgia.com. Shaw, an avid sports fan, has quickly become an authority in the burgeoning market, providing readers with an in-depth analysis of the latest betting apps and bonus codes while also sharing helpful insights on betting strategy.
