Experienced punters can usually take advantage of handicap
betting to boost their returns. For new punters to whom the intricacies of
handicap betting isn’t clear, it is important to first take your time to learn
before trying to exploit the handicap option. Handicap betting has many
implications for both odds and outcomes that might work for or against any
player, so knowledge of how the handicap works is critical before you can take
the option.
Handicaps are common in football betting. To handicap means
to add points to one team or the other before a match begins. The points are
added or deducted from one team to try to level the playing field for the
underdog trying to compete against the favorite. Bookmakers typically handicap
one of the teams and never both. If you see odds in which both the favorite and
the underdog are handicapped then there must be something wrong with the
bookmaker. Stay away from such odds.
Before you can bet on a handicapped team, you need to
consider your options carefully. For instance, if in a game between Manchester
United and Arsenal the handicap adds 1 goal to the score of Manchester United,
this means that Manchester United is considered underdog by the bookmaker and
hence has been given a head start. When you place a bet on the match, you can
opt to pick on Manchester United to hold on to the positive handicap by either
drawing or winning the match. Alternatively, you can be on Arsenal overcoming
their -1 goal handicap by scoring two goals in order to win by 1 clear goal. If
Arsenal scores only 1 goal in the match, the handicap results would stand at
1-1, meaning Manchester United is the winner.
A more complex version of the handicap is the Asian
handicap. With the Asian handicap, a draw result is eliminated from a match by
adding goals (whole, half, quarter and three-quarter) goals to eliminate the
ties. While in the normal handicap an even result can stands, such as when
Manchester United with a -1 handicap emerges winner after Arsenal scores only
one goal to allow the handicap score stand at 1-1, the Asian handicap calls
such ties as a push and the stake is refunded to the punter. Therefore, in
order to prevent many pushes in the handicap market, the Asian handicap has
finely tuned odds, down to a quarter goal, enabling bookmakers to reduce ties
as much as possible.
Handicap betting adds some variety into the betting market,
allowing punters to have as many options as possible. Nevertheless, before you
make a bet by picking a selection from the handicap market, make sure to
understand the available odds and the intricacies of the market. Failure to
understand the handicap market well may leave you thinking you have won a bet
while you have lost by a finer margin. Check out the odds offered by your
bookmaker in the handicap market, you may just find something interesting and
earn good money.