Keeping Yourself in the Game with the Right Sports Betting Mindset

Sports bettors need to develop the proper mindset in order to get the best results from their sports handicapping picks. If you are into sports management, there is a strong possibility that you are hitting the upper range on each game. Most seasoned sports investors are aware of these tendencies.  Sports bettors are inclined to go for higher stakes and will only start to seriously consider proper money management when they start encountering problems and complications in their sports investments. In fact, sports investors are betting beyond their ideal range 99% of the time.

Let us consider a certain scenario. Are you going to bet 25% of your retirement funds on a particular stock that presents a 40% probability of hitting $0 value the next day? Obviously, this condition doesn’t require the expertise of a rocket scientist in order for you to come up with right decision. Thus, it boggles the mind to see sports bettors who are willing to stake on a single game 20% of their bankroll. You need to understand the dynamics of sports betting in order to find the reasons why such tendencies exist in sports betting. It is essential that you have a clear understanding of this particular aspect of your sports betting before you even decide on the right sports handicapping picks that you will adopt.

Let us consider a hypothetical proposition. Would you or would you not take it?

If you are presented with a 10% edge in a game of chance – 55% against 45% - for a total of 500 bets, would you take on the offer? Chances are you would take the bet. In the long run, or after 500 bets, the law of large numbers will come into play, and you will ultimately come close to 55% of winners, or 275 winners against 225 losers. This means that if you are placing $100 per bet, you will hit $5,000 after 500 bets.

Now, let us assume that you have one constraint. What if you can only start with your sports betting with no more than $500 as your bankroll? What will be your next move if you run out of money and you are not allowed to make a re-load? In short, this proposition is forcing you to make a bet of 20% of your bankroll. Under this setup, will you still take on the offer? Do you think you can still hit the $5,000-mark under this setup?

You should not take on the bet under this kind of proposition as you will surely go bankrupt. While you will still achieve the 55 winners, you are practically guaranteed nothing on the short term. Unexpected streak can happen and over the 500-bet session, you may end up with 5 or even 10 bets without any winnings to show.