Sportbook Terms and Definitions

Book / House / Sportbook: This refers to whoever takes your bet, whether it is a bookie, a casino, an online betting service, or an offshore betting house.
Point Spread / Betting Line / Line: A number of points that serve as a handicap to make the game more even. Point spreads or betting lines are usually listed with the favorite team and minus points. San Francisco -14 at St. Louis. San Francisco is a 14 point favorite. If the list has + points following a team's name, it indicates the team is the underdog. San Francisco at St. Louis +14. St. Louis is a 14 point underdog.

Covering the Spread: If the favorite wins the game by more points than the point spread, it has covered the spread. If the underdog wins the game or loses by less than the point spread, it has covered the spread. For example: San Francisco is a 14 point favorite and the final score is San Francisco 30, St. Louis 17. The winning margin is 13, one point less than the spread. So, the 49ers failed to cover. But, even though the Rams lost the game, they lost by less than 14 and covered the spread.

Against the Spread (ATS): Sportbook bets are against the spread. The team you bet on must cover the spread in order for you to win. Who wins the game is not relevant. It's the winning margin that determines the winner ATS. So you have to adjust your thinking from who will win the game to who will win the game and by how much

Giving and Taking: In gambling lingo, if you bet on the favorite, you are "giving" the point spread. If you bet on the underdog, you are "taking" the points. Often you'll see something like this, "Take Green Bay and give the 3." It's a brief way of saying, "Bet Green Bay, who is favored by 3, and even though they have to win by more than 3, it is still a good bet."

Vigorish (Vig or Juice): Sportbook bets are $11 to win $10. The extra $1 is called the vigorish, the vig, or the juice. It is the percentage that the book charges for handling the money. The vigorish on any bet you make is 10%. Take the amount you want to bet, add 10% for the vigorish and that's what you have to pay. For example, a $50 bet has a $5 vigorish added. So, for your $50 bet you must pay $55 to make $50. By the way, when you make your bet, indicate the amount you want to bet on the game without the vigorish. It'll be added by the book.

Your Bet and the Spread: You are locked into whatever the spread is at the time you place your bet. Any later changes to the spread (moves) do not affect your bet. If you bet on Kansas City at -2.5 and later the spread moves up to Kansas City -5, you still win if Kansas City wins by 3 or more. Those who placed bets on Kansas City at -5 need to have Kansas City win by 6 or more. Of course, the reverse can be true. You could have Kansas City -5 and have the spread move down to Kansas City -2.5.

Payout: For each of your bets that win, you get back the money you bet, including the vigorish, plus the money you won. If you bet $55 to win $50, you get back the $50 bet and the $5 vigorish plus the $50 winnings. When your bet loses, you lose the entire bet including the vigorish. As you can see, the vigorish comes into play only when you lose.

Push: Whenever the favorite's winning margin is the same as the spread, it is a push. It becomes a non-bet and you get your money back, including the vigorish. Green Bay -7 at Detroit. Final score: Green Bay 20, Detroit 13. Green Bay did not score more than the spread and did not score less. It's a push.

Even or Pick'em: If a game is listed as even or pick'em, the spread is 0 and the team that wins the game outright, covers the spread. This is the only case where you simply pick the winner.

Off the Board: This may be "Off" or "No Line" and means the book is not accepting bets on that game, usually when there is an injury to a key player and his playing status is uncertain. The game may remain off but ordinarily it will be put back on the board as soon as the key player's playing status is known. The spread will be adjusted depending upon whether the player is out of the game or not.

Straight Bet: Betting on a team to cover the spread, as in the examples above, is called a straight bet. You can have several straight bets but subsequent bets do not affect any other bet. A straight bet is independent of other bets.

53%: This is the percentage of straight bets you must win in order to have a winning season. 50% wins is not break even because you need the extra 3% to cover the vigorish on the games you lose. (The actual figure is 52.38% but in practicality, 52% or less you lose and 53% or better you win.)

Parlay: A parlay bet is a bet on a group of 2 or more games. In order to win, your pick in each game must cover the spread. If even one fails to cover, you lose. But, unlike the straight bet which pays 10-11, parlay payoffs increase with the number of games in the parlay. The two game parlay pays 13-5, the three game parlay pays 6-1, the four game parlay pays 11 to 1, etc. If you win, you get your original bet back along with the payoff. In the event of a push in one of the games, the parlay drops to the next lowest parlay. The 3 game parlay becomes a 2 game parlay and the 2 game parlay becomes a straight 10-11 bet.

Maximum and Minimum Bets: All books set both a maximum and a minimum amount they will accept on a single bet. At Easy Online Sportbook, the minimum bet is US $10 and the maximum is US $1,100 on straight bets, US $500 for combination bets and US $500 for future and proposition wagers.

Nickel, Dime, and a Buck: These terms are betting jargon for the amount of the bet. A nickel bet is $500, a dime bet is $1000, and a buck bet is $100. Use these terms carefully. Don't do as a friend of mine did when he made a dime bet, thinking it was a $10 bet. He knew a buck bet was $100, and logically thought a dime bet would be $10 and a nickel bet $5. Not willing to show his ignorance, he forked up the $1100. Fortunately, his bet came in and he was $1000 richer. But he spent an agonizing Sunday afternoon awaiting the results.

Betting Odds: The betting odds are based upon the likelihood of something happening. For example, the Rams may be 500 -1 longshots to win the Superbowl. The betting odds against their winning the Super Bowl are 500 to 1. In betting odds, the first number is the payoff and the second number the amount of the bet. For example, 13-5 means you win $13 for each $5 you bet. 3-5 means you win $3 for each $5 you bet. (Sometimes 10-11 odds are listed as 11-10. It's confusing but it's done.)

True Odds: The true odds are the possibilities of something happening. The true odds against the Rams or any other team winning the Super Bowl are 30-1. Since there are 31 teams, there are 31 possible winners. Since only one team can win the Super Bowl, the true odds against a team winning the Super Bowl are 30 to 1.

Linesmaker or Oddsmaker: The individual (or individuals) who decide what the spread or line on each game should be. Some casinos have their own linesmaker but 75% of them use the same linesmaker service. The ideal for a linesmaker is to set the line so that the same amount of money will be bet on the underdog as is bet on the favorite. Keep that in mind. It is very important.

Handicapper: That's you the minute you try to figure out who will win and by how much. Of course, there are professional handicappers who handicap each game and then choose 3 to 5 games where they think a team has a good chance of covering the spread. They charge fees for this information. The fees can range from $300 to $3000 a season, depending upon the handicapper.