The rising popularity of online sportsbooks has brought in a huge change in the way we place our bets, and the types of bets we place our wagers on. In this era of online betting, the number of betting markets is virtually countless. One such popular betting sites market is handicap betting that is offered by bookmakers such as Betway India. What is handicap in basketball betting?
Read on to find out.
What is handicap in basketball betting?
Handicap betting in basketball is similar to a point spread, where a virtual `handicap´ is introduced to level the playing field and remove and `bias’s that a stronger team may enjoy over an underdog.
In a game between the 76ers and the Pistons, it is most likely that the 76ers will be winning comfortably, and the Pistons are most likely to lose. In such games, the betting markets see less activity as the returns are pretty less for those who place a `win´ bet on the 76ers, while returns are unlikely for those who may choose to bet on the Pistons.
In such games, the bookie offers the 76ers a virtual `disadvantage´ or a handicap of a few points, which the team needs to overcome, in order for such handicap bets to be settled as winners.
The 76ers start the game with a (-9.5) handicap or a deficit of (9.5) points. Therefore, the handicap bets backing the 76ers are settled as winners only if they win by 10 points or more. If the margin of victory is 9 points or less, the bets are settled as losing bets. A (+) denotes a positive handicap, whereas a (-) denotes a negative handicap.
What is handicap in basketball betting? The main goal of offering handicap betting is to provide a level playing field for both the teams and to bring the widely unmatched odds to a somewhat equal level. The bets can be a bit confusing for newer punters, as the outcome of the bets can be different from simple `win or lose´ bets.
