Paulie’s Gambling Education Series, pt. 4: Live Betting

We all love watching sports and cheering for teams who we have bet on. Sure, betting on a game before it starts is great and all, but don’t you sometimes think “I know this team is gonna come back and win this game”? Well, that’s exactly what live betting is for. Live betting can be one…

What is live betting?

Live betting is best described as making a wager while an event or contest is being played. This may include spreads, money lines, over/unders and various other bets.

Live bets are available for most contests in the main sports (NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL) and a select subset of games for college football and basketball.

One other form of live betting for football and basketball is halftime lines.

What is the difference between halftime lines and live lines?

Live lines are based on the result of the entire contest.

Example: The Patriots who were 7 point favorites over the Ravens before the game are trailing 14-0 with 2:10 left in the first quarter. Your book is showing a live line of Patriots +3. If you take this bet you are taking the Patriots +3 for the entire game. The final result of the game is Ravens 24, Patriots 23 and your +3 bet cashes.

Halftime lines are for only the result in the 2nd half plus overtime.

Example: The Raptors who were 8 point favorites over the Spurs before the game are up 58-41 at halftime. The halftime line is Raptors +4. The final score is 110-103 (aka Spurs beat the Raptors 62-52 in second half). You lose the second half bet of +4 on the Raptors. A second half bet of +4 is equivalent to a live full game bet of -13 for the Raptors.

Why can live betting be very profitable?

Live betting can be very profitable if you have a good understanding of the game and are able to pounce on lines that seem to offer an advantage. Live betting lines are based on algorithms at sportsbooks and you can often find scenarios to where you see value since they change rapidly. Halftime lines also offer value since books post the lines almost immediately after the first half ends. That leaves the books open to posting some numbers that have value especially when you consider how many sporting events are going on at one time. Here are just a few of the ways to find value when betting live:

Results not matching the eye test
Ex. a team is leading 14-7 because of an interception return for a TD and a kickoff return for a TD. They have struggled on offense and have given up plenty of yards on defense. This might be a good time to consider taking the team that is trailing via live betting.

Cold/Hot shooting percentage

Different pace of game than projected

Injuries
There is often value if a key player is injured such as a quarterback.

Why is live betting the most fun?

You have the ability to watch a game and bet based on your views or perception of the game and its potential outcome. You feel like you are part of the action and feel constant interaction.

Things to look out for when live betting:

Live betting can often come with increased juice (aka lines that are -115 or -120 instead of -110). Try and find a book that doesn’t have excessive juice if you plan on betting live a considerable amount.

It can be very easy to tilt when betting live and continue to pile on more bets as the team you are betting on is performing worse and worse. Set a limit for a total amount of exposure per game and follow that.