The Logic of Sports Betting

4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars | 693 ratings

Price: 17.46

Last update: 07-31-2024


Top reviews from the United States

Elihu Feustel
5.0 out of 5 stars Mandatory reading for beginner to intermediate sports bettors
Reviewed in the United States on May 21, 2019
The Logic of Sport Betting teaches concepts of how to win with perspectives that have I have never seen published before. How does a Sportsbook generate a line for a given market? Looking at that process, you can identify when and what will be easiest to attack as a sports bettor. The process explains why it is nearly impossible to win at the NFL betting 30 minutes before a game starts, and which markets are easiest to beat. The math isn’t too heavy, but enough to teach basic concepts you must know to have a chance. What is a break-even percentage? How do you calculate a theoretical hold on a multi-way market, or a synthetic two-way market? Why do players lose so much on parlays (it isn’t the hold)?
In addition to the process, this book teaches about the markets. What do different line moves mean? What types of market moves warrant betting more (or less)? Much of the book focuses on helping you understand the operation of a sportsbook, and the inherent weaknesses it has. If you see the enemy as they see themselves, you will better see and understand glaring weaknesses in what they do.
The final section includes bread and butter things that winning players know and do. How can you best exploit a Sportsbook’s marketing (e.g., bonuses and other offers)? If you have exceptional information or an angle, how do you best use it to make money? How can you lower the market’s theoretical hold? When do you often see big value in derivatives and props?
This book alone won’t make you a winning player, but it is a major stepping stone towards winning. If you are a losing player, there is a lot you need to learn from this book. If you are a winning player, it might make you think in more depth about (possibly incorrect) assumptions you have made. I gave this book 5 stars because it offered a lot of information I have never seen published, it was coherently themed to elevate players, and it was extremely well written and edited.
MikeL
5.0 out of 5 stars A great intro to sports betting and more!
Reviewed in the United States on August 31, 2023
I have to admit I'm not a sports bettor, but have been interested in the process behind it and wanted to see how that process of finding good bets could help me out in picking good investments. I can say that this book delivered in a BIG way!

Not only did the author go over a process that made him a success, but a lot of the theory behind *why* he placed bets were the same as why one buys securites: You spot a mistake in the pricing that makes the bet (trade) attractive. In fact the BIGGEST takeaway from this book was the phrase "Bet the mistakes!" If you get nothing else out of this book, you have got your money's worth, as it is the key to profitable betting and trading.

If you are wondering how anyone can beat the games (or markets) then this book should be your FIRST step!
Tom Barrister
4.0 out of 5 stars Not a "how to" guide.
Reviewed in the United States on July 26, 2019
The book deals with some of the realities of sports betting and offers suggestions on how to win. This is not a get-rich-quick book, nor will it give you a workable methodology to automatically win. No such book exists, in my opinion.

I generally buy such books in the hope of gleaning something that will be of use in everyday play. I found two such nuggets of information, and it's likely that you will, as well.
michael cobb
5.0 out of 5 stars essential reading, even for pros
Reviewed in the United States on July 13, 2019
Where do lines come from? What does line movement mean? What are liquid markets? What markets are more vulnerable? This is not a literal "DIY/how to" book, so don't expect that (and there is no logical reason to expect that). Instead, it is a good intro/reminder of some basic contours of sports betting markets, some ideas about what offerings are more or less beatable, and why. My main critique is that the authors don't provide a better guide to using theory as a guide for generating your own ideas of what is beatable or not. Without theory, it's hard to know why correlations exists, what might be a cause versus an effect, versus a spurious relationship. Skill (versus luck) in this endeavor requires theory, and then hypotheses testing, etc., (social science methodology). Hardly anything is explicitly discussed about this. Otherwise, if you invest in sports outcomes, this book is a good investment too. It is easy to read, well organized, and so on. I read it first quickly, set it aside, thought about it for a few days, then re-read, and the second reading was more useful that way.
Vm
5.0 out of 5 stars Great intro to booming business
Reviewed in the United States on June 17, 2019
I have dabbled in poker. I am now at the point where I win any home games, and could probably do okay at the local casino. A large part of this was the foundational knowledge from Ed Miller's earler poker books (have not read the ones from the past few years).

So, I am seeing great offers from the on-line casinos for sports betting now. This is similar to what was offer during the poker craze many years ago. How to take advantage? I looked around for a book. Picked up a couple and they were crap.
'
This book is a great introduction for a beginner like myself into sports betting. Sure, I followed sports and thought I knew what I was doing. I have always done well at the football pool at work. Nope, I didn't know what I was doing, and was merely lucky. This book gets into what you HAVE to know to have a chance at winning at gambling on sports, consistently and over the long term.

However, it is not like you are given the keys to a car and can drive it away. This book suggests, to me, that you have to start modelling to choose winners. At least that is my take away. This will be hard work.

It starts with a mathematical description of how to convert the odds that are given to the percentage of times your pick has to win to make money. THis is fundamental to a better understanding of what -110 means. For someone in the business, sure this may easy, but it was hard for me, as a beginner in the area. The hold is a crucial calculation which you have to be able to calculate. Then it helps you understand the market you are betting into. Then he finally gets into how to win , and exotic bets like prop bets and parlays.

As he outlines, there are reasons to believe there are some good deals out there for sports bettors. If you want to get into the area, you would be wise to read this book.
ezrbt
3.0 out of 5 stars Not much practical value.
Reviewed in the United States on December 8, 2020
The headline says it all. The game is rigged.

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