When getting involved in a new activity, it's always wise to listen to others who have been where you are before. You will have to decide what information to embrace and put into practice and which to ignore, but by surrounding yourself with people and information, you can better prepare yourself for success.
Scorum is bringing sports fans and bloggers together with a betting platform (betscorum.com). Many here, and maybe even you, are betting or considering betting for the very first time. If that is you, I would like to share some advice that has helped me and other tips that I would recommend allowing to sink into your brain.
These are not just my words of wisdom, but commonly agreed on (most of them) words of advice to consider before betting on anything. I've learned these from our own community members, including Costanza and BTB, and through many tough lessons learned first-hand playing poker and occasionally betting on sports over the last 15 years.
Don’t Chase Losses
In entrepreneurship, a concept that has helped me avoid sinking additional money into a losing cause is the term "sunk costs." Anything you have bet and lost is now a sunk cost -- meaning it's something that has already happened and there is no way to recover it. Be able to accept your losses and move on to your next bet.
For example, if I bet 100 SCR on a game that I am very confident in, and lose, it's only natural to feel upset and want to win that 100 SCR back. The next bet I make I might wager 200 SCR. This is chasing a loss instead of separating my bets and realizing that the original 100 SCR is long gone -- a sunk cost.
"Pay Attention to the Odds"
This piece of advice was taken directly from our own @btb, although I'm sure he's not the first to say it. @Btb doesn't care about the teams that are playing in a match, but he does care about the odds. If he sees that a team is 3.00 to win on Betfair.com, an open market for betting, and sees that the same team is 3.60 to win on Betscorum.com, he is likely going to place a bet on that team on Betscorum.com.
The odds matter because they will impact your long-term results. Even getting 1-5% better odds on average can be the difference between a winning bettor and a losing one. Make sure you're getting decent odds before placing a bet. At the urging of @btb, I check lines on Betfair.com to make sure I'm getting odds close to those if not better when considering a bet on betscorum.com.
Start Slow
Your first time lifting weights, you probably shouldn't try to lift 300 pounds. Your first time driving a car, you probably should drive in the middle of rush hour traffic in Los Angeles. When partaking in a new activity, start slow!
There is nothing wrong with betting 1 SCR on a match or even less if that's what you're comfortable with. Don't try to keep up with those who have been betting for years and have large bankrolls (a lot of SCR/money to bet).
Bet What You Can Afford to Lose
It should be common sense and it's likely something you've heard before, but remember to only bet what you are comfortable losing. If that is 0, then you probably shouldn't bet because there are no guarantees. Even a bet that looks like it's a lock can end in someone else's favor. So before you place that bet, think to yourself, "am I okay if I lose all of this?" If the answer is no, don't place the bet.
Question Your Gut
This is one piece of advice I have been taking lately, and it's really helped me avoid losses and increase my number of wins. As a sports fan, it's very likely that when you see the names of two teams who are playing each other, to have a gut reaction to who will win and for what reason. Even as a fan of West Ham United, when I saw that Arsenal was their opponent this past week, I planned on betting on Arsenal to win. But then I questioned my gut instinct.
West Ham was playing at home with a lineup that was finally healthy. Arsenal had struggled of late, especially on the road. This information and a couple of other factors led me away from my gut instinct and towards West Ham, which was the right decision (they won 1-0). Be aware that the exact opposite can happen -- you can talk yourself out of the right decision. My main point here is that you should question your initial reaction because the bet that doesn't look attractive at first can often be the right bet to make.
Look at Trends
Assume that the market and professional bettors and oddsmakers know more about a sporting event than you do (because they do). By looking at trends, meaning how the spread/odds are shifting leading up to a sporting event, you can know which way the money is moving in. If a team is favored to win a match by 0.5 goals and an hour before the match that changes to being favored by 1.5 goals, that means that a significant amount of money has been bet on that team and oddsmakers have adjusted the line as a result. The Action Network is one place to track trends, but there are many others available as well.
Thank you so much for reading. Good luck with your bets! Have questions or something to add? Please comment below.
I am proud to be part of the Team Good witness. Consider voting for @teamgood here: http://www.guiltyparties.com/scorum.
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