Looking to avoid sports betting mistakes? You’re in the right place. This guide will show you where others have gone wrong, and how you can sidestep the issues they’ve had so you don’t follow suit.
This will include poor bankroll management, not doing your research and betting when you really shouldn’t. I’ll cover the rookie errors that can spoil your betting experience from those central issues right out to wider problems like picking the wrong bonus. Armed with these tips, you’ll be able to start or continue wagering as a more savvy bettor.
Sports betting can be an exhilarating and fun experience, provided you go about it the right way. This involves having the right knowledge and discipline. It's easy for beginners to make silly or unwitting mistakes that can lead to unnecessary losses and no end of frustration, which can derail your happiness or lead to further mistakes in order to compensate. I’ve put together this guide to help you sidestep the common pitfalls of sports betting that trap newbies, hopefully contributing to a better all round experience, and not as the ‘con’ above illustrates, make you so scared of mistakes that you never get started.
These fall into two main areas, core mistakes which you can make while betting, and then there’s more subtle errors which can set you up for failure. I’ll start this betting guide with the core mistakes, and the one you are most likely to make right near the start of your time as a bettor.
Betting based on gut feeling or guesswork without proper research is a common mistake. This can come from impatience or most commonly overconfidence and believing you have more knowledge than you actually do. To make an informed wager, you need to account for several factors:
You should also look at expert analysis on the 24hr sports news channels, especially if it is a team you are a fan of, as this can help you make a measured prediction about the outcome.
Getting on top of bankroll management is key for a positive experience in sports betting. If you’re a newbie, you might not set a budget and risk betting more than you can afford to lose. This is clearly a bad thing, and if you think this could happen, you need to act to stop it. The first step here is to set a budget and stick to it, using the sportsbooks tools to set limits if you need to.
You should also look at the size of your bets, as throwing all your funds into just a couple of bets can see your account empty out pretty fast. A popular remedy to this is to just use 1-5% of your bank on each bet. This way, if you do happen to have a bad run, it doesn’t clear you out. There is an upside to this too in that you can also increase your stakes on a winning streak, or as your account grows.
It’s only human nature to want to recover a loss or losses as soon as possible, but reacting without thinking things through and betting emotionally can make matters worse. Acting emotionally rather than logically when it comes to sports betting rarely ends well and can cause an escalation which can spoil months of steady growth in your account in a matter of hours. If you take a loss and feel like you are betting emotionally, take a break and clear your mind before placing more bets.
The same can go for chasing wins as well. In the same way, you want to claw back losses, you won’t want a winning streak to end, so you could well end up betting on something you haven’t researched properly because you think you’re having a lucky day and can’t lose. In cases like this, all your research and progress can go out the window and you might end up back at square one.
Whatever bet you are going to place, you’ll want to do it at the best odds possible. Just a slight difference in odds over a series of successful bets can make a big difference to the size of your balance, so it does pay to shop around. This is one of the reasons why to use multiple sportsbooks, as you can check the odds as part of your research. By doing this, you can not just secure the best odds but also make use of any promotions that the various sportsbooks have in place, as many offer boosted odds for certain events and types of wager.
The problem is, it can be a real bother to look around and to join every sportsbook and maintain a balance just in case you need it every now and then. If you don’t want to do that, using the resources on this site can help you find the sportsbooks that consistently have competitive odds or have regular odds boosts for bettors.
Those are the most common betting mistakes, but there are some other things you can do, or at least fail to do that can leave you feeling like you’ve missed out.
Spostbooks will have tools available that you can use to place best faster, and end a bet sooner if you want. The first of these is the bet builder, which allows you to add extra bets easily, taking a lot of hassle out of placing accumulators/parlays. Many sportsbooks also have a cashout button, which allows you to get out of a bet at the current odds rather than wait until the end of the event. This can help you block in a lesser win if you are worried that your position will change, or mitigate the size of a loss.
Picking the right sportsbook is important, as you’ll need somewhere that you find easy to use, is safe, legal and covers all the sports and markets you want to bet on. If you need some guidance here, the reviews on this site can help you make the right decision, as these are the areas we look at. Another big factor is the bonus, as picking the right type can influence the start you get with any sportsbook. If you need the sports betting bonus types explained, there is a guide for that, but in broad terms you have:
| Type of bonus | What you get |
|---|---|
| Deposit match | The sportsbook will match your deposit to boost the size of your starting bank. |
| ‘No sweat’ bet | The stake from your first bet up to a specified amount will be refunded to your account if it loses |
| Bonus bets | You are awarded a number of bonus bets, sometimes these have to be on nominated events. |
And you need to pick the one that best suits your playing style, whether for instance you want a bigger starting bank, or the reassurance of having that first bet covered.
We all make mistakes, but in thi guide I have given you the tools and facts you need to keep them to a minimum. Whether it’s basic betting mistakes like not bothering to research, or more subtle ones like picking the wrong bonus, you should know how to sidestep them onto a more safe and secure path. Further recommended reading is our responsible gambling guide which will expand on some of these subjects to make sure you stay in control, but this is not the full extent of guides in the betting school. You’ll also see guides to help you through every part of the sports betting process, so you don’t have to learn the hard way.
There are plenty of pitfalls for sports bettors, especially if they make the most common mistakes. These include not researching bets properly, chasing losses and poor bank management. You should also make sure you check for th4 best odds, and get off to the right start by choosing the right sportsbook.
This is one of the key betting mistakes to avoid, as it can make a bad situation worse. It’s only natural to want to bounce back after a loss, but you should avoid increasing stakes or betting on something you haven’t researched. Take a break and go back in when you are ready with a clear head.
Only you will know which one is the best fit for you, but all the best ones have the same things in common, like being legit, having a good bonus and featuring your preferred sports and markets. Finding a reliable source for reviews and guides can help you here by doing most of the legwork for you.
Go to BetMGM
Go to BetMGM
