Line shopping: why one price is not the market

The same bet is sold at different prices in different places. Taking the first price you see is the most common way to give money away.

How it works:

• Books set their own prices, and they do not all match.
• A few cents looks small on one bet. Over a season it is the difference.

Example only, the same side and number at two prices:

• At -110 you break even at 52.4%.
• At -105 you break even at 51.2%.

Now win 53 of 100 bets at 1u each:

• At -110: about +1.2u.
• At -105: about +3.5u.

Same picks. Same results. Almost three times the return.

It works on numbers too. +3.5 at one shop and +3 at another is not the same bet.

Where it shows up in our plays: every play has a price limit. "Play up to -105" means -105 or better. If the best price you can find is worse than the limit, the play is gone for you, and passing is the right move.

What cuts against it: a better price on a bad bet is still a bad bet. Shopping improves a good decision. It does not create one.

Takeaway: one price is an offer. The market is all of them.

Price first.

Education only, not a guarantee. 1-800-GAMBLER.