Shaded lines

Same number, different prices on each side. That lean is called a shade, and it can tell you something about what a book wants.

How it works:

• A standard line is -110 on both sides.
• A shaded line might be -105 on one side and -115 on the other, at the same number.
• The book is making one side cheaper to bet and the other more expensive.

Example only: Team A -3 at -115, Team B +3 at -105. One reading is that the book is comfortable taking more Team B money and wants less on Team A.

There are other readings:

• The book is balancing its own risk and nothing more.
• The whole market is moving that way and the number is about to change.

Where it shows up in our plays: a shade is a supporting signal only. We say which book and how big the shade is, and which reading the evidence supports. It never creates a play and never loosens the price limit.

What cuts against it: a few cents of shade is a small clue. Different books shade for different reasons, and you can talk yourself into any story you like.

Takeaway: notice the lean, then look for something stronger to go with it.

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