Since football is scored in increments of 3, 7, 6, 8 and 2 points - in that order of regularity - certain pointspreads are much more important than others. For example, a ½-point difference in a bookmaker’s posted pointspread from 3 is much more significant than a ½-point variance from a pointspread of five. This is because football games are very likely to end with 3 points as a margin of vict ...  read more

When comparing basketball to football, the first thing we notice is that the ball is round and its behavior is a lot easier to control. Basketball playing surfaces are different from football fields. In basketball, the floor is smooth, compared to grass and artificial surfaces of various textures. Also, in some cases, there are weather fluctuations in football. Basketball is played indoors and ...  read more

Baseball begins and ends with pitching. Because of the number of games and the length of the season, the sport lures as many investors as the others. The structure of odds… no point spread… and the nature of the game however, with the disproportionate emphasis on pitching, baseball must be treated in a different way.

The role the pitcher plays has been assessed at anywhere between 70 an ...  read more

We all know the NBA playoffs and finals are a whole new season, but there are a few characteristics and statistics that will remain. On the other side, what jumps out is the lower scoring. Its only natural in a playoff situation, a team will slow it down, be more methodical and emphasize defense. Here are some generalities that apply to all NBA games. In Pro Basketball, winning and losing are o ...  read more

Each football season a group of mysterious gentleman leap into the sports spotlight with steam and other nonsense. The speculating public, which is essentially composed of followers, clings to every word they speak, complying and following their every lead. You know the fellows. They are referred to with reverential phrases as: "Who are THEY taking?" or "Who do THEY like?"

No matter h ...  read more

The Green Packers grew tired of Brett Favre's retiring and unretiring. Inspite of fan and media pressure I believe conditioning played a major role in their decision to trade him. Before the 2007 season, Favre worked with Ken Croner of the Athlete's Performance Institute, Tempe, Arizona, which reportedly cost the Packers $5000.00 a week. This is one of the main reasons that he had such a good y ...  read more

Betting lines are hardly ever exactly accurate. A small percentage of sports contests end up on the number as the line predicts. Oddsmakers and bookmakers say this discrepancy is not that important since the betting public is no more accurate than they are. This offsets any advantage one way or the other.

Probably the most important consideration, is betting lines are not stable, but ...  read more

As the NHL finals approach, here are some fundamental hockey handicapping tips that apply to all sports.

(1) Keep detailed records.

(2) Be effective in using relevant statistics.

(3) Read, study and learn all you can about sports and handicapping.

(4) Use subjective input. Often this approach can lead you to go against statistics and be very eff ...  read more

Since there are fewer men involved in basketball when compared to the injury-prone football, its easier to assess values to injuries in relation to the game. Points can be added or subtracted from the pointspread with much more accuracy than football (other than if the QB or a star player might be injured), because basketball lines are posted much later and the injury information is not always ...  read more

Here are are a few excerpts and basic handicapping rules from SPORTS INSIGHT.

There are a lot of useless statistics, trivial information, speculation and opinions out there that are contained in the line anyway. The betting line is made to create two-way action and they do a very good job, but public perception is also considered. This opens up holes and opportunities and Rob ...  read more