Point Spreads and Moneylines

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Spreads and Moneylines are terminologies that apply mostly to American sports, namely, football, basketball, baseball, and hockey. In these sports there is usually no tie and the teams are rarely of equal strength. In order to make up for the disparity of the teams two methods are used. The first is to adjust the odds so that the underdog  team gets higher odds than the favorite team (nothing different from any other odds assignment). In fact, this is exactly the same as any other betting, only that it is given a name when it comes to American sports - it is called moneyline. For instance, for the game between Miami Dolphins and the NE Patriots in week 5 (October 10) of 2004 season, the moneyline was set at 8.5 for the Dolphins and 1.08 for the Patriots.

The second method is to assign point spreads (also called lines and handicaps) as a way of making the odds even, thus each with equal odds. For the game mentioned above, the spread was set at 12.5 points in favor of the Patriots (it is shown as +12.5 for Dolphins and -12.5 for Patriots). This means that a handicap of 12.5 points makes the odds even (1.90 for both).

A bet will be a winner if the a team covers the spreads. In other words, betting on the weaker team, Dolphins, means that either they have to win the game, or lose by 12 points or less. Betting on the stronger team, Patriots, would mean that they have to win the game by 13 points or more. The point spreads are set initially by the Las Vegas Sports Consultants Inc., and they may go up or down during  the days and hours prior to the game time at various sportsbooks depending on the amount of bets placed on each side. Recall that sportsbooks always want to balance bets on either side; and since they cannot touch the odds here, they have to play with the spreads.

Whether it is a spread betting or a simple win/lose betting, we use the word 'odds' to represent the payout. Now, it should be clear why we have to use another terminology, namely, 'moneyline', to indicate the odds pertaining to a win or lose betting. It is to distinguish it from the odds of a spread betting.

An interesting question when betting on point spreads is:  can the bettor raise or lower the point spreads in order to win more money or in order to reduce risk? The answer is no in most sportsbooks, somewhat yes in some, and yes in very few sportsbooks. This is called buying and selling points. As an example, suppose a bettor strongly believes that the Patriots can beat the Dolphins by much more than 13 points and he/she wants to set the spread at -16.5, then since he/she is taking more risk (lower probability), the odds should therefore be proportionally adjusted to a higher value than 1.90 (maybe 2.45). So, if the Patriots win by 17 or more points, the bettor gets paid $245 instead of $190  on a $100 wager. Please see Point buying and selling.

To illustrate what to expect on a sportsbook site we have placed below a typical betting list as an example. If you want to bet on Miami Dolphins to win, then just click on the checkbox under Money Line and beside 8.50. If you want to bet on the Patriots to win by more than 12.5 points, then just click on the checkbox under Point Spread and beside -12.5.

On this list you'll note that for the game between BAL Ravens and WAS Redskins, the sportsbook has determined that the odds are even, therefore no point spread is specified. Moreover, note that the list also includes a column of Game Totals which you may wish to bet on by predicting whether the total points of the game would be over(O) or under(U) the specified numbers.

Note that if a point spread involves a half point, such as 12.5, then covering the spread does not create any confusion since 12 is below the spread and 13 is above the spread. But, if the spread is an integer such as the one shown for CLE Browns and PIT Steelers, and if the Steelers win the game by exactly 6 points, then the bet on either side does not cover the spreads. In this case it is called a push and the stakes are returned to the bettors.