How to Middle Sports Bets
by Jerald of Predictem.com
Would you like to win 2 bets with only minimal risk? It is not as difficult
as you think if you are willing to put in the time to do some line shopping.
The best opportunity for finding middles is to have a good
local outlet and several respected offshore sites. You should be able to
search and find some respected outlets that cater to underdog players and
some that cater to favorites.
Here is the criteria I use when attempting to middle a game:
1) At least a 2 point differential in the point spread. For example, you are looking at the lines and you see the following situation:
Sportsbook A
Oakland Raiders +5.5
Denver Broncos 5.5
Sportsbook B
Oakland Raiders +3.5
Denver Broncos 3.5
This scenario will most likely happen if you are able to use a local bookmaker who inflates the line on the local team or is slow in moving the line if it changes. To put this into play you would make the following wagers:
Wager #1 – $110 to win $100 on the Oakland Raiders +5.5 at Sportsbook A
Wager #2 – $110 to win $100 on the Denver Broncos -3.5 at Sportsbook B
If you are lucky and the Denver Broncos win the game by 4 or 5 points then you will win both wagers for a net win of $200. Anything other than that scenario will result in a $10 loss. In order to come out ahead you will need to do better than 1 win out of 20 attempts.
2) The other criteria I use is if there is a difference in the line that spans a key number. The following line will give you a good chance at a middle even though there is only a 1 point difference.
Sportsbook A
Oakland Raiders +3.5
Denver Broncos 3.5
Sportsbook B
Oakland Raiders +2.5
Denver Broncos 2.5