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Johnson, weighs in with his articles on the status of
the online gambling industry and online sportsbooks. Be
sure to check WagerOnFootball.com every
week for his next bit of amazing insight on the world
of offshore and online gambling. This man knows gambling!
This man knows his way around a few sportsbooks too!!!!
Different Shops for Two
Different Types of Players
You’re on a budget. You’re
NOT a shop-til-you drop type of person. Big, expensive
purchases are not what you’re after. So, you are
more likely to be seen at WalMart than at Neiman Marcus,
right? Right. But, you’re probably asking yourself,
“What does this have to do with sports betting?”
Well, the fact of the matter is, just as there are two
different types of stores for two different types of shoppers,
there are two different styles of sportsbook for two very
different sports bettors. Professional bettors have a
distinctly different set of requirements than do recreational
players. And, there are books ideally suited for each
of these two kinds of gamblers.
Sportsbooks that target the Recreational Bettor (Square)
are typically defined by lower limits, larger bonus offers,
and relatively standard lines. Shops that cater to Professional
Gamblers (Sharps) have higher limits, smaller bonus offers,
and more opinionated lines than their recreational counterparts.
And, there are sometimes less-noticeable differences as
well.
Shops catering to the recreational player typically have
little patience for sharp action. In other words, should
a player exhibit betting patterns indicative of a professional
or expert gambler, the sportsbook may invite them to take
their business elsewhere. Or, they’ll simply reduce
that player’s betting limits. And, they also have
a low tolerance for “bonus whores” –
players that post up strictly to profit from a shop’s
bonuses with little intention of risking their deposit.
Is it wrong or bad for a sportsbook to operate this way?
It often depends on who you ask.
Sharp players tend to take offense to having their limits
cut, or to being booted for beating a shop. And, they
are usually the loudest voices on the forums – complaining
and condemning the recreational sportsbooks for these
practices. To us, however, this is a bit like that Neiman-Marcus
shopper complaining because there’s no caviar at
WalMart.
We believe that these practices are actually a benefit
to the recreational player – who, by the way, makes
up the largest percentage of the betting population. The
sportsbooks catering to the general public are able to
maintain their financial stability in part because they
just won’t allow expert gamblers to take big shots
at them. This means that recreational bettors, like you
and I, are left with a book that will have plenty of funds
on hand to pay us on those occasions when we win. And,
we won’t have to worry about the recreational shop’s
solvency during weeks when the public beats the books,
because they refuse the kind of action that puts them
at risk.
So, the “Neiman-Marcus” types should stop
whining about the “WalMart” sportsbooks of
the world. There are sharp outs and there are square outs
… two entirely different offerings for two entirely
different players.
Good luck, whatever style player you may be.
The Staff of Wager On Football Sportsbook Review
NFL Sportsbooks
Ratings Guide
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