What do many bookies do? They follow the crowd. They simply wait until the “big boys from Vegas or the offshore bookies set their lines, then they follow suit. This is the easy way to set the lines and odds and it’s certainly the quick way if you are on your own. The problem with this practice is the “big boys are usually willing to give a few events/games away”. Let’s repeat that – they are willing to give events/games away.
- The “big boys” will often reduce the juice, lower the odds in favor of the gamble and/or, move the numbers in order to gain a deposit. They realize they may lose, and this simply doesn’t matter. They are willing to take a loss now in order to gain a faithful client.
- A bookie’s life is a busy life and it’s certainly not the stereotypical depiction that one remembers from the movies. Case in Point – “Casino”. Ha, that movie is indeed a great flick but it’s just that, a flick. The movies would have us all believe that every bookie wears a $3,000 suit and rolls a Benz. We all know this is not true.
- On the other hand, the opposite of that stereotype is the gangster wannabe from Brooklyn, named Vinny. Not only does this stereotype pick on Italians, but it also picks on the real-life of a hard-working bookmaker.
- The vast majority of bookies are your average “Joe” from up the street that has a “9-5” and when he hits the clock, he heads out to the local watering hole and hits his clients up for the hottest game that night or the one coming up over the weekend.
- Bookies are hardworking people that are trying to earn an extra buck or two. How do bookies balance the books, how do bookies balance bets? Let’s take a look.
- Lines and Odds: What do you do with them? This may sound like a weird question but it’s a valid one. Here is why—
- One of the principal duties that bookies must undertake on a daily basis is setting the lines and odds for that day’s events. It matters not how big or how small you may be, you must know the lines and odds and if you have at least a handful or more players, then you must display them if you want to operate in an effective manner.
- Here is the problem: Most “local bookies” have never worked for a Las Vegas or an offshore sportsbook and when it comes to setting lines and odds for hundreds of daily events, they have no idea what they are doing.
- We are not saying this is you. What we are saying is this “the vast majority of bookies that set out to open a bookie shop – they are inexperienced when it comes to setting the lines and odds.
- We say leave the line-setting and odds making to seasoned professionals. The PAY PER HEAD providers set the daily events for you along with the daily lines and odds. The best part about having the pay per head set the lines and odds for you is the time factor. It takes a few hours each day to set the lines and who needs this? You are in this to have fun and earn a nice profit, not get burned doing something that you should shy away from.
- You can’t afford this. You simply cannot. You must set the lines in a way that helps you all the while staying competitive. You are not Walmart! You can’t afford to advertise a gallon of bleach in the weekly flier for .89 cents while knowing that you paid $1.09 for it. Walmart wants butts in the seats, and they know by giving away bleach, they have gained much more at the end of the day.
You can’t afford the losses. You must be on point with your budgeting, your books, and your cash flow. If you are giving it all away every day because of bad lines, then you must learn how and when to adjust the odds. Call the PPH today.
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