Spread Betting - Bets On The Total (over/under)

Bets On The Total (over/under)

In addition to the spread bet, a very common "side bet" on an event will be the total (commonly called the over/under or O/U) bet. This is a bet on the total number of points scored by both teams. Suppose the Redskins are playing the Giants and the total is set at 44.5 points. If the final score is Redskins 24, Giants 17, the total is 41 and bettors who took the under will win. If the final score is Redskins 30, Giants 31, the total is 61 and bettors who took the over will win. The total is popular because it allows gamblers to bet on their overall perception of the game (e.g., a high-scoring offensive show or a defensive battle) without needing to pick the actual winner.

In the UK, these bets are sometimes called spread bets, but rather than a simple win/loss, the bet pays more or less depending on how far from the spread the final result is.

Example: In a football match the bookmaker believes that 12 or 13 corners will occur, thus the spread will be set at 12-13.

• A gambler believes that there will be more than 13 corners, and "buys" at £25 a point at 13.

• If the number of corners is 16, the gambler wins (16 - 13) = 3 x £25.
• If the number of corners is 10, the gambler loses (13 - 10) = 3 x £25.

• A "sell" transaction is similar except that it is made against the bottom value of the spread.
• Often "live pricing" will change the spread during the course of an event, allowing a profit to be increased or a loss minimized.

In North American sports betting many of these wagers would be classified as over-under (or, more commonly today, total) bets rather than spread bets. However, these are for one side or another of a total only, and do not increase the amount won or lost as the actual moves away from the bookmaker's prediction. Instead, over-under or total bets are handled much like point-spread bets on a team, with the usual 10/11 (4.55%) commission applied. Many Nevada sports books will allow these bets to be used in parlays, just like team point spread bets, making it possible to bet, for instance, "the Packers and the over", and be paid if both the Packers "cover" the point spread and the total score is higher than the book's prediction. (Such parlays usually pay off at odds of 13:5 with no "vig", just as a standard two-team parlay would.)