Buy Wagering (US Sports)

Once you have chosen your bets and clicked "Place Bets," you will be taken to a confirmation page that looks like this:

Match Play Buy Money Line 4/19/99 7:35:00 PM       101   miami heat miami heat -8.0    No Buy -7.5 -120 -7 -130 -6.5 -140 -6 -150 -110 102 CLEVELAND CAVALIERS

The confirmation page lets you review and confirm your bet: it restates the match up, your ticket number, the point spread, the money line and the amount that you've wagered. But you can also change your wager at this stage by using the "Buy" pull-down menu. Buy wagering allows you to adjust the point spread in your favor. The reason it is called a "buy" wager is that you "purchase" each point adjustment you make in your favor. Every 1/2 point adjustment costs you less favorable odds, thus less of a return on a winning wager. Click on the pull-down menu above to see the buy wagering options.

The first number in the pull down menu lists the adjusted point spreads available to you. The second number is the "price": the adjusted money line for that specific point spread. As you can see, you may adjust the spread anywhere from 1/2 a point up to 2 points. Each 1/2 point causes a 10% increase in the money line. Thus, if a bet on the favored Miami Heat is appealing to you with a point spread of 7 but not 8, you simply select "-7-130" from the pull down menu. Now the Heat must only win by more than 7 points (rather than 8) for you to win your wager. However, rather than wagering $110 in order to win $100, you must lay $130 to win the same $100.

The process is the same if betting on the underdog, but instead of reducing the point spread, you have the opportunity to increase it: if you "bought" one point on the Cavaliers, they would have to either win the game outright or lose it by less than 9, rather than 8, for you to win your buy wager.

Buy wagering is also available for over/under bets. If you had placed a bet on the total, your confirmation screen would look like this:

Match Play Buy Money Line 4/19/99 7:35:00 PM       101   miami heat Over 168    No Buy 167.5 -120 167 -130 166.5 -140 166 -150 -110 102 CLEVELAND CAVALIERS

Buy wagering on totals lets you adjust the total in your favor, but again costs a 10% reduction in the money line for each 1/2 point adjustment. If you were not comfortable that the two teams would score over 168 points in the game, but thought that their combined total scores might be over 166, you could "buy" two points. Again, rather than wagering $110 to win $100, you would have to bet $150 to win $100. A safer bet perhaps, but less of a return on your money.

You may also buy a higher total for "under" bets: buying 2 points on an under bet would mean that the Heat and the Cavaliers would have to have a total combined score of under 170, rather than the original line of 168, for your wager to win. As before, buying two points would "cost" you less favorable odds of 150/100, or a return of $100 for a $150 wager.

Football 3-Point Rule

If a point spread on football is 3 points, you may not buy any points. However, if the line is -/+3 ½ or -/+2 ½, you may buy ½ point to bring the line -/+3. This point will cost you an additional 25% juice, which added to the original 10% vigorish, will bring the juice to 35%. You can't buy any further points once the line is -/+3.

Example I

Raiders
BILLS -3.50

If you place a straight bet on the Buffalo Bills at -3.5, you will risk $110 to win $100. If you want to bring the line to 3 points, you will have to risk $135 to win $100 and your bet will be Buffalo Bills at -3. Once you do this, you cannot move the line any further.

Example II

Titans -2.5
SAINTS

If you place a straight bet on the New Orleans Saints at +2.5, you will risk $110 to win $100. You may buy 0.5 point to bring the line to 3 points, but you will risk $135 to win $100. Once you do this you cannot buy any further points.