TEASERS
(American Football and Basketball only)

A teaser is a parlay in which you adjust the point spread or total of each individual play; in other words, a teaser is a parlay comprised of a series of buy wagers instead of straight bets. If you're unclear about either parlays or buy wagering, please read those sections before continuing.

Like a parlay, a teaser is a single bet that links together several individual plays (from 2 to 8 in the case of teasers). You can combine a series of straight bets, over/under bets, or any mixture of the two. A teaser allows you to "buy points" - adjust the point spread or totals in your favor -on the plays that comprise the multi-part wager. As in a buy wager, adjusting the spread and/or the totals costs you less favorable odds, thus less of a return on your wager.

In a teaser, the amount of points that you are allowed to buy is higher than those allowed for straight bets. Whereas straight buy wagers allow you to buy 0.5, 1, 1.5 or 2 points on either the point spread or the total, in a teaser you are offered anywhere from 3.5 to 7 points, depending on the sport. However, you cannot select different point adjustments for the different plays: the amount of points you buy will be applied to all of the individual plays that comprise the teaser. You cannot buy, say, 4 points on one game and 5 on another.

What are the advantages of playing a teaser rather than a series of individual buy wagers? You receive significantly better odds than you would playing the adjusted money lines of buy wagers. Also, compared to a buy wager, the teaser offers you a greater number of points with which to adjust the point spreads and totals. The disadvantages? As in a parlay, winning two out of three or three out of four is still a loss. If those winning plays had been individual buy wagers, you would have come out ahead. As always, going for a bigger payout entails a bigger risk.

These are the payouts for teasers (Game sides & totals):

Let's put the theory into action:

Example: Todd decides to play a teaser for $50: with a 7.0 point adjustment to the point spreads and the totals, he is confident that his picks stand a good chance of winning. On the Betting Lines page, he would select parlay/teaser, enter the amount he would like to wager, then select the individual plays that will make up his teaser. When he's done making his selections, the page might look like this:   Match Play Money Line 4/22/99 8:00:00 PM     101     miami dolphins ATLANTA to win by 7.0 -110 224 ATLANTA FALCONS     4/19/99 7:35:00 PM     215 baltimore ravens ravens to win by -3.5 -110 641 NEW ORLEANS SAINTS     4/19/99 7:35:00 PM     215 baltimore ravens Over 32.5 -110 641 NEW ORLEANS SAINTS     Total To Wager: $ parlay teaser 6.0 teaser 6.5 teaser 7.0 teaser 7.5 Total To Win: $ Todd buys 7 points. When he gets to the confirmation page, he uses the pull-down menu to select "teaser 7.0." The adjusted point spread for the Falcons is now 0.0; the adjusted point spread for the Ravens is now (+)3.5; the adjusted line for the over bet in the second game is 25.5. Buying 7 points has lowered the hurtles that Todd's teams must jump, but he will receive less of a potential payout than if he had bet the parlay. $50 is deducted from Todd's account. His balance now reads: $50 available, $50 at risk.

Outcome I

Say the results of the two games were the following:

Todd's first play wins: Atlanta won the game by 11 points, thus covering the adjusted point spread of 0.0. Since the teaser eliminated the point spread, Atlanta simply had to win the game outright for this play to be a winner.

The second play wins: Baltimore won by 7 points. Since the teaser adjusted the Baltimore's point spread to +3.5, Baltimore had to either win the game outright or lose by less than 3 for this play to be a winner.

The third play wins: the sum of Baltimore and New Orlean's final scores is 59. With the adjusted total line of the teaser, any total score over 25.5 is a winner.

Since all three plays of the teaser were winners, the teaser bet wins. The odds for a 3 play teaser with a 7 point adjustment are 6/5. Thus Todd's $50 bet returns $60. Unlike straight bets or buy wagers, in which the original bet is returned to the bettor if he or she wins, teaser payouts include the original wager. $60 is deposited to Todd's account. His balance now reads: $160 available, $0 at risk.

Outcome II

Say the results of the same two games were instead:

Todd's first play wins: Atlanta won the game by 4 points. Since Todd "teased" Atlanta's point spread from -7 to 0.0, Atlanta only needed to win the game outright for this play to be a winner.

The second play wins: Baltimore lost by 3 points. Since the teaser adjusted Baltimore's point spread to +3.5, Baltimore could lose by 4 or less for this play to be a winner.

The third play wins: the sum of Baltimore and New Orlean's final scores is 53. With the adjusted total line of the teaser, any total score over 25.5 is a winner.

Since all three plays of the teaser were winners, the teaser bet wins. The odds for a 3 play teaser with a 7 point adjustment are 6/5. Thus Todd's $50 bet returns $60. $60 is deposited to his account. His balance now reads: $110 available, $0 at risk.