Betting odds are used to determine the probability of an event happening. They can also be used to determine your winnings. Yes, if you are new to betting, you might have a hard time understanding odds. And that is why you need to know about betting odds and how they can work for you.
Understanding Probability
At the lowest level, betting allows you to predict the outcome of an event. If you predict correctly, you will win money. Any event has a predetermined set of results. For instance, if you roll a dice, there are six possible outcomes. If you bet that another player will roll a ‘1’, then there is a 16.67% chance that it will happen.
Betting odds simply explain the likelihood of the event happening. Bookies, especially in the UK, present betting odds as a fraction such as 4/7. Some bookies prefer decimals.
Calculating Probability Through Betting Odds
If any two numbers are separated with a trailing slash (9/1), it is known as fractional odds. From here, it’s easy to calculate the likelihood of any event happening. You can replace the numbers with letters to ascertain the probability. For instance, 9/1 becomes A/B.
The formula is Probability(%) = B/(A+B)
Therefore, 9/1 will become 1/(9+1) = 1/10 which is 0.10. It means that there is a 10% chance that the event will happen. If you see a fractional odd, you can now tell how likely any event (the probability) will happen.
Using Betting Odds To Calculate Winnings
With betting odds, you can calculate how much money you will win after a bet. For instance, with the 9/1 option, every value of B that you bet, you will win A for the return of your stake. Here it means that for every £1 you bet, you will win £9. It’s as easy as that!
Understanding Betting Odds As Decimals
Decimals get used for exchanges. However, the leading betting sites give you an option of viewing your betting odds in decimal format. As mentioned, they are an alternative to seeing betting odds as fractions. Even better, they are easier to work out.
The formula here is winnings – (odds x stake) – stake.
For instance, if the betting odds are 9.0, it will be calculated as (9.0x £10 stake) – £10stake = £80 winnings. You can also use the betting calculator to help find your exact winnings after putting up a stake.
Decimal Odds Vs Fractional Odds
None of these betting odds formats is better than the other. However, the decimal format is adopted widely. Fractional odds are still in use in the UK, especially on the high street and on racetracks. However, there are two notable differences for each of these formats.
• Decimal odds are easier to understand. With this idea in mind, bookmakers used to entice more punters to racing by making it more accessible to the average person. As of 10 years ago, betting odds were still displayed as fractions, but now they are often decimals.
On the other hand, the fractional odds only represent winnings. Therefore, they don’t show the returned stake compared to the decimal odds. The change from fractional to decimal odds became popular because of the betting exchanges such as those done on Betfair. Note that, if there was a small change to the odds, it’s hard to decrease or increase the probability without creating large fractions that might be tough to compute for the average punter.
• Remember, odds can change at any time. Therefore, it’s easy to calculate your odds with decimals and determine the right stake than with fractions. Take an instance at a horse racing track where things move pretty fast. If you were to take the time to calculate all the fractional odds before making your bet, the betting booths would be closed by the time you make your decision. However, with the decimal odds, you can easily make your stake and identify your winnings immediately with the formula provided above.
Therefore, the change to decimal odds from fractions is very beneficial to the average punter.
What You Need To Know About Odds Comparisons
If you are betting online or on a horse race, there will be a real-time display of the odds. Here, you will find the essential information, whether you are a casual bettor or a professional punter. It’s the best way to find the best odds to bet on. If you compare odds from different bookies, you are likely going to increase your winnings. Therefore, look for bookmakers with the best odds, if you want to increase your winning.
It’s quite exhausting comparing odds online from one bookmaker to the other. However, there are numerous betting odds comparison websites you can use to get the information in real-time and in one place without too much hassle. It’s easier to locate all the bookies in one place with an odds comparison website.
