What is Hedge Betting or Hedging in Gambling?

Peter N
March 17, 2020
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There are many betting strategies punters use. Some are designed to make big money, while others are designed to limit losses and almost guarantee small but regular profits. Hedging in gambling is one strategy that boosts your chances of winning, reducing the risk of a loss and increasing that of a payout.

It’s one of the more popular betting strategies these days. It is always a good place to begin if you are looking to increase your number of wins and develop basic tactics.

Below you’ll find all you need to know about hedging from what it is to how to use..

What is Hedging in Gambling & How do I use this Strategy?

Hedging is a relatively simple concept to understand. It involves covering a number of bases in order to increase your chance of winning.

This is done by placing lay bets on top of your initial back bet almost as a level of insurance. For example, you may want to place an NFL bet on the outright NFL Championship winner. Your initial gut feeling is to back an outsider.

Hedging your bets would then involve placing lay bets on one of, or a number of, the favorites. This would, therefore, boost your chances of winning.

The aim of hedging is to make a guaranteed profit. So, the odds and stakes you play need to carefully be considered. In theory, your back bet will make a large profit if it comes off, with a winning lay bet ultimately designed to at least cut your losses and ideally return your total stake combined.

Let’s say you want to place $10 on the Philadelphia Eagles to win the NFL Championship, with 888sport offering odds of +1200. That means if you won you’d receive $120, plus stake.

However, you also want to add insurance and back two of the favorites. In this case, you might want to back the Patriots at +700 and Chiefs at +800. This would be hedging and increase your chance of winning. Additionally, if you were to back all three if one of them one you’d comfortably make a profit.

This is also applicable to the NBA, soccer, and games. Don’t miss our NBA expert picks and parlays, also European soccer picks

 

What Sports Can I Hedge bets With?

Hedging is a strategy rather than a betting offer or particular market- Therefore, you can in theory hedge your bets on absolutely any sport and any market.

Most commonly you’ll find punters hedging on the likes of Horse Racing and Soccer. In addition, with the likes of the NBA and NHL becoming increasingly popular with players using it.

Generally speaking, it’s also used on the Moneyline and Outright betting markets. However, there’s nothing stopping players from choosing even the more niche markets to adopt this strategy. 

For which Sportsbooks Can I use Hedging in Gambling?

Again, as it’s a strategy you can use hedging with any sportsbook you please; Whether it is major names like Sugar House and Caesars, or the more up and coming names in US betting.

The bigger name sportsbooks usually have a larger range of markets to choose from. So that’s always worth bearing in mind, while it can also be useful to benefit from sportsbook free bets and promotions. In addition, some of them also offers free sport bet no deposit required. 

Don’t forget to use those to place some of your lay bets. In fact, there’s no reason why you can’t scour sportsbooks to find the best value and place your back and lay bets completely separately from one another. 

Author Peter N