How to aggravate yourself and get ripped off (aka betting bad lines)

[Justin7]

We had a recent complaint from a player. He bet Tampa Bay at +7, while the market price was at +3.5. Sure enough, the wager was cancelled AFTER the game was played.

If you see something way off the market, do yourself a favor - pass on it. You're just asking for aggravation.

[pags11]

agreed justin...hope you did well in college football...

[rm18]

You guys handled this case wrong, this line was 7 at pinnacle it just got bet down, this was not a bad line

[rm18]

.

[JoshW]

I don't know the details, but in preseason these lines move wildly. If the line was at 7, but the book in question just hadn't moved yet to the new number and they then cancelled the bet AFTER the game, I think that is very poor on the book part.

I agree you avoid hassle by not betting bad lines, but this is preseason football. A line can move 3 points in seconds and the book has an obligation to pay if they let the bet stand through a game, unless it is just wildly off IMO.

[magnavox]

A line can move 3 points in seconds and the book has an obligation to pay if they let the bet stand through a game, unless it is just wildly off IMO.

If the linesmaker is taking a dump (Oasis last year ) while the line is starting to move, then even if it's a 100 point swing the bet SHOULD stand and never be cancelled -- before or after the game. The line they posted was good at the time and this is enough to honor the wager.

[bubba]

what book

[Santo]

I echo the above.. Justin you can't just apply a rule without knowledge of the situation. In preseason there is absolutely no doubt that bet should have stood.

Mickey mouse move on behalf of the book, and SBR if they support the decision.

[Justin7]

We're still getting facts from the book.

I don't recall Tampa being +7 at any time, and certainly not when the wager was made. Regardless though, the wager should have been cancelled as soon as discovered, not after the match.

[magnavox]

We're still getting facts from the book.

I don't recall Tampa being +7 at any time, and certainly not when the wager was made. Regardless though, the wager should have been cancelled as soon as discovered, not after the match.

What if it was discovered during or after the match? You're still wrong though -- the bet should NOT have been cancelled REGARDLESS, especially if the line just steamed.

[Justin7]

There's a big difference between a slow moving line, and a bad line. If an NFL game is at +7 and steams down to +6, that might be a steam move. If a line opens at +7 and drifts down to +3 over a period of a week and a book doesn't bother moving it, that is poor linesmaking. In either case, the bet is valid. I am not sure that either of these happened.

In 99% of the cases, if a wager is to be cancelled for a bad line, it should be done before the match begins. A sportsbook can view the bets as they come in, and take inventory of their bets at any time. If a "somewhat bad line" was bet a full day before the match, it is inexcusable to 1. not detect it before the match begins, and 2. attempt to cancel it after the match. This example might be a somewhat bad line - +7 versus market of +3.5/+3.

What if the player bet Tampa Bay +3.5 +11000? If that were bet 1 minute before post, would it be excusable to cancel that 5 minutes into the game? What about 5 minutes after the game? I don't necessarily have the answer, but that is an example of a "very bad" line.