Discussion about line movement and 'sharps'

[sixersfan]

Hey everyone what's up?? A couple of things I wanted to get off my chest.

I'm sure we've all familiar of the term 'sharp' eg: 'The sharps are on this or the sharps are on that' Can someone explain exactly what a sharp is? I mean, surely capping games (50/50 proposition) you'd encounter some losing streaks which would wipe out a 1/3 of your bankroll - based on say 2% to 3% of your bankroll per game.

Does anyone cap for a living here? The Pinnacle pulse for example would like us to believe (constantly) that sharps are a dime a dozen and constantly win.

Next of all i'm sure alot of you follow SBR Odds. One thing i've noticed is that after the line opens many of the faves are inflated. E.g dallas -7 would be -115 they realise that the betting public loves faves and around the majority of faves have more juice than dogs. Say if The Greek has dallas -7 at -110
Pinny has them at -6.5 -118. Alot of the time they are 1/2 a point better but you're paying alot of juice for it.

Now say dallas 12 hours before the game is -7 at -115 then you check the odds 1/2 hour before game time the odds will be dallas -7 -102. Maybe the "sharps" tell them who will win (which is maybe why they keep winnners)

I'd like to hear some of your thoughts on this. Merry Xmas all the best guys.

[sixersfan]

bump

[Bill Dozer]

I'm sure we've all familiar of the term 'sharp' eg: 'The sharps are on this or the sharps are on that' Can someone explain exactly what a sharp is? I mean, surely capping games (50/50 proposition) you'd encounter some losing streaks which would wipe out a 1/3 of your bankroll - based on say 2% to 3% of your bankroll per game.

Sharps use to refer to people who move the line; people that had their own opinions based on good info or recognized value on lines that were skewed by public perception.

I think these days the term "sharp" or "pro" is very subjective. If you view SBRlines shopping for the best price and have multiple account and won't bet a line if it's not the best line, you are a sharp at some books. Basically, if you can do simple math and have discipline.

The most common description of a sharp today is someone who only bets into stuff that moves. For example, you check the lines for the best price and watch to see where the line is going. If the market is getting more expensive on your play you would hit that line then. If it moves in your favor, the line you liked could get better so you wait until the next move. This is why players pay for Don Best. It puts them on the same level with most books that are also using DonBest.

This is why TheGreek, BetCRIS, 5Dimes and Pinnacle can afford to open early. Sharp players sharpen their lines so the books are first to new positions while the books following them open later, want recreational bettors not beating them to the lines.

[Bill Dozer]

I'm sure we've all familiar of the term 'sharp' eg: 'The sharps are on this or the sharps are on that' Can someone explain exactly what a sharp is? I mean, surely capping games (50/50 proposition) you'd encounter some losing streaks which would wipe out a 1/3 of your bankroll - based on say 2% to 3% of your bankroll per game.

In your example the term applies to what I was first trying to describe. These are people that have an opinion. Lots of times it refers to syndicate groups and players who commonly have the same opinion. They go on losing streaks just like everyone else but believe they are making advantageous plays. Think of it as playing a red on a roulette wheel that has 51 reds and 49 blacks. 15 blacks in a row isn't going to deter you from playing. The edge is small and even when you get a syndicate play, if the line moves slightly after they bet it and before it got to you, it likely isn't worth it.

[Bill Dozer]

And lastly, welcome to the board!

[Sam Odom]

The internet & online booking have made it very hard to tell a real 'sharp' from a lackey. I know one forum owner who is/was a lackey for a REAL sharp but he couldn't tell ya who the starting QBs are for 50% of the NFL teams.

[Yoshi]

Don Best is a waste of money thou, even Pinny dynamics are more useful usually.

[Santo]

The internet & online booking have made it very hard to tell a real 'sharp' from a lackey. I know one forum owner who is/was a lackey for a REAL sharp but he couldn't tell ya who the starting QBs are for 50% of the NFL teams.

I doubt I could tell you the starting QB for 1/6 of NFL Teams :P

[Patrick McIrish]

I think these days the term "sharp" or "pro" is very subjective.

Yep, especially from the books point of view. Some places paint you sharp for as little as having more than one out. At BoDog for example if they get the idea you are smart enough to log on to the computer than you immediately begin to get the "sharp" set of lines.

[sixersfan]

Thanks for the welcome Bill Dozer. Used to use covers a bit but it's a pain to filter out all the crap on there! I've noticed around here the posters are alot more mature and educated. Merry Xmas all!

[koko]

Used to use covers a bit :

Any here's the proof...

LOL....everytime I've been to covers, all that I see in the forum are picks with tons of replies, which are just of smiles toasting.

[pags11]

koko...that's pretty funny, and pretty accurate...

welcome to sbr sixersfan...

[Bill Dozer]

The internet & online booking have made it very hard to tell a real 'sharp' from a lackey. I know one forum owner who is/was a lackey for a REAL sharp but he couldn't tell ya who the starting QBs are for 50% of the NFL teams.

Yep the line has been blurred...

Don Best is a waste of money thou, even Pinny dynamics are more useful usually.

and Pinnacle has been a big part of it, or has at least accelerated it. Moving the line by cents was practically unheard of and has educated players. You can be the squarest of the squares and stumble upon Pinnacle's dynamics for a crash course in playing line moves.

These days we see a lot of players more familiar with the stock market than they are with sports betting. They don't know much about betting etiquette and it can cause some conflict.