why dont exchanges offer no vig lines?

[SportsMushroom]

am I missing something?

why do I see -103/-107 lines at exchanges instead of +100/-100 or -105/+105

traditional bookmakers incorporate the vigorish or juice into their line because its their take or commission for taking the bet


in the case of exchanges though, vig does not make sense, that is not were the exchange makes its money from but from the commission they charge on the winning player

if anything, they are taking money out of their own pocket because the winner earns less, and pays less commission

also they are driving players away, paying both vig+commission makes it cheaper to bet at places like pinnacle

[UntilTheNDofTimE]

interesting point

[SportsMushroom]

I knew I was missing something

kinda makes sense, but it wouldnt be that simple, even though the line would be no vig you'd still have to pay commission if you win

in the current format vig+commission makes them more expensive than advertised

10-12 cent vig +5% commission = like huge juice

you are better off playing at almost every other book

[FourLengthsClear]

The -103 / -107 offers you see are from players not from "the exchange". I am not sure what site/market you are looking at but a spread of that size would indicate poor liquidity and if the exchange were to 'seed' the market there would be a high risk of it having an exposure on one side.

As a player, I would not be happy about an exchange taking such risks - that is not its function.

[and24]

in exchanges players set the lines not the exchange itself.

[bettilimbroke999]

There has to be at least 1 cent difference in the lines or else they would be matched so no vig lines at exchanges are impossible as the opposite side would just match the bet

[FourLengthsClear]

There has to be at least 1 cent difference in the lines or else they would be matched so no vig lines at exchanges are impossible as the opposite side would just match the bet

That is true at Matchbook but it is not true at BetFair where most markets are not cross-matched.

[bettilimbroke999]

That is true at Matchbook but it is not true at BetFair where most markets are not cross-matched.

Why would any exchange not match +100/+100 or -105/+105, makes no sense as the whole idea of an exchange is to match bets but I dont play at betfair so who knows

[FourLengthsClear]

Why would any exchange not match +100/+100 or -105/+105, makes no sense as the whole idea of an exchange is to match bets but I dont play at betfair so who knows

I honestly have no idea why they don't do it in all two-way markets. In the past it was said that is was a software issue (bear in mind that most Betfair markets are not simple two-way props) but that 'excuse' no longer holds because cross-matching is applied in some markets now.

[bettilimbroke999]

Yea, I've never understood why betfair is so popular, I mean ya get charged 5% when you win so it turns +100 into -105 and ya got books like pinny where you can get -105 anytime ya want for as much as ya want, hell even 5Dimes lets ppl bet up to 500/game at -105 lines which is a good enough limit for the average bettor

I used to love matchbook bc they were only 2% but 5% **** that's just -105 at best

[FourLengthsClear]

Yea, I've never understood why betfair is so popular, I mean ya get charged 5% when you win so it turns +100 into -105 and ya got books like pinny where you can get -105 anytime ya want for as much as ya want, hell even 5Dimes lets ppl bet up to 500/game at -105 lines which is a good enough limit for the average bettor

I used to love matchbook bc they were only 2% but 5% **** that's just -105 at best

A few reasons.

Commissions start at 5% but fall (based on volume) to as low as 2%. Pinny offer -104 on major markets but is often -107/-108 for sports like tennis. When you get in to the realm of futures or markets with 5 or 6 'runners' the overrounds get progressively higher.

In-play options are very good.

For US Sports, Betfair is not even close to being a top 5 option but for other sports it really is a "must have".