BONUS ARCHIVE!!! Originally posted in March 2021
Sports betting sites are inundating consumers with sign-up incentives as legalized sports betting spreads across the country. With so many options, which bookie should you choose?
The answer is…ALL OF THEM!!!!
There are 3 main reasons to sign up at several sports books.
Take the Best Sign-Up Bonuses
The first reason is obvious. Every sports book is currently offering sign-up bonuses and initial deposit incentives. Take that money while they are still giving it away.
The best new player bonuses are based on the size of the initial deposit or size of an initial wager. DraftKings is currently offering 64-1 odds for new players when they sign up and bet $4 on any NCAA underdog. They are also offering a risk free bet up to $1,000. Don’t get too excited about this free $1,000 until you read the fine print. You need to deposit $5,000 and give $25,000 in action over the first 90 days before you get it. Here is the actual verbiage from DraftKing’s website:
”A user’s first deposit (min. $5) qualifies the user to receive up to $1,000 in bonus funds in the form of site credits that can only be used on DraftKings. Bonus amount is equal to 20% of that deposit amount, not to exceed $1,000 (the user must deposit $5,000 to be eligible to receive the maximum possible bonus amount of $1,000). Bonus funds will be awarded to the user according to the following play-through requirement: for every $25 played on DraftKings in DFS/Sportsbook/Casino, the user will receive $1 in bonus funds released into their player account (e.g., a $5,000 deposit requires a user to play through a cumulative total of $25,000 in daily fantasy contests, sportsbook (-300 odds or longer), casino products, or any combination thereof to receive the maximum possible bonus amount of $1,000). The play-through requirement must be met 90 days from the date of first deposit to receive maximum bonus. After such date, you are ineligible to earn any additional bonus funds as part of this promotion. Customers who previously made a deposit on DraftKings are ineligible for this promotion. Limit one (1) deposit bonus per user. Promo ends 5/2/21.”
The free $1,000 doesn’t seem so free anymore.
It Pays to Shop Around
The second reason to have multiple sports betting accounts is for odds-shopping. Getting the best odds available is always a good thing. There are several sites like http://oddschecker.com and oddsportal.com that compare current point spreads and odds at multiple bookie sites. Odds are constantly changing so having your accounts at the ready is necessary for quickly capitalizing on odds discrepancies.
If you only have a FanDuel account, you are at the mercy of the FanDuel point spreads. If you also have an account at DraftKings, BetRivers, PointsBet, etc., you can always play the best odds.
Playing the “Middle”
The third reason to have multiple accounts is a result of bookies offering different point spreads. When different bookies offer spreads that are wide enough, this allows you to “middle” a game. “Middling” a game creates the opportunity to win both sides of the same game with minimal risk.
For instance, find a game where one bookie lists a team as a -2.5 point favorite while other sites have that same team as a favorite but by -3.5. Take the 3.5 points for $1,000, then lay the 2.5 for an offsetting $1,000 at another bookie. If the game ends with the favorite winning by exactly 3 points, you win both!
“Middling” is a great strategy as it creates the potential for a 20-1 payout. Using this example with a normal 10% juice on the losing bet you are still assured of winning one side of the bet. Worst case, If the game does not end in the “middle”, you pay off the losing side, plus the 10% juice, but collect the winning side. In our $1,000 bets example, you win $1,000 and lose $1,100 for a net loss of $100.
If the game does “middle” and you win both, you have risked $100 (the juice on the loss) to win $2,000, for win odds of 20-1.
The business of sports betting is ultra-competitive. With new providers entering the growing U.S. market seemingly every day, the race to sign up new customers is cutthroat. Gamblers need to take advantage of this competition while they can. The crazy incentives and guarantees won’t last forever.
