#Next-level betting concepts worth knowing

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Capitals fan and season ticket holder David Feldman (l.) and Wizards fan and season ticket holder David Dwornik are among the first to place bets as William Hill US opens its sports book.
AP

In order to be a successful sports bettor you need to know how the game is played. Most casual bettors have a pretty good grasp on the basic fundamentals like the spread, moneyline and total. But there is so much more to learn beyond these introductory terms.

Let’s discuss three “Sports Betting 201” concepts that all bettors should be aware of so they can take their game to the next level.

Middling: If you’ve hung around enough sports bettors you’re bound to hear one say, “I have a juicy middle on this game.” This is when you place opposing bets on both sides of the same game, creating a “middle” opportunity where you can cash both bets if the final score lands in the middle.

To put this in perspective, let’s say the Patriots open as 6-point favorites against the Jets. You immediately bet Patriots -6. Then the line moves to Patriots -8. At that point, you also bet Jets 8. You have created a middle so that if the Patriots win by 7-points, you cash both bets.

You can’t middle every single game. You have to look for big line moves where you can bet the low point and high point of both sides. Sharps love middling because it’s a low-risk, high-reward endeavor. You are guaranteed to win at least one of your bets, in which case you only lose the juice. But if you hit the middle, you go 2-0 and double your profits.

Hedging: Shakespeare once said, “To hedge or let it ride, that is the question.” Or maybe it was Jimmy the Greek.

Hedging is when you place a second bet that is opposite of your first bet in order to guarantee a profit. For example, let’s say you placed a futures bet on the Seahawks to win the Super Bowl at 15/1 and Seattle advances to play the Ravens. You could “let it ride” and hope Seattle wins. Or you could place a second bet on Baltimore to win the game, thereby guaranteeing a profit no matter what happens.

Whether to hedge or not is an eternal conundrum for sports bettors and depends on your personal preference and risk level.

Arbitrage: Also known as “scalping,” this is when you can guarantee yourself a profit by shopping lines, comparing odds at different sportsbooks and looking for market inefficiencies where both sides of a bet offer plus-money payouts. It involves zero risk and a guaranteed reward.

You often see arbitrage opportunities betting player props. Say you want to bet Jacob deGrom’s strikeout total. Every book has the Over/Under at 7.5 strikeouts. However, one book has Over 7.5 at 105 while another has Under 7.5 at 110. By placing both bets at different books, you guarantee a win of either 0.05 units or 0.10 units.

You won’t get rich overnight betting “arb” opportunities. And it takes time and effort to cross-references odds at multiple books. However, it can be a slow and steady bankroll builder that pads your winnings over time.