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Parlay Bet
Bet Type: Exotic
In Brief: Parlays let players bet on two or more sporting events in one single bet; or two or more different types of wagers in one single bet.
If you and your buddies like to bet on sports, no doubt one of them has made a parlay bet, picking the winner of 2 or more games at once. The result of a successful parlay bet is a nice windfall of cash, because the odds of picking multiple winners in one wager are long compared to a regular spread or money line bet. The more teams you bet on, the greater the payout. Some sportsbooks offer 12 or 15 team parlays, where a $1 wager can produce winnings in excess of $10,000. Remember, though, that the odds of picking 15 winners is remote.
There are a couple different approaches to betting parlays. We'll detail the most basic ones below.
1. Picking winners in different games - This is the fundamental parlay bet. Suppose it's a Sunday afternoon before NFL action begins. You have a hunch that the New Orleans Saints, Detriot Lions, and Philadelphia Eagles will win their games. You can visit your online sportsbook and select a 3 team parlay, picking each of these teams as winners in their respective matchups. Remember, in some cases you'll have to contend with the spread the sportsbook has on each game. You'll have to beat or cover the spread (depending on which means your pick wins) for each game.
2. Picking winning wagers in one or more different games - If you're an experienced sports bettor, you may already be aware that parlays can also consist of different wagers, opposed to just winners of different matchups as in #1 described above. For example, you could focus your wagering on one football game, betting the over on the total (1st bet of parlay), taking the underdog for the win with the spread (2nd bet of parlay), and also taking the underdog as the winner in a money line wager (3rd bet of parlay). Instead of making 3 separate wagers, you combine all 3 into one parlay bet. If chosen correctly, this mega-wager could potentially payout exponentially more money than if 3 separate bets came in as winners, since you are taking on substantially more risk with a parlay bet. Don't forget, you can also mix wagers across mutliple games and any other form of betting (futures, props, etc.) that your sportsbook allows you to combine into a parlay.
Can I really win a parlay bet? In general, most professioal sports bettors steer clear of parlay betting because it can amount to a sucker's bet unless you really have a good feel for the matchups you're betting on. Think about it: the odds of picking 10 winners or 10 winning wagers is remote. Sure, you could make thousands of dollars if the bet wins; but it's more than likely you'll lose.
Reserve parlays as "fun" bets if you have a few extra dollars in your player's account and want to try something different. In the long run, regular parlay bets will chew through your bankroll faster than throwing your money in a fire.
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