Online Sportsbooks Discussion Thread (Which Are Best? Who offers X? etc. Discuss Here)

[PropPlayer]

Which Online Sportsbooks are Best? This question is commented on in the Sports Betting FAQ. There are tons of related questions that actually do potentially have a right answer, or closer to a right answer, or even just a more helpful answer. It seems like a good idea to have a thread to ask questions such as:

Hey does anyone know a book that offers live betting on...?
Is BookA/BookB or BookA/BookC a better two book combination for NFL?
Hey which sportsbooks accept (insert method)?
Are there any books with a $10 minimum deposit?

The list of potential simple questions goes on and on - phone limits, margins, overnight lines are just some of many additional examples. If you have a "which sportsbook" question here is a place to ask. If you're savvy or know a bit on sportsbooks this is also a good place to throw a bone helping out with simple answers.

[Romosexual]

I currently use 5dimes. And even though the site has been down/laggy I have had no problems with them since I joined.(Have yet to try to cash out). I started with only $100 for fun and have ran it to right at 2k. I was thinking of possibly splitting this between another book. Bookmaker is looking like my choice at the moment. Is this a decent book to joined combined with 5dimes? Probably not the right spot to post this but didn't really feel like starting a new thread. So any insight into bookmaker would be appreciated.

[PropPlayer]

Edit: BetIslands should be avoided. Will leave original response in tact below.

This depends on what you're interested in. Bookmaker you'll find a limited number of unique positions for basketball and football both college and pro. They also have a decent live in-play betting. They have props just before game time too. However they are full juice.

I question at bankroll you're talking when just using two books if 5Dimes/Bovada might be a better combo. Bovada has some decent props, and has off market prices more often, and some okay spots on teasers too.

The other option would be bonus whoring for a bit if you've never done so in the past. Can work sites like Justbet and YouWager for bonuses both which are fine and pay. Then the lower tier books like 1VICE, WagerWeb, SBGGlobal, have to be really careful with but likely won't have a problem or too many slow pays with the limits your talking (is mostly APs that run into problems with say WagerWeb, and we're talking for higher amounts). Is worth a shot bonus whoring but not running up large balances with those type of books.

This response assumes you're in the US. Eventually when bankroll is enough that splitting between several sites is easier I'd keep 5Dimes/Bovada and at least a bet or two in Bookmaker. I'd probably also mix in Heritage and BetIslands (be a little more careful with BI imo, they are not well proven yet and I think are like a 5 employee sportsbook but not sure) when can expand to 5 sites, and then with the others just do some bonuses when getting offers.

If mostly a recreational player then 5Dimes/Bovada probably serves you well. Only bet at Bovada when the price is better than 5Dimes. A recreational player probably doesn't lose much not having bookmaker. Even starting out that's probably a good combo. Also there other options I didn't mention here. In fact I might even do Legends before Bookmaker because Legends has a bigger bonus. They are a full-vig book too, but at least a bonus and better 2-team teaser odds (though pretty much negated due to their shades).

If you're outside the US ignore all this advice and tell me sports you bet and preference and I'll give you much different advice.

[Romosexual]

I'm in the US. Thanks for the detailed reply. I will definitely check out bovada. From what you said having just those 2 books for the time being would seem to fit me well.

EDIT: Also I would not be depositing, I would try to transfer from 5dimes to another book. Would that still qualify me for any bonus's?

[PropPlayer]

Can't transfer from 5Dimes to Bovada, but can 5Dimes to Bookmaker. No in almost all cases no bonuses are earned on transfers. If you have the excess and are managing roll well, cash out with cheapest method, then redeposit with P2P (WU/MG - cash to supermarket) the sites pick up the fee on deposits over a certain amount - $300 at most sites - some are lower, this way also get the bonus and not passing up on free money.

[ilovepeavy]

Outside US here. I've only used Pinny and its been great, but was wondering if there are any better options for livebetting? Mainly for american football, basketball and tennis

[PropPlayer]

Betfair is decent for American football up to certain limits, is only okay for basketball and is GREAT for in-play tennis. This is done on their exchange, not sports book, so is peer to peer betting but not hard to figure out if you haven't used them.

Commission starts at 5% of net market win and goes down in time. There is a discount rate that is based on Betfair points, points are earned when paying commission - doesn't take long to start getting some discount.

The benefit to this with live betting on their exchange is say you find a +EV bet in-play at Player A. Then later in the match you feel the odds have moved to where Player B is +EV. You can bet using money already tied up in your Player A bet (because is exchange and that's available to you, when betting opposite side).

Also there's no vig involved in betting both as your bets are all made before vig. You only pay commission at the end on "net market win". They also have a cash out button if you just want to sell the equity you have remaining in that bet (sometimes cutting losses, sometimes locking in a win).

The reason I say great for tennis is that tennis has a lot of momentum changes and market overreaction. Trading back and forth during a tennis match can be a good way to bet and betfair has a ton of liquidity on tennis matches.

For smaller limits the above does apply to American football. There's just times where there might only be $300 to $2000 available to be matched on a certain football side. If you hold a larger position and want to sell off of it then is on occasion tougher to do quickly at the best odds. For tennis you are essentially trading vig free as tons of liquidity and just a tiny gap between back and lay prices.

Beside Betfair, decent for all sports you mentioned is Bet365. They have a great in-play betting menu, however lot of 30 cent lines. Still they have so many options with alternative handicaps, next score, next point, and I mean the list goes on and on can often enough find great bets using their many in-play derivatives.

Additionally for tennis most of the Asian bookies are decent. ******, 1***** are reputable and often have decent in-play tennis odds.

[ubiquitous]

Originally Posted by Romosexual

I'm in the US. Thanks for the detailed reply. I will definitely check out bovada. From what you said having just those 2 books for the time being would seem to fit me well.

EDIT: Also I would not be depositing, I would try to transfer from 5dimes to another book. Would that still qualify me for any bonus's?

Just don't deposit via credit card. I was told by 5d that cc depositors aren't allowed to transfer to other books.

[PropPlayer]

For any newbs, here's a lesson on why not to just click first banner you see and join a sportsbook

[TaylorSeriesExpans]

I'm a very recreational better on nba, I mainly focus on props on bodog and have an account at matchbook. ($1000 bankroll lol)

Any specific books you recommend I should join? Pinnacle? Is betfair any good for NBA? I tried depositing on 5dimes but they don't allow first deposits through instadebit and I don't want to deposit via CC though they seem like the next best book.

Any advice is appreciated.

[PropPlayer]

You mention Bodog + Instadebit so I'll guess you're Canadian. Your options for using that method and keeping an account in CAD also include Bet365, Pinnacle, BetCRIS, TheGreek, Intertops and Ladbrokes. Won't help for props but if doing other NBA betting the odds (point spreads, totals, moneylines) for each book are covered on oddsportal.com which is a free line service. You do need to register and log in to see lines for some of these (always log in when viewing lines) but creating an account is free and simple.

If you're betting more than just props for NBA you'll for sure want to have more than Bodog. Pinnacle is a near must to look at their lines versus other books. William Hill has a fair number of slow moving lines and at your bankroll size won't care about you betting the stale ones, so this is a good other book to check.

Really because isn't too much trouble moving money around with the books mentioned due to Instadebit then shopping all of these using a free odds feed is a good idea. There's also bonuses and risk free bets to be had. Ladbrokes you'll find an occasional good line and your first bet gets a refund or rebate if it loses. So working this is a good idea.

TheGreek is another site to look at for player props.

With TheGreek and BetCRIS check on the fee. The others I mentioned I believe you can cash out without fee, these two check and look into the fee as they might change the value of their use.

At your level Betfair does have use for NBA especially for live betting. Also depending what you're doing with props you might find some value with Bet365, they often enough have some strange odds on the small derivatives.

[TaylorSeriesExpans]

Thank you very much for the detailed response. Your FAQ was also invaluable to someone brand new to the world of sports betting.

My bankroll can be much larger but since I don't know what I am doing I elected to start small, getting bonuses might be the best idea so far. A couple of things, and I apologize if the question seems elementary.

If pinnacle lines are the sharpest, is it a good idea for a recreational player like me to bet there? Could I simply take Pinnys no vig line and bet at slower books?

Since 1k bankroll is so small, is it good idea to split it among many books and keep betting 1U (1%) or $10? Should I back out my balance at matchbook and maintain CAD in the books you suggested?

Thanks again PropPlayer!

[PropPlayer]

example 3 in this article you could use that for staking, and using Pinnacle's no-vig on main markets you'll be close enough. That staking might be too aggressive but you also mention "My bankroll can be much larger but since I don't know what I am doing I elected to start small" so really depends how aggressive you want to be. Just starting with flat betting is fine. Or a modified version where you cut it down some on small edges and increase it some on larger ones. Just ball parking it. This comes down to your preferences.

Starting out a good goal would be continuous focus finding on additional ways to find +EV bets probably initially basing on market prices. One example bet365 it is possible to get lower juice using parlays on certain sports, can check their promo page for details. Also on some occasions there are basketball teaser bets that have value at other sites. With prop betting the odds and spreads often vary even more site to site. So figuring out all these intricacies of each site. At your bankroll size bonuses are also a considerable factor. If have an edge every dollar counts, it compounds in time. Might want to use a USD bank account and USD skrill account and keep some of your roll recycling with that, but keep CAD and use instadebit where possible. All this said using as many sites as possible is ideal. Moving money around is easy enough.

Note: Bet365 offers 100% up to $200 CAD cash bonus with just 3x rollover - this is cash not free play. Last I checked could also get better odds using parlays. They have many other offers at random, mostly on major soccer matches. That's for sure a must have account when can do the max bonus is even more ideal.

So yeah in theory if all you're just betting elsewhere off Pinnacle prices there is not much reason to also fund Pinnacle. Obvious if for some reason you're betting somewhere at a worse price than Pinnacle is offering you should fund them.

[loren646]

Where can a US person bet on a college football game. I need to bet a team to LOSE a specific game or lose out the chance of making the Bowl.

[PropPlayer]

Check FAQ sticky - note: All US sportsbooks offer college football betting

[PropPlayer]

This one is thread worthy imo because it is scary and players who have been using BetOnline for a while deserve a heads up. There are complaints popping up recently that they are trying to enforce old rollover.

Example: Deposit $1000 get $250 FP, Rollover is 1250*6=$7500. Let's say you bust after reaching only $2,000 in rollover. At most online sportsbooks that's it, the end, done. If you deposit again and get another bonus it is a new rollover; there is no $5500 caryover from old bonus, because you had busted account from that bonus.

The complaints recently are BetOnline is stacking old rollover. So someone thinking they had $7500 rollover that they just completed might request a payout and then be told it's declined they have $123,584 worth of rollover to meet. wtf why? Old rollover carrying over from several previous times when they busted.

It's not clear yet if this is customer service mistake, new policy, or something selectively enforced but is several recent mentions of this in threads elsewhere. Those who have been around a while might recall in 2005 a book that had previously given 20% on every deposit, then reduced to 10%, retroactively enforced this against select players with large balances unfairly and no one helped resolve it. Not sure what the case is here with BetOnline or if they'll work it out but this is a heads up to be careful.

Also there are many complaints about waiting weeks for e-wallet cashouts and indication only WU/MG withdrawals are coming timely.

[wiper]

...

[ERGOPHOBIA]

Best sportsbook to bet Soccer? and their Asian Lines? I know a lot of them offer all of the lines but mainly I am looking for the lowest juice.

Also, I want to put a large sum (for me) on Pinnacle but after Black friday I am leery with their current legal distractions.

I can deal with another Pstars situation where they were back up and running the next dayish and payouts were available. I can not deal with another FTP debacle. I think clearly Pinnacle is much more like Stars than FTP.

[GoDeViLs]

I dislike Bovada because they have $ lines on about 20% of total ncaa football and bball games. Also they release $ lines 30 min before games sometimes. How can you be scared with 20-40c lines?

[PropPlayer]

Originally Posted by ERGOPHOBIA

Best sportsbook to bet Soccer? and their Asian Lines? I know a lot of them offer all of the lines but mainly I am looking for the lowest juice.

****** is to Soccer what Pinnacle is to American sports. For low margin Asian handicap ******, Pinnacle, 1***** are top 3. Bet365 is competitive for the Asian handicap in many leagues and the odds sometimes differ.

Many other bookies have similar odds. The limits are smaller but bonuses and promotions are the tradeoff. Dafabet, 12bet, M88, Fun88, 360BOL etc.

Or you can go through an agent. Asian connect is post up but can get access to pinnacle, sbo, ibc, smartbet and eastern dynasty from same deposit.

Originally Posted by ERGOPHOBIA

Also, I want to put a large sum (for me) on Pinnacle but after Black friday I am leery with their current legal distractions.

EntroPay, Webmoney, Neteller, Skrill they pay out in under 30 minutes to all those methods. I think they're very likely fine to use, but can mix in all those other books mentioned too. Pinnacle only has the best price when using all the Asian sites a percentage of the time. Wouldn't cost too much to skip them, but don't think is a problem either and what it does cost compounds. If over cautious just use later in the month and take free withdrawals on the first.

[ERGOPHOBIA]

So the large number of pinnacle employees being arrested should not result in a black Friday type seizure of funds?

[ERGOPHOBIA]

Also thank you propplayer, you are more than helpful to us newbs

[PropPlayer]

There are many books that make me nervous. If I had a list, Pinnacle is on it or closer to being on it but is very low on that list if so. Obviously need to be smart with all these sites and not use any of them as a place excess money collects its mold, but still they are very likely still fine to use. Using an e-wallet is plenty of other books to mix in so don't have all the money with them.

[Derek123]

I made a bet with BetOnline

Wager Status: Cancelled
Risk: $115.00 (USD)
To Win Amount: $104.55 (USD)
Description: NCAAFB Props - Iowa @ Michigan - Total Receptions by K.Davis - Under 4½ Receptions -110

He played in the game but did not have any catches and wasnt listed in the boxscore. I got on livechat but they did not reverse it despite me sending two articles and a video. Ive never had this problem before - what more can I do?

Here is the exchange:

Arthur Forbes: Thanks. Can you explain the error?

Derek: Keenan Davis played. he just did not have any catches.

Derek: http://www.kcrg.com/sports/local/Gra...179822611.html

Derek: halfway down that link it shows he did play

Arthur Forbes: I'm sorry for the delay. I'll be right with you...

Arthur Forbes: Kindly please hold on for a moment while I review the account for you, your patience is highly appreciated.

Arthur Forbes: This wager is under review at this moment, and it will take some time for a final resolution. We appreciate your patience.

Arthur Forbes: We have Carl Davis and Keenan Davis on the same team. Keenan Davis never played at all, that means the wager is considered a no action.

Arthur Forbes: Sorry about that.

Derek: that article says Keenan Davis did play and started

Derek: I can find other articles that also show keenan davis played

Arthur Forbes: That's a mistake. Keenan Davis never played at all.

Arthur Forbes: Is there anything else I can assist you with at this time?

Derek: http://thegazette.com/2012/11/17/iow...michigans-way/

Derek: this article also talks about him playing

Arthur Forbes: There's a mistake on that article. Keenan Davis never played.

Derek: he is #6 for Iowa. 9 seconds into this video it shows him trying to make a block.

Derek: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFvUEkNd_sw

Arthur Forbes: Keenan Davis never played. Sorry about that.

Arthur Forbes: Anything else besides this?

[HolidayInTheSun]

lol

file an sbr complaint they work okay with bol if it's a simple issue like this one