Propositional Bets Articles | Gambling

By: Richard Bleuze

Propositional (prop) bets are those bets that are offered by the sports books as an extra.   They usually deal with a player’s or a team’s specific line (such as how many point will a certain  player  score).   Prop bets are a great way for a sports book to make more money, since most prop bets have unequal juices associated with them.  

The odd wagers that don't have to do with the game's outcome are called propositional bets. They make up about 5 percent of all the money coming into the sports books of MGM Grand. Like the point spread, the line for each changes often.

• Who will score first?

• Who will score last?

• Who will punt first?

 • Will the game ever be tied after 0-0?

During the Super Bowl, the casino's sports books try to entice gamblers to make prop bets.   The Super Bowl is perhaps the biggest time for most sports books, and as such, they want as many people betting, than not.   Many of the sports books have all kinds of crazy bets for the Super Bowl.   One of the most funniest bets is will the coin flip be heads or tails.   This is a virtual 50/50 shot and should not really be bet upon, unless one side shows positive commission.   Another interesting bet during the Super Bowl is actually a correlated question, “Will the team who scores first, win the game?”   Mostly, in Super Bowl history, teams who score first win the game about 90% of the time.   As such, this prop question is highly bet upon and easily recognizable by the general public.

Why do sports bettors make propostion bets?
Because they are fun!   The odds of winning a high percentage of these is more random than being a good sports bettor.   However, it adds another dimension to the game for the recreational sports bettor.

One, however, can be successful with prop betting, if one knows what they are doing.  I suggests that you  take the under on most player props (usually at positive money).  This is due to the fact that injuries, blowouts, and saving energy for the next game can all take place, all at the whim of the head coach. Therefore it is safer to bet the under than to hope for a close game and cheer on the over.
In closing, propositional bets (prop bets) are those that are offered extra by the sport books.   Do not bet too heavy on such bets, for they have horrible juice slapped onto them.