Las Vegas Parley

A parlay bet is a popular form of sports wagering most gamblers are familiar with. In case you’re not, this bet is rather easy to understand. A parlay is simply a combo bet where, rather than betting several teams individually, you group them into a single wager. Using this option, the payout is greater and the risk is less, but you need all teams selected to win.

Answer 1 of 10: I'm a sucker for parlays but i don't think Ive ever hit one for than a couple hundred. Since im going to Vegas soon for the UFC and superbowl id like to hear some stories of some winners. The following is an example of a traditional Las Vegas Parlay Card at William Hill Sports Book, which shows the typical payouts for an up to 10 team parlay bet based on -1.10 prices (amount won is assuming $100 is bet): Profitability of parlays in sports betting Many gamblers have mixed feelings as to whether or not parlays are a wise play. Enter the amount of your wager in the box next to Bet Amount, and click on 'Calculate Parlay'. The amount of a winning parlay wager will appear in the box next to Parlay Payout. Most NFL, NBA and NCAA College games are at -110. Super Bowl Odds & Props.

To give an example, say you’re interested this week in betting Jets -4, Patriots +3, Dolphins +2.5 and Colts -7. If your bankroll is limited to just $100, using straight wagers you’d make four separate bets of $25 to win $22.73. If you we’re feeling both lucky and in the mood to gamble, you might instead bet them all together as a four team parlay. Under the parlay option, the stakes would be $100 to win at least $1,000. To win, you’ll need to go 4-0; if one or more games push while all others win, the payout is reduced, and with any other outcome, the bet is a loss.

What happens if there’s a push in a parlay? That bet will be taken out of the parlay and the payout will be reduced as if there were one fewer team in the parlay. So if you had a 4 team parlay and you got three picks cocrrect and the other was a push, you would be paid out the odds of a 3 team parlay.

Parlay bets can be very tempting as they can offer some big payouts. See a recent parlay Kevin made at 5Dimes.eu and cashed in on!

Are Parlays Sucker Bets?

There is a general misconception in sports betting that all parlays are sucker bets. This is simply because most sports bettors are not familiar with how they work, or how to bet them properly. In this article, I’ll address parlay betting strategies, but first let’s look at parlay odds and how they are calculated.

The parlay odds at most Las Vegas sportsbooks are:

2 teams 2.6 to 1
3 teams 6-1
4 teams 10-1
5 teams 20-1
6 teams 40-1
7 teams 80-1
8 teams 150-1

Online the odds are similar, though some sites such as BetNow and MyBookie offer better odds starting with three teams and up. What’s important to note is that these are fixed odds based on a 50/50 wagering proposition. If a spread is listed at Home Team -7 / Road Team +7 this is 50/50 proposition. If, instead, the spread was Home Team -7 -105 / Road Team +7 -115, this is no longer a 50/50 proposition, and the payout will be calculated using a method bookmakers refer to as “true odds”. I’ll cover that later in this article, but first let’s take a moment to understand where fixed parlay odds are derived from.

Let’s say you decide for the next eight weeks you’re going to bet the Monday night football game, starting with a $1.00 bankroll and betting your entire bankroll each week until you go 8-0 or bust. The potential win is as follows:

Las Vegas Parlay Odds Sportsbook

Week 1: $1.00 to win $0.91: If win total profit = $0.91 (Bankroll =$1.91)
Week 2: $1.91 to win $1.74: If win total profit = $2.65 (Bankroll =$3.65)
Week 3: $3.65 to win $3.32: If win total profit = $5.97 (Bankroll =$6.97)
Week 4: $6.97 to win $6.34: If win total profit = $12.31 (Bankroll =$13.31)
Week 5: $13.31 to win $12.10: If win total profit = $24.41 (Bankroll =$25.41)
Week 6: $25.41 to win $23.10: If win total profit = $46.51 (Bankroll =$47.51)
Week 7: $47.51 to win $43.19: If win total profit = $89.70 (Bankroll =$90.70)
Week 8: $90.70 to win $82.45: If win total profit = $172.15 (Bankroll =$173.15)

The reason parlays are often sucker bets shows up in this middle column. Had you bet these in an 8 team parlay, you’d only get paid 150 to one. Essentially, a parlay is no different than betting all in each time, only parlays generally pay much worse. However, you’ll notice the odds are not poor until you get to four teams, where the sportsbook has a whopping 31.25% advantage. Two teams pay a smidgen worse than the manual parlay (all in each time) option, where three team parlays pay a smidgen better. Rarely ever is a 2 or 3 team parlay a true suckers bet.

What Does a Parlay Pay?

As I mentioned earlier, fixed parlay odds vary greatly between online sportsbooks. Here is some info on which sites offer the best fixed parlay odds:

In general two team parlays pay +260, or $260 for every $100 bet. BetNow offers +264.5, and 5Dimes.eu offers +264, which is better than the +260 most betting sites offer.

3 team parlays pay 6/1 or $600 for every $100 bet. BetOnline.ag is the leader in the industry in 3 team parlay payouts.

This is the area where betting sites generally hurt the sports bettor, paying only 10 to 1, which gives them a 31.25% advantage. This can be avoided when betting at BetNow where the payout is +1228.3, or at 5Dimes where it is +1228.

Generally speaking, parlaying 5 teams or more teams is not a good idea; however, for sports gamblers looking for a lotto ticket, 5dimes.eu and Bookmaker.eu each offer up to 15 team parlays and have by far the best odds in the business on these.

How much does a 15 team parlay pay? A 15 team parlay will pay out over +16,000. I just tested this out and a $1 15 team NFL parlay at -110 odds will payout $16,306. Good luck hitting on that!

True Odds Parlays

1 Earlier, I mentioned fixed odds are only given when all selections are 50/50 propositions. If one side of a line requires a greater stake than the other to yield the same payout, this is not a 50/50 proposition, and the bookmaker will now use “true odds”. What’s important to note is that true odds doesn’t actually mean the “true odds” of winning. Rather, true odds pays the same as if you bet each team individually and rolled the profit forward each time, which is what I showed in the example of 8 all in bets starting with a $1.00 stake.

To calculate true odd parlays, each bet first needs to be converted into a multiplier. To do this, take what a winning ticket would return and divide it by the amount risked. For example, at -110 a $110 stake returns $210 ($110 stake + $100 win). Calculating the multiplier as return/risk here, we plug in 210/110, which means the multiplier is 1.91. If we did the same on -115, the multiplier is 215/115=1.87.

Las Vegas Parlay Sheets

Let’s say you’re in the mood to gamble on an 8 team parlay, but the only out available to you is a bookmaker paying 150-1 fixed odds. A trick of the trade here is to include one bet that is priced differently than -110 in order to force the bookmaker to use true odds. So, let’s say you make 7 selections priced at the standard -110 pricing and one at -115. A true parlay calculates by multiplying each modifier together. The math is 1.91 * 1.91 * 1.91 * 1.91 * 1.91 * 1.91 * 1.91 * 1.87, which equals 173.41. This bet returns 173.41 times the stake, which includes the risk amount, so the bet is 1 to win 172.41. Notice this is significantly better than the fixed odds payout of 1 to win 150 on an 8 team parlay. In short, the trick of the trade when dealing with poor fixed odds is to simply add one team to the parlay that is priced differently than the standard -110.

As you can now see, if you know how to bet parlays properly, they are not always sucker bets. There are, however, a few reasons that parlays are generally not a good move. I’ll cover these, and then cover the times it does make sense.

Top Reasons to Avoid Parlays

1) Progressive betting systems are generally regarded as poor strategy for both bankroll management and bankroll growth. Professional bettors make wagers based on their quantified edge per game. While the math can work out, doing the math for proper bet sizing on a parlay is a lot of added work with little to no upside for most sports bettors.

2) Parlay bets have higher variance than straight bets. Here you’re getting the same odds, but your chance of hitting a dry spell is greatly increased. When the odds are the same it is most often better to go with the lower variance option, which in this case is straight wagers.

3) Line Shopping – Sports bettors maximize their profit by always shopping for the best price. For example, finding -4 when other sites are -4.5, and finding reduced vig options such as -104 instead of -110. When betting parlays, you’ll need to find the most favorable odds for each team at a single betting site. This scenario is rare, so generally you’ll end up with better odds by making straight wagers at multiple betting sites.

Parlays That Make the Most Sense:

Reduced Juice – BetOnline.ag offers 6.5 to one on three team parlays. This comes out better than betting sides at the -105 price standard reduced juice sports books offer. In sports such as NFL football where 50/50 wagering propositions are common, a sports bettor gets far superior odds by betting 3 team parlays at BetOnline.

Correlated Parlays – If a bookmaker was offering betting lines on both “will it be cloudy today?” and “will it rain today?”, if allowed, you’d be much better off betting either both as no, or both as yes, in a parlay bet as opposed to straight wagers. While this is a simplified example, there are plenty of times when outcomes are correlated in sports betting. For example, a handicapper might determine that if one team covers the spread, the game is more likely to go over or under the posted total. Also, during the final week of the NFL season, a certain team winning or losing the day game might result in a previously important night game now having no meaning in the playoff race.

Free Play Bonuses – Several online betting sites, for example BetNow, offer players free bets based on the size of their initial deposit. Free play bonuses are not the same as cash. The difference is that a bet made with cash returns both stake and win, where a bet made with a free play returns only win. Parlays allow you the chance to use the same free play more than once, because a parlay really is only a wager that continues to place stake+win on the next selection. Remember, fixed odd three team parlays pay a little better than true odds. So when using free plays to bet 3 team parlays, you’re getting slightly better odds, and also a chance to apply that free play stake to three different bets. This is common knowledge that 3 team parlays are a great use of free play bonuses.

Circumventing Betting Limits – I’ll warn you upfront that betting sites do not take kindly to this, and it might get you banned. The basic idea here is, say you find a parlay with monster value in a small market with low betting limits. Let’s say a woman’s field hockey line opens at +150 when it should be +100. Here making ten unique two-team parlays, using the +150 bet with a random -110 each time might be advantageous, as on average you’ll get down 5 times the max bet. At -110 juice the expected ROI is less, but to get the maximum amount down on line of significant value, it might make sense. While personally I rarely use this strategy online, I do attempt to get away with it in Las Vegas from time to time. This takes a little bit of acting, such as starting to walk away from the cage and then saying wait, also give me… Know this: It is a trick of the trade advantage players use that is not for novice bettors.

This concludes our article on parlay betting. As a final tip: if you enjoy using parlays as a lottery ticket, www.Bovada.lv runs a $10,000 weekly parlay jackpot during football season, which is an added bonus on top of what a $5 stake pays on a 10 team parlay win. To learn more, see the promo section at www.Bovada.lv. If nothing else, this article gives you some great conversation material next time someone in the sports bar says, parlays are for suckers. Hopefully, it ends up being much more than that, adding extra winnings to your bankroll. Either way, we wish you the best of luck.

Other Advanced Sports Betting Strategy Articles:
» Teaser Betting Strategy
» Prop Betting Strategy
» How To Get Max Value When Betting

ParlayRules.com, an information portal on parlay betting, welcomes anybody and everybody interested in parlay betting, even those who just want to understand the basics of it. We are a team of betting experts aiming to provide the best parlay betting advice to beginners as well as seasoned bettors interested in making profits out of parlay bets. Visitors will find that Parlayrules.com to be a storehouse of invaluable parlay information, including parlay rules, betting strategies, and reviews of online sportsbooks offering parlay bets.

Our goal is to create a one-stop shop for bettors interested in parlays, and accordingly, this website has everything that bettors need to know about parlay betting, right from the basics to the advanced parlay betting strategies. We not only teach bettors how to make money from placing parlay bets, but also provide a list of reputed online sportsbooks offering the best parlay betting opportunities.

A parlay is a popular variety of sports bet offered at online sportsbooks, giving bettors the opportunity to win big money from one small bet. A parlay can be defined as a combination of several straight bets rolled into one; however, players are required to win all the bets in a parlay in order to get a payout. If they lose even one of the bets in the parlay, they will lose the entire parlay bet.

The payouts that can be won depend hugely on the type of parlay placed. In case of parlay bets involving point spreads, the payouts are fixed; but in case of parlay bets involving money lines, the payouts are calculated on the basis of individual team odds.

As previously mentioned, online sportsbooks offer different types of parlays. While some of them require players to place pre-existing parlay bets, some offer parlays with fixed odds, and a few offer parlays comprising bets on several types of sports.

Pre-existing Parlays: Some online sports betting sites offer a list of around five to eight sports events and bettors are required to choose from this list. In case of such parlays, bettors cannot select their own games at random and the payouts are usually fixed.

Las Vegas Odds Parlay Calculator

True Parlays: Casinos offering true parlays allow bettors to choose from a wide range of sports events. Bettors can place a parlay bet comprising bets placed on any sport, such as tennis, football, golf, soccer, and others. What’s more, the parlay bet can combine money lines as well as point spreads. The online sportsbook will simply not hinder bettors from putting together their own parlay, based on their knowledge and instinct.

Fixed Odds Parlay: Most online sportsbooks offer this type of parlay, modified slightly in different ways. Online sportsbooks challenge bettors to create their own parlays from an existing list of matches, which are scheduled to take place on the same day, or events that are scheduled to form part of a tournament. Bettors are free to place parlays comprising a minimum of two to a maximum of 10 bets on these events. Each sports event is associated with point spreads, and some sportsbooks even permit bettors to purchase or sell points to maximize their chances of winning.

Betting experts usually advice novices to avoid parlay bets and stick to straight bets. Correctly predicting the outcomes of one match is difficult enough, and predicting the outcomes of several matches simultaneously is a bit too risky. At the same time, it is worth noting that bettors who do their research well and know exactly what they are doing can make a fortune out of parlay bets. Beginners are advised to thoroughly understand various strategies related to parlay bets before attempting to try them out.

Best Las Vegas Parlay Odds

Parlay odds vary from one online sportsbook to the other; but sportsbooks usually pay around 2.5 - 1 for two-team parlays and around 6 – 1 for a three-team parlays.

There are two varieties of parlay odds—computed and fixed. Fixed odds, as the name suggests, are fixed by online sportsbooks depending on the number of games permitted in the parlay bet. Parlay payouts can be easily calculated by multiplying the bet amount with the odds.

Fortunately for adventurous bettors eager to make parlay bets online, there is no dearth of top-rated online sportsbooks offering parlay betting options. We advise bettors to register at multiple online sportsbooks in order to get the best deals. We have presented a list of excellent, secure, licensed, and regulated online sportsbooks that offer the best odds, great customer service, and exciting bonuses and promotions.

Betting on sports online is easy, comfortable, and fun at Bovada.lv because it offers sports betting services such as in-play betting, live betting, and mobile betting in a secure environment. This licensed and regulated US friendly online sports betting site offers the best odds on a wide range of sports events, such as NHL hockey, college football, NBA basketball, and others. The operator of Bovada.lv is Meadway Leisure Limited, which has been granted a sports betting license by the Kahnawake Gaming Commission, based in Canada.

Bovada's Parlay Rules:

• In case of a push or a tie on a 3-team parlay, players will get the next lowest payout
• The payout for a winning two-team parlay is 9 – 10
• True odds are available for all parlays

BetOnline not only offers the best odds on all favorite American sports such as golf, tennis, football, and others, but also a slew of bonuses. To begin with players will get a lifetime bonus of 25 percent up to $900 whenever they make a qualifying deposit. BetOnline is ideal for MLB bets because the online sportsbook offers overnight lines which will allow parlay bettors to get their research done + bets placed earlier.

BetOnline's Parlay Rules:

• The online sportsbooks pays as much as $150k for all parlay bets
• Players can win a maximum of $150k per 24-hour period
• Players cannot bet on both sides of one game while choosing a parlay

SportsBetting.ag welcomes new players with a free play bonus of 50 percent up to $2,500, and bettors only have to sign up or reload their accounts in order to claim it. Besides offering a wide range of betting markets such as football, golf, soccer, baseball, basketball, and others, SportsBetting offers a free bet worth $25 to players who wish to try out its live betting facilities. Bettors can also claim a free play bonus worth $50 for mobile betting.

SportsBetting's Parlay Rules:

• Players can win a maximum of $150k on their parlay bets per 24-hour period
• The sportsbook will cancel the winnings of parlay bets including bets placed on both sides of one game
• Players cannot include auto racing, boxing, proposition bets, futures, and MMA in a parlay

Launched in 1994, Wagerweb operates on a license issued in Costa Rica. A leader in the online sports betting industry, Wagerweb is known for its excellent customer service, quick payouts, and efficient management system. The betting lines and odds available at Wagerweb are as good as those offered at any sportsbook based in Las Vegas. Sports betting services are available in two languages—Spanish and English. Besides, the online sportsbook offers generous bonuses and runs irresistible promotions.

WagerWeb's Parlay Rules:

• Parlays in which one or more bets co-relate are not accepted
• Nevada gambling rules apply to any bet, including parlays
• To place a parlay bet, players should be more than 21years old

5Dimes Sportsbook, a brand belonging to the 5Dimes Group, offers the best online sports betting facilities in a safe and secure environment. Players will find almost every type of bet, including pleasers, teasers, if bets, and parlays, at 5Dimes along with the best odds on almost every variety of sport under the sun, ranging from golf to auto racing. Licensed in Costa Rica, the 5Dimes Group launched its first product, an online casino, in Nov 1996.

5Dimes' Parlay Rules:

• Players can win a maximum of $250k on a parlay, if bet, or teaser per 24-hour period
• 5Dimes reserves the right to render invalid any parlay that includes a line error
• 5Dimes offers live in-play lines for parlays

Best Las Vegas Parlay Cards

Vegas Parlay Bets

Online sportsbooks offer several betting options that are similar to parlays although they are not exactly parlays. Teasers and pleasers are interesting bet types that challenge bettors to select two or more games to bet on; however, their payouts are lesser than parlay payouts simply because adjustments can be made to the point spreads in bettors’ favor. In case of pleasers, players can give away as many as six points to better their odds.

Another variety of parlay sports bet is the progressive parlay, in which bettors can select as many as 12 games. Although payouts are not as generous as parlay payouts, players will be paid even if they lose some of the bets in their progressive parlay.