Every bettor experienced bettor, or “sharp”, has a well-established way of managing their bankroll. While they may not realize it at times, it’s important to find consistency and stick to it. Starting bankroll for sport betting is very important if a bettor hasn’t done so already. Throughout this guide, we’ll explain what does bankroll mean, how to build a bankroll in sport betting, and what percentage of your bankroll should you bet. These are always the first questions, our readers ask and we’ll address all this and more.
From beginners to sharps, all bettors need to be smart when managing their bankroll. No matter how often they bet, it’s important to manage your money and ensure you’re not blowing through funds. The last thing you ever want as a bettor is to be “zeroed out” — or have your account go to zero. That can easily happen if you have no risk management with your bankroll.
The perfect combination of sports knowledge, research, and maths will provide bettors with the platform for successful gambling that lasts. However, sticking to the plan is the really difficult part, as the adrenaline can get hold of bettors and they break their bankroll rules. Euphoria is a hell of a drug, and it’s human nature to want more.
Sometimes bettors want to make things more exciting or feel it’s necessary to “go big” on certain lines, but it’s more beneficial in the long run to stick to a plan. This can be done using three simple steps, which we’ll break down for you in the next section of this guide. Much like in any of our betting guides, we’ll ensure by the time this guide has ended our readers will need all they need to know about bankroll management.
While these exact steps may not work for everyone, these provide the foundations for building a bettor’s bankroll management and will pave the way for them to form their own money management structure.
The first question bettors ask is “how much should be deposited into my online account?” This is a subjective question, as it largely depends on the individual’s financial situation. No matter how much you enjoy playing with top betting sites, never deposit or bet beyond your limits. Ultimately, only you know your limits but once your betting budget eats into your everyday expenses, you’re getting into the danger zone.
Bankroll management sports betting can be something that keeps drawing players back in and being smart about money is essential. Everyone has their own idea of what they can afford, but be sure about what you can actually afford.
Secondly, the bettor needs to be realistic about how often they gamble. Creating a bankroll management sports betting system that works for the individual is key. For example, if the bettor just plays the major events like March Madness, The Superbowl, the Playoffs and post-season sports events, then they will bet big at certain periods during the year. However, bettors that play daily need to employ different betting strategies regarding bankroll management.
Once that’s established, the last stage is to choose a figure and stick to it. This might mean deciding to spend $5 a day, or $50 a day, whatever it may be the bettor must select a figure that’s financially viable and persist with it.
Now that a figure has been established, the bettor should decide a figure that will be wagered on each bet. This figure should be decided as a percentage of your bankroll. For beginners and first-time players, we would advise on selecting a unit size somewhere between 1-5%.
While we advise this figure, there’s no rule for any player – everyone should decide what works for them. Conservative bettors will likely suit a lower figure, somewhere between 1-3% per bet. For those players that are very confident, it’s worth looking at a bankroll of 4-8% of the bankroll as a unit size per bet.
Risking anything above 10 percent of your bankroll on a single wager and it starts getting tricky. Betting this much makes you vulnerable in the event of a cold streak, which happens to even the best bettors.
For professional players, they will usually stick to a bankroll percentage of 1% or less. Although we’ve given varying figures above, we’d strongly advise sticking to 1-3% of the bettor’s bankroll per wager. These are our best bankroll betting tips, but always be self-aware when it comes to gambling bankroll management.
Sports betting never goes the way we expect; sometimes we go on win streaks and other times we’re down in the dumps. Either way, it’s important to recalculate your bankroll and reassess the unit size the bettor is wagering.
Winning or losing, adjustments needs to be made. It’s important not to get ahead of yourself as a bettor, being able to control the wins, as well as the losses, is a real skill and takes great discipline.
If you’re on a losing streak and your bankroll is diminishing, look to reassess. The temptation is to go big when you start losing funds in order to recoup your losses. However, this contradicts the basic principles of bankroll management and is an outdated strategy, which doesn’t work in favor of the bettor.
For those bettors in it just for the entertainment, we advise betting low and staying low. This will allow the player to place more bets and enjoy the entertainment experience of betting for longer. Losing is part of betting and accepting losses is key to success. Accepting the loss, staying in control and moving onto the next bet.
Another skill to acquire is risk tolerance. Be self-aware, notice what kind of wager you’re placing and even if the bettor is feeling good, they must stay in control – a bettor’s luck can change in a split-second. Always bet smart.
There’s so much information out there to absorb and managing what information you take on board is essential for successful betting. Through the use of bankroll calculators in sports betting, bettors are able to track their progress and see how much they are due to make if they stick with a certain unit size. Obviously, the betting odds will change, but if the bettor doesn’t play odds which are too slanted they will be able to see a prediction of profits.
On that point, sticking to betting a sensible wager is smart. If you’re new to the world of sports betting, we would highly recommend taking a look at our guide to betting strategies. This guide provides insight on how to use the plethora of information available to bettors to maximize the value of each bet placed. Going with your intuition is often a good move, but backing your bet with statistics trumps always instinct.
