The strategies discussed below are essential for maintaining a low profile and maximizing longevity in the practice of sports arbitrage betting. By rounding your bets, limiting player props, adopting the guise of a recreational gambler, avoiding large favorite or underdog arbs, sticking to common sports, and refraining from consistently winning on a single book, you can navigate the arbing landscape with greater ease and for much longer.
Let’s say you have $500 to place on one side of an arb, the Spro calculator will tell you exactly how much you will need to place on the other side of the arb in order for the payouts to match. This will vary depending on the arb, but let's say your told to place $657.01 on bookmaker 2. In this case, it is best practice to round to $655 or $660.
The Spro calculator can do this rounding for you, so don't worry! This may impact your profit by a few dollars, but will be worth thousands as your chances of getting maxed will be reduced, hence more opportunities to make arbitrage profits.
Bookmakers closely monitor player props because they often involve smaller markets with less liquidity, making them more vulnerable to sharp bettors.
Additionally, player performance can be influenced by various factors, making it harder for bookmakers to accurately set lines and increasing the likelihood of arbing opportunities. Consequently, excessive activity in player props can quickly draw suspicion and trigger restrictions or bans, limiting your access to profitable betting options and shortening your arbing lifeline. This isn't meant to scare you away from player props though! They are a great way to make money and offer lots of opportunity, just make sure you are mixing in some main line bets like money lines, totals and spreads.
Think about it, its much more likely for a recreational bettor to put $1000 on Timberwolves ML than for them to put $1000 on Edwards over on Rebounds + Assists. Hence, main lines don't attract as much attention!
Acting like a recreational bettor is paramount in minimizing the chances of getting maxed and prolonging your arbing longevity. Bookmakers are vigilant in identifying and restricting professional bettors who exhibit consistent, systematic betting patterns. By adopting the persona of a recreational bettor—placing occasional bets, varying bet sizes, and occasionally wagering on long shots or parlays—you blend in with the broader pool of casual punters.
Embracing the recreational betting mindset not only shields you from immediate scrutiny but also enhances your capacity to exploit arbing opportunities over an extended period, safeguarding your profitability and sustainability in the arbing landscape. Also, who doesn’t enjoy a couple LAYS!
Placing bets on large odds, whether it's on heavy favorites at -700 or significant underdogs at +1000, significantly escalates the likelihood of getting maxed by sportsbooks. In either scenario, such bets deviate from typical recreational betting behavior, attracting scrutiny from bookmakers keen on identifying and limiting professional bettors. Bookmakers closely monitor such extreme odds, as they represent outcomes with high potential for profit or loss.
Betting on unusual sports like eSports diverges significantly from the behaviors typically associated with recreational bettors, which is why it raises suspicion from sportsbooks. Recreational bettors typically gravitate towards more mainstream sports like football, basketball, or tennis, where they have a vested interest or familiarity.
Uncommon sports, such as eSports, table tennis, are often outside the realm of traditional sports fandom for many recreational punters, thereby increasing the likelihood of scrutiny and restrictions from sportsbooks.
Winning consistently on a single platform can quickly raise suspicions and lead to restrictions or bans as bookmakers strive to protect their profitability. However, by distributing your successful wagers across several sportsbooks, you maintain a lower profile and reduce the likelihood of being identified as a professional or sharp bettor.
I understand this is a hard one to implement as you do not control which sides of the arb wins, but it goes back to Tip 4 - if you are always betting on large favorites and underdogs, you're likely to keep winning on one book, hence increasing the chances of restrictions.
Cheers!
Spro Joe
Discord: Joe_SBA