Typically, the main goal for most online websites is to attract as many customers as possible. Traffic means sales and these sales in turn mean the business can make money. Online betting sites largely work in the same way but there is a big difference in that not every paying customer is good for business. There are some gamblers that win considerably more money than they put in, meaning the bookie ends up losing money from their activity.
Do bookies ultimate care about this though? If there is one customer cashing in for every eight losing ones, then does it really matter to them? While this can depend on the betting website itself, there are numerous examples of bookies intervening when a player starts taking too much of their cash, but at https://extrabetting.net/ you can win every time and don't worry about intervention of bookmaker.
The Pursuit of the Balanced Book
If you are someone that has bet online before, you will probably be fully aware of the idea of the ‘bookmaker margin’, also known as house edge, overround or vigorish (some of these terms are technically subtly different from each other but are often used interchangeably). This is something you will find present across all sports and all markets, and basically it is what helps keeps bookmakers in business. To explain it simply, let us give an example of a market with two options, of which the bookies deem equally likely.
In the above example, the bookie is indicating that Brooksby and Draper have an equally likely chance of winning this tennis match, so it is a 50/50 gamble. You will notice the odds are not 50/50 however, otherwise they would be both trading at 1/1 (evens) rather than a skinnier 17/20. A pair of 17/20 prices means that rather than the implied probability being 100% (which would be completely fair, no house edge whatsoever) it is actually 108.11%. This means the bookies enjoy an 8.11% house edge for this particular market.
Meaning of ‘Balancing the Books’
Ideally, what would happen in this situation is that bets would fall equally, or roughly equally between the two tennis players, meaning a profit is guaranteed regardless of the outcome. If £1,000 was gambled on Brooksby and £1,000 on Draper, the bookie would be guaranteed to be £150 up at the end of the game (£2,000 in bets taken – £1,850 in returns). In such cases, the bookies could not care less which customers win and which lose because they are quids in regardless.
Obviously, the chances of two markets attracting the same value of bets is very small so rarely do bookies have a perfectly ‘balanced book’ but it does not need to be. If £900 was wagered on Brooksby and £1000 on Draper, the bookies will still be in the black either way once again. Here they would prefer Brooksby to win but it would not be bad for them if Draper prevailed, as you can see from the calculations below:
Brooksby win: £1,000 in losing bets – £765 in winning bets = +£235
Draper win: £900 in losing bets – £850 in winning bets = +£50
In this situation, bookmakers have no reason to care which customers win and which lose because when they successfully balance the books, a positive outcome is guaranteed. Naturally, bookies will try and do their best to balance the books wherever possible and as said, this usually involves adjusting their prices. Sticking with the example above, if punters start putting much more money on Brooksby (meaning they will lose money if he wins), they will reduce his odds and increase the odds for Draper. This will make Brooksby a less appealing pick, likely reducing bets on him and also means they will pay out less on winning bets placed after the odds are cut.
Individual Success Does Not Go Unnoticed
Although there are times that unbalanced markets that see bookies face heavy losses, on the whole, they win considerably more than they lose. The average punter’s knowledge and tactics are not enough to overcome the house edge and this is why bookies make substantial amounts of money each year. This is not to say every bookmaker business is guaranteed to be a financial success of course as they do face overheads, administrative costs and have to pay a substantial amount of tax as well. For those that struggle to attract enough customers, often these costs exceed the losses they are claiming from players.
Even the large, long-standing names in the industry though are not keen on customers that are too good at gambling. Whenever there are customers that consistently record a positive outcome and are betting with substantial amounts, bookies have been known to take action. You may think this is a little unnecessary for bookmakers who are winning overall but their main aim, as with most businesses in capitalist society, is to make as much money as possible.
Individual Success Does Not Go Unnoticed
Although there are times that unbalanced markets that see bookies face heavy losses, on the whole, they win considerably more than they lose. The average punter’s knowledge and tactics are not enough to overcome the house edge and this is why bookies make substantial amounts of money each year. This is not to say every bookmaker business is guaranteed to be a financial success of course as they do face overheads, administrative costs and have to pay a substantial amount of tax as well. For those that struggle to attract enough customers, often these costs exceed the losses they are claiming from players.
Even the large, long-standing names in the industry though are not keen on customers that are too good at gambling. Whenever there are customers that consistently record a positive outcome and are betting with substantial amounts, bookies have been known to take action. You may think this is a little unnecessary for bookmakers who are winning overall but their main aim, as with most businesses in capitalist society, is to make as much money as possible.