I’ve always been a firm believer that just because you’re a good handicapper, doesn’t mean you’re guaranteed to be a winning sports bettor. There are a lot of other factors involved when it comes to staying in the black other than just picking winners.
One of those things is bankroll management, which is possibly the most important factor that sometimes doesn’t get enough attention. It’s taken me some time as a bettor to adhere to strict bankroll management strategies, but it has helped me become a more profitable bettor.
No bettor is the same and these rules might not apply to everyone, but these are still some very key points that anyone with a sportsbook account should be conscious of.
Sports betting units explained
Before we begin, we need to understand units. In sports betting, units are a standardized measurement used to determine the size of a bet relative to your bankroll. It is typically a percentage or specific amount of the total bankroll that a bettor is comfortable risking on the outcome of a single event.
By using units, bettors can manage their risk effectively and maintain a disciplined approach to betting. For instance, with a $1,000 bankroll and a 2% unit size, each unit is worth $20. Bettors can then adjust the number of units wagered based on their confidence in a particular bet and the odds provided by the sportsbook. Speaking of bankrolls...
Understanding bankroll management
Your bankroll is the money sitting in your betting account(s). It’s your leverage. It’s your lifeline. Without it, you have no action.
There is no exact science in determining your initial bankroll/deposit(s). One thing is certain, don’t be that guy that YOLO’s their entire deposit on one bet in the hopes of building up a bankroll. It’s not a profitable strategy, and it's one that builds bad betting habits.
A bankroll should be big enough to support a solid duration of bet-able days and will dictate how much you’re wagering on each play. Some bettors like betting 1% of their bankrolls per bet, but even I know that is a very hard strategy to follow. A $500 bankroll can handle $25 plays which is a 5% rate per bet. That could take you through an entire season depending on your betting volume.
If we look at that $500/$25 scenario, the $25 bet is our unit size — or what our regular bet amount is. This is an important term, as we use it to value our wins/losses in a relative term such as +2.5 units or -0.35 units. Bettors who bet more per wager have bigger units. Don’t get caught in a unit-size race, though. It’s your money. Nobody except you has to deal with the losses.
Anywhere from $200 to $500 is a decent starting point for an initial bankroll, but it can also be scaled up or down if needed. The most important thing here is to bet within your means and don’t create a bankroll on money that you can’t afford to lose. When you find yourself increasing your wager size despite the bankroll not increasing, stop what you’re doing and get back to the strategy.
That strategy should also include tracking your plays so you can see where your best returns are, how to evaluate success based on the results, sourcing out tools to create better value in your bets, and risk management.
Tracking and ROI
The best indicator of successful betting is your return on investment — or ROI. Because bettors all wager different amounts at different volumes, and at different odds, a win percentage means nothing if you’re a bettor hitting stolen bases at +800 a pop, and measuring profit with units doesn’t tell the whole story, either.
However, ROI is the best indicator of success and measures how much you bet vs. how much you profited.
ROI = (Profit/amount wagered) x 100
Any positive ROI is good in sports betting with great long-term bettors sitting in the 5-7% range. It’s not a sexy life scratching out 5% returns, but if you think you’re going to get a 15% ROI or more, you need a reality check. If you track all your plays, make sure you’re measuring your results in ROI.
One emotional bet can wipe out weeks of winning and cut into that hopefully positive ROI. Stay robotic in your betting, don’t chase, don’t tilt, and bet more on your bigger edges. It’s hard enough to be profitable, don’t compound an already tough task with needless emotional -EV (expected value) decisions.
Bankroll management techniques
Betting a unit per wager is easy in theory but with varying odds, it’s not as cut and dry. I prefer to do a variation of flat betting. I usually bet one unit on even money (+100, 2.00) bets or higher, and with any odds below that, I bet to win one unit.
So for example, if the best available odds were +125 and my unit size was $100, I’d bet $100 to win $125. If the odds were -110, I’d bet $110 to win $100. In this method, you’re always winning at least one unit per bet.
Flat betting means betting the same amount on every play, and it allows bettors to have a longer run with their bankroll with the bet size consisting of anywhere from 1-5% of the bankroll.
There are plenty of other betting techniques and systems. The more you’re in the space, the more ridiculous some seem. Some bettors swear by the Kelly Criterion system. According to author Dominic Cortis, “The Kelly Criterion is a popular staking method which suggests that stake should be proportional to the perceived edge.” Tough to argue with that.
Ultimately, bettors should find a system that works for them and one they can consistently and competently follow.
Taking emotions out of the game
Following a system is important, but what bettors do after big wins or crushing losses is equally important.
I’ve often times find myself playing more bets following a big winning day. When the account is flush, it’s easy to bet things you normally wouldn’t. Be aware of these practices because they can wipe out some solid wins. Those 0.25-unit bets add up and suck up your ROI.
On the other side, get used to losing and not overreacting to a losing play or plays. If you bet long enough, you will come up with a seemingly endless laundry list of bad beats. Sometimes it's variance and sometimes it's just being on the wrong side. Evaluate which side it is and know that variance will even out over large sample sizes.
If you’ve played poker, like many bettors have, going on tilt is a very common term and one that needs to be remembered. Losing creates a different mind frame that can take you off a winning path. Controlling your emotions and avoiding snap betting is one of the most valuable skillsets everyday bettors can possess.
Evaluation
Without tracking your plays and results, you’ll never have a true understanding of where your strengths and weakness are with your picks. Tracking your plays can also prove your cognitive biases wrong, which is something that is hard to do and is sometimes a roadblock in terms of establishing positive ROI.
There are plenty of third-party tracking sites that are a great help to bettors, but I do prefer to use Excel as running around and adding all your plays into another site is not easy to do — especially with high-volume bettors.
I find it easier to just get into the routine of doing a daily recap first thing in the morning which allows you to enter the results physically. This can help me evaluate the bet following the conclusion of the event and assess where the handicap went right or wrong.
Without tracking, there can be no accurate evaluation of your plays. Without proper evaluation, bad habits can compound, and adjusting to a more profitable strategy is impossible.
Evaluation is all about learning and adjusting. Without it, books will be happy to take all of your action, which isn’t the best compliment for a bettor.
Heading to the ATM
Deposit season is the worst time of the year. Just as we track our plays, we have to be monitoring what is going in and out of the account(s). It’s so easy to go on a bad stretch and not realize you’ve made an extra deposit, which gets even more complicated when you’re betting at multiple online sportsbooks. On a separate sheet, bettors should track their deposits and withdrawals.
On the topic of withdrawals, lots of bettors take money out at different rates. The more often you take out of your account the more often books are going to notice, which can hurt your account possibly in the long run. I prefer to take out anything over 10 units above my initial bankroll because I’m aware I’ll be playing more with all that money in the account. Learn your betting habits and how they change as your bankroll changes and more than anything else, keep consistent in your betting practices if they’re proving profitable.
Protect your bankroll
Your bankroll is your lifeline; take care of it. Find a betting system that works for you and stick to it. The more consistent you are with your betting practices and remove biases and emotions from them, the better you’ll be.
Track all your plays/deposits/withdrawals and learn where your strengths lie in handicapping. That could lead to you finding better edges which could turn into bigger unit bets and higher +EV plays.
Learn, adapt, adjust, and maintain strong bankroll management practices. Picking winners isn’t the end-all of being a profitable sports bettor. It’s how you managed your money that determines that ultimate goal of a positive ROI.
Bankroll FAQ
A bankroll is the total amount of money that a bettor has set aside specifically for placing bets. It serves as the betting capital and is used to determine the size of bets and manage risk throughout the betting process.
A good return on investment (ROI) in sports betting varies depending on a bettor's personal goals and strategies. However, a commonly referenced benchmark for a successful ROI is around 5% annually on approximately 3,000 wagers.
According to a study conducted in 2022, the average betting unit is approximately $170 and the median is $50.
