Sports betting will begin this week in Kentucky. Here are several terms you should know.
Times are changing in the commonwealth.
This spring, Gov. Andy Beshear signed HB 551 into law, and Kentucky became the 37th state to approve legalized sports betting.
Kentucky will launch retail sports gambling Thursday, and mobile and online sports gambling Sept. 28.
With sports wagering soon to be legal in Kentucky, you might encounter several unfamiliar terms as you navigate the sportsbook of your choice, of which there will be plenty of options.
Here are some of the most important terms to know before placing your first (legal) sports bet in Kentucky.
American odds
Sportsbooks in the United States almost always use American odds.
The favorite will come with minus odds in the American odds format (for example, -150). This indicates the money you would have to wager to win $100.
If a favorite is -150, you would have to risk $150 in order to profit $100.
Underdogs are listed with plus odds in the American odds format (for example, +130). This indicates the money you would profit if you wagered $100.
If an underdog is +130, you would profit $130 from the bet if you wagered $100 on it.
You can also think about American odds in terms of a singular dollar, rather than a hundred dollars.
For example, a -150 favorite means you’d have to wager $1.50 to win $1.
For example, a +130 underdog means you’d win $1.30 for every $1 wagered.
You can risk whatever you want on a bet, this is just a way to understand American odds.
Fixed odds
A major difference between sports wagering and betting on horse racing is the use of fixed odds.
Sports bets use fixed odds, which means the odds are set in stone when the wager is made.
For example, if you bet on Kentucky football as a -200 favorite, you retain those odds even if Kentucky becomes a bigger or smaller favorite — or even an underdog — prior to the game.
This differs significantly from horse racing, where real-time track odds are used and aren’t finalized until the race begins.
This is similar to fixed odds offered on horses well in advance of major races like the Kentucky Derby.
Money line
A money-line bet is one of the simplest sports wagers you can make: It’s a straight-up bet of which individual or team you think will win the contest.
For example, taking Kentucky football money line against Florida means you are only wagering on UK to win the game.
Favorites come with negative odds (for example, -160) and underdogs come with positive odds (for example, +200).
Point spread
An evolution of money-line betting is point-spread betting, where the favorite is assigned a certain number of points that it is expected to win by.
Betting on the favorite — who is assigned a negative points spread (for example, -3.5) — means you think the favorite will win by more than this amount of points.
For example, if Kentucky football is given a -3.5 point spread against Vanderbilt, and you take Kentucky -3.5, you only win the wager if Kentucky wins the game by four or more points.
Underdogs are given a head start on points with a positive point spread (for example, +4.5).
If you select an underdog with a positive point spread, that team must lose by less than the point spread amount — or win the contest — for you to win the wager.
For example, if Kentucky men’s basketball is given a +4.5 point spread as an underdog against Kansas, you would win the wager if UK loses by four or fewer points, or wins the game.
If the point spread is a round number — like Kentucky men’s basketball being given a -12 point spread as a favorite against Louisville — and UK wins by exactly that amount (12 points), then neither side wins.
The bet would be declared a “push” and bets are refunded.
Over/under
Another simple bet for beginners, an over/under bet concerns the amount of combined points scored in a contest.
If the over/under for the Kentucky versus Georgia football game is 41.5, then over bettors win if 42 or more combined points are scored and under bettors win if 41 or fewer combined points are scored.
If the over/under amount is round number, and the total amount of points scored matches that number, then nobody wins.
The bet would be declared a “push” and bets are refunded.
Parlay
A parlay is a single bet that includes multiple parts.
For example, you could take both Kentucky football and Kentucky men’s basketball to win in a parlay bet, but that parlay bet only wins if all parts of it win.
If any part of a parlay bet loses — no matter how many parts are included in the parlay — then the parlay bet loses.
Simply put, a parlay bet features multiple bets linked together to create one bet with an increased payout. The more bets included in a parlay, the greater the potential payout.
For example, taking two favorites at -180 and -175 money-line odds in a parlay bet produces odds of +144 for the single parlay bet.
If one of the bets in a parlay ends in a push — for example, exactly 42 points are scored for an over/under bet where you selected under 42 points — then that individual bet is voided from the parlay bet.
The parlay bet would remain alive, but the parlay bet odds would be reduced.
Cash out
Sometimes, sports bets include a cash out option that bettors can take advantage of.
A cash out allows bettors to receive money for their placed bet while that bet is still active.
This is advantageous if you think that your bet may not win, but you still want to recover some money from it.
A cash out option may also exist for a parlay bet before all the individual bets in the parlay are completed.
Futures betting
Futures betting already exists with horse racing, and it should be familiar to Kentucky residents who are new to legal sports wagering.
These bets are season-long bets that aren’t paid out until a season is complete, an award is announced or a championship is crowned.
Betting on Kentucky men’s basketball to win the NCAA championship in October would be an example of a futures bet.
You can also make futures bets during the course of a season, based on developments that occur.
Live betting
Another difference between sports betting and betting on horse racing is the ability to place a bet while a contest is in progress.
Sportsbooks offer plenty of betting options during a contest. Odds fluctuate based on in-game developments like injuries, score and time remaining.
As the contest plays out, things like the money-line odds and points spread will be adjusted, and are available to bet on.
Bad beat
If you wager on sports, you will, at some point, experience a bad beat.
A bad beat is when you are on the precipice of winning a bet, only for it to lose in disastrous, often last-minute fashion.
This happens frequently with point-spread bets and over/under bets when a last-minute score occurs.
For example, let’s say the over/under for the UK versus Florida football game is 43.5 points.
If Kentucky leads Florida, 30-10, and Florida scores a touchdown with 12 seconds left in the game to move the total points scored from 40 to 46, then the under 43.5 points bettors have experienced a bad beat.
There’s even a weekly segment on ESPN’s “SportsCenter” dedicated to the worst bad beats of the past week.
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