You may have heard the term “parlay” in reference to someone combining one asset with another to achieve success. “I bought a new propane grill, and combined with my shopping skills I parlayed that into a great family cookout.”
Roulette for free online. At the casino or on a sports book, to parlay means something similar. Easily the most popular of all exotic wagers in sports betting, a parlay (or “combo”) is a collection of 2 or more sides or totals that you place a wager on and all of them must win in order for you to cash in.
MLB, NFL and NBA Parlay Rules
Most bettors love the idea of having a chance at a big payoff from a small wager. But parlays are hard to win, and come with a strict set of rules. Let’s look at some of the ins and outs.
- Suppose you bet $10 on a two-team parlay where the odds of the two picks are -140 and +120. Your total payout, which is your winnings plus your risk amount, calculates like so: 10 x 1.71 x 2.20 = $37.62.The maximum wager payout for the Bovada Sportsbook is $100,000.
- To find out what the parlay’s potential payout is, simply multiply parlays odds by the amount you wish to wager. If you want to bet $5, then multiply 46.92 by 5. That equals $234.60, which is the amount you would receive if all picks were correct.
- Our parlay calculator will combine up to 12 games and calculate your payout based on your bet amount and the odds for each game. Find out how much you'll win on any parlay.
Bookies offer this category of wager to lure the gambler into a tough situation. For instance, on a 4-team parlay, going 3-1 is no different than going 0-4. You lose in either case. However, if you’d placed 4 individual bets and won 3 while losing 1, you would make a decent chunk of change. But you would have saved yourself a lot of money by betting the combo instead of placing 4 individual bets if you went 0-4.
“Correlated” outcomes are strictly against the rules, which means you cannot benefit from results that are related to one another. For instance, a finesse passing team might be pitted against a strong defensive unit in the Super Bowl. If you pick the latter squad, you cannot place a combo bet on the “under,” since that outcome is more likely to occur if the strong defense controls the contest. Earn coins free.
Below is a table that lists the chances of hitting a combo if all wagers are “pick’em,” or evenly-matched “coin flip” scenarios – what sports books give you for each ratio, and the chance of a winner if you hit 55%. Obviously, if you’re a 55% handicapper, then there are good deals in the offing. This table shows the odds for 2-team combos all the way up to 11 teams.
In Team #1 I enter -110, Team #2 -110, Team #3 -120 and Team #4 -115. Leave the rest at 0. Then in the wager amount enter 100. Once you hit calculate the payout should display 1149.21. This means that your $100 4-team parlay on those teams should earn you $1,149.21 when it hits! Parlay Payouts & House Edge Depending on Number of Games. A parlay bet is a common way for sports bettors to increase their odds and payoffs. Instead of making multiple, single bets, a parlay bet combines 2 or more bets into one bet. Each bet within the parlay must win in order for the parlay to win. If any bet within the parlay loses, the bet loses.
| # of Teams | Your chances at 50% | Payout in Vegas | Your chances at 55% |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 3/1 | 2.6/1 | 2.3/1 |
| 3 | 7/1 | 6/1 | 5.0/1 |
| 4 | 15/1 | 10/1 | 9.9/1 |
| 5 | 31/1 | 20/1 | 18.9/1 |
| 6 | 63/1 | 40/1 | 35.1/1 |
| 7 | 127/1 | 75/1 | 64.7/1 |
| 8 | 255/1 | 150/1 | 118.4/1 |
| 9 | 511/1 | 300/1 | 216.1/1 |
| 10 | 1,023/1 | 700/1 | 393.8/1 |
| 11 | 2,047/1 | 1,200/1 | 716.8/1 |
As you can see, for the normal bettor who only hits on 50% of their wagers, trying for a 4-0 (or 3-0, or 2-0) record on the same day is a bad idea. It gets worse the more wagers you add. A 2-teamer isn’t terrible because you expect to hit 1 out of each 3 you bet, and you get rewarded 2.6 to 1. A 3-teamer isn’t that bad either because your expected chances are 7-1, while you get paid 6-1.
Avoiding “Sucker” Bets On Sports Book Parlays
3 Game Parlay Payout
Where you really see the biggest sucker bets are the 4-team combos. These wagers only work 1 out of every 15 times, yet you only get paid 10-1. Picking 8 winners and 0 losers only scores a hit once in every 255 times, but you only get paid 150-1 if successful. The 11-team parlay hits 1 out of every 2,047 times, and the payout is based on only just over 50% of that ratio.
Most of the general betting public doesn’t realize that 55% is an excellent winning percentage when it comes to sports betting. But the table also illustrates that if you pick 55% victorious teams/athletes, then every single combo listed is a profitable wager over the long term. The chances of hitting an 11-teamer drop from 2,047-1 to 716.8-1 when you pick 55%. Considering you get paid out 1,200-1, it actually isn’t a bad deal for the 55% handicappers.
The Lines Don’t Always Favor Betting Parlays
In conclusion, I almost never recommend betting parlays for newer cash players. There are times when I’ll put out a 2-team combo on a football game if 2 favorites are being under-valued, but only a of couple times a year. Your best move is to stick to straight bets in football and basketball with the point spreads and totals.
Sometimes, conference vs conference match-ups are a good opportunity for a successful combo wager if 1 of the 2 conferences is under-valued. For instance, ACC football went 4-0 vs the SEC on a Saturday in 2014 – nobody expected that except a few savvy gamblers. Georgia Tech over Georgia was just one of the upsets that took place on that November day as bookies lost out to the ever-popular SEC hype train driving the lines. Another opportunity for this kind of combo bet occurs during early-season conference vs conference “challenge” tourneys in college basketball.
I know it’s tempting to try and strike it rich on a big “trifecta,” but the chances are less in your favor as the number of picks goes up. So have fun, but proceed with caution!
As expected, since taking back the lead, Bayern Munich increased the gap at the top of the table and mostly because their direct opponents are dropping points week in and week out. RB Leipzig dropped 8 points in 4 rounds and Leverkusen 11 points in 5 rounds. Give them the title already… But Bundesliga remains one of the most entertaining leagues in Europe and the fight for the Champions League spots is getting more and more intense. Here’s a complete preview, updated soccer odds, and our top betting picks.
Eintracht Frankfurt vs. Hertha Berlin
Saturday, January 30, 2021 – 09:30 AM EST at Deutsche Bank Park
All eyes on Eintracht, the most consistent team in Bundesliga right now. Unbeaten in their last 7 domestic league games, winning 5 and scoring 19 goals in the process. On top of that, Luka Jovic is back, and it looks like he’s enjoying it. He netted 3 goals in 3 games playing just 25 minutes in each match. Let’s not forget that Andre Silva is on fire and let’s not forget Filip Kostic, one of the most important players in the team. He’s doing miracles on the wing, offering assists after assists, being one of the best box-to-box players in the German top-flight league.
On the other side, we have a deflated Hertha Berlin side. Yes, they won the Berlin derby, yes, they beat Schalke, but that happened ‘ages’ ago. Since their last win, they failed to find the back of the net in 3 of their previous 4 Bundesliga fixtures losing 3 of them. And let’s note that their last 2 games, both lost, were at home against Werder Bremen and Hoffenheim and they conceded 7 in the 2 games.
Eintracht are sitting 6th in the standings but the gap between them and 2nd-placed RB Leipzig is very small, just 5 points. With a win against Hertha, they might enter in week 20 sitting 3rd. Home win expected and a strong performance from Eintracht.
Free Soccer Pick: Eintracht to win at -133 (1.75) at BetOnline (Visit our BetOnline Review)
Wolfsburg vs. Freiburg
Sunday, January 31, 2021 - 12:00 PM EST at Volkswagen Arena
Wolfsburg, 4th place, 32 points, WOW… Nobody expected this to happen. In a league with Robert Lewandowski or Erling Haaland, we also have Wout Weghorst and he is on fire. Fifth in the top-scorers chart, Wout is facing Freiburg, against whom he has three goals and two assists in five Bundesliga games. You can say that Freiburg is his favorite opponent.
2 Team Parlay Payout
They also have midfielder Ridle Baku, a decent box-to-box player who’s getting involved in every single play helping both the attack and the back line.
Their opponents, Freiburg, are 9th in the standings but just 5 points behind them. The visitors scored in all but 2 games this season, against Dortmund and RB Leipzig on the road, but that happened back in November. They are in great shape, despite losing to Bayern Munich 3 rounds ago. If we take out that defeat, they are unbeaten since the end of November, so don’t expect an easy match for Wolfsburg.
This might easily be a draw game, but we also expect goals from both sides so our choice for the 2nd selection of this parlay is ‘both teams to score’.
Don't forget to use our odds calculator to easily determine the payout for your bets.
2 Game Parlay Payout
Free Soccer Pick: Both teams to score at -152 (1.66) at Intertops (Visit our Intertops Review)