Introduction

Ever watched your friend yell at the TV during a game and thought, What, exactly, did she just bet on? Odds, spreads, totals, it all sounded like another language. That’s how Vanessa felt when she opened a sportsbook app for the first time. But a few hours later, she placed her first bet, calm, confident, and in control.

You don’t need to know everything to get started. You just need the right building blocks.

We’re calling them the Lucky 7 Plus 3: seven terms you’ll see constantly, and three bet types that form the foundation of most beginner's bets. Learn these, and you’ll go from overwhelmed to informed faster than you think.

The Lucky 7: Core Sports Betting Terms for Beginners

1. Sportsbook: Where All Bets Begin

A sportsbook is where odds are set and bets are placed. That could be a physical location like a Vegas casino, or more likely, an app like FanDuel, BetMGM, ESPN BET, or Caesars.

Each book offers slightly different odds. Savvy bettors compare them to find the best value, a practice called line shopping. Think of it like comparing ticket prices for the same concert. The band is the same, but the cost to see them varies.

2. Stake and Payout: What You Risk and What You Win

Before you place any bet, two numbers matter most: how much you’re putting in, and how much you could get back. That’s where stake and payout come in.

• Your stake is the amount of money you risk on the bet. It’s your investment, whether that’s $5, $50, or more.

• Your payout is what the sportsbook will return to you if your bet wins. That includes both your profit and your original stake.

3. +/- Odds:  Favorites, Underdogs, and the Plus/Minus Shortcut

That plus or minus sign in front of the odds tells you two things.  The first, it tells you who is expected to win and who is expected to lose:

• A minus (–) = favorite – the team expected to win

• A plus (+) = underdog – the team expected to lose

  
  

It’s not about who’s “better” or more popular. It’s about expectation and payout.

Example:

• The U.S. Women’s National Team at –275 is expected to win.

• Their opponent at +200 is expected to lose.

4. Number Odds:  The number ratio showing risk vs reward

The second things odds tell you is the ratio of how much you will win based on how much you bet.

In American odds, you’ll see a minus (-) or plus (+) which you now know shows the underdog or the favorite.  So, let’s focus on the number after the -/+ signs. 

We know that odds that begin with a minus sign (-) indicate a team or outcome that is more likely to win.  Since they are expected to win, you have to risk more to earn less.  The  minus (-) odds tell you will need to bet $150 to win $100.   This sets the ratio of risk $150, vs reward, $100. 

We also know that odds that begin with a plus sign (+)  indicate a team or outcome that is more likely to lose.  Sense they are expected to lose, you can risk less to earn more.  The plus (+) tell you that if you bet $100, you win $150.  Again this sets the ratio of risk $100, vs reward, $150. 

Here’s an example of South Carolina vs UConn  in NCAA Woman’s basketball.

• South Carolina –150:  

• UConn +125:  

If you bet on South Carolina, you would have to bet $150 to earn $100.  If you bet on UConn, if you bet $100, you would earn $125. 

But wait!   American odds are always expressed in the earn a $100 vs bet a $100 format.  That doesn’t mean you have to bet these numbers.  Odds establish a ratio. 

For example, if you bet $10 at -150 odds, you’d win about $6.67 (since you’d need to bet $1.50 to win $1). If you bet $20 at +125 odds, you’d win $25 (because +125 means 1.25 times your bet). The payout scales up or down depending on how much you wager.

You don’t have to worry about the math or the ratios.  You can use an odds calculator or, sportsbooks almost always show what your total return (bet+profit) will be when you start your bet. 

But learning to read odds helps you weigh both probability and potential reward—two factors at the heart of every smart bet.

5. High (long) vs. Low (short) Odds: Risk at a Glance

Various terms can represent odds in broader terms without using numbers. 

• High odds (or long odds), like +400 or +650, mean a lower chance to win but a bigger payout.  The expected loser has high or long odds.

• Low odds (or short odds), like –120 or –300, mean a higher chance to win but a smaller payout. The expected winner has low or short odds.

Use this connection to quickly gauge the risk and reward of any bet. High/long odds can be exciting, especially since you're betting on an underdog. But if you’re looking to build steady confidence, low/short odds are usually the safer starting point.

 6. Opening Line vs. Closing Line: Timing the Market

The opening line is the first set of odds a sportsbook posts. The closing line is what you see right before the game begins. The difference? The entire betting world in motion.

For example, the Las Vegas Aces open as –2.5 favorites over the New York Liberty. But after Liberty’s point guard is ruled out and money pours in on the Aces, the line shifts to –4. That’s the closing line.

Lock in a bet early and the line moves in your favor? You’ve just scored closing line value, a hallmark of long-term winning bettors.

7. Bankroll: Budgeting for the Long Game

Your bankroll is your total betting fund. It’s not your rent money—it’s your entertainment budget, treated with structure and discipline.

Instead of winging it, purposeful bettors assign units—a set dollar amount per bet. If your bankroll is $300, and one unit is $10, you’ve got 30 bets before you go bust. This avoids emotional chasing and helps you survive losing streaks.

Vanessa, who bet for the first time last fall, said using units “was like installing guardrails. It made me feel like I could enjoy it without spiraling.”

The Plus 3: The Big Three Bet Types

1. Moneyline Bet: Just Pick the Winner

This is the simplest bet of all. You choose who wins the game.

Let’s say the Phoenix Mercury are –130 to beat the Chicago Sky. You think they’ll pull it off, so you place a moneyline bet.

• If the Mercury win, you win.

• If not, your bet loses.

There are no extra rules, just a win-or-lose decision.

Elena called it her “gateway bet” when she first downloaded a sportsbook app: “I didn’t care about point spreads—I just wanted to cheer for my team to win.”

2. Over/Under Bets: Betting on Total Points

Also called totals, these bets focus on how many points both teams will score combined.

Let’s say the total for a college basketball game is set at 146.5. You bet:

• Over if you think both teams will combine for 147+

• Under if you think they’ll score 146 or fewer

The .5 avoids ties. Totals are ideal when you have a feel for the game’s pace, even if you don’t know who will win.

3. Point Spread: Making the Matchup Even

The point spread levels the playing field between a strong team and a weaker one by assigning a margin of victory the favorite must win by.

Let’s say the Philadelphia Eagles are listed at –7.5 against the Chicago Bears. That means the Eagles are favored to win, but they must win by more than 7.5 points for a bet on them to be successful.

• If the Eagles win by 8 or more, they’ve covered the spread, and bets on them win.

• If the Eagles win by 7 or fewer, or if the Bears win the game, then the Bears have covered the spread, and bets on the Bears win.

The spread doesn’t change the outcome of the game. It changes the outcome of the bet. It’s one of the most popular types of wagers in football and basketball, especially when the matchup feels lopsided. Understanding the spread gives you a new way to bet beyond just picking the winner.

Example 1:

You bet on the Eagles –7.5 against the Bears. Final score: Eagles 31, Bears 20.The Eagles won by 11 points, so they covered the spread—your bet wins.

Example 2:

You bet on the Mystics +6.5 against the Las Vegas Aces. Final score: Aces 85, Mystics 80.The Mystics lost by only 5 points, which is less than the 6.5-point spread—they covered the spread, so your bet wins.

Final Thoughts: You Now Speak the Language

Odds. Spreads. Moneylines. These ten terms and three bet types are your first tools in understanding the world of sports betting. But more than that, they’re the start of a mindset—informed, patient, and strategic, the foundation to mastering the odds.