Over and Under Betting ranks top as one of the most popular betting options that is often picked by bettors globally. Away from the 1X2, this option gives bettors a chance to bet on the quantity of an outcome as opposed to betting on who wins or loses. This outcome could be goals, corners, cards and so much more. This explains why it gets this much wide acceptance from bettors globally.
In this article, we will be looking mainly at the upsides/downsides of over/under predictions.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of over/under betting?
Advantages of Over/Under Betting
There are few reasons why most bettors are often excited with this market. Here are some of the main advantages of over/under betting.
Easily Conclusive
This is particularly true, especially for Over betting. How exciting is it that you don’t have to wait till the end of the match before your bet is decided? Unlike with 1X2 options, where you have to wait until the final whistle is blown, your over bet can play through at any time within the game. For example, if you bet on a football game to total over 1.5, your game could be won in the first half. A 1-1 scoreline at half time means your bet can be resolved without waiting till the end of the game.
Better for Competitive Games
This is particularly true for under betting. Have you ever realized that the scoreline for highly competitive games like finals is mostly conservative? This is because teams playing highly competitive games have so much to lose and as such tend to be more defensive. In that case, the turnout for goals is highly likely to be low. When it comes to highly competitive games, the under option gives you an easier betting choice.
Gives you Insurance
This is generally true for all types of over/under betting. Contrary to what gives with straight 1X2 betting, where only one outcome can be right, over/under betting gives you a softer landing. Most importantly, you don’t necessarily have to be bothered about who wins or not. All that will be your main bone of contention is the scoreline.
Disadvantages of Over/Under Betting
While over/under betting can be promising, there are a few downsides to this type of betting. Here are some of them:
Low Odds
It is not coincidental that most bookies usually offer much lower odds for over/under bets than with 1X2 bets. To put things in perspective, you can find a game between Team A vs Team B, where the bookie gives Team A to win 1.44 odds and Team B to win at 7.00 odds. However, it won’t be out of the question to find the bookie offering over 1.5 goals for that game at 1.20 odds.
For most bettors who have more preference for high odds, they are likely to tilt towards higher odds. It makes sense, because if you are relatively sure that Team A would win and possibly by a two-goal margin, wouldn’t it be advisable to bet on Team A to win since the odds are higher? This is something bookies understand so well, which influences why they reduce the odds for over/under options.
Easily Conclusive
Yes, we have already treated this point while discussing the advantages. The best way to view this is as a two-edged sword and this is mostly applicable for under bets.
For example, if you bet Under 3.5 on a football game, because you feel the game would be competitive, it could come to ruin in no time as well. A first half scoreline of 3-0 in this situation puts you in a difficult spot.
At least, with 1X2 options, there could still be a comeback. With under bet, you could have lost your bet in that case even before the final whistle.
What’s the advantage of betting on Overs or Unders in Live Betting?
It has become popular that most bettors tend to pick over/under betting options during live betting. The reason is not far-fetched. It is because they seem to have more leverage when betting on overs or under in live games. You will agree with the fact that it is easier to predict an over or under option for a game that’s already ongoing than to predict who wins.
For an ongoing game for example, if you want to bet on over 1.5 when the game is still at the first half and the game is at 1:0, you are more likely to be successful with the over bet than predicting the home team wins. This is because, for the over 1.5 option, you just need a goal from either side to make it come through, with over 45 minutes to go. However, with the home to win at just 1:0 in the first half, it is dicey because the game could still end in a draw or the away team staging a comeback.
Depending on perspective, over/under betting could be promising or not but one certain fact is that it remains one of the most globally accepted betting options for bettors.