STRATEGIES FOR COMBO BETS

Combo bets are a hot potato in the betting community and not uncontroversial. The big advantage is that a small wager can generate big winnings. In the following few sections, we show you what to watch out for regarding combo bets and recommend a few strategies.

What should you bear in mind when considering strategies for combo bets?

One thing is certain: combo bets have distinct advantages, but also distinct disadvantages. For professional sports tipsters, who are far more likely to focus on individual bets, they are very much the exception and for some even a no-go. The main reason is that, in order to be successful in the long term, luck is a major factor as we already determined in our general article about combo bets, your chances of winning drop significantly with each line you add! Even if you can generate odds of over 10 and even over 20 very quickly, betting experts frequently advise against this type of bet. Of course, a certain degree of nervousness and fun is also part of any sports betting experience, but let’s be honest, winning is the most fun of all! Also bear in mind that individual bookies limit the number of individual bets you can have on your betting slip as part of a combo bet. Generally, this limit is somewhere between 12 and 20 bets. You should also only place combo bets with those bookmakers offering the best odds. Since the chances of winning are already lower, your motto should be: In for a penny, in for a pound! Because, in this scenario, you have to combine multiple wagers and good odds are decisive, choosing the best bookie is far more important than it is for individual bets. Furthermore, the fact that you need to have access to the very latest information, including current form of both teams, injury situation, match location and other variables, should already be a matter of course for sports tipsters. Likewise, it is vital you consider all of your options and that you are well aware of the increased risks associated with this type of bet. Naturally, we don’t want to advise totally against combo bets by any means! If you don’t shy away from risk and you do not wish to wager exorbitant sums of money in order to achieve big winnings, this type of bet might well appeal to you. As a consequence, below we present to you a number of promising strategies involving combo bets, certain to increase your chance of winnings substantially! One important suggestion: Only combine wagers that you would also consider placing as individual bets.

What strategies for combo bets would you recommend?

Combo bets guarantee thrills and excitement - especially if your betting slip covers several (match) days. Precisely how, in addition to having fun, you can also step away with a profit, we now explain to you in our valuable tips! We will go ahead and explain to you the “easiest” and, therefore, the safest form of combo bet, the 2-line combo.

2-line combo bet with one bank

Our first strategy tip involves a combination that consists of: 1) one “Bank” – this means a bet that is highly likely to succeed, and 2) a sports bet with very good odds. Precisely what constitutes good odds for a sporting event is very much in the eye of the beholder, of course. Let us explain by means of the following brief and simple example:

  • Bank Bayern Munich vs. Hannover 96 | Tip 1 | Odds 1.20
  • Good bet Schalke 04 vs. Mainz 05 | Tip 1 | Odds 1.85
  • Aggregate odds 2.22

If you now include both of these bets as a combo on a single betting slip, you will receive aggregate odds of 2.22. By doing so, you have a chance of more than doubling your initial wager. In this way, the bet becomes far more lucrative than just betting on Schalke alone. Naturally, your bet on Bayern has to succeed as well, though this is something which, as a rule, we can rely on. As we see, this betting strategy becomes particularly attractive if you give the odds being offered for one wager a little bit of a boost by betting on a favorite as well. Similarly, you can combine a high-risk wager with a bet on the favorite winning – this is also a popular variant amongst sports tipsters. However, we advise against a 2-line combo bet consisting of two lines with very high odds. As a rule of thumb: A combo bet should contain no more than one bet involving a longshot, since the chances of a successful outcome are much too small and, even if you are looking at odds of, let us say, 5.00, you would still be likely to rake in a high profit.

Combo bet consisting of double chance bets

Our second strategy tip: In order to maximize your chances of winning, either create your combo bets exclusively out of double chance bets, or at least build double chance bets into your combination. Double chance bets involve betting on two possible outcomes. If you place such bets on football, for example according to the format 1X or X2, you will actually double your chances of success to 67%. Naturally, the odds would be correspondingly lower. However, since combo bets involve more risk than individual bets, this is an outstanding opportunity to increase your chances of making a handy profit.

Combo bet strategy: Set to favorites

Yet another betting strategy, based on the same considerations as the example provided above, is the so-called combo bet on wins by favorites. Minds do differ with respect to this variant: While some like to use this option as a way to expand their sports betting budget through small wagers, others criticize the increased risk involved with combo bets and the fact that this strategy generates winnings that are too small. In order to be successful with a combo bet involving favorites, as previously explained, we recommend keeping your betting slip to a manageable size. Three or four lines should be the absolute maximum! Aggregate odds of 1.70 to 1.90 are perfectly adequate if you combine elite teams on one betting slip. Let us take a look at the following example:

  • Tip A Manchester City vs. Stoke City | Tip 1 | Odds 1,18
  • Tip B Chelsea vs. Watford | Tip 1 | Odds 1,20
  • Tip C Real Madrid vs. SD Eibar | Tip 1 | Odds 1,12
  • Tip D HSV vs. Bayern München | Tip 2 | Odds 1,20
  • Aggregate odds 1,90

In this case, we would receive aggregate odds of 1.90. If the bet is successful – assuming that, on paper at least, all four matches go in our favor – this strategy would almost double our original wager. However, this also highlights the dangers involved with combo bets: Even if this is contingent on wins by favorites, all four of our predictions must be correct. While the wager appears like money in the bank at first sight, in this particular scenario the odds of our betting slip being successful are merely 52% – in other words, our chances are roughly 50:50. As you can clearly see, you should never bundle more than three or four bets into a single combo, even if they do involve, as in our example, bets on clear favorites winning. Consider this: Often, less is more – especially when it comes to sports betting! In addition, when betting on favorites always bear in mind the various variables – in other words: Is this a league or a cup match? Often, the team’s stars are allowed to sit out “easier” matches. Also be cautious of matches in the group phase of a tournament, such as the Champions League. Here, you always have to ask yourself: “What, if anything, is on the line for the team I’m considering?” Especially on the last day of the season, when teams that are already assured of promotion decide to field their B-team, unpleasant surprises frequently greet sports tipsters, suffering losses at the hands of teams they had presumed were clear favorites. The same applies, of course, to return legs in knockout rounds, when the first leg had already been a blowout.

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