If you're new to sports betting there is something you should know. You're going to lose money from time to time and it's ok! This shouldn't worry you too much as this is all part of the learning curve. Don't ever expect perfection from betting, this is unattainable. The best bettors and handicappers in the world rarely make it to a 60% win rate. In fact, to be a profitable bettor you only need to be worried about attaining a 53% rate or better (assuming all bets average the usual -110 juice). 

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So you're going to make mistakes here and there and it's important to view these as the positive that they are. If you are good at keeping track of your bets, then you could easily start building knowledge about why and when you typically make mistakes and turn it into useful information. This is called progress! It's important to not get frustrated about these mistakes, and know that even if you get really good at this you will still make some mistakes down the road. The best handicappers and bettors do and it's only because sports betting is impossible to master. Nobody will ever figure out how to predict things 100%, because at the end of the day these games still need to be played...by humans...who make mistakes.

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With all this being said however, there are still some mistakes that bettors make time and time again. It's best to avoid these as they will drain your money fast! I will outline some of them below:

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• Poor Money Management​​​​

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This is probably the most common mistake made among bettors, novice and expert alike. It's one of the most important aspects of becoming a smarter bettor, but it's amazing how many bettors are irresponsible with their bankroll management. Poor money management has the potential to cause more financial damage than any of the other mistakes outlined here. One of the biggest issues involves overreacting to previous bets, or winning and losing streaks. Luckily, this is one of the easiest mistakes to avoid, or change if you know this is already a weakness for you. 

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The first step to better money management is employing a bankroll, which we cover in our blog post entitled Building A Bankroll. The second step is to be smart about what you are wagering per bet. We cover this is in our Picking A Staking Plan blog post. I encourage all new bettors to employ a strict flat (or percentage based) betting system. The typical wager should be between 1-5% of your bankroll, depending on how conservative or aggressive you want to be. The majority of bettors should wager around 2% of their current bankroll. Those who are serious about making a profit with their betting will ultimately fail unless they follow good money management. ​​

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• Overreacting To News Or Trends

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It amazes me when I talk sports with people and they put so much faith into the most recent news or trends surrounding a team, looking only as deep as maybe their last four or five games and no further. While it is possible for a team to go through hot and cold streaks the smart bettor works with large sample sizes, looking at the whole season. If we are talking trends then this means looking back many years at trends compared to certain variables. 

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If you take a look at a team on a hot streak for instance, usually they will be overvalued by the bookmakers because they know people will want to bet for them. The truth is streaks never last forever and if you keep chasing the hot teams you will lose your money based on losing that value when it hits and losing the whole bet when it doesn't. This is why it's best to buy on bad news and sell on good, just like the stock market. This is what we call value. 

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Bettors also routinely put too much faith in trends that don't make any sense to the betting world. For example, last year the Pittsburgh Steelers finished the season and playoffs with a 13-4 record, winning 76.5% of their games. If you would've bet them every game last year, because of the spread, you would have gone 7-10, winning only 41.2% of those bets. Definitely not a profitable strategy.

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• Having Crazy Expectations

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Most gamblers who bet on sports ultimately lose. This is common knowledge (or at least it should be). Still, many people start betting on sports with unrealistic assumptions. They feel like they know quite a bit about sports or a specific sport for that matter and they feel like they could make quite a bit of money. These people are mistaken.

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It is totally possible to make a decent long term profit betting on sports. While most people lose, there are still some that win over time. This doesn't mean that winning is easy. It is not. It is tremendously difficult and demanding, and it certainly requires much more than ordinary sports knowledge. In fact, even the most knowledgeable in sports do not necessarily have what it takes to be truly successful.

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This doesn't mean that you shouldn't even try but it is important to have realistic expectations. If you come in thinking that winning will be a breeze you are setting yourself up for massive disappointment. Novices do get lucky sometimes, and like Tom Petty says, even the losers do to, but they are the exception and not the norm.  If want any chance at all at turning a profit know that there will plenty of hard work and grinding involved. You are going to have be the type of person to enjoy that if you are going to have any fun betting on sports. While making money is the ultimate goal, it isn't worth it if the grind is not enjoyable to you.

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• Betting Too Often

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There is an endless amount of information and tools out there for beginners. A key, but usually overlooked element when sports betting is having the patience to wait for the right opportunities to come along. Some bettors place 15-20 bets a night. Patience is not an attribute I would say that the average bettor has, especially not those that are just beginning. Many bettors try to bet too many sports, while others focus on one sport they have expertise in but bet every single game. Both strategies can be troubling. By not finding the very best bets you risk dwindling your bankroll to the vig (juice). 

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It's good to take a more selective approach. Try focusing your attention on one or two sports that you seem to be doing well at. Instead of betting every single game in a sport try finding value or finding opportunities where you can make a good judgement call about what is likely to happen. The objective is to find the best bets you possibly can. 

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• Not Shopping Around

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A lot of bettors have all their money tied into one sportsbook. This severely limits you in finding good value. It is extremely important to have access to many different books because they will almost always have differing lines. There are many different types of sportsbooks. Some are better for the square bettor (offering better underdog lines). Some fit the sharp betting niche (offering better lines for the favorite). Some, known as reduced juice books offer a lot of bets with a discounted vig. Having access to all these different types of books will mean that you can often find lines at better than market value. This means you won't need a winning percentage as high in order to start to see some profits. 

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• Betting With Your Heart (or Gut)

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More often than not, if a bet is not based on proven facts then it's usually not a good reason to make the bet. If you want to bet on a game just to make it more enjoyable to watch that's probably not a good reason. Same goes for betting on your favorite team, or player. If we're being truthful here I am sure that almost anybody reading this article would be guilty of this. The only good reason to ever make a bet, if you are looking to make a long term profit, is if you have identified an opportunity that you can capitalize on. Betting based on gut feel or because you want to root for something will almost always cost you money in the long run. If you are only betting for fun and not necessarily to make a profit then by all means, eat your heart out. Just remember to do it within a bankroll that you have created for yourself, please.

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These are the most important mistakes in my book. Have something to add? Have a question? Feel free to email us at RocSharpBets@yahoo.com