The amount of the spread can range widely from sport to sport and event to event. The point spread is the number of scoring units (i.e., points for basketball and football, runs for baseball, goals for hockey and soccer) representing the projected margin of victory for the favorite over the underdog. There are three components of a point spread wager: Taking the early example, if Oklahoma beats Kansas 51-21, a 30-point margin, Kansas would be a heavy loser but cover the spread.
Where a moneyline bet involves picking one team to win outright (or a draw when offered as a potential outcome), the losing team in a point spread bet may still provide a win for bettors, depending on the score of the sporting event. Alternatively, a “push,” when the game result falls exactly on the point spread margin - results in a “voided” or “canceled” bet and means that bettors get their original wagers returned.Ī point spread bet differs from a moneyline bet because the outcome of a spread bet, for bettors, does not always mirror the final result of the sporting event.That means a bet for $110 would win $100, or $11 would win $10, and so on. If bettors choose correctly and win, a sportsbook will pay the bettor in full amount based on the “price” of the wager, which is most commonly -110.
