What Does Buying Points Mean In NFL Betting?

NFL bettors have the option to buy points if they wish to move the spread of points in their favor. Buying points come at a price, though, so as a sports bettor, make the most out of it. Nevertheless, it can be useful in certain situations. Many sports betting enthusiasts have lost NFL games by agonizingly close points against the spread, and to combat that, sports bettors buy points.

It doesn’t matter if you’re an experienced sports bettor or are going to bet in an NFL game for the first time—you have to know when and how to buy points to push the game to your advantage. Fortunately, there are now handicapping websites like Big Al Sports to help you make informed decisions and become a winning bettor.

Selling and buying points are probably the most underutilized tools typical bettors have at their disposal. This post takes a look at what buying points mean and why it is essential for you.

What Does It Mean To Buy Points?

If you want to obtain a favorable spread, you need to sacrifice odds, and you can do it by buying points. It increases your chances of winning.

Say, for example, you’re going to bet on Week 1 of the 2020 NFL season between the Arizona Cardinals and the Atlanta Falcons. If you’re going to bet for the underdogs Cardinals with a 2.5 point, you can opt to buy a half-point to move their odds to 3. What it means is that the Falcons have to win by 3 points or more for you to win the bet. Again, you’ll only do this if you think that it’s going to work in your favor.

Keep in mind that you have to pay more when you decide to buy points, especially when you’re going to move onto the “magic numbers” in NFL, which are 3 and 7. So, instead of having to wager only $110 to win $100, you’ll have to pay $10 more to make it possible. If you choose to move onto the almighty 3 points, you’re going to wager an additional $20 on top of the standard bet.

Buying Points Come At A Cost

The cost of buying points when betting on NFL games depends on the type of odds. Learn more about them below.

• Standard Odds – When you buy half a point with standard odds, it will cost you a total of 1.0. However, there are some exceptions, especially for the NFL. Say, for example, if you’re going to buy half a point from +2.5 to +3 or -3.5 to -3, it will charge you a total of .25. You can also purchase half a point from +6.5 to +7 or -7.5 to -7 but get charged for a total of 1.5.
• Off-Standard Odds – When you buy half a point with off-standard odds, the cost will depend on whether the odds are less than or greater than -110. The exceptions for the NFL games discussed above also apply. If the odds are higher than -110 or positive, you’ll get charged for bringing the odds to -110 before using the .10 or 2.5 in NFL games. If the odds are less than -110, the .10 charge gets applied directly or 2.5 in NFL.

When To Buy Points?

As already mentioned above, you’ll only buy points if you think that moving the spread will increase your chances of winning. There’s a need to look for other information such as power rankings and others to know about which teams are favorites and which are underdogs. Try coming up with an informed guess of the number of points a team is going to win or lose against their opponent based on the information you’ve gathered.

Before buying points, make sure that you have studied the team you’ll place your bet on, and you have gathered every bit of information to help you make an informed decision. Remember that you’re going to pay more when you tease, so make the most out of it by making it count.

Conclusion

Buying points means purchasing half-points when betting on NFL games. And while it’s something that sports betting circles debate on highly, it’s still an excellent betting strategy, especially when bettors do it appropriately. Keep in mind, though, that different sportsbooks have varying rules when it comes to buying points, so make sure to check on them before taking action. Also, make sure that you’re willing to spend more to move the spread in your favor. And since you’re going to spend more, make it count by carefully analyzing how likely a favorite or underdog team will perform in the game.