Surely you have played snooker at some point in your life, be it in the corner bar, at a friend’s house or in a club. Therefore, almost everyone knows how to play snooker. But did you know that snooker is also a sport? And more: did you know that you can bet on snooker tournaments?
In this article we will tell you all about how to bet on professional snooker (also known as pool) tournaments. Come and discover that betting on snooker is as much fun as playing it.
Snooker betting markets
Like the rest of sports betting, snooker betting also has its markets. Knowing these markets is essential to bet well, since each one has its own particularities. Below you will find a short guide with explanations and examples of the snooker betting markets. Check out!
Match winner
The betting market known as the winner of the match is the most common and simple of all. In short, here you will bet on the one who, in your opinion, will be the winner of the match. As simple as that. The odds in this bet are represented with decimal values. The player with the lowest odds is the favourite, the one with the highest odds is the least favourite.
To find out how much you will win if you place a winning bet, simply multiply the money you have wagered by the chosen player’s odds. To make it easier, let’s see an example:
Yan Bingtao will face Mark Williams in The Masters tournament. According to Bodog, Yan is the favorite at odds of 1.667, while Mark is at odds of 2.15. Let’s say you bet $10 on Mark William to win. If he wins, you will receive a prize of USD 21.50 (USD 10 x 2.15), that is, you will make a profit of USD 11.50.
Handicap
Handicap betting is a bit more complex as it involves more factors, but it is not difficult to understand. The word handicap, in Spanish, means “disadvantage”. In order to balance the match, this type of market gives the least favorite player (considered less technical or inexperienced) an “advantage” in relation to the favorite player.
In the case of handicap in snooker, this advantage is given in total frames. The favorite starts with a −1.5 frame handicap and the other player with +1.5. This means that if you bet on the favourite, in order for your bet to be successful, you will have to win by this difference in frames. Let’s take the example to make it easier:
Continuing with the match between Yan Bingtao and Mark Williams. On the Bodog site, the handicap bets for this match appear as follows: Yan Bingtao −1.5 (2.10) and Mark William +1.5 (1.69). What this figure tells us is that bettors believe that Yan will beat Mark, but by less than 1.5 frames.
Suppose you trust Yan and think he will win by more than 1.5 frames. So he bets $10 at −1.5. If Yan wins by more than 1.5 frames, you’ll get $21, which is a profit of $11.
Correct result
Finally, the last betting market you can bet on at Bodog is the correct result market. A very simple bet in which you have to predict the exact result of the match. To do this, it should be remembered that the game of snooker is played to the best of 11, that is, the player who wins six frames first wins the match.
Following our example, in the case of the match Yan Bingtao vs. Mark Williams, the most probable result among the bettors is 6-4 for Yan, whose odds are at 5.75. Remember: the lowest odds represent the most plausible outcome.
Snooker betting analysis
What is important to know before placing a bet on snooker? The answer to this question is the same for all other sports: everything! That’s right, everything! The more information you have about the game in question, the better chance you have of making a successful bet.
Study the players well, observe their strengths and weaknesses. Take a look at their latest results: number of wins, losses, and when they had their last win and loss. Another good factor that you can analyze is their match history, that is, the results of the last matches in which the two athletes met and the number of victories that each one has in relation to the other.
You can also keep an eye on the pre-match news. Observe how each player prepares for the match, if there are any injuries or technical problems. All this will help you build a complete picture so that you can place your bet. I repeat: the more information, the better!
Conclusion
Playing snooker is great fun, but betting on snooker can be even more fun. As we have just seen, snooker is a very interesting sport for those who like to bet and an opportunity for those who want to learn how to do it. So who are your favorite snooker players?