Most people placing bets with local bookies lose money, just like most people who place bets with established sportsbooks. But a few smart sports bettors have found a special secret way to make money betting with local bookies.
Here’s a complete guide on how to hack local bookies for profit. And don’t worry; this trick isn’t illegal or unethical.
What Is a Local Bookie?
When I started betting on sports, my only options were to find someone I knew who was willing to bet or make a bet with the local bookie. Unfortunately, if I wanted to make a bet in an actual sportsbook, I had to travel to Las Vegas.
Before you get lost thinking about how old I must be and how long I’ve been betting on sports, the important thing here is that many sports bettors have never placed a bet with a bookie.
A bookie is basically a sportsbook but run by a local person. Some bookies run their business out of a local bar, while others run their business by phone or in person at a different location. Most small communities have at least one local bookie, but if you don’t travel in the right circles, you might not know anything about them. Ask your friends you know who like to bet on games where they place their bets.
The odds are that at least one of them is working with a local bookie. In most jurisdictions, bookies are doing something that’s technically illegal.
Please read the section in this post about the dangers of placing wagers with local bookies before you start using the strategies in this post. I don’t want you to do anything illegal or get in trouble. I do know that in most places, it’s not illegal to make a bet, but it can be illegal to take a bet.
How Local Bookies Set Betting Lines
Most local bookies set their lines by copying the lines from one of the big sportsbooks that operate online. You can pull up lines from all f the big sportsbooks, and there are even sites that list the odds and lines from many different books side by side.
Copying lines from a big sportsbook is fairly safe for local bookies, but it can lead to some short-term danger. If a bookie takes too much action on one side of a line and loses the game, it can put a big hurt on their bankroll.
Bookies make money the same way large sportsbooks do. If they take an even amount of action on each side of a game, the vig they charge guarantees that they make a profit.
And this is where smart bookies can take advantage of their bettor. But it’s also where you can hack the local bookies for profit. Find out how in the next section.
The Profit Hack Only Available with Local Bookies
If you’re a local bookie and you know that most of your clients are going to bet on Alabama, and Alabama is favored by 14 in the big sportsbooks, are you going to offer the same line? Or would you move the line against Alabama and take advantage of your clients who are going to bet on Alabama no matter what?
If Alabama was at – 14, I’d set the line at – 19 or – 20 and see how much action I could get. Of course, a few people will know that your line is off, but most of the people who bet with you aren’t making bets online.
And this is exactly what many local bookies do with the most popular local teams. Do you see how this could be profitable for you as a sports gambler?
If you’re seeing a line that’s been changed this much by a local bookie, you want to bet on the other side of the game. So bet on Alabama’s opponent and take the 19 or 20 points.
Basically, you need to look at the lines offered by every local bookie you know to see if you can find lines that are out of line with the lines offered by the big sportsbooks. Finding lines like this is one of the most profitable sports betting hacks I’ve ever found.
Dangers of Placing Wagers with Local Bookies
I’ve placed plenty of wagers with local bookies over the years and have never had any problems. But that doesn’t mean that I will never have a problem or that you might not have a problem.
As far as I know, it’s not illegal to make a bet, at least where I live. And in most areas, the law won’t come after you for making bets. But it might be a good idea to consult your attorney to learn about the specific laws where you live.
I used to enter a pool every year that was run from the county prosecutor’s office and had been for years. I figured that if the prosecutor was running a betting pool, the odds of getting in trouble for gambling was small. Once again, though, I live in the middle of nowhere. So the view of certain laws might be different where I live than where you live.
With all of the legal options for placing sports bets available now, you don’t have to use a local bookie in most places. But you won’t be able to take advantage of the hack in this post if you’re not betting with local bookies.
It would be best if you collected your winnings as fast as possible after each bet. You can leave a small amount of money with the bookie to place future bets, but don’t get in the habit of leaving much money with them that you’re not using for betting purposes.
The Local Bookie Network Strategy
If you find a local bookie who messes with the lines, you can make a profit. But if you can find one bookie, why can’t you find several?
You won’t find as many local bookies as you used to be able to find, and not every local bookie adjusts his or her lines, but it’s still worth investigating. Look for local bookies in as many communities as you can find close to you. You might be able to develop a network of local bookies where you can check lines every week.
If you do build a network of local bookies, be careful. Many local bookies talk to each other, and if you’re winning consistently at several bookies, the word will get out, and they might stop taking your bets.
Conclusion
I’ve made a lot of money over the years using the simple hack found in this post. Of course, once you learn about this hack, you might wonder why you never thought about it before.
Of course, there are dangers of betting with local bookies, and if you’re not aware of the dangers, you could be in for a rude awakening. But if you know the dangers, you can make an educated decision about your risk.
