Little is known about the term VIG and with most punters putting most of their concentrations on betting are mostly not interested in how their wager is charged. Therefore, the word Vigorish is a Yiddish term shortened to Vig and is said to have originate from the Russia word Vigorish. The word Vig has a number of other known terms which include juice, under-juice, the cut, the margin and the house edge, all these terms refer to Vig.
Definition of the word Vig
The term Vig is defined as the fee charged by a bookmaker for accepting a punters wager on a match or sportsbooks events and this usually shown on the bet slip depending on your online betting provider.
So for a given stake amount a commission is charged by the bookmaker and this may vary since there is no constant Vig charged between more than two bookmakers.
The Vig is used as a source of profit for providing and online betting platforms therefore doesn’t depend on the outcome of an event, since they still charge it weather you win or not.
When adjusting their odd values, calculations are done on the Vig and an odd value is done therefore the odd can be higher or lower depending on the Vig charged. This is mostly used as a basis since the Vig charged is independent from the outcome of an event and is usual used by bookmakers as a source of income.
Despite this difference most parts of the world including Africa offer commission charged that range between 2% to 6% and this made possible by competitive betting markets. The bookmakers offer almost unique charges to avoid losing customers in a competitive market and we should always check this charges when reviewing a bookmaker.
However Vig is sometimes confused by the term overround since both terms are closely related and therefore overround only occurs when the sum of total implied probabilities of each potential outcome exceeds 100%.
An example of overround;
Bookmaker decides Liverpool 62% chance of winning a match and Leicester city have a 43% chance then this exceeds 100% and essential taking this wagers on many different outcomes. Therefore adjusting the overround allows bookies to either increase or decrease the Vig on betting line.
This proves that despite the functions being similar they are in fact not identical since one determines whether the other should increase or decrease. You also need to understand that the odds are not an exact representation of what the bookmakers expects to happen and since the Vig is not included in the betting line as the overround.
Understanding the standard Vig on your sportsbooks
Since the Vig charged differs from one event to the other and the type of wager you place so here will see an easy way to identify that cut on particular sportsbooks.
Totals that consists of over/ under goals have usually equal odds and this means that you have to risk the same amount on the wager regardless of the favorite to win. The Vig in this particular sportsbook line is generally standardized and covers most of the events.
However the standardized Vig on over/ under goals is an easy way to compare the general rate and this gives as the simple idea on how different sportsbooks are charged.
The Vigorish Variations
The odds will start changing when more money comes in so doing the bookmaker may change odds to balance the dynamic potential on payouts on each side and therefore preventing the risk of exposure. These precautions taken ensure that the house can be able to pay and still profit from the sportsbook event.
The importance of Vig in online betting
By adjusting the odds changes the Vig charged and this results in the overround to increase or decrease. However games that are least given attention and have less money placed on them, they tend to have a higher Vig commission since the house has less room for making that error on payout. The higher cut rate acts as insurance for the bookie in the event the results are surprising and this is opposite on popular events since the bookmaker has more money at their disposal the cut rate is lower.
The bottom line on the Cut rate is that it changes depending on the particular betting line you are betting on and if the betting line is popular/ hot sportsbook the Vig charged will be lower. If the line of betting involves less betted on sportsbooks the Vig/ cut is higher and this in simple terms means that if more money is getting in then less ‘juice’ is charged.
How do we deal with the Vig?
Always avoid betting multiple games, bet on fewer games/ events to get a low Vig rates and also keep in mind on the particular line you are betting on. Different sportsbook line attract different ‘juice’ to be charged and this should always be considered when picking you bet slip. In short play single or double picking fewer matches reduces the Vig rate.
Check different bookies in your locality to get offers on lower Vig rates this possible since bookies are often pushed to attract new or retain their existing customers by luring them with lower ‘juice rates’. Established bookmaker tend to offer much lower charges on Vig commission compared to new bookies trying to make money out of the Vig variations and this mostly results in you losing more to them.
Avoid picking betting lines that are more prone to higher Vig rates and always pick less juiced betting lines like the popular total goals line. Punters have over the years benefited more through this kind of betting line and also selection of fewer games/ events.
Free bets are usually not charged Vig commissions and as a result by picking playing on a particular line we get to enjoy easy profits. Lastly always understand how you bookmaker works get inside their ‘head’ and win.
