Must have sportsbooks

[sublime]

I occasionly receive PM's from people asking what sportsbooks they 'need' to have. There are also numerous posts on here asking what books are ok. Most are just referred over to the review site, which is ok but not enough IMO.

One has to understand that SBR is an affiliate (a huge one) and while they have a well deserved reputation as a site with integrity, I often come across books that they have as rated as low as C- that I probably couldn't live without.

First and foremost are the A rated books that are needed to be able to judge the market etc.

A rated books

www.pinnaclesports.com: The reduced juice at this site is awesome and puts them ahead of other shops in their league (Olympic/CRIS) The bonus money at this book is limited to your first deposit, but the low juice more than compensates for this. You should have money at this site at all times.

www.2betdsi.com(DSI): A sister site of CRIS, that deals the same lines as them. I choose them over CRIS itself, because they offer more bonus money and more free payouts. A solid book that will have any line you are looking for.

www.bodog.com: A VERY vanilla book that doesn't have any reduced juice, puts up lines late and has smaller limits than the other big boys. However, when you first sign up with them you will be dealt a 'square' line that can be exploited (if your placing +EV bets to begin with [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]) Their bonus structure is pretty good (10% on all deposits with 3x rollover) and they offer payouts for free for active customers. I can live without this book, but thats because I get dealt a sharp line. I still like to grab some bonus money from them on a regular basis.

www.thegreek.com(Olympic): Solid book, but the bonus money sucks and they are sharp. I see no 'real' need to have an account here. As a matter of fact, thier sister site www.BETJAMAICA.com offers the same stabilitry with better bonus money.

Carib Sportsbook: A solid book that has some really good weekday promos, especially in the NBA (-105 for an hour each day). The bonus system sucks, but they still have more to offer tham Olympic and Bodog sans bonus money.

B Level books (note these are not based on SBR ratings really, just my offhand knowledge)

www.mansion.com (Mansion): A MUST have. No two ways about it. They have a sportsbook that offers +6 +100 2 team NFL teasers, AND a sports exchange that eqautes to -105 juice. They have no bonus money, but it is made up for with the reduced juice. ALong with Pinnacle you are reducing the houses juice down to -103 or so. You should ALWAYS have money here.

www.betascade.com (Cascade): -105 juice (its an option you must choose when making initial deposit) No bonus money, but again the reduced juice makes up for it. They are a sharp(ish) book, but occasionly deal an odd line which can make this place a great combo with Pinny/Mansion) I have money here at all times.

www.vipsports.com (VIP) sportsbook: Good deposit bonuses and decent promos/rewards. I dont feel the ened to have money here, and since being labeled a bonus abuser am basically not wanted anyways.

www.skybook.com (Skybook): Home of the free 1/2 pt. A MUST have during the NBA season and still good during the football year. The free half point loses its value in the NFL because they dont allow you to get it on/off the 3/7. Again, still a must for hoops.

www.5dimes.com (5 Dimes): A must for baseball (nickel lines overnight) Ok bonus structure. Outside of baseball I dont consdier this book essential, but still ok to have.
www.bowmansbet.com (Bowmans): Another book that will give you a square line when you sign up. This alone is worth depositing with them. They also are a solid book and offeran ok deposit bonus is I recall.

www.bet365.com (Bet 365): Almost the same deal as Bowmans, except they deal one line that occasionly is a little off from the major offshore joints.

Books that have subpar ratings on SBR that I feel you HAVE to have money at:

www.sportsinteraction.com (Sports Interaction): Slow payouts and not all that great cusomer service (compared to OLY/PINNY/BODOG etc) but have some AWESOME dog lines. I feel the need to have money here at all times. Despite the slow payouts and such, I have always been paid and feel safe having 5-10 units at this shop. The initial deposit bonus is decent also.

www.wagermall.com (Wagermall): A collection of 12 sportsbooks rolled into one. The daily promos are really good and you will usually be able to find some slow line moves here, they also have 3 books that offer +100 6 pt teasers. Decent bonus structure, but I am pretty sure they charge for withdrawels. Make sure you check.

I also recommend having two or so books that you are just usuing to collect bonus money at then withdrawing. There are TONS to choose from, so I will just give some guidelines:

Stick to C+ or better ratings from SBR with these. There are so many to choose from I have not found the need to go below this rating (I will at some point).

Make sure to check the rollover amount. 3x is standard and ok. Make sure about the lock in time, some books require you to keep funds with them for 30 or 60 days to keep the bonus. Again, you will find out on your own what you can live with. I just got a 100% match on a $200 deposit, but have to keep it thier for 6x and 60days. No biggie to me, bit for others that may not be the best way to go.

Also, free withdrawels are important so check to see what they offer. Most have one a month, some once every two weeks. While I prefer to never pay for withdrawels, in some cases it is worth it(when getting the best price on the market outweighs fee etc). While bonus whoring books, you dont ever want to pay withdrawel fees. Find books that offer occasional freebies.

Track your own bets to see if you have met requirements yet. You DO NOT want to be labeled a bonus whore so you can get future reups, so by not emailing them 30x and asking if you haver met the reqs you can fly under radar. Make sure to be carefull calculating the rollover amount and I usually make sure I have easily gone over before withdrawing. It entices the book to send you future emails about good deposit bonus reups.

Hmm. That should do it. Feel free to ask any questions, and anybody else can add some gem of books they have.


~Mike

PS. The spelling in this post is awful, but my spell checker is acting up and I am too lazy to edit. [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[llabb]

Great post, great ingo. I have some of these, which I am very happy with, but learned about several books I need to check out.

I am most interested in NBA wagers and props, and Entertainment wagers, as these are often soft. I primarily use Pinnacle, Bodog, and WSEX. Will check out Skybook, Mansion, and Carib.

Any other tips for lines, juice, and bonuses for NBA or entertainment betting?

[sublime]

[ QUOTE ]
Great post, great ingo. I have some of these, which I am very happy with, but learned about several books I need to check out.

I am most interested in NBA wagers and props, and Entertainment wagers, as these are often soft. I primarily use Pinnacle, Bodog, and WSEX. Will check out Skybook, Mansion, and Carib.

Any other tips for lines, juice, and bonuses for NBA or entertainment betting?

[/ QUOTE ]

For NBA props, I would have BET365. Just be aware they will cut your limts real quick on those bets.

As for NBA sides and totals, just having SKYBOOK along with a few other mentioned above will be good enough.

[MyTurn2Raise]

excellent...we should add this to the FAQ

[jayheaps]

another key thing about Bodog is they tend to be late in moving their lines.

[jayheaps]

I'd add sportsbook.com to the list as well. I consider it a must have because they also tend to be late moving lines.

[sublime]

[ QUOTE ]
I'd add sportsbook.com to the list as well. I consider it a must have because they also tend to be late moving lines.

[/ QUOTE ]

I put them in the group of books I will whore. They are really no different than the 20 other books I have whored in the past year or so.

[Losing all]

Good list. I'll add canbet to the A group. Decent bonus for smaller players, -107 on NFL sides and totals. Solid book.

Carib's -102 tuesday on NFL sides is very nice.

[sublime]

[ QUOTE ]
Good list. I'll add canbet to the A group. Decent bonus for smaller players, -107 on NFL sides and totals. Solid book.

Carib's -102 tuesday on NFL sides is very nice.

[/ QUOTE ]

Canbet is good for a newer (smaller) player.

Is the software still awful?

[Losing all]

I don't have any problems with it, you can confirm quickly. It is ugly as hell though, if that's what you're talking about.