Where can you find plenty of underdog wagering line values in online sports betting?  For starters, look at the lowest scoring leagues.  MLB, NHL and UEFA quickly come to mind.  Why look there?  Because the underdogs win more often in low scoring games.  Let’s compare MLB to NBA, for example.

In 2008 the worst team in baseball (based on regular season wins) finished the regular season with 59 wins and 102 losses - winning about 37% of their games.  The best team in baseball finished the regular season with 100 wins and 62 losses - winning about 62% of their games.  That’s all that separated the worst from the best…25%.

Now lets look at the NBA - a high scoring league.  In the 2008-2009 season the best team in basketball finished the regular season with 66 wins and 16 losses - an astounding 81% victories.  The worst team in basketball finished the regular season with 17 wins and 65 losses - a painful-for-their-fans 21%.  Separating the top from the bottom in the NBA…60%.

What does all this mean?  It means low scoring sport underdogs will win more often than high scoring sport underdogs.  There seems to be some innate sense in this - more opportunities to score means the better team has more opportunities to show off all the skills that make them better than the competition. 

What does this mean to the bettor?  It means that more value can be found in betting the underdogs of low scoring sports.  The odds on the underdogs are shorter, making the spreads tighter (ever hear of an NBA dime line?) therefore making values more prevalent and easier to find.  

Does this mean you should not look at high scoring sports like basketball for values?  Absolutely not!  If you can find a line on an underdog that is better than market value on a sport that offers long odds and bigger spreads, then you have found a real dandy!  They tend to be better values, they are just much more difficult to find.

Enjoy the fine hunting that the low scoring sports permit!