The world of sports gambling is exhilarating. Before plunging into this high-stakes world, one must establish a solid bankroll to ensure financial security and long-term enjoyment. This blog post will guide you through the crucial steps to build your sports gambling bankroll.
First and foremost, let's understand what a bankroll is. In sports gambling, a bankroll is a set amount of money that one dedicates to wagering on sports. The key word here is "set"; it should be an amount of money that, if lost, would not drastically affect your financial wellbeing. Remember, gambling should be fun, not financially damaging.
Where Do My Initial Funds Come From?
The first step in building a bankroll for sports betting is to get a job with a legitimate income. I know this is a highly unpopular opinion, but one has to get their funds from somewhere. It's almost impossible to simply start your sports betting journey as a professional. The exception would be if you are a trust fund kid or were gifted money in some way, shape, or form. In this case, you can skip to our next step.
What Is a Good Budget Starting Point?
The second step in building your bankroll is to set a budget. This should be a sum of money that you're comfortable losing without it negatively impacting your lifestyle. Avoid dipping into essential funds for bills, savings, or other crucial needs. Remember, sports gambling is risky, and the potential for loss is just as significant as the chance for profit. A general rule of thumb, for starters, is to set aside no more than 2% of your disposable income (or net worth) for sports gambling.
A few quick breakdowns:
Salary of $25k = Starting Bankroll of $500
Salary of $50k = Starting Bankroll of $1,000
Salary of $100k = Starting Bankroll of $2,000
Salary of $250k = Starting Bankroll of $5,000
I Understand the Bankroll. Now What?
The last step involves splitting up your bankroll evenly into a variety of different sports betting accounts. As we've discussed before, you want to maximize the amount of betting accounts so that you can price shop between different sports books. At a minimum, you should split your money between three sportsbooks, however the ideal number is five. Anymore than five sportsbooks for a beginner could be a little bit overwhelming. More advanced bettors should maximize the number of sportsbooks as this increases the number of opportunities to make money.
When placing bets, one should be using the Kelly Criterion so that their risk is tied to their bankroll (more on this in a later blog). It's worth reevaluating your bankroll at once a week so that the Kelly Criterion will accurately provide you with correct bet size.
Conclusion
Building a sports gambling bankroll isn't just about the money – it's about creating a framework for responsible and sustainable gambling. It allows you to enjoy the excitement of sports betting while maintaining your financial health and preventing problem gambling behavior. By setting a budget, developing a staking plan, keeping track of your bets, defining a betting strategy, and maintaining discipline, you can embark on your sports gambling journey with confidence.
Next Article
