We have received a very positive response to our Money Management Series. As suspected, most recreational gamblers know very little about proper money management. Today, in Part 4 of this series, we want to discuss selectivity. Most of you will be very surprised at what we are about to write, as it is contrary to popular belief. It may even ruffle the feathers of certain professionals that preach selectivity.

Question, would you rather win 60% betting a very select few games or win 54% betting many more games.

Most amateurs would say 60% is better and some professionals would agree. To us, it depends on what the main objective is. If the main objective is to have a pretty winning percentage and minimize risk, then playing a limited amount of games and picking 60% is better. However, that is not our objective and we doubt it is the objective of most gamblers.

The main objective for serious players is to win the most amount of money. It is certainly what we are in it for, as we bet on sports for a living! We depend on it to feed our children and put roofs over our head. We advise all of our clients to play the same way we do, because that is the only way we know how.

You are probably wondering what the hell we are talking about. How can 54% make more money than 60%? It is actually very straightforward.

Let us present a very simple illustration of a very complex concept. Many other factors could serve to further prove this point, such as the accelerated % of bankroll theory, etc. Unfortunately, it would take pages and pages to demonstrate. For now, let us illustrate the main theory.

Handicapper A bets 100 games at $100 per bet. He wins 60 and loses 40, which means he is picking 60% winners. 60 wins multiplied by $100 equals $6000 in gross winnings. 40 losses multiplied by $110 equals $4400 in gross losses. $6000 in wins minus $4400 in losses equals a net profit of $1600.

Handicapper B bets 1000 games at $100 per bet. He wins 540 and loses 460, which means he is picking 54% winners. 540 wins multiplied by $100 equals $54,000 in gross winnings. 460 losses multiplied by $110 equals $50,600 in gross losses. $54,000 in wins minus $50,600 in losses equals a net profit of $3,400.

Handicapper B more than doubled the profit of handicapper A. If you compound these profits with the percentage of bankroll system we advise, Handicapper B ends up making more than triple that of Handicapper A.

The down side is, when you are on a cold streak you can take a beating. This is one of the reasons we advise a small percentage of bankroll per bet (refer to previous Money Management Part 1). So what does this all mean?

To us, it means we will bet any game that has a higher than 52.3% (break even point with 10% vig) chance of winning. If you pass up on a game that is a 54% winning proposition in the name of selectivity, you are leaving money on the table.

Certainly, the more bets you make, the more money at risk. If you are adverse to risk, then sports betting all together may not be the best investment for you. For those, we would advise a money market account, US Treasury bonds or a CD. However, if you are serious about bottom line profit betting on sports, selectivity doesn�t pay.

How depressingly gray would be a world where everything is governed by a set of universal rules rigorously shaping everything? Isn’t it better if we strike back with a chance to confound the tweed coated straight laced brigade and weave a little exotic odds into life that are not really approved of. It is precisely this change that inspires even the most sober of us to risk a couple of quid. But the art of a successful competition is to not only create a game that has a real chance of success for the entry stake, but allows us to lose that stake without significant damage to our ongoing lifestyle. Placing bets on football matches using various tips and tactics helps us achieve this motive.

In this article we shall thus discuss about the major tips and tactics that help us make the best of our money. Football betting is not like the other traditional casino games. Those games are games of chance where the house always has a built-in edge. Football betting is different in that you can choose which games to wager on and which games to pass on. By only betting on games that have a positive expected return and passing on games that have negative expected return, the football betting enthusiast can thus turn the tables on the sports book and put himself in the position to always have the edge.

Basic knowledge of sports handicapping is required
Football betting requires a basic knowledge of sports handicapping. You need to understand what goes into determining the spread and how to arrive at an educated guess at the game outcome. Football handicapping is part science and part art. The best football handicappers not only know how to analyze the statistics, they also have an instinct gained from years of experience. To acquire these skills and instincts the punter needs to do handicapping for him self using picks and recommendations from other bettors as simply a starting point.

Handicapping is all about acquiring and using the right information
Handicapping is all about acquiring and using the right information. You are attempting to predict the future. You do that by looking at what has happened in the past, which is where statistics are useful, and by looking at the current situation, which is where the latest news is critical.

However one should always remember that even the best handicappers are rarely right more than 58% of the time. Our goal should be to win more than 50% of the bets.

How depressingly gray would be a world where everything is governed by a set of universal rules rigorously shaping everything? Isn’t it better if we strike back with a chance to confound the tweed coated straight laced brigade and weave a little exotic odds into life that are not really approved of. It is precisely this change that inspires even the most sober of us to risk a couple of quid. But the art of a successful competition is to not only create a game that has a real chance of success for the entry stake, but allows us to lose that stake without significant damage to our ongoing lifestyle. Placing bets on football matches using various tips and tactics helps us achieve this motive.

In this article we shall thus discuss about the major tips and tactics that help us make the best of our money. Football betting is not like the other traditional casino games. Those games are games of chance where the house always has a built-in edge. Football betting is different in that you can choose which games to wager on and which games to pass on. By only betting on games that have a positive expected return and passing on games that have negative expected return, the football betting enthusiast can thus turn the tables on the sports book and put himself in the position to always have the edge.

Basic knowledge of sports handicapping is required
Football betting requires a basic knowledge of sports handicapping. You need to understand what goes into determining the spread and how to arrive at an educated guess at the game outcome. Football handicapping is part science and part art. The best football handicappers not only know how to analyze the statistics, they also have an instinct gained from years of experience. To acquire these skills and instincts the punter needs to do handicapping for him self using picks and recommendations from other bettors as simply a starting point.

Handicapping is all about acquiring and using the right information
Handicapping is all about acquiring and using the right information. You are attempting to predict the future. You do that by looking at what has happened in the past, which is where statistics are useful, and by looking at the current situation, which is where the latest news is critical.

However one should always remember that even the best handicappers are rarely right more than 58% of the time. Our goal should be to win more than 50% of the bets.

One of the most incredible gambles in recent football history was under way last night as an unprecedented amount of cash was wagered on one of today's minor Scottish games. This prompted initial fears in gambling industry circles that a fix was on the cards.

The money came pouring in, both in high street chains and on betting exchanges, for Peterhead to beat Forfar this afternoon in the Scottish Second Division. Typically such fixtures would attract a few thousand pounds, or even figures in the low hundreds. But by 8.30pm last night, pounds 187,000 had been staked by punters on the Betfair exchange alone. Of this, pounds 185,000 had beenbeton Peterhead to win the game.

To put this in context, by the same stage last night, today's high-profile lunchtime game in the Premiership - Bolton Wanderers against Liverpool - had attracted pounds 77,000 from Betfair punters, while pounds 71,000 had been bet on Charlton v Arsenal and pounds 7,000 on Sheffield United v Middlesbrough.

By any standards, the gamble on Peterhead, backed down from just under evens to 1/2 by late last night, was huge.

One credible explanation for the rush of money on Peterhead is that Forfar are in the midst of such a debilitating injury crisis that their manager, George Shaw, has had to list himself as a trial- ist to make up the numbers. Forfar are second bottom of the division and Peterhead only one place higher, but such is the lack of manpower at the former that punters evidently believe the game is a gimme.

McCardell is playing great, but I already have Gates, and I don't like starting them both. I'm betting that McCardell will cool off in a couple of weeks. And Lewis has stunk so far.

On the other hand, Brown is decent and RW could be a nice insurance policy. Or MIA could start a run by committee mid-season. Fitzgerald suffers from an unstable QB situation.

What should I do?

Gene Wang: The man? Hardly, but thanks for the props. The trade sounds like a great chance for you to bolster your lineup. I generally am against starting two players (especially receivers) from the same team. You're hamstriging yourself by starting two receivers (or in this case a receiver and TE) from the same team because only one can catch a TD on any given play. I know Fitz has QB problems, but I still believe Denny Green can get that offense going in the right direction.

Harry Redknapp, the Portsmouth manager, yesterday faced the Football Association hierarchy who are looking into an alleged pounds 16m betting sting.

Redknapp met with the FA's compliance department in a secret session at their London headquarters. It is understood the department asked Redknapp to produce phone records and bank statements covering the period last year when he left Southampton for their rivals in the wake of heavy betting activity.

Last night, senior FA sources said they wanted to stop illegal betting in the game. It was stressed that Redknapp, 59, was not being accused of insider dealing but was being given a chance to prove his innocence for good
An FA source said: "We're not accusing Harry of anything but there is a very easy way to resolve this, which is for him to produce all his phone and bank records to put clear water between himself and the betting activity at the time."

It is understood the pounds 1m-a-year manager was officially warned that failure to comply with the demand could lead to the ultimate punishment of suspension from his job. The FA started an investigation into a possible betting scam following heavy betting on Redknapp to become Portsmouth's manager while still in charge at Southampton. While pounds 16.7m was traded on the betting exchange Betfair, that figure was slightly misleading because of the "churn" that occurs on betting exchanges. In fact, punters betting on Redknapp moving to Portsmouth actually won only pounds 864,000, but this was still deemed to be a significant and irregular amount for such a market.

One of the most incredible gambles in recent football history was under way last night as an unprecedented amount of cash was wagered on one of today's minor Scottish games. This prompted initial fears in gambling industry circles that a fix was on the cards.

The money came pouring in, both in high street chains and on betting exchanges, for Peterhead to beat Forfar this afternoon in the Scottish Second Division. Typically such fixtures would attract a few thousand pounds, or even figures in the low hundreds. But by 8.30pm last night, pounds 187,000 had been staked by punters on the Betfair exchange alone. Of this, pounds 185,000 had beenbeton Peterhead to win the game.
To put this in context, by the same stage last night, today's high-profile lunchtime game in the Premiership - Bolton Wanderers against Liverpool - had attracted pounds 77,000 from Betfair punters, while pounds 71,000 had been bet on Charlton v Arsenal and pounds 7,000 on Sheffield United v Middlesbrough.

By any standards, the gamble on Peterhead, backed down from just under evens to 1/2 by late last night, was huge.

One credible explanation for the rush of money on Peterhead is that Forfar are in the midst of such a debilitating injury crisis that their manager, George Shaw, has had to list himself as a trial- ist to make up the numbers. Forfar are second bottom of the division and Peterhead only one place higher, but such is the lack of manpower at the former that punters evidently believe the game is a gimme.