There are many factors that come into play to make you a good sports bettor. They include knowledge, research, discipline and bankroll management, just to name a few.

While all of them are important for various reasons, there’s an underlying trait to all of them that ties them together – they are all part, individually and collectively, of a comfort zone.

Finding these comfort zones is a critical key to long-term success. Although it might sound like a simple concept on the surface, but it’s one that shouldn’t be taken for granted if you intend to take sports betting seriously.


The comfort zone can range cover factors ranging from your expertise in a given sport, to the amount of money you feel comfortable wagering and even the type of sports book you prefer to use.  For instance, the comfort zone for your bankroll might be different than it would be for someone else, but you have to find a level that works for you. There are some successful business people out there who make millions in their profession but would not feel comfortable wagering $20 on a sporting event. On the other hand, there are bettors who could put the only $1,000 to their name on a game without breaking a sweat.


While these are extreme examples, it shows you the difference in comfort zones between people. Yours should probably fall somewhere in between; in order to be successful sports bettor, you must detach yourself from the real value of money to some extent. Your bets should be seen more like business assets or stocks, the value of which will be determined over the long haul. If you are preoccupied with what you could have bought with the money you spent on a losing wager, you will not be able to confidently make sports bets.


On the other end of the spectrum, recklessly wagering your entire bankroll on one game is going to one of two things: double it or leave you broke. This also isn’t an advisable path, although the ability to make a decent-size wager when you have the best of it is an attribute that comes in handy.

An advisable course of action is to have a set bankroll from which you will make your sports wagers, and a standard unit of play that you will use, likely in the range of 2-4 percent. Depending on your confidence in the pick, you can vary the amount of your wager but you should rarely, if ever, bet more than 10 percent of your bankroll on one sporting event. How often you should do so depends in large part on your comfort zone in making such a wager.


Comfort zones also apply to the sports on which you choose to wager. Most bettors tend to have one sport in which they have superior expertise, perhaps from a history of either playing or following it, or both. Once you’ve gained an understanding how sports betting works, and do a little extra research, it’s not too difficult to become an expert bettor. If you can show a win rate of 60 percent or better one specific sport, it’s clear that this is your comfort zone.


Where you need to exercise caution is in betting sports with which you are not an expert. It’s easy to get carried away with the confidence you gain from profiting in one sport and assume it will translate into another. Until you know you have done the proper research and homework to wager on another sport, and you have the results to prove it, you are probably better off sticking in your comfort zone with your best sport.  


Another area in which comfort zones play a factor is the format you use to place your bets. Many people prefer the convenience and speed with which they can place bets through an online sports book, and have no problems managing their money using this method.However, others find it’s easy to lose their financial discipline when another bet is just a  click away, and they prefer the traditional method of handing cash to an employee at a sports book.


Those who use online sports books often have to wait at least a few days for their money if they request a payment for processing. While this does not bother many bettors, some prefer the live sports book setting in which you can collect your winnings as soon as the game has ended.

No matter which method you prefer, just make sure you stick with what feels most comfortable. In the long run, comfort zones add up to a big advantage in sports betting.