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Games & strategy · course 3 of 105

Sports Betting Maths the Bookies Use

Read any odds, American, decimal or fractional, turn a price into the win chance it implies, strip out the bookmaker’s margin and work out expected value. Maths only, no picks.

4 modules

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What it teaches

How to read and convert American (+150 / −110), decimal and fractional odds, work out profit and total return, turn any price into the win chance it implies, see the book’s margin (why −110 on both sides adds up to 104.76%, and why the vig on it is 4.55%), strip the margin to get fair odds, and calculate expected value, including why parlays multiply the margin. The AI asks 3 questions, places you, shows a short card per module, then gives one price problem at a time and checks your answer against keys computed by script with exact fractions.

No picks, no systems. It never says who will win or how much to bet. It shows what a price really says, and why the house edge wins over time.

This is maths for adults where betting is legal. The book’s margin means most bettors lose over time, and this course will show you why.

Problem-gambling help: in the US, the National Problem Gambling Helpline, call or text 1-800-MY-RESET; in the UK, the National Gambling Helpline, 0808 8020 133; elsewhere, your local problem-gambling helpline.

How long

36 items. About 20 rounds if you already know the basics, 50 from scratch, plus a 12-item final: 2-3 sessions (estimate, not timed with a real student). The tutor gives a one-line save code at the end of each session.

The modules

4 modules, drilled one item at a time.

  1. M0

    The words

    Concept questions

  2. M1

    Reading and converting odds

    Maths

  3. M2

    Implied probability and the book’s margin

    Maths

  4. M3

    Expected value and parlays

    Maths

Before it teaches, it asks

  1. 1
    What brings you here: you bet already, you’re curious, or it’s for a class? Which odds format do you see most: American (+150), decimal (2.50) or fractional (3/2)?
    AI voice (ElevenLabs)
  2. 2
    You bet $50 at +180. What’s the profit if it wins, and the total returned?
  3. 3
    What’s the implied probability of +300 (1 decimal)?

What’s exact, and what isn’t

Show

Straight from the course’s own notes.

Computed by script
Every key, with exact fractions and exact rounding; 13 listed wrong answers reproduced by running the mistake, the rest checked to differ from the key.
Sourced
Odds formats, overround vs vig, the $110-to-win-$100 example and parlay rules from Wikipedia (Fixed-odds betting, Vigorish, Parlay, Odds), 21 short quotes matched word for word on 2026-10-10. Helpline numbers in the responsible-gambling rule from the National Council on Problem Gambling and NHS pages, read 2026-10-10.
Your win chance is an input
EV items give you a win chance to use; the course never claims to know a real game’s chance.
Not in it yet
Point spreads and totals, live betting, laws and taxes, staking systems.