Asian Handicaps de-Mystified

2013

By Sarge CA

www.simplymakingmoneyonline.net

Asian Handicaps De-Mystified

Contents Page

Introduction 2

What are Asian Handicaps? 3

Asian Handicaps v European Handicaps 4

Why use Asian Handicaps 5

Bookmakers Offering Asian Handicap Odds 8

Asian Handicap Payout Explanation 8

Asian Handicaps De-mystified 9

The Away +2 Asian Handicap In Action 13

Actual Selections Presented In The Blog 16

Conclusion 18

Introduction

In this e-book on Asian Handicaps, I will try to de-mystify what is viewed as an unconventional

form of betting. Whilst this may be the case, it needs to be shown that it has its place amongst

the various types of bets that are employed in these days of online gambling. Indeed, what you

may see by the end, is that it the attributes of Asian Handicaps offer the punter an important

weapon against the bookmakers.

What Asian Handicaps are will be explained in detail. As will their advantages. Here, the

increased scope they bring to the arsenal of the everyday punter will be highlighted. They offer a

lot more value than the traditional way of betting. Add to this their greater flexibility and you

may wonder why you have not used them before.

There are various types of Asian Handicaps. Examine the single and double Asian Handicaps.

Look out for these and understand them so that when you are faced with an Asian Handicap

coupon, you will be ready and appreciate what to do next.

Nobody argues that at first glance Asian Handicaps are not confusing. They are and can be. A

nice little tool is included in this e-book to counteract this. Have a look at the tables produced

that show the outcomes that accompany many of the popular sub-markets of Asian Handicaps.

This is intended to help better understand Asian Handicaps.

There are numerous ways that Asian Handicaps can be used. One such strategy is using Asian

Handicaps to give an away team a +2 goal head start. This strategy is exclusive to

http://www.simplymakingmoneyonline.net/category/betting/ where it appears in a weekly blog.

These selections currently are provided FREE. In addition to opening up for scrutiny all those

selections provided in the blog over a period of 4 weeks, also available to see is how these bets

are placed.

So let’s begin this process of de-mystifying Asian Handicaps........................

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What are Asian Handicaps?

This is yet another way of betting. It is an alternative to the standard way of betting that you may

be used to, e.g. the traditional way of betting on football matches - home, away or draw

(sometimes denoted as 1 X 2).

To explain further, one must break down the two component words in “Asian Handicaps”. The

word “Asian” refers to the origin of this type of betting – Asia, of course. This way of betting is

the most popular form in the Far East, where it is also known as Hang Cheng. "Handicap" means

that a team receives a virtual head start, effectively leading the game by differing amount or

amounts before it actually kicks off. If you back a team with the handicap and they manage to

win the match (with head start included), then you'll win the bet. In some cases, known as “split

handicap” (see later), a team is given two virtual head starts. If they manage to overcome both of

these, then you get a maximum return on your stake. If they overcome only one of these, your

profit is either halved or half your stake is returned, depending on the odds.

There are 2 types of Asian Handicaps:

1) Single handicaps.

a). These appear as (0), (+0.5 / -0.5), (+1.0 / -1.0), (+1.5 / -1.50), (+2.0 / -2.0), etc.

b). As you can see above, the handicap given to each team can be whole or half numbers.

i). Where there is a half number (0.5, 1.5, 2.5, etc.), a draw is impossible.

e.g. Home team (-0.5) v Away team (+0.5).

This means that you will either win or lose the bet; no scenario for stakes to be refunded

will occur.

ii). Where there is a whole number handicap (0, 1, 2, 3, etc.), the draw is possible.

e.g. Home team (-1) v Away team (+1) - if score the full time score is 1-0 and you

backed the away team +1, your stake will be refunded.

2) Split or double handicaps.

a). These appear as (+0.25 / -0.25) or (+0.75 / -0.75) mainly.

b) The best way to understand split handicap is to imagine you are having two separate bets

with your stake being split equally between the 2 component handicaps.

i). (+0.25 / -0.25) is the same as 2 bets of (+0,) and (+0.5 / -0.5):

ii) Half your stake will go on at the 0 handicap and half at the 0.5 handicap.

iii) It is important to note that you don't physically place the two separate bets at the two

different handicaps. This is done automatically by the bookmaker’s betting systems

whenever you bet on a 'split handicap’.

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Asian Handicap vs. European Handicap

Did you know there was a difference? Who even knew that there were two different types of

handicaps, let alone the difference between the two?

In European Handicaps, you have 3 outcomes and with a handicap included. It also usually

shortened terms (EHCP +1) (EHCP -X) (EHCP-1).

In Asian Handicaps, the most common bets remove the draw. Those Asian Handicaps which

include the draw are the whole number handicaps (see above – “Single handicaps”), but even

with these bets, the stakes are refunded in the event of a draw when the handicap is included.

Now that you are aware of this, do not mix European Handicap odds with Asian Handicap odds. To

help you, I have compiled the following list of bookmakers offering European Handicap odds:

888sport, Bet365, Bet-at-home, Betfair, Betinternet, Betsafe, Betsson, Blue Square,(now part of

Betfair) Bwin, Gamebookers, Ladbrokes,Marathonbet, Nordicbet, Offsidebet, PaddyPower, Paf,

Sportingbet, Stan James, Titanbet.com, William Hill.

Later, I include a list of bookmakers offering Asian Handicap odds. This is in the interest of

fairness.

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Why use Asian Handicaps?

1. Value – lower bookmaker margins

Traditional football betting, the familiar 1 X 2 variety, typically operates at margins of more

than 110%. This means that the bookmaker will make 10% profit on the bet, irrespective of

the outcome. Compare this to the percentages on Asian Handicaps, which are much lower.

These are usually trading at just 103% – the lowest in the industry by some margin. This

means the bookmaker only makes 3% - a huge reduction in the 10% they make with the

traditional form of betting. Now, can you see why the bookmakers hate Asian Handicaps?

When was the last time you saw a high-street bookmaker advertising Asian Handicap bets in

its shop window as you walked past?

The above differential in the bookmakers’ profit margins needs explaining further. Why is

there such a difference? It is because Asian Handicaps have only two outcomes – a win for

either side – so the in-built bookmaker profit margins are lower (the draw takes up a big

percentage of the margin in traditional football betting). So whenever you place a bet on an

Asian Handicap market, you are always going to get better value than in any other form of

betting on football. This is one reason why Asian Handicap bets can be great value bets and

is perhaps the best answer to the question “why use Asian Handicaps?”

To summarise, Asian Handicaps offer better value than the traditional form of betting. This

is because the bookmakers having to pay out more as the mathematics of Asian Handicaps

dictate a lower profit margin for them.

Talking of value leads onto the second reason why Asian Handicaps should be in the arsenal

of any serious sports bettor.

2. Value – better odds

Another form of value where Asian Handicaps are worth their weight in gold, is in the odds

that you can get. Quite simply, in some cases, you can pick up better odds, if you understood

Asian Handicaps. This is a different emphasis on value from that explained in 1) above.

I will explain this concept of value with the aid of an example:

Let’s take a football match between two closely matched teams, say Manchester United and

Manchester City. Manchester United are at home, and so are -0.5 of a goal favourites on the

Asian Handicap. The price for them to cover the start is 1.90 (10/11). This means that

Manchester City, will be receiving a start of +0.5 of a goal, at a similar price. So far, so

good.

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The same match is priced up on the 1 X 2 fixed-odds market at 4/5 Manchester United, 12/5

the draw and 3/1 Manchester City. Two different betting options, you might think. But not if

you fancy Manchester United to win the match. Let’s see why:

in the first example, a bet on Manchester United conceding the 0.5 of a goal handicap would

see you lose if the match resulted in either a draw or a win for Manchester City. So, in effect,

you are betting on Manchester United to win – precisely the same option as a straight win bet

on the Manchester United in the fixed odds market. But there is one difference. Because of

the lower Asian handicap margins, you can have 10/11 rather than 4/5 about the same

outcome. This means that the Asian Handicap market is offering you 90.90% (10/11), whilst

the traditional form of betting is offering you only 80% (4/5) for exactly the same bet. Which

one would you choose? A little lateral thinking and better odds are available right in front of

your nose! And believe me, the extra 10% that you get makes a huge difference to your

bottom line over a season, especially if you are playing the “compounding” game.

3. Greater Flexibility

Another reason to use Asian Handicaps centres on the greater flexibility they offer. You are

able to bet on matches in various sports where your initial viewpoint would be let the match

go, i.e. one-sided matches normally reserved for the “big-hitters”. Consider this example:

- 1/10 Man Utd, 6/1 Draw, 14/1 Scunthorpe Utd

For most people, this would be a no-bet situation. With Asian handicaps, however,

punters could take a view on how dominant Manchester United would be in the

match. The likely Asian handicap betting would be:

Man Utd (-2.5 goals), Scunthorpe (+2.5 goals)

The proposition for punters would be whether Manchester United could win by more

than two goals or whether Scunthorpe will be able to avoid a thrashing and keep the

deficit down to under three.

Whether you fancy a whitewash or a close game, with both options likely to be priced

at just under even money, Asian handicap betting offers the opportunity to take a

view on even the most one-sided of matches.

4. Chance to protect your stake

Can Asian handicaps offer punters the opportunity to protect their stake (or part of their

stake)? The answer is yes - if they have an opinion on a match and, in practice, are proved to

be nearly right in their judgment. You see, with so many games in the Premiership often

turned on the head by late goals, such a safety net can be a valuable asset.

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For example, consider a match that looks one-sided on paper, but in which you think the

underdogs will perform well. Let’s say that the league leaders are playing the bottom placed

team at home. The split Asian Handicap home team (-0.5, -1.0) vs. away team (+0.5, +1.0) is

available if you fancy that bottom placed team to take at least a point. In the traditional way

of betting, the only fixed odds options available are either to split your stakes between a bet

on the bottom placed team and the draw, or lay the home team on the exchanges. However,

the same result can also be achieved by placing a bet on the Asian Handicap above – but

with the added bonus of an additional safety net. How does this safety net work?

Let’s say the match goes as you suspected and, with 85 minutes gone, it’s still scoreless.

However, in the 90th minute, the home team break quickly and snatch an undeserved late

goal.

Though your judgment was largely correct, your bets on the fixed odds market would have

been losers. With the Asian Handicap option, you would have received a return of your

stakes for half your bet. This is because your split Asian Handicap bet would have been

divided between the away team receiving half a goal start (a loser, in this instance) and

receiving a goal start (a tie on the handicap in this match and so stakes refunded).

5. Increase the odds of winning

The whole number Asian Handicap eliminates the draw. This elimination of a draw result

increases odd of winning. Since there are less possible outcomes, this increases the chance

of winning overall. This can be a powerful strategy when used in an accumulator.

Additionally, as explained previously, the removal of the draw from the result of a football

match alters the mathematics of the odds. Subsequently, the profit margin of the bookmaker

is reduced greatly thereby enriching punters.

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Bookmakers Offering Asian Handicap Odds

Not all bookmakers offer Asian Handicap odds. Your normal bookmaker does not like

refunding stakes, as happens with some classification of Asian Handicap bets. Refunding money

to a punter, in a betting shop especially, is a negative sign. Additionally, those that do offer these

odds give very low odds or limited handicap which can restrict your betting.

Don’t let the above put you off Asian Handicaps though. For the reasons explained above, they

are a powerful component in the war against the bookies. Below is a list of some of the

bookmakers that do provide Asian Handicap Odds:

188Bet, 32Redbet, Bet365, Betfair, Betinternet, BetOnline, BetVictor, Canbet, Dafabet, Fun88,

IBC Bet, Jetbull, Ladbrokes, Mansion88, Marathonbet, Offsidebet, Pinnacle Sports, Redbet,

SBOBET, The Greek, Uwin,and Youwin.

Of the above, the ones I go to for an initial comparison of odds are:

SBOBet;

Bet365; and

Pinnacle.

Asian Handicap Payout Explanation

Below is a basic table that shows what it means in terms of payout for the various outcomes of

one’s bet:

win The amount you win is your stake multiplied by the odds.

win half

This is when 2 bets were placed, as with split handicaps. Here half your stake is

returned; the amount you win with the other half is your stake multiplied by the

odds,

bet refund No win and no loss. All of your stake is returned.

lose half This is when 2 bets were placed, as with split handicaps. Here, half your stake

is returned; and you lose the other half of your stake.

lose you lose all your stake.

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Asian Handicaps: De-Mystified

The following is what I call a quick reference guide, one that I use more frequently than I would

care to admit. I have put it into 2 sections: one when you’re backing the favourite, the other

when you’re backing the underdog. I’ve taken it as far 2.5 goal Asian Handicap – I think you

should get the drift by then.

Backing the FAVOURITE

0 Asian Handicap De-Mystified

0

your team's result your result

win Win

draw Stake Refunded

lose Lose

-0.25 Asian Handicap De-Mystified

0,-0.5 same as -0.25 or -1/4


draw Lose half

lose Lose

win by 1 or more Win


-0.5


win Win

draw or lose Lose



-0.5,-1 same as -0.75 or -3/4


win by 1 Win half


draw or lose Win

-1 Asian Handicap De-Mystified

-1.0



win by 1 Stake Refunded

draw or lose Lose


-1,-1.5 same as -1.25 or -5/4



win by 1 Lose half

draw or lose Lose

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Asian Handicaps: De-Mystified – cont’d


-1.5


win by 1, draw or lose Lose



-1.5,-2 same as -1.75 or -7/4


win by 2 Win half


-2 Asian Handicap De-Mystified

-2.0






-2,-2.5 same as -2.25 or -9/4



win by 2 Lose half



-2.5



win by 1, 2, draw or lose Lose

I hope you noted that the signs in front of the Asian Handicap was negative, i.e. -0.5, etc. This is

because we are dealing with the favourite. The following table shows what happens when

backing the underdog. Note, the signs in front of the Asian Handicaps turns into positive,

i.e. +0.5, etc

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backing the UNDERDOG

0 Asian Handicap De-Mystified

0


win Win

draw Stake Refunded

lose Lose

+0.25 Asian Handicap De-Mystified

0,+0.5 same as +0.25 or +1/4


draw Win half

lose Lose



+0.5


win Win

draw or lose Lose



+0.5,+1 same as +0.75 or +3/4


win by 1 Lose half

win by 2 or more Lose

draw or lose Win

+1 Asian Handicap De-Mystified

+1.0




draw or lose Lose


+1,+1.5 same as +1.25 or +5/4



win by 1 Win half

draw or lose Lose


+1.5


win by 1, draw or lose Win

win by 2 or more Lose

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+1.5,+2 same as +1.75 or +7/4


win by 2 Lose half


+2 Asian Handicap De-Mystified

+2.0






+2,+2.5 same as +2.25 or +9/4



win by 2 Win half



+2.5



win by 1, 2, draw or lose Lose

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The Away +2 Asian Handicap In Action

Readers of my blog will know that I provide FREE football tips which utilise the above type of

Asian Handicaps in particular. You can catch me at

http://www.simplymakingmoneyonline.net/category/betting/.

The idea is to back the away team with a +2 goal handicap, i.e. a 2 goal head start. This is based

on the premise that the home team will not win the match as easily as the football odds say they

will, or the football pundits will have you believe. I decided that the best way forward for my

readers is to show a real life example. The match between Real Zaragoza v Granada on Monday

11th

March 2013 appeared as one of my selections in the blog “UEFA Champions League”

which was posted on 8th

March 2013. Those who have understood Asian Handicaps will be able

to see this is an example of a whole number Asian Handicap.

In this example, I am using the betting exchange called Betfair. At present, I find this the

simplest and easiest way of placing the bets. You can follow this or use a bookmaker in the list

above. Here, the selection is highlighted. It appeared on Betfair..... Football.....Spanish

Football.....Primera Division.....Fixtures 08 March,,,,,Zaragoza v Granada.....Asian Handicap.

From this list, the Asian Handicap giving Granada, the away team, +2.0 is selected.

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For those of you who prefer the traditional bookmakers, I have also shown the same match below,

but this time using William Hill:

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And the same match appears below using Ladbrokes bookmakers:

This match finished with the score of 0-0 at full-time. This selection “Won Money!” – the away

team with a +2 goal head start are deemed to have won the match with a full-time scoreline of

0-2.

It can be this easy. Or can it? See for yourselves in the next section.

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Actual Selections Presented In The Blog

Have a look below at the complete list of all the selections that have appeared in the blogs at

http://www.simplymakingmoneyonline.net/category/betting/. The period covered is from Friday

22nd

February 2013 to Sunday 17th

March 2013, a period of 4 weeks.

Of the 40 selections over the 4 weeks; 32 won money, 6 had stakes refunded and 2 lost. I tend to

disregard the stakes refunded selections to work out my overall success rate – so the success rate

from these FREE football tips stands as 32 wins out of 34 selections (i.e. 32/34 = 94.12%).

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The above data has been represented visually below in the form of a pie chart:

These selections are FREE!

They will be appearing in the weekly blog at

http://www.simplymakingmoneyonline.net/category/betting/ until the end of the football season.

Page 17


Conclusion

In this free e-book on Asian Handicaps, we have taken an in-depth view of this alternative

medium of betting. We learnt what they are, took a look at the different types and also saw a

variation in the form of European Handicaps.

An important section on why use Asian Handicaps followed. This is perhaps the most important

section in the e-book. It is crucial to understand the benefits Asian Handicaps have over the

traditional forms of betting. These range from providing value, greater flexibility and a chance to

protect your stake.

A list of bookmakers offering Asian Handicap odds was presented. This was in addition to the

explanation of the Asian Handicap payout.

This was then succeeded by a pictorial explanation of Asian Handicaps. Two tables were

presented that showed the various sub-markets of Asian Handicaps: the first looked at when

selecting the favourite; the other took the perspective of the underdog. This goes a long way in

de-mystifying Asian Handicaps.

The placing of Asian Handicap bets was then explained through a real life example. The

selection used was an actual selection taken from the blogs that have appeared at

http://www.simplymakingmoneyonline.net/category/betting/ over recent weeks.

The final section covered the actual selections from the blogs over 4 weeks in between February

and March 2013. The 40 selections saw a staggering 94% success rate! And these selections are

FREE......... for the time being, at least.

This, in itself, is shows that Asian Handicaps have their place. There are already many punters

who are not only aware of their uses, but also execute them and not the traditional bets. Can you

afford not to be one of them?

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Asian Handicaps de-Mystified