The Martingale Betting System Explained | ProTipster Academy
There are a lot of punters out there who swear by money management strategies, but are they really that reliable? The Martingale betting system is one such strategy. Never heard of it? Let us explain to see if the reward outweighs the risk involved.
As you know, in the world of gambling, whether it’s placing a bet on a football match or hitting the casino for a few spins on the roulette wheel, the result can never be known beforehand; it wouldn’t be gambling otherwise. However, a good strategy can certainly help for a disciplined approach to betting, helping punters come to decisions based on logical limits and rules.
What is the Martingale betting system?
Originating from the 18th century in France (thanks must go to Wikipedia for that lovely piece of knowledge), the Martingale betting system was first used during a coin toss where the gambler won if the coin landed on heads and lost if tails appeared. How the strategy was implemented was by doubling the bet if the gambler lost, so that a win would recoup all the losses from the previous bets. Pretty simple eh? It’s also been applied to roulette via bets on red or black, although the risk is slightly higher there as green zero could land but it’s as close to an even money shot as you can get here. Unless you have an endless money pit, it’s not worth considering in the long term, but some will argue that it will land on heads eventually! Nonetheless, no amount of historical information about the past results can be used to predict the results of a future bet with accuracy better than chance.
As always with any form of gambling, it’s about betting responsibly. If you’re starting with, say, £20 and use this method, you could get into trouble rather quickly if luck isn’t on your side so lower stakes work better. Unless you do have loads of money of course, then fill your boots!
Here’s an example of how to break the strategy down on a gambler betting on a coin toss with a £100:
Punter loses £1 bet. Bankroll = £99
Punter loses £2 bet. Bankroll = £97
Punter loses £4 bet. Bankroll = £93
Punter loses £8 bet. Bankroll = £85
Punter wins £16 bet. Bankroll = £101
Can the Martingale betting system be used in Football?
In a word, yes. The Martingale method has been used a lot in casinos, but there is no reason why this strategy can’t be used on Football bets. However, please bear in mind that there are a few very important points to consider before you go all gung-ho on United vs City.
- Any success of this particular betting strategy is based on even odds (2.00).
- It must be a 2-selection market
- The odds must be value in terms of perceived probability
Just to expand on the final point, this is where your expertise in the field comes into play. Use your statistical knowledge of the game to judge whether the odds you come across online are worth taking a punt on. A good example of markets to use the Martingale strategy on include the Asian Handicap and over/under markets.
Martingale betting strategy drawbacks
It’s a very simple betting strategy, there’s no denying that, which might be boring for the average punter. The fact you must place your bets on even money shots until you eventually win takes away the fun and exciting element of gambling – betting on the underdog or winning a ten-fold accumulator. If you’re looking at making loads of profit in a short space of time, this is probably not for you as the main purpose of this strategy is to recoup losses rather than build large profit. The one advantage to that thought is that there is less risk involved. Although, yes, eventually you will end up winning, you need to have seriously deep pockets to make it work properly. Theoretically, with unlimited wealth, you can argue that the Martingale betting strategy becomes a winning one. If you’re loaded anyway then why would you bother with this method in the first place?
Realistically, if you’re not good enough to beat the odds, then this strategy offers a decent route to financial ruin, so be careful! If you are good enough to beat the odds, however, then you don’t need Martingale. The Martingale betting strategy may look like it can turn losses into profits, but it’s a huge risk and one method you should probably avoid.
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