Sportsbook bonuses are almost always accompanied by some fine-print. It is important to read these small details to ensure that the bonus you have accepted is one that is aligned with your preferences as a bettor. For example, bonus cash might not be playable inside the casino, or you might not be able to bet odds shorter than -250.
One of the most common terms required by a sportsbook is known as a rollover. A rollover is a way for a sportsbook to ensure that they receive action in the form of placed bets from the player - or else it would be akin to simply giving the player free cash. Sportsbooks want to incenticize players to choose their company instead of the competition, so a bonus is an effective way to dangle the carrot and get the player to put his or her foot in the door.
How rollovers generally work
Let's say you deposited $200 and receive a 50% bonus with a 3X rollover requirement. Rollovers almost always are calculated by deposit+bonus. So, if you deposited $200 and received a 50% cash bonus - equal to $100 - you would have to rollover 3X the amount of your deposit+bonus ($900 worth of betting). Sportsbooks will require this action before allowing a withdrawal to prevent the player from simply taking advantage of the free cash and withdrawing house money.
But wait, there's more.
The industry standard is for sportsbooks to use a term such as the "lesser of the risk/win" amount. In short, this is a way to prevent a player from taking the $300 and betting on almost a sure-thing like Roger Federer in the first round against some 20-year-old player where he might have a 95% chance of winning; this wouldn't give the sportsbook much value, because the player is not taking much of a risk and yet the house extended a credit with the $100 bonus.
An example of rollover calculation
Sticking with the example, if Roger Federer had a 90% chance of winning and you bet all $300 at -900 to win $33, the sportsbook will only credit you with $33 toward your $900 rollover requirement, since the profit ($33) is a lesser amount than the risk ($300). A sportsbook's preference is obviously that a player will take more of a risk and bet a standard -110 outcome, but a player is perfectly free to bet the biggest favorites possible - though doing so will take longer to clear rollover, and may not necessarily be a positive expectation play as heavy favorites are not invincible, especially in tennis.
To view a list of bonuses from 100+ sportsbooks, visit the Bookmaker's Review sportsbook rating guide.
One of the most common terms required by a sportsbook is known as a rollover. A rollover is a way for a sportsbook to ensure that they receive action in the form of placed bets from the player - or else it would be akin to simply giving the player free cash. Sportsbooks want to incenticize players to choose their company instead of the competition, so a bonus is an effective way to dangle the carrot and get the player to put his or her foot in the door.
How rollovers generally work
Let's say you deposited $200 and receive a 50% bonus with a 3X rollover requirement. Rollovers almost always are calculated by deposit+bonus. So, if you deposited $200 and received a 50% cash bonus - equal to $100 - you would have to rollover 3X the amount of your deposit+bonus ($900 worth of betting). Sportsbooks will require this action before allowing a withdrawal to prevent the player from simply taking advantage of the free cash and withdrawing house money.
But wait, there's more.
The industry standard is for sportsbooks to use a term such as the "lesser of the risk/win" amount. In short, this is a way to prevent a player from taking the $300 and betting on almost a sure-thing like Roger Federer in the first round against some 20-year-old player where he might have a 95% chance of winning; this wouldn't give the sportsbook much value, because the player is not taking much of a risk and yet the house extended a credit with the $100 bonus.
An example of rollover calculation
Sticking with the example, if Roger Federer had a 90% chance of winning and you bet all $300 at -900 to win $33, the sportsbook will only credit you with $33 toward your $900 rollover requirement, since the profit ($33) is a lesser amount than the risk ($300). A sportsbook's preference is obviously that a player will take more of a risk and bet a standard -110 outcome, but a player is perfectly free to bet the biggest favorites possible - though doing so will take longer to clear rollover, and may not necessarily be a positive expectation play as heavy favorites are not invincible, especially in tennis.
To view a list of bonuses from 100+ sportsbooks, visit the Bookmaker's Review sportsbook rating guide.
