How Does Lay Betting Work
·The term 'Lay' betting defines the process of using a betting exchange, like the Betfair Exchange, where the punter believes a selection will not win or place in a specified event, and will therefore offer odds on that not happening. The offered Lay odds will then be matched with a bettor who believes that event will happen (otherwise known as the backer), who is happy with the odds that you have offered for that outcome, and will therefore match your bet.
There are two sides to every bet when you play on the Betfair Exchange. When you place a back bet you are betting on an outcome to happen, whereas if you place a lay bet, you are betting on an outcome not to happen – in opposition to the back bettors. Typically, bookmakers represent the lay side of a bet, so they will offer customers odds which they are willing to lay. However, on the Exchange, customers can play the role of both back and lay bettors themselves, meaning you will be 'matching' bets with fellow bettors, rather than a bookmaker.
How does it work?
Lay betting is an option on a betting exchange which allows gamblers to play the role of a traditional bookmaker. You set the odds of the bet, and you potentially win the backer’s stake if the selection loses. If the selection wins, you lose the backers stake multiplied. A lay bet is the opposite of a back bet. Lay bets are the same as saying an outcome won’t happen. Placing a lay bet on a horse simply means you are staking money on it NOT to win. If the horse doesn’t win, you win your lay bet. Lay betting is an option on exchanges like Betfair where bettors can play the bookmaker, offering odds to sell a bet instead of to back a bet. It is one component of matched betting, where punters both back and sell bets on the same game to guarantee winning. It is a type of bet that is placed when you are selling a bet, rather than buying a bet. In matched betting, every bet you place will need to be laid off. You do this using a matched betting calculator, and you lay off every bet so that you never lose any (or much) money on each bet; usually it’s just a few pence. By laying off bets, you can qualify yourself for free bets with very, very minimal investment up front. Firstly, you need to set up your account and deposit some betting funds. Once you are registered, you are free set to start betting. Simply click on the back or lay bet you want to accept and the amount you want to bet. If you’re happy with the odds on offer, click submit.
If you are placing a back bet that means you are putting your money on something to happen - a horse or a team or a player to win, for example. Placing a Lay bet means you are betting on something not to happen - for example, if you lay a football team to win your bet will be settled as a winner if the team loses or if the game ends in a draw - so two outcomes are playing in your favour.
How to place a lay bet
1. Find the market you want to bet on
2. Select the event
3. Select the pink box to place a lay bet
How To Make Money From Lay Betting
4. Consider your liability and potential returns
5. Hit ‘confirm bet’
Liability
Your 'liability' is the amount that, in your worst-case scenario, you could lose. Your return for a win is effectively your stake (minus commission).
A lot of people prefer to lay at odds-on as your liability is then reduced. For example, if you lay a bet at 1.50 for £10 you are liable for £5 and will win £10 if the bet wins.
Lay Betting System
However, if you lay a bet a [3.5] for £10, you are risking a liability of £25 for the chance to win £10.
It is important to ensure you monitor how much you are liable for and to be very careful of where you put the decimal point. If you want to lay a bet at 4.20 make sure it is just that and not 42, otherwise it will be an expensive mistake should your selection win as you will be laying the bet at odds of 42, rather than 4.20, ten times the intended odds.
Betfair will only let you risk as much as is in your account and at the best available odds for you as a backer or a layer.
Dutching Calculator
You can use the dutching calculator to ensure an equal payout or liability on all selections. Click ‘Payout’ or ‘Liability’ then enter the maximum you would want to risk before clicking ok. You will then see how much you need to stake on each selection in order to get an equal payout or liability.
Betfair Starting Price (BSP)
You can lay your selections at BSP. If you can’t already see the option for BSP, you’ll need to turn it on in ‘Settings’. Just like with any other bookie, you won’t know what the Betfair SP is until the race goes off. However you can get a guide to the expected BSP by enabling BSP in your settings and then the forecast prices will appear on your market view. If you think your horse’s price is likely to drift before the race, and you don’t want to miss getting your bet on, this could be the way to go. BSP offers tremendous value and tends to offer around 90%+ better prices than official SP returns on all UK and IRE horseracing.