How To Bet Runlines

For some reason, a lot of new bettors can’t seem to figure out how a runline works. A runline is the really not that complicated. It’s just a merger between a point spread and a money line.

Run line betting offers superior odds to the money line, but it requires you to bet on a team to win by more than one run.

Here’ an example of the same game from Bookmaker.com with odds from the moneyline and the runline.

Moneyline:

LA Dodgers +155
Philadelphia -165

Run line

LA Dodgers +1.5 (-155)
Philadelphia -1.5 (+135)

On the money line, you would bet $165 to win $100 on the Phillies and $100 to win $155 on the Dodgers

On the runline you would bet the Dodgers to either win outright or lose by only one run at -155, or bet on the Phillies to win by at least two runs at +135. By adding what is basically a 1.5-run spread to the moneyline favorite you’ve made the moneyline favorite the underdog on the runline.

By doing so, you could potentially increase your profits if you expect them to win by at least two runs.

In hockey, there is exactly the same kind of betting available, but it is called the puckline. On a puckline bet, you are betting on a team to win by more than one goal. Here’s an example from TheGreek.com :

Moneyline

Dallas +135
Calgary -155

Puckline

Dallas +1.5 (-230)
Calgary -1.5 (+190)

In the example, there is a huge swing from the money line to the puckline. On the money line, you would win $135 on a $100 wager on Dallas and you would have to wager $155 on Calgary to win $100.

On the puckline with Calgary getting a 1.5-goal spread, it changes the odds dramatically. Now you would have to wager $230 on Dallas to win $100, while you could win $190 by betting $100 on Calgary.

However, to win a bet on Calgary, they must win by at least two goals. If you can spot a hockey blowout in the making, you can make a lot more money betting on the puck line than on the money line.