Teaser Betting A teaser is a combination of two or more bets in which bettors can adjust the point spreads and/or totals in their favor at the expense of a reduced payout. The point spread may be decreased for the favored team or increased for the underdog, while totals may be adjusted by decreasing the over or increasing the under. Teasers deal with altering point spreads, so football and basketball are the two main sports used in teaser bets. Teasers can be played at most of the top online sportsbooks for NFL, NBA, NCAA Football and NCAA Basketball. Learning teasers is easier when shown than explained, so here’s an NFL betting example. Let’s say it’s Week 1 of the.

Teaser Betting Rules
by Trevor Whenham - 12/31/2009

Teasers aren't the first tool that most serious bettors look at to make a profit. In the right situations, though, they can be both profitable and a lot of fun. One reason why bettors don't always embrace them is the confusion over teaser betting rules. The rules are at least a little bit different at each different sportsbook, and those seemingly small differences can make a big impact on the bottom line if you aren't aware of them. Here's a look at the important teaser betting rules that you need to be aware of.
Before we get to the nitty-gritty, we really should look at a definition of teasers. A teaser, like a parlay, is a bet on multiple games - two or more - and you must be correct in all of the games in order to cash your ticket and make a profit. They are most common in football and basketball - the sports most often bet against the spread. What makes teasers special, though, is that you get to adjust the point spread. A typical football teaser, for example, is six points. That means that you get to take six points off the spread of a favorite, and add six points to the spread of an underdog. For example, a -10 favorite would become -4 in a six-point teaser, while a +10 underdog would be +16. Now for those teaser betting rules:
Number of points - The first thing you need to be aware of is the number of points added to each game. The standard is typically six in football and 4.5 in basketball, but those can vary widely. As any sports bettor knows, even just a half point in a spread can make a big difference. You can find football teasers as low as five points and as high as 20, and basketball anywhere between four and 16. You need to know the number of points you have, and make sure that the adjusted spreads are favorable for you.
Payout - The payout in a teaser is fixed - it doesn't change based on the teams involved. Each sportsbook sets their own payouts, though, and they can vary widely. When you are making a teaser bet you need to shop around to find the best price for the number of teams you are betting. Some books generally have better teaser payouts than others, but they won't necessarily have better payouts for all of the possible teams involved. Over the long run a difference in payout can obviously make a big difference to the bottom line, so looking for the best payout is crucial.
Ties - This is the single biggest rule that you need to be aware of - how the book handles ties. There are four different ways that a book can handle it if one of your games ends exactly on the number. Some books treat a tie as a win. Others reduce the number of teams in the teaser by one - if you bet a four-team teaser and have a tie and three wins then it will pay off like a three-game teaser. Others will treat a teaser with a tie as no action - they'll return your bet - as long as you win your other bets. Finally, some books will treat a tie as a loss. Each of those is a very different situation, and can affect your return significantly. You need to be aware of what the book offers, and make sure that it fits your needs. There isn't necessarily one situation that is better than another, but you need to make sure that the potential return adequately reflects the risk you are taking.
Maximums - There are two potential issues you may need to consider here. First, the maximum amount you can bet on a teaser may to too low for you. Many books minimize their risk in teasers by making the maximum bet much lower than it is for a straight bet. Some books also put a maximum on the amount they will pay out for a teaser. That could mean that a large bet on a teaser with several teams involved which should pay out for more than the maximum will return less than the stated odds. Over the long term that's a real problem.
Different online books have different strengths when it comes to teasers. Here's a couple of sportsbooks that do well on many fronts, though:
5Dimes - 5Dimes offers a wide range of teaser options, with football teasers available from everything from five points to 20, and basketball from 4.5 to 16. They also offer two different options for ties - they can either be counted as winners, or the number of teams in the teaser can be reduced by one. The reduce option pays a little better than the win option. 5Dimes also offers prices that are competitive with most books in most situations, and better in many.
Bookmaker - Though Bookmaker offers fewer options than 5Dimes, and is less generous with ties (they treat them as no action if the rest of the bets are a win), their prices are attractive when you are involving more teams.

You’ve probably heard the typical items to bet on sports whether it’s the point spread, moneyline, or point totals. Those are the major three categories when it comes to sports betting, but there are plenty of opportunities worth exploring.

Teasers are more advanced and can be a little more complicated than the industry’s more basic terms and may need some explaining, but we’re here to help you understand it all and how it works.

Teaser betting explained

A teaser bet is similar to parlay bet in that it requires multiple outcomes to be correct for the bet to be a winner. It’s an all-or-nothing style of bet that can be a useful tool when analyzing the betting board. A teaser is different from a parlay in that the sports bettor is in control of the lines whether it’s a point spread or point total. Spreads and totals may be modified in whichever direction the gambler decides to make for a better winning opportunity.

While the ability to shift numbers in your direction makes for an easier chance at a winning bet, the payout in a teaser bet is typically smaller than the payout of a parlay bet, which is another difference between the two strategies.

The basics of teasers

Teasers are most commonly used when betting on football and basketball, as both see a significant amount of points scored compared to the other major sports. With the point spread and point totals as large components of wagering both sports, it provides an opportunity for betting teasers.

Sportsbooks typically will give football bettors the chance to tease 6, 6.5, and 7 points. When you look at the point spread or point total for a particular game, you can choose to add your teaser points to the sides or totals you’d like for multiple outcomes.

One aspect to watch when analyzing NFL and college football teasers is key numbers. The most important numbers in football betting are three and seven, as those two numbers have the highest chance of winding up as the final deficit in games.

Sports Betting Teasers Explained Odds

In basketball, sportsbooks typically will offer teaser numbers of 4, 4.5, and 5 points for sports bettors to choose from.

If all the combinations you select are winners, you win the bet. If just one of the outcomes falls short, the bet is a loser no matter how many winners you selected in the teaser.

Football teaser payout chart

The more points added to your preferred side or total, the less of a payout there will be if the bet eventually becomes a winner. For example, if you’re betting a football game and take seven points on the teaser, there would be less of a payout than there would be if you teased six points.

Sportsbooks may differ when it comes to payouts on teasers, but most have agreed on a standard of how they operate up to ten outcomes.

For six-point teasers:

• Two-team teaser: -110
• Three-team teaser: +180
• Four-team teaser: +300
• Five-team teaser: +450
• Six-team teaser: +600
• Seven-team teaser: +1,000
• Eight-team teaser: +1,500
• Nine-team teaser: +2,000
• 10-team teaser: +2,500

For 6.5-point teasers:

• Two-team teaser: -120
• Three-team teaser: +160
• Four-team teaser: +250
• Five-team teaser: +400
• Six-team teaser: +550
• Seven-team teaser: +900
• Eight-team teaser: +1,200
• Nine-team teaser: +1,500
• 10-team teaser: +2,000

For seven-point teasers:

• Two-team teaser: -130
• Three-team teaser: +140
• Four-team teaser: +200
• Five-team teaser: +350
• Six-team teaser: +500
• Seven-team teaser: +800
• Eight-team teaser: +1,000
• Nine-team teaser: +1,200
• 10-team teaser: +1,500

Sports Betting Teasers Explained Odds

The payout increases quite a bit with the more teams you add, but the payout is less the higher the teaser number is.

Sports Betting Terms Explained

Basketball teaser payout chart

Sports Betting Teasers Explained Sheet

Basketball payouts are similar to football. Here they are:

For four-point teasers:

• Two-team teaser: -100
• Three-team teaser: +180
• Four-team teaser: +300
• Five-team teaser: +500
• Six-team teaser: +700
• Seven-team teaser: +1,000
• Eight-team teaser: +1,500
• Nine-team teaser: +2,000
• 10-team teaser: +2,500

For 4.5-point teasers:

• Two-team teaser: -110
• Three-team teaser: +160
• Four-team teaser: +250
• Five-team teaser: +400
• Six-team teaser: +600
• Seven-team teaser: +900
• Eight-team teaser: +1,200
• Nine-team teaser: +1,500
• 10-team teaser: +2,000

For five-point teasers:

• Two-team teaser: -120
• Three-team teaser: +150
• Four-team teaser: +200
• Five-team teaser: +350
• Six-team teaser: +500
• Seven-team teaser: +800
• Eight-team teaser: +1,000
• Nine-team teaser: +1,200
• 10-team teaser: +1,500

Follow the lines

This is more for more experienced bettors but having a general sense of where a line will move before game time can provide an even greater chance at picking a winner. When the oddsmakers set their initial lines on the point spread or point total, it’s not uncommon for the number to change depending on where the majority of bets are coming in. If you have a good hunch on which side or total the largest amount of money will come in on, you might be able to snag a half-point or more to your side for an even larger advantage to your teaser.

Football has the most movement since lines are usually put out well in advance of the start of the game.

What about a push?

A push is the gambling term for a tie. If you put together a three-team teaser and one of the outcomes lands right on the number you’re betting on, that’s called a push. Sportsbooks handle pushes differently with teasers, but typically the outcome that resulted in a push is eliminated from the teaser bet. If it’s a three-team teaser, the bet that finished in a push is taken out as if it never happened and you’re now playing a two-team teaser.

Examples

Now that you’ve read the basics of betting teasers, let’s put what you’ve learned into examples to give you an even better understanding. Let’s dive in.

Betting teasers in NFL

After analyzing the betting board, let’s say you are interested in the home teams and want to add a little extra to their number with a teaser. In this scenario, you’re picking the Packers, Lions, and Eagles to cover in your teaser. Here’s what the board initially looks like before you add in your teaser points.

• Packers -3
• Lions +2
• Eagles -6.5

Let’s say you decide on a seven-point teaser. After putting that into effect, here’s what your gambling card looks like now:

• Packers +4 vs. Vikings
• Lions +9 vs. Bears
• Eagles +0.5 vs. Cowboys

The teaser added seven points to each outcome. Instead of needing the Packers to win by more than three points, now all the Packers need to do is win or lose by three points or less. The Lions need to win or lose by less than nine, and the Eagles turned from 6.5-point favorites to 0.5-point underdogs.

If all the outcomes wind up coming true, the bet is a winner. Since this is a three-team teaser at seven points each, the odds would be set at +140, which means a $100 bet would net a $140 profit.

Sports Betting Teasers

If any of the outcomes fail, the entire bet is a loser.

Betting teasers in NBA

Let’s head to the NBA for our next example. For this one, say you think offenses are being undervalued in terms of how many points they will score on this day. While you’re confident the point total is going to go over, you protect yourself with a four-point teaser on the following slate of basketball games:

• Bucks/Celtics: 215
• Lakers/Cavs: 201.5
• Warriors/Thunder: 208
• Suns/Pistons: 203.5

Since you’re rooting for the over, we will subtract four points to make the point total mark easier to hit. After the teasers are placed, here’s what your betting card looks like now:

• Bucks/Celtics: 211
• Lakers/Cavs: 197.5
• Warriors/Thunder: 204
• Suns/Pistons: 199.5

Just like all teasers, you must succeed on each outcome for a winning bet. If you get a four-teamer teased at four points correctly, the odds are set at +300, so a $100 bet turns into a $300 profit with a winner.

Betting teasers in college football

For our third and final example of teaser betting, let’s look at a slate of college football games. In this scenario, we will take point spreads and point totals and combine them into a four-team teaser.

• Ohio State -10 vs. Michigan
• Clemson -7.5 vs. South Carolina
• Michigan State/Rutgers: 49.5
• Alabama/LSU: 55

For Ohio State, you think they will beat Michigan, but 10 points might be too much, so you tease that number down seven points, and you do the same with Clemson against South Carolina.

With Michigan State and Rutgers, you think the over will hit, so you subtract seven points. Finally, for Alabama and LSU, you are confident fewer points will be scored, taking the under and adding seven points.

After all the teasers are placed, the board now looks like this with your four-team teaser:

• Ohio State -3 vs. Michigan
• Clemson -0.5 vs. South Carolina
• Michigan State/Rutgers: 42.5
• Alabama/LSU: 62

Sports Betting Teasers Explained Against

In the example, let’s say Ohio State winds up beating Michigan by exactly three points with a final score of 23-20. That’s a push, so that bet is eliminated. Your four-team teaser is now a three-team teaser.

If you get the rest of them correct, three teams teased at seven points will be at +140 odds. A $100 bet nets you $140.

How to Bet Guides

Key takeaways on teaser betting

Sports bettors have the opportunity to modify the lines. All outcomes need to be correct for a winning bet. The more outcomes added, the higher the potential payout will be. The more points added to the teaser, the less the potential payout will be.