Know Why Your System Works

There are probably thousands of betting strategies in existence.  And every day, someone invents another one.  You can find many systems for free if you research sports betting online, and if you get to know other punters in online communities.  This makes it relatively easy to find a system which may work for you.  Having some kind of a method for sports wagering is vital if you want to succeed.  But a lot of punters take a rather mechanical approach to betting, where they put all their trust in their method without fully understanding it.  Is this really a good idea?

There’s an old saying, “If it isn’t broke, don’t fix it.”  This applies in the world of sports betting.  If a method works for you, by all means, keep using it!  The problems arise however when something stops working, which is pretty much inevitable sooner or later.  Why?  Situations are fluid, particularly when it comes to sports.  There are a hundred variables changing every day.  Teams have winning and losing streaks for a reason.  In fact, it is up to you to be able to identify those reasons.

This is why it is a really good idea to not just have a betting method that works, but know why it works as well.  That way when your method does abruptly stop working one day, and you suddenly start experiencing your own losing streak, you will have a much better chance at troubleshooting it, making adjustments where necessary, and getting back to winning.  You cannot troubleshoot randomness after all, and you cannot troubleshoot ignorance either. 

For example, maybe you use a particular set of statistics or you examine certain trends regularly when you are betting.  Maybe these trends worked for you in the past, but then one day you suddenly find yourself losing.  It could be that the trend existed, but you never understood why it existed.  If you had analysed it further, you might have realised it was a random fluke, and would never have paid attention to it.  Or you could have a certain money management technique you have been using, like the Martingale system.  Maybe it was working out for you purely by coincidence for a while, but when you start losing money, it never occurs to you it is because of the Gambler’s Fallacy.

When you have a working method, it makes sense to put some faith in it.  But it also makes sense to understand it.  That way you will be prepared to adapt in the future.  And you will have to adapt; that is a guarantee in any business, and sports betting online is no different.  Those who do the extra work to build a deep, comprehensive knowledge of sports betting will make it over the long run.  Those who lean on systems they do not understand will lose money and wash out over time—that or they will learn how to adapt and join the winners.