Tiger is a 2:1 favourite to win the Masters golf tournament.

He’s ba-aaaaack.
Despite not having won a major since the 2008 U.S. Open, Tiger Woods is the overwhelming favourite to win this year’s Masters golf tournament when many of the game’s biggest names congregate at Augusta.
Here’s a complete list of futures odds Sports Interaction has posted for this year’s Masters.

Tiger Woods   +200
Rory McIlroy   +900
Phil Mickelson   +1000
Brandt Snedeker   +1600
Justin Rose   +2000
Charl Schwartzel   +2200
Louis Oosthuizen   +2200
Luke Donald   +2500
Adam Scott   +2500
Dustin Johnson   +2500
Matt Kuchar   +2500
Keegan Bradley   +2500
Lee Westwood   +2800
Hunter Mahan   +3000
Sergio Garcia   +3000
Bubba Watson   +3300
Nick Watney   +3300
Webb Simpson   +3300
Ernie Els   +3300
Jason Day   +4000
Jason Dufner   +4000
Graeme McDowell   +4000
Ian Poulter   +4000
Rickie Fowler   +4000
Martin Kaymer   +5000
Peter Hanson   +5000
Steve Stricker   +5000
Padraig Harrington   +6000
Geoff Ogilvy   +6600
K J Choi   +6600
Bill Haas   +6600
Bo Van Pelt   +6600
Zach Johnson   +6600
Henrik Stenson   +6600
Jim Furyk   +7000
Paul Casey   +7500
Bud Cauley   +8000
Matteo Manassero   +8000
Retief Goosen   +8000
Yong Eun Yang   +8000
C Howell III   +8000
Fred Couples   +8000
Robert Rock   +8000
Trevor Immelman   +8000
Gary Woodland   +10000
Martin Laird   +10000
Aaron Baddeley   +10000
Angel Cabrera   +10000
Fredrik Jacobson   +10000
John Senden   +10000
Johnson Wagner   +10000
Robert Karlsson   +10000
Sean OHair   +10000
Thomas Bjorn   +10000
Tim Clark   +11000
Francesco Molinari   +12500
Jeff Overton   +12500
Alvaro Quiros   +12500
Anders Hansen   +12500
Mark Wilson   +12500
Scott Piercy   +12500
David Toms   +15000
Miguel Angel Jimenez   +15000
Rory Sabbatini   +15000
Sang-Moon bae   +15000
Robert Garrigus   +15000
Ross Fisher   +15000
Ryo Ishikawa   +15000
Stewart Cink   +15000
Edoardo Molinari   +20000
Kevin Na   +20000
Kyung-Tae Kim   +20000
Ryan Palmer   +20000
Simon Dyson   +20000
Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano   +25000
Lucas Glover   +25000
Scott Verplank   +25000
Darren Clarke   +25000
Brendan Steele   +30000
Harrison Frazar   +30000
Jose Maria Olazabal   +30000
Patrick Cantlay   +30000
Mike Weir   +30000
Scott Stallings   +40000
Bernhard Langer   +50000
Chez Reavie   +50000
Hideki Matsuyama   +50000
Kevin Chappell   +50000
Tom Watson   +50000
Ben Crenshaw   +50000
Kelly Kraft   +75000
Mark OMeara   +75000
Corbin Mills   +100000
Ian Woosnam   +100000
Randal Lewis   +100000
Craig Stadler   +200000
Larry Mize   +200000
Sandy Lyle   +200000

Oddsmakers like Toronto’s signing of R.A. Dickey and other big roster moves.

Pretty much any baseball-loving Canadian is excited about the Toronto Blue Jays’ chances this year.

The Jays finally opened their wallets this past-offseason, bolstering their roster with the additions of R.A. Dickey, Josh Johnson, Mark Buehrle, Jose Reyes, Melky Cabrera and others.
For the first time in a long time, Jays fans can legitimately dream of Toronto’s first World Series championship since those glory years of 1992 and 93.
Oddsmakers certainly think it’s a possibility. Toronto is one of five MLB teams who pay out less than 8:1 odds if they win the World Series in 2013.
The L.A. Dodgers are the overall favourite at Pinnacle Sports, which is offering the Dodgers at a +738 price to win it all. They’re followed by the Washington Nationals (+764), L.A. Angels (+766), Jays (+784) and Detroit Tigers (+793).
Just like there are some fresh faces at the top of the MLB futures board, there are some new World Series darkhorses. The New York Yankees (+1757), St. Louis Cardinals (+2102), Philadelphia Phillies (+2022) and Boston Red Sox (+3706) are all considered unlikely to be baseball’s champion this season. How often over the past decade have we been able to say that?
And for you long-suffering Cubs fans, look like you’ll be suffering a little longer. Chicago’s NL team is given 126:1 odds of ending its World Series curse this season.

Here’s a full listing of MLB futures odds posted at Pinnacle Sports, as of March 31:

2. Starting pitchers
The starting pitching matchup is the biggest thing oddsmakers consider when setting the moneyline and total on a baseball game, and it should be the first thing you look at as well.
The win-loss records and earned-run averages of the starting pitchers are a good place to start, but there are more things to keep in mind. Take a look at each pitcher’s recent performances to see if they are on top of their games or in a slump. Also, baseball is a game of matchups, so research how each pitcher has performed against the other team in his career. Most starting pitchers has a few hitters that they always enjoy success against, as well as a few hitters that they struggle against.

3. Consider players’ recent performance
Yogi Berra once famously said 90 per cent of baseball is half mental, and he wasn’t far off. More than any other sport, baseball is a game of confidence. The best hitters in the game will go through stretches when they are impossible to get out, and they’ll also go through slumps where they can’t seem to buy a hit. Pitchers are the same way. Avoid betting on teams whose star slugger or starting pitcher is in a slump, and look to bet on teams whose stars are on top of their game.

4. Avoid betting on heavy favourites
A popular baseball betting strategy is to stay away from the heavy favourites. The more favourites you bet, the more bets you have to win in order to simply break even. Remember that the best teams in baseball generally still lose at least one third of their games, while the worst teams will often win a third of their games. Betting moneyline favorites of -200 means you need to win two of three bets to simply break even. The greatest value in baseball betting often lies with the underdog, considering you have to risk less to win more.

5. Consider the run line
When you think a big favorite is likely to blow out its opponent, you might want to bet them on the run line (point spread) instead. Taking a favorite on a -1.5 run line means they need to win by more than one run in order for you to win your bet.
Here’s an example: The Boston Red Sox are -180 favorites against the Kansas City Royals on the moneyline, but the Red Sox are only -115 favorites against the run line. If you bet on the Red Sox on the run line instead of the moneyline, you’ll only have to risk 115 dollars to win 100 instead of risking 180 to win 100. Keep in mind that the Red Sox have to win by two or more runs in order for you to win your bet.
A good baseball betting strategy is to only consider the run line when betting on a road team. Remember that the home team will only get eight at-bats if it is winning the game after 8.5 innings, reducing their chances of winning by two runs. Home teams win baseball games by one run approximately 17 per cent of the time, while the road team wins by one run approximately 10 per cent of the time.
It’s also good to avoid betting favorites on the run line when the over/under on the game is low. For example, a team is more likely to win a game by two or more runs when the over/under is 10 than when the over/under is 7.

6. Shop around for the best lines
This is always an important strategy, but perhaps in no sport is it more important than baseball (and perhaps hockey, which also is most often bet on a moneyline). Different sportsbooks offer different odds on each game, either because they have an imbalance of bets on one side or because they cater to different clientele. Even if those different odds are just a few cents on a game (ie. Pinnacle Sports lists the Jays at -115 and Bodog lists them at -120), risking the least amount you can or winning the largest amount you can on each wager definitely adds up over time. In our example, saving that “five cents” by betting the Jays at Pinnacle instead of Bodog would save you $10 for every 20 $10 wagers you made.

7. Bullpens
Nothing is more frustrating than to see the team you bet on lose their lead in the late innings. When deciding whether or not to bet on a team, take a look at their bullpen to see if you can trust their relievers to get the key outs in the final innings. Also, make sure the team’s top relief pitchers haven’t been used a lot in the past few days so that they’ll be available in the game you bet on. If you really like the team you are considering betting on but are nervous about their bullpen, you might want to bet the first half (first five innings) of the game instead.

8. Check the lineups
During the grueling 162-game baseball season, teams will often give their star players a rest here and there. A common time that teams sit their stars are when they play a day game after a night game, or on Sundays. Make sure that the team you are betting on is playing its best players. Lineups for each game are usually available online half an hour before the first pitch. If you don’t have time to look up the gameday lineups, you can often find out a team’s plans in advance by reading coverage on the Internet.

9. Totals
Beyond betting moneylines and run lines, another way how to bet baseball is by betting on the total (over/under). The total is based primarily on the starting pitchers, as explained above.

Rather than laying -200 when Justin Verlander is on the mound, maybe try taking the Tigers -1.5 on the runline to reduce your risk.

Want to bet on a heavy favourite in baseball but you don’t want to lay the big juice? You have options.

1. Bet the runline
The runline in baseball is the equivalent of the point spread in football or basketball and the puck line in hockey. Basically, if you bet a favourite on the runline, you’re betting that your team will win by two runs or more. Having that extra handicap on your bet often means turning a heavy favourite into a slight underdog, so you’re risking less to win more.
Say, for example, the Phillies with their ace on the mound are a -215 home favourite over the Brewers and their fifth starter. Laying -215 means you have to bet more than twice the amount you’re hoping to win back, something that’s hardly ever a smart bet in baseball. But if you took the Phillies on the runline (-1.5 runs), you’re likely getting +100 or better at more sportsbooks. At that line, you’ll double your money or even get a bit more if the Phillies win by two or more.
The downside to taking a favourite on the runline is that a lot of baseball games are decided by one run. If you take the home team on the runline, you’re also getting one less at-bat to work with, since the only way the home team bats in the bottom of the ninth is if they’re tied or trailing. Obviously, your odds of winning by more than one run are a lot lower in that scenario.
If you’re feeling really adventurous, take a team on the alternate runline (-2.5 or higher) if you anticipate a huge blowout and want to shoot for the big score. Several sportsbooks offer this option.

2. Bet the over/under
There’s two main reasons to bet a heavy favourite in baseball: either you think the underdog’s pitcher is going to get lit up, or you think the favourite’s pitcher is going to dominate. Obviously if you think both are going to happen, your runline bet looks a little stronger.
But if you feel strongly about the chances of one team’s pitcher throwing a shutout or getting rocked, give the over/under a look. Generally, over/under bets have juice of around -110, so you’ll be laying a lot less than -200 with the same thought process involved.

3. Bet the team total
Sportsbooks like Pinnacle and 5Dimes offer you the option of betting on team totals. This is a lot like over/under, except you’re just betting over or under the total runs that one team scores.
This is another way to take advantage if you have strong feelings about an overmatched pitcher or a powerful ace. Just like standard over/under bets, the juice is typically around -110 for a team total, so you can lay a lot less to back a favourite than taking the moneyline.
The nice thing about betting team totals instead of full game over/unders is that if your pitcher dominates or gets rocked, you win. If you took the under on the full game and both pitchers get knocked around, or if you took the over on the full game and both pitchers put up zeroes, you’d lose.

Rain can complicate or even cancel many of your baseball bets.

Understanding the several unique baseball betting rules is essential if you are considering betting on baseball.
There are a couple main reasons why baseball betting rules are different than other sports. Starting pitchers are the biggest factor when oddsmakers set baseball betting lines , so a last-minute pitching change will affect or even cancel your wager. Also, weather can cause games to be called before they go the regulation nine innings, causing complications for over/under and run line bets.
Here’s a quick look at five of the most important rules to keep in mind when betting baseball.

1. If a game does not go the regulation nine innings (or 8.5, if the home team is ahead), your over/under and run line bets will be canceled.
For example, let’s say you bet over 9.5 in a game between Texas and Baltimore. Texas leads 8-6 in the seventh inning before heavy rain causes the umpires to call the game. Even though the game is considered official under MLB rules because it went at least five innings, the sportsbooks will refund all wagers on the total and run line. In this example, the rule would hurt you. But keep in mind, the rule would also have bailed you out of a losing wager if you’d bet the under.

2. If a game goes at least five innings (or 4.5, if the home team is ahead), moneyline wagers will be honoured.
Unlike total and run line bets, moneyline (side) wagers become official for baseball betting purposes once the game is considered official under MLB rules. If a game is suspended in the middle of an inning beyond the fifth, the winning side will be determined by the score after the last completed inning. Bets are refunded if the home team ties the game in the inning it goes into suspension. Suspended games typically become no action if they are stopped and then continued the following day, although some sportsbooks do carry the bets over to the following day.

3. On a bet where the pitchers are listed, both starters need to throw at least one pitch.
When you are placing a baseball bet on the moneyline, most sportsbooks will offer you the option of listing the starting pitchers or simply making an action bet. If you list the starting pitchers, your wager is only valid if both listed pitchers throw the first pitches of the game for their respective teams. If either side changes starting pitchers before they throw at least one pitch, your bet will be refunded. Pitchers must be listed for over/under and run line wagers.

4. On an action bet, your odds may change.
One of the commonly-misunderstood baseball betting rules is the action bet. An action bet simply means you are betting on one team over the other, regardless of who the starting pitchers are. This works to your advantage if you want guaranteed action on a certain game. But keep in mind that the sportsbooks reserve the right to change the odds on the game if there is a change to the starting pitchers. And if they do change the odds on your action bet, the opening number of the new line will apply to your action wager. We recommend not making action bets in baseball since you probably don’t want your money riding on the AAA callup that is filling in for the ace who got scratched at the last minute.

5. First-half bets will stand if five full innings are completed.
A popular option for baseball bettors is betting on the first half (first five innings) of a game. These wagers will stand as long as five full innings are completed, even if the game itself does not go the full regulation nine innings. If the game is called after 4.5 innings with the home team ahead (which is an official game in Major League Baseball), the first-half bet will be canceled. Both starting pitchers must be listed for first-half bets and, like any bet with listed pitchers, both must start in order for the wager to stand.

The Louisville Cardinals are favoured to win the 2013 NCAA tournament.

Below are odds for each team to win the 2013 March Madness NCAA Tournament, as posted by Pinnacle Sports Sunday night.

Louisville                +510
Gonzaga                +974
Kansas                  +1170
Indiana                   +1486
Duke                      +1170
Ohio State              +1463
Georgetown            +1463
Miami (FL)              +1268
Michigan State        +1951
New Mexico            +1463
Florida                    +1072
Marquette               +7812
Saint Louis             +1951
Kansas State         +9766
Michigan                +2928
Syracuse                +1951
Oklahoma State      +9766
Wisconsin              +2928
VCU                      +3416
UNLV                    +4882
Memphis               +9766
Arizona                 +7324
UCLA                   +9766
Butler                   +7324
Creighton             +14650
Notre Dame         +14650
San Diego State   +9766
Illinois                 +14650
Colorado State     +19534
Pittsburgh            +7324
North Carolina       +6347
North Carolina St  +7812
Missouri              +14650
Wichita State       +19534
Villanova              +19534
Temple                +19534
Cincinnati            +19534
Iowa State           +19534
Oklahoma           +19534
Colorado             +29302
Middle Tenn St    +29302
Saint Mary’s       +19534
Belmont             +29302
Minnesota          +7324
Bucknell             +29302
Oregon               +29302
Mississippi        +19534
Akron                +29302
California           +14650
New Mexico St  +29302
Boise State       +29302
La Salle            +29302
South Dakota St+29302
Montana           +29302
Valparaiso         +29302
Harvard             +29302
Northwestern St +29302
Davidson          +29302
Albany             +29302
Iona                 +29302
Florida G.C.     +19534
Pacific            +29302
North Car. A&T +48837
Liberty             +48837
Southern          +48837
W. Kentucky    +48837
Long Island       +48837
James Madison +48837

The Big 10 got a lot of attention all year, with big names Indiana, Michigan, Michigan State, Indiana and even Wisconsin enjoying very successful campaigns. But it’s interesting to note that the Big East is going out with a bang in its final season, sending eight teams to the Big Dance.

Leading the Big East charge, of course, is Louisville. The Cardinals’ second-half dominance of Syracuse in the Big East championship game no doubt impressed the NCAA tournament organizers, who made Rick Pitino’s squad the No. 1 seed in March Madness despite the fact Louisville is currently ranked No. 4 in the country. As a bonus for getting the top seed, the Cardinals will get to play their first two games in their home state.

Syracuse made some real strides to make that Big East final, pulling off upsets over Marquette and Georgetown before running out of gas against Louisville. There was some real concern about the Orange going into the Big East tourney, following a brutal end to conference play that included a pair of lopsided losses to the Hoyas. Is the ‘Cuse back? Getting seeded fourth in the East bracket might make you think so, but I think they’ll have their hands full with Montana in the first round.

I don’t read too much into Georgetown’s loss to Syracuse in the Big East semis. It’s awfully hard to beat the same team three times in less than a month, and it was a much bigger game for the Orange than for the Hoyas. Seeded second in the South, I think Georgetown should be just fine.

Should Georgetown reach the Sweet 16, as I’m sure they will, they’ll likely run into the Florida Gators. It pains me to say this as a Florida fan, but this Gators team is far too inconsistent for my liking and is used to having its way with weaker SEC opponents. Florida relies way too much on the three-point shot and I don’t like their chances of beating the Hoyas.

The top team in the South bracket is Kansas, a team that really showed us something in the Big 12 tournament. The Jayhawks appeared to be in disarray midway through the conference season, losing three straight games at the start of February. After that, however, the Jayhawks won seven of eight to finish the regular season before rolling through the tournament in dominating fashion. Bill Self’s teams have been known to lose to inferior teams before, but let’s not forget this team also played in the championship game last year.

The East should be a tough bracket to get out of, with Indiana, Miami, Marquette, Syracuse, UNLV and Butler forming the top six. UNLV, another team I’m fond of, might actually go down to California in the opening round, but those other five teams are all capable of going pretty far. Butler’s regular season might not look too scary, but coach Brad Stevens is known as a tournament specialist. Indiana has to be thrilled to avoid Wisconsin until the Final Four at the earliest, since the Badgers have beaten the Hoosiers in 11 straight meetings. Miami is a very good No. 2 seed, winning the ACC season title and tournament. The Canes absolutely pounded Duke earlier this season, then came close to beating the Blue Devils again at Cameron Indoor.

Duke, seeded second to Louisville in the Midwest, might be flying under the radar just a little bit. When Ryan Kelly has been in the Blue Devils’ lineup, they’ve been dynamite. I don’t put too much stock in their loss to Maryland in the ACC tournament, since Maryland was fighting to qualify for the NCAA tourney and Duke already had a high seed locked up.

In the West, Gonzaga’s the top seed, perhaps only because there was no way organizers couldn’t give a No. 1 seed to a team that had lost only two games. But the question about Gonzaga always is, are the Bulldogs really that good? Their non-conference schedule wasn’t that great and they, like Florida, made things look easy against a weak conference. I think the best team in this bracket is in fact Big 10 champion Ohio State, while New Mexico is a very dangerous No. 3 seed.

Sleepers in this tournament? NC State was a top-10 team to start the season and opens the tournament against Temple, which has lost its first game five years in a row. But then the Wolfpack would run into Indiana, so that’ll likely be lights out for NC State.

Michigan as a No. 4 seed might pique your interest, but the Wolverines have not been that good in the final half of the conference season.

In addition to New Mexico in the West, look out for No. 5 Wisconsin and No. 6 Arizona. Wisconsin, especially, after the Badgers elevated their game in the Big 10 tournament.

And we can never forget about Michigan State, of course. Tom Izzo’s teams are always in the game, so they always have a shot.

Potential early upsets I have circled include Minnesota over UCLA (the Pac 10 sucked this year), California over UNLV (there’s just something about the Running Rebels that I don’t trust), Montana over Syracuse, Pittsburgh over Gonzaga (if they meet in the Round of 32) and Oregon over Oklahoma State.

Colorado State (No. 8 in the Midwest) is a higher seed than Missouri, so it might not seem like an upset if they beat the Tigers, but that is one of my favourite first-round picks. Missouri is awful in tight games and Colorado State should keep things close, then pull it out in the final minutes.

And as far as the play-in games go, I can’t wait for the Middle Tennessee State/St. Mary’s game. That should be epic, with the winner earning a No. 11 seed and a first-round matchup with Memphis in the Midwest.

Can’t wait to get it all started!

Don’t forget, you can get into the action and enjoy a free crack at $750 if you enter our March Madness bracket contest.

The Cincinnati Bearcats were an under bettors’ wet dream this NCAA season.

Before you fill out your Proline betting ticket, make an NCAA basketball bet or fill out your March Madness bracket, it’s a good idea to assess what each team’s strengths and weaknesses are.
Here’s a look at the NCAA tournament’s best and worst teams in different statistical categories during the season:

BEST POINT SPREAD
1. St Louis                   21-10
2. Miami (FL)              20-9-1
3. James Madison       21-10
4. Villanova                 20-13
5. North Carolina        20-12

WORST POINT SPREAD
1. Cincinnati                11-18
2. VCU                        10-17
3. UNLV                      13-20
4. Oregon                   13-18-1
5. Illinois                     13-18

BEST OVER
1. Iowa State               20-4
2. Memphis                 18-8
3. Oklahoma               17-7
4. Temple                    16-8
5. Michigan                 19-12

BEST UNDER
1. Cincinnati                4-22
2. Akron                      6-16
3. Gonzaga                  8-19
4. Colorado                 7-16
5. New Mexico            10-17

BEST REBOUNDING MARGIN
1. Colorado State       12.4
2. Missouri                  10.3
3. Minnesota               9.4
4. Wichita State           9.2
5. Indiana                    9.0

WORST REBOUNDING MARGIN
1. Montana                  -1.9
2. Northwestern State -1.7
3. Temple                    -1.4
4. Illinois                     -1.2
5. Duke                       -0.9

BEST OFFENSIVE FG %
1. Creighton                50.8
2. Gonzaga                 49.9
3. NC State                 49.4
4. Indiana                    48.6
5. LIU Brooklyn           48.3

BEST DEFENSIVE FG %
1. Kansas                    36.0
2. Georgetown             37.2
3. Syracuse                  37.7
4. Florida                     37.7
5. Bucknell                  37.9

BEST THREE POINT SHOOTING
1. Creighton                .421
2. Indiana                    .411
3. Duke                       .406
4. Harvard                   .401
5. South Dakota State  .394

MOST STEALS
1. VCU                        11.94
2. Louisville                 10.74
3. Belmont                   9.84
4. Northwestern State  9.84
5. Florida Gulf Coast   9.00

MOST BLOCKS
1. Kansas                    6.62
2. Memphis                 6.29
3. Syracuse                 6.20
4. Cincinnati                6.18
5. UNLV                      5.79

FEWEST TURNOVERS COMMITTED
1. Michigan                 9.21
2. Bucknell                  9.45
3. Wisconsin               9.79
4. South Dakota State  10.38
5. Ohio State               10.66

MOST TURNOVERS COMMITTED
1. Villanova                 15.67
2. Western Kentucky  15.06
3. Oregon                    14.91
4. Florida Gulf Coast  14.68
5. Memphis                 14.62

Mid-major schools like VCU have enjoyed plenty of success recently at March Madness.

1. Learn from the conference tournaments

The conference tournaments can be a preview of what to expect in th

e NCAA tournament, since there are several parallels between the two competitions. Like the NCAA tournament, conference tournament games are played on neutral floors, so you get a chance to see how teams perform when there is no home-floor advantage. And like the NCAA tournament, conference tournaments are single-elimination, giving you the opportunity to see how teams perform under the pressure of win or go home. This year, Syracuse proved it is still a team to look out for in the NCAA tournament, reaching the final of the Big East tournament despite struggling down the stretch of the conference season.

2. Don’t over-react to conference tournament results
Like we just said, there ar

e things that can be learned by how a team performs at the season-ending conference tournaments. Just be sure to take some of those results with a grain of salt, since teams often have diffe

rent agendas at those tournaments. Squads on the bubble (like Mississippi or Maryland this year) give maximum effort at those tournaments, knowing they need to show well in order to get invited to the NCAA tournament. Teams who have already locked up high seeds (like Duke or Georgetown or Indiana, all of whom went out early in their conference tourneys) are more concerned about tweaking a couple things and staying healthy, since they don’t have much to gain. So just because Maryland beat Duke in the ACC tournament doesn’t mean the Blue Devils aren’t going to go far in the NCAA tournament.

3. Pay attention to the point spreads
Oddsmakers sometimes tip their hand to who they think is going to win a game with the point spread they release. Occasionally in the NCAA tournament, you see a lower seed favoured over a higher seed. Or you might see a No. 11 seed only catching 3 points against a No. 5 seed, a much lower point spread than you would expect in that seeding matchup. Oddsmakers aren’t likely to shade point spreads towards lower seeds, since the betting public generally likes to bet the bigger name teams and higher seeds anyway. So if you see a line that doesn’t seem to be what it should, it’s probably telling you something.

4. Don’t just blindly pick the big-name schools
Everyone knows schools like North Carolina, Duke, Michigan State and Kansas are basketball powers every year. More people know about Indiana, Syracuse and Florida than they do about Virginia Commonwealth, New Mexico and Butler. But don’t let that bias your judgement when filling out your bracket or making your Proline picks or sportsbook picks. Smaller schools in mid-major conferences are more than capable of beating the big boys in NCAA basketball, particularly in recent years. Butler reached the national final in consecutive seasons, VCU made that memorable run two years ago and we’ve also seen big upsets by schools like Ohio, George Mason, Norfolk State, Northern Iowa and others since the turn of the century.

5. Pick your spots
It’s easy to get caught up in the rush of the March Madness NCAA basketball tournament, with 16 games on Thursday and Friday. There are often several games on at once, and as soon as one ends, another begins. Just make sure not to get carried away by all the action. If you lose a bet in the final seconds, don’t just angrily bet more on the next game to try and get it back. And if you’re enjoying a good start to the day, don’t just throw it away with a quick bet on the night games. Pick which games you like before the game begins, buy your Proline ticket or make your sportsbook bets, and then just sit back and enjoy the action.

6. Consult a map
March Madness NCAA tournament games are technically played on neutral courts, but these neutral courts can often be quite close to some school campuses. Once the bracket is released, you can see the locations for all the games and get a sense for which schools are playing close to home. If Michigan State or Ohio State are playing games in Detroit, you can expect them to enjoy much greater fan support than if they are playing games in Oklahoma City. With emotion being such a big part of NCAA basketball, extra fan support can sometimes be the difference in helping teams advance to the next round.

7. Break down the matchups
Certain teams just match up very well against some teams, and very poorly against others. For example, Wisconsin has defeated Indiana 12 straight times. It’s pretty obvious that the Hoosiers aren’t comfortable playing that grind-it-out style Wisconsin is known for. Or perhaps a team really struggles with turnovers. That would spell disaster against a tenacious pressing team like Louisville. If a team can’t rebound very well, that would be bad news against Colorado State or Missouri, two teams who were among the league leaders in rebounding this season.

8. Get the best line
This point isn’t really relevant for Proline NCAA basketball betting, since Proline odds are the same no matter where you buy your ticket. But for online sportsbook betting, point spreads and totals are often different at different sportsbooks. Ohio State might be a 1-point favourite at Pinnacle Sports, but Sports Interaction – a recreational book which sometimes inflates lines on favourites – may have the Buckeyes as a 3-point favourite. If Ohio State wins the game by 2, you’d win at Pinnacle Sports and you’d lose at Sports Interaction. The point spreads won’t often differ by a couple points, but even a half-point discrepancy can make the difference between a win and a push or a push and a loss. The NCAA betting lines are incredibly tight at this time of year, since oddsmakers have to be on top of their game for the millions of dollars that will be bet on the March Madness NCAA tournament. Many times, the game will be decided within a point or two of the spread or total, so make sure you give yourself the best number. The only way to do this is to have accounts at several different sportsbooks. If you’re uncertain about which online sportsbooks are safe to use, check out our recommended sportsbook reviews.

9. Consult the experts
For almost all of us working stiffs, there isn’t enough time in the day to learn about every team in the NCAA tournament field. Fortunately, there are NCAA basketball junkies out there who have followed all the conferences since the opening tip of the season and can be a valuable resource at March Madness time. And, thanks to the age we live in, their information and advice is available for free, 24/7, on Twitter. Consult our list of 7 Twitter accounts to follow during March Madness if you want to tap into some of the sharpest NCAA basketball betting minds out there.

10. Trust the No. 1 seeds
Seeds aren’t everything, as we explained earlier in this article, but you don’t earn a No. 1 seed for no reason. As you might expect, No. 1 seeds have a history of performing very, very well at March Madness time. In fact, a No. 1 seed has won the NCAA tournament five of the past six years. Only three times in NCAA tournament history have there been no No. 1 seeds in the Final Four. And a No. 1 seed has never – that’s right, never – lost in the opening round of the NCAA tournament. Check out our Men’s NCAA tournament seeding facts for more trends and information about all seeds.

Each year around this time, many sportsbooks offer special bonuses to entice bettors to bet with them.

GT Bets sportsbook is doing that right now. And here at Sportsbookbonus.ca, we’re sweetening the pot.

If you sign up with GT Bets through our link and deposit $50 or more, you’ll get a 100% bonus of up to $150. Deposit $500 and you can get a 50% bonus of $250.

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So, to recap:

Deposit $50 at GT Bets, which you can use to bet on March Madness NCAA basketball, the NHL, the NBA or any other sport you choose. A $50 deposit will get you another $50 in bonus money, leaving you with $100 to bet with.

And you’ll have a shot at the grand prize of $750 in our bracket contest, which is limited to 64 entries.

For $50, you are guaranteed $100 in your GT Bets betting account. That balance can quickly become $850 with a little luck during the tournament.

$850 will go a long way towards betting on the upcoming NHL and NBA playoffs, or – now that the Blue Jays look like they will finally be good again – perhaps a bit of MLB action as well.

And, as an added bonus, anyone who enters the contest will have access to our picks during the tournament. These are the plays we will be betting ourselves.

You’ve got nothing to lose here, and the potential for plenty to gain. Instead of joining that huge office pool that you have hardly any chance of winning, why not take $50 you were going to bet with anyway and take a one in 64 shot at our $750 grand prize?

Good luck!