FAQ
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What are limits and how do I avoid getting limited?
A limit prevents bettors from betting more than a maximum amount. When you have a fresh account, you have no limits (or no more than a normal user).
Once a bettor raises some red flags, a sportsbook will begin to limit that bettor.
Here are some reasons a sportsbook might limit a bettor:
- Mistake lines - If you hit obvious mistake lines (such as ones in which a -200 bet is +200 and the +/- got flipped)
- Sharp betting - If you consistently beat the closing line value (CLV)
- Prop Markets - If you put a lot of action on markets like player props or alt-lines.
These markets don't see as much action as mainline markets (moneyline/total/spread) and so they may raise a red flag if you begin to bet them and beat their CLV consistently.
In order to avoid getting limited, I recommend tackling a sportsbook in phases:
- Phase 1: Promos/Mainline - Stick to promos and mainline markets (unless a promo is for a non-mainline market). If you need to build up your bankroll, you can hedge promos to guarantee a profit (but be sure to hedge on a separate sportsbook).
One benefit of mainline promo hedging, is that the book you are hedging on will see your wager as a "normal" bet. If you do this enough, a site like DK might even make you VIP and give you even better promos.
In this phase, you can keep this going for a while, as you play promos and hedge your sportsbooks against each other with mainline wagers.
In VA (we have a lot of sportsbooks here), I made about $20k in this phase in my first 3 months, only hedging mainlines/promos.
- Phase 2: +EV/Props - Once the VIP and promos have dried up, you will likely have made a substantial amount of money already on the sportsbook. But you have much to still make.
In this phase, you now begin to bet +EV on mainlines, player props and alt-lines.
Eventually, you will get limited on the sportsbooks. Some books will limit you so much, that it may not be worth your time to sign-in to bet on a +EV play.
Other books are generous with their limits and still allow you to put down a decent amount, relative to other books.
I made about $35k in +EV alone in months 4-6 of my sportsbetting adventures.
+EV betting on prop markets is more profitable than hedging promos, but it is important to not rush into it on a fresh account. There is a lot of money to be made on many books with their promos and potentially even VIP programs, first.
By sticking to mainline markets, you can help ensure you squeeze profits out of both phases. If you understand the risks of betting prop markets, you can click here to change the default value of the "Mainlines Only"
checkbox on the tools' pages.
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What is a Risk-Free Bet?
This is a bet that you can place and if you win, you win your bet as if it was a normal bet.
But if you lose your risk-free bet, you get a reward (such as a free bet, bonus, insurance).
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How do I convert a Risk-Free Bet?
You can convert a risk-free bet by hedging a certain amount on another sportsbook.
Use the Risk-Free Bet Tool to find the best conversions.
The higher the HV%, the more profit you can guarantee.
And then plug those numbers into a risk-free bet calculator to see how much you need to bet on the other sportsbook in order to end up with the same profit, no matter which team wins.
If your Risk-Free Bet wins, there is nothing more you need to do.
If your Risk-Free Bet loses, you'll receive a free bet that you can then convert using the Free Bet Tool and a free bet calculator.
The risk-free bet calculator ensures the same profit, even if your risk-free bet wins or loses (and you receive a free bet that you need to convert).
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What is a Free Bet?
A free bet is a token you can use to place a bet. If the free bet loses, it loses like a normal bet. If the free bet wins, you receive the profit from the bet, but not the stake.
For example, if you have a $100 free bet and you are placing it on +100 odds for a team to win.
A normal bet would show as a $100 profit if the bet wins, and a $200 payout ($100 profit + $100 of your initial stake).
A free bet would show as a $100 profit if the bet wins, and a $100 payout ($100 profit + $0 of your initial stake).
A free-bet does not return your stake if you win because it is a free bet.
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How do I convert a Free Bet?
A free bet can be converted to guaranteed profit by hedging on another sportsbook to convert a % of the free bet to cash.
You can find the best free bet conversions using the Free Bet Tool.
You can then plug those into a free bet calculator to determine how much to wager/hedge on the other sportsbook.
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What are the Sportsbook House Rules?
Every sportsbook has a set of house rules.
Sportsbook house rules are a set of guidelines that govern how a bet will be settled/voided.
These rules are established by the sportsbook operator.
Here is a tentative list of major differences that you should be aware of when hedging/arbing:
- NBA/NFL 4th Quarter Markets - FanDuel and Caesars do not include overtime in its 4th Quarter markets. Most other books do include overtime. Caesars also has separate other Quarter markets that are cumulative (including all time up till the end of the specified quarter).
- NBA First Basket vs First Field Goal - FanDuel and Caesars have the "First Basket" market, which includes free throws. Most other books have the "First Field Goal" market, which excludes free throws.
- MLB Pinch Hitters - If a player does not start but bats at any time, FanDuel will make that bet stand. Most other books will void any batter who does not start.
To play around this you should check if your player is in the starting-lineup. If they are, then you should be good.
If the starting lineup isn't out, yet, then FanDuel's odds may be much longer because that player may have a higher non-start/pinch-hit risk.
- MLB Action vs Listed Pitcher vs Both Pitchers - Most MLB bets are Action, meaning that the bets will stand, even if the starting pitcher changes. But be aware if you ever make a bet that specifies "Listed Pitcher". Those bets would void if the listed pitcher does not start. And same if the bet specifies "Both Pitchers", those bets would void if either of the 2 pitchers don't start.
- NHL Shots on Goal -
FanDuel's Alternate Shots on Goal market does not include overtime. (Update: FanDuel recently switched in fall 2023 to allow this market to include overtime)
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Tennis Moneyline (retirement) - If a player retires partway through the match, some books will void a moneyline wager if not enough of the match has been played. If the minimum has not been played, the bet voids.
- One Set - DraftKings (ATP/Men's), FanDuel, PointsBet, BetMGM, Kambi
- Full Match - DraftKings (WTA/Women's), Caesars
- Tennis Weather Delays - If a tennis event is post-poned, all bets stand for most sportsbooks (ie. DraftKings, PointsBet, FanDuel, BetMGM, Barstool, Kambi). However, there are some, like Caesars, that will void if the event is not completed within one week.
- Tennis Futures - If a player withdrawals from a tournament, sportsbook handle tennis future bets a few different ways:
- Refund - DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM
- Refund with possible deduction - PointsBet, Caesars
- Graded as a loss - Kambi
More details on the difference between Tennis house rules can be found at this ActionNetwork's article.
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If I click on a link to a sportsbook on CNO, will they know I came from CrazyNinjaOdds.com?
I currently only have 2 links to sportsbooks on this site. They both point to the house rules pages for those books.
Normally, if you were to click on a link like that, the sportsbook would know that you came from www.CrazyNinjaOdds.com by using the HTTP Request's "referrer" header.
But I set both of those links to include the property, rel="noreferrer". This means the browser will not pass that header in with the request. And the "Referrer Policy"
will be sent as "no-referrer".
All external links are set to open in a new tab/window. This can make it difficult for you to test the above yourself in Chrome devtools. So, here is a link to
www.crazyninjamike.com that has the, "rel='noreferrer'" attribute but doesn't open in a new tab/window, for you to test it yourself in Chrome devtools (on a site that isn't a sportsbook).
I also do not currently use any affiliate links that could link you with CrazyNinjaOdds.
I also do not currently have ads that would have 3rd party cookies that could also track you.
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Can I play both sides of a bet on the same sportsbook?
It is not recommended to play both sides of a bet on the same sportsbook. Some sportsbooks, such as Caesars, will promo ban people that hedge promos to guarantee a profit.
They will even ban if it is done from different accounts that are in the same household or linked in another way, such as affiliate codes.
It is also more profitable if you hedge on another sportsbook, as you will have better odds and be able to make for a better conversion, meaning more profit.
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What is the Devigger?
The Devigger is a calculator that can estimate the value of a bet. If a bet has positive expected value, then there is no need to hedge it.
If you make 1,000 positive expected value bets, the law of large numbers states that you are much more likely to be in the positive, and hopefully close to the sum of your bets' expected value.
These bets are not guaranteed, however, so they tend to be much smaller bets than your hedging bets. I recommend you use Kelly Criterion to help determine how much to wager.
Help with using the devigger can be found on the Devigger's help page.
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How do I file a complaint with a sportsbook?
If you won a bet or promo and the sportsbook is refusing to pay you, you have options. Since sportsbetting is regulated, you can file your complaint with your state's gaming commission.
You will want to include screenshots of terms, the bet and chats with the sportsbook's customer support. The more evidence that supports your argument, the better the chance you have to win.
Your argument should:
- State what you did (ie. I placed a bet for a promo in which betting $10 on the Kansas City vs Baltimore game as my first wager would earn me $200 if either team scored a touchdown (see attached for the promo and its terms)
- State what you did to satisfy the bet or promo (ie. I placed a $10 bet on the Chiefs moneyline as my first bet on the sportsbook and satisfied their promo's terms)
- State what the sportsbook did or failed to do (ie. The sportsbook did not pay me my bonus money)
- State what happened when you contacted the sportsbook (ie. The customer service agent said that the team you bet on had to win)
- State why you should win (ie. The promo stated in its terms/ad to
- Open a BetMGM Sports Account.
- Bet $10 on Kansas City vs Baltimore.
- Get $200 if Either Team scores a TD!)
It also clearly stated "No Strings Attached!"
- State what evidence you have to support your claim/argument (ie. I have the screenshot attached as evidence, including the chat log)
- State what actions you would like to have done in order to correct this wrong by the sportsbook (ie. I would like my bonus money credited to my account)
- Add any additional feelings you have about what the sportsbook did (ie. This is a clear violation of their gaming license and I would like to request that BetMGM's license be revoked. This is horrible and feels like a scam. I hate to think of all of the people that fell for for this scam as well.)
- End with a simple "Thank you." (ie. Thank you.)
If you need help with where to submit your complaint, based on your state, see here.
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Where do I file a complaint with a sportsbook?
If you are filing a complaint with a sportsbook, each state has a different gaming commission to submit your complaint to.
Here is a tentative list of where to file your complaint to for each state:
If yours is not listed, please let us know in the CNM Discord and we will help to locate it for your state.
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When is CNO down for updates?
CNO will update its servers the second Wednesday of every month, from approximately 9PM to 6AM Eastern time.
Other Wednesdays may also see server updates but those will only be if necessary.
In regard to content updates, I try to do most of my testing on a sandbox-server and push the updates once they are tested/ready. If it's a long update, I save those for night. If there is a bug/error, I try to fix those ASAP.
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I cannot Geolocate to any Sportsbook when connected to my Verizon Router
This is a common issue for people with the Verizon Router model CR1000A. Thankfully, it is an easy fix.
Go to your web browser (ie. Chrome):
- - go to the address: 192.168.1.1
- - You may need to choose advanced or something and proceed if you get a red message.
- - Put in your admin password (on your router) to login.
- - Go to "Advanced > Network Settings > DNS Server" and uncheck “Enable DNS Rebind Protection”. Click Apply. [See Example Screenshot]
- - Geolocation should now work for you.
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Have more questions?
The best place to ask questions is in the CNM Discord.