Chris Hardy brings years of experience to Wetten.com, thanks to his strong background in journalism and online writing. Chris' career began nearly 20 years ago when he was hired to work for his local paper; he then made the move to web writing when he and his wife moved to the USA to be closer to family in 2017. This location change led Chris to develop a particular passion in US sports such as basketball and NFL (he remains a beleaguered Miami Dolphins fan and is sure their turnaround season will happen... one day) and he utilises his all-encompassing knowledge of US sports, along with soccer, when writing for Wetten.
What is Asian Handicap?
If you’ve ever asked ‘What is Asian Handicap betting?’, you’re in the right place as we’ll have Asian handicap betting explained. Table, odds and rules are just some of the things that we could use to show you why this type of bet has grown to be hugely popular in recent years, but we prefer to use real-life examples.
This type of bet originated in Indonesia, but such is the success of the Asian handicap bet that it has successfully been implemented at many of the best betting sites in Australia.
We won’t just answer the basic question of ‘What is Asian handicap betting?’, as we’ll aim to discover why so many sports fans use this bet. Plus we’ll take a look at the different varieties of Asian handicap bets that you might come across.
If you’ve been to a bookmaker site or a betting exchange in Australia, then you might have seen something called ‘Asian handicap bets’. But what is Asian handicap betting?
An Asian handicap bet is a type of bet that can do a great job in balancing out the differences in an uneven sporting fixture. This is because it will put a team or an athlete at a points disadvantage, and their opposition at a points advantage to level the playing field.
It’s important to note that Asian handicap bets can also remove draws from the equation so that you can stand to get even better profits should luck go your way.
This might sound a little complicated for anybody who’s wondering which bookmaker is best for beginners in Australia. If we were to try another way of having Asian handicap betting explained, table, odds and rules would probably be the way forward. But for now, you can just think of Asian handicap bets as being ways to get better odds for backing a favourite, and better chances of winning when backing an underdog.
Asian handicap betting explained – Table, odds and rules not needed
If you’re still confused about the question of ‘What is Asian handicap betting?’, then we can try another way of having Asian handicap betting explained. Table, odds and rules are one way that we could approach things, but we thought that you’d be better served with an example of Asian handicap bets for one of our own A-League soccer matches.
Let’s imagine that Sydney FC were taking on Central Coast Mariners. As Sydney would be favourites and Central Coast the underdogs, the bookmaker would try and level the playing field by giving each team a goal handicap.
This could mean that Sydney had a goal handicap of -1.5, while Central Coast had a handicap of +1.5 goals. So if you bet on Sydney, they would need to win by at least two goals for you to win the bet, while Central Coast can either win or lose by no more than one goal for you to win your bets.
Other types of Asian handicap betting explained – Table, odds and rules
This kind of bet should be tried when you are faced with two equally good teams. There won’t be any goal handicaps, but the draw will be removed. This means that if the match ends as a draw, your betting stake will be refunded. So, if you wonder how bookmakers make money, it won’t be through you getting a draw on your level Asian handicap bets.
Split Asian handicap betting
This is a good bet to try when there is only a marginal difference in the quality of both teams. By trying this bet, you’ll be splitting your stake on a team across two separate handicaps.
For example, you could bet $100 on a strong team like Perth Glory to win with a -1.25 goal handicap on two different handicap bets. Half of your stake would go on the -1 goal bet, while the other half would go on the -1.5 goal bet. Also known as quarter goal Asian handicaps, they are a good bet for those tight matches where you think that your team has the slight edge.
Why should you try Asian handicap betting?
We should note the fact that Asian handicap betting is one of the more advanced kinds of bets. Just like if you were trying to use one of the more complex no risk matched betting strategies Australia has to offer, it’s not a bet to try if you are new to sports betting.
But if you have a good understanding of how betting odds are calculated, then you’ll find that Asian handicap betting offers you a new way to think about betting on traditional 1×2 markets.
After all, you can win an Asian handicap bet even if your chosen team or player lost their match. Plus the fact that the draw can be removed from the equation means that the overall betting margins could be lower. All of which points to the fact that there’s plenty to be gained from understanding the answer to the question of ‘What is Asian handicap betting?’.
As long as the sport has some chance of having a draw, then it could work well with an Asian handicap bet. Many soccer fans will know that Asian handicap betting is a great way to give them the chance of making better profits. But anything with a 1×2 betting markets should work fine – be sure to check out our guide to ‘what is 1×2 betting?’ if you need any help with this.
As a result, you could try Asian handicap betting for sports like cricket, rugby, basketball, netball, ice hockey, Australian rules football and even American football.
However, if you’re looking for advice for betting on sports like Formula 1 motor racing, golf or horse racing, then you probably won’t need to find out more about the answer to the question of ‘what is Asian handicap betting?’.
Final thoughts on Asian handicap betting
Asian handicap betting gives you plenty of flexibility to get more from your sports bets. If you’ve ever asked ‘Is online gambling legal in Australia?’, you’ll benefit from the fact that you can legally try an Asian handicap bet on many sports in the nation.
Just remember to use one of the best resources for bookmaker complaints Australia has to offer should you feel that your Asian handicap bets have been unfairly dealt with.
