Making a wager on sports adds an extra layer of excitement to the game, whether you’re rooting for your team or betting against them. However, winning isn’t always easy and even the best bettors lose more often than they win. Getting in tune with the odds and understanding how payouts work will help you make more informed bets.

The first step to being a successful sports bettor is setting a bankroll. This is an amount of money you are willing to risk, in the worst-case scenario, on each individual bet. This will help you determine how much to bet and how often. It’s also important to set a target percentage of your bankroll to risk on each individual bet, which will vary depending on your personal risk tolerance and strategy. A good rule of thumb is to aim for 1% to 5% of your total bankroll per bet.

Another factor to consider is the amount of juice (also known as vig) charged by the sportsbook you’re placing your bets at. This is a form of tax on your bets and reduces your profits. The less vig charged, the more profit you’ll see on your bets. It’s worth checking out the vig rates of various sportsbooks to find the one that offers the lowest rate.

Sportsbooks also offer a variety of different bets, including spread and total (over/under) bets. The former is based on the expected difference in a game’s outcome, while the latter is based on the combined score of both teams. If the final score of a game is exactly the same as the total bet’s prediction, this is considered a push and your bet is lost. Most sportsbooks refund pushes, but some count them as losses.

It’s important to remember that gambling is a form of entertainment and shouldn’t be treated as a way to get rich. Gambling for the wrong reasons can lead to a variety of problems, from overspending to losing your hard-earned savings. Moreover, sports bettors are sometimes at risk of gambling addiction. This can be caused by a combination of factors, including the lack of regulation in the industry, high stakes and poor money management.

Another aspect to keep in mind is the fact that college football is a difficult sport to bet on due to its many variables. College football games can last up to 90 minutes and may go to overtime or a penalty shootout. Furthermore, the most dominant schools—such as Alabama and Clemson—are likely to dominate their conferences and earn regular appearances in the playoffs. It’s also not unusual for these schools to clinch back-to-back national championships. Therefore, it’s important to remain objective when placing your bets and not place bets on a team simply because you’ve been rooting for them since childhood. This will help you make more intelligent bets and minimize your losses. In addition, don’t be afraid to abandon a bet that isn’t working out. It’s better to walk away with a small loss than to chase your bets and wind up losing more money.