How To Calculate Parlays
A parlay is a compound bet on two to eight events in which you must correctly pick the result of all events to win your bet. If you bet on four baseball games, for instance, and you miss on one, you lose the bet. If one or more of the teams you bet on ties or the event is not completed for whatever reason, that is discounted in your parlay bet. For example, if you bet on four teams in a parlay and one team ties and another is rained out but you picked the other two winners correctly, you will be paid as if it were a two-game rather than a four-game parlay. Payoffs on a successful parlay bet are much higher than on a single bet, but they can be tricky to calculate.
Instructions
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1
Convert the money line for the team you're betting on to a decimal number. A money line that starts with a minus (-) indicates that the team is favored and tells you how much you must bet to win $100. Divide 100 by the line value. A money line that starts with a plus (+) indicates the underdog and how much you will win on a $100 bet. Divide the line value by 100.
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2
Add 1 to each decimal value you calculated.
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3
Calculate the potential payout on your parlay bet by multplying your bet amount by each of the values you calculated in Step 2 and subtracting 100. For example, if you place a $100 bet on a parlay of the Red Sox at -130 and the Cardinals at +115 and they both win, your payoff would be ($100*1.77*2.15)-100=$280.55. If you add the Braves at +105 for a three-team parlay, your payout would be ($100*1.77*2.15*2.05)-100=$680.13.
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