Up to Tennis Free Picks

posted April 17, 2008 at 15:38 in Tennis Free Picks

Houston, Texas – If you are following my regular Tennis Free Picks instalment at BetUS Sportsbook, it occurred to me the loyal online sports betting faithful deserved a bit of a recap on the early rounds of tennis betting action and a review of how the picks panned out. If you like betting on tennis and better yet, if you like making money at it, then you will enjoy this piece. So what is in store? Well dear faithful tennis bettors, in this piece you will find a short summary on past picks for the US Men’s Clay Court Championships (currently running) as well as some tennis betting tips to keep in mind when speculating on tennis.

Tennis Free Picks Recap:

Winning Tennis Picks: The great part about tennis betting is that it is relatively simple and easy, whether you are an avid tennis bettor or not. Where do you start? Just peek at the money line. It is the best place to start, as the favourites are favoured for good reason. Betting on the favourites typically pans out because certain players don’t match up well, which means your faith will earn a better success ratio. The following are examples of winning tennis free picks where the favourites panned out:

Mardy Fish (-325) vs. Rainer Schuettler (+210)

Winning Tennis Free Picks: Fish at -325

Vincent Spadea (+190) vs. Agustin Calleri (-130)

Winning Tennis Free Picks: Calleri at -130

Peter Luczak (-225) vs. Harel Levy (+175)

Winning Tennis Free Picks: Luczak -225

James Blake (-400) vs. Kei Nishikori (+175)

Winning Tennis Free Picks: James Blake at -400

Now the two picks below are examples of where banking on the underdogs proved to be the winning bet. Why did I pick the underdogs in these two matchups? Now that is a good question dear bettor!

Viktor Troicki (-155) vs. Marcos Daniel (+115)

Winning Tennis Free Picks: Marcos Daniel at +115

Donald Young (-110) vs. Oscar Hernandez (+105)

Winning Tennis Free Picks: Oscar Hernandez at +105

Handicapping tennis involves a little research. Now before you all go into a panic over the “research” bit, if you remember I did mention betting on tennis was simple and easy enough – do try and keep up – seriously, you do not need to be a tennis aficionado to enjoy tennis betting success.

Research is a fancy term for peeking at some relevant information and stats. See, most of the work has been done for you! It is all out there all you need to do is just look at it!

First stats are one of the best markers in tennis handicapping, one of which is a players ranking. Not all sports rank their players, but tennis does. Knowing a players rank cuts your research time considerably. Second, after knowing where a player ranks, you need to understand their strengths and weakness on different surfaces as well as their physical and mental form. Tennis is played on hard, grass, clay and carpet. Not all players excel on each surface. Only a handful of players play well on all surfaces, the majority excel on one surface, but struggle on others. So knowing what surface a player favors goes a long way to improving your success ratio. Finally garnering a players form (physical and mental) requires a quick look at their playing activity and a bit of logical thinking. Whether a player is enjoying their best form or riding a losing streak because of fatigue, injuries or waning confidence, keeping abreast of reports, playing activity and general information can make a difference between placing a winning or losing wager.

In the above two examples, where the underdog proved to be the winning bet, surface was key in handicapping successfully: Hernandez and Daniel favoured clay, whereas Young and Troicki were predominantly hard-court players.

Losing Tennis Free Picks:

Of course, no matter how well you research, there are times when picks just do not go accordingly. The tennis free picks below did not payout:

Igor Kunitsyn (+220) vs. Tommy Haas ( -330)

Tennis Free Picks: Tommy Haas at -330

Kunitsyn d. Haas 5-7, 6-4, 6-4

Nicolas Massu (-125) Sam Querrey (-115)

Tennis Free Picks: Sam Querrey at -115

Massu d. Querrey 5-7, 6-4, 6-4

Paul Capdeville (+110) Diego Hartfield (-150)

Tennis Free Picks: Diego Hartfield at -150

Capdeville d. Hartfield 6-0, 6-4

So where did I go wrong? Well a quick look at the final score line in the first two matchups – Kunitsyn and Massu – their triumphs were close three set battles, won by a handful of points in each set. In such cases, the error was not in handicapping. The result was something determined on court – out of our hands. Simply put the better player won. In the first matchup, Haas (as the favorite) failed to avert the upset, whereas, in the second matchup, Massu (as the favorite) averted the nigh-upset when Querrey failed to close out the match.

Only the third matchup was completely off in term of handicapping. A veritable brouhaha. I seriously overestimated the favorite and underestimated the underdog, but looking at the money line, I was not alone in this one as the odds makers gave Hartfield the nod as well. From the start, this matchup was going to be a derby, as both players stacked up evenly on paper and with neither enjoying a particularly good season the loss was going to go to the player with the lesser confidence. So again, this is an instance where the research was done, but was not full proof. What in every sport is one factor that cannot be measured is heart: The desire to win, the belief a player has they can win, the ability to put behind past failures and look ahead. Hartfield’s was held to love in the first set. Clearly, he was never in the match and his second set comeback was a little too late.

So there you have it. Some valuable tips on how to bet on tennis. Still here? What are you waiting for. The US Men’s Clay Court Championships is contesting the R16 today, so check out the tennis odds currently available at BetUS Sportsbook and start making money betting on tennis.

Join the BetUS.com online sportsbook today and start using the latest tennis lines, odds and props to earn cold, hard cash!

Nila Amerova is a freelance sports writer and regular contributor to the BetUS.com Locker Room.