Ultimate Tennis Betting Guide for Beginners

Tennis is a racket sport traditionally referred to as lawn tennis and is among the world’s most popular sports behind the likes of soccer, cricket and field hockey. As such, it enjoys a huge betting market with millions of punters placing wagers daily across different parts of the globe. The popularity of the sport, therefore, means that you will find a broad selection of online tennis betting options that you can choose to back your favorite players in different tournaments annually.

If you’ve ever wondered what betting on tennis is about, then you just came to the right page. We’ll take you through all the tennis betting basics starting from how the sport works, the best tournaments you can wager on, useful tennis strategies & tips, and, of course, the best tennis betting sites you can use to bet on the game online. Are you ready? Let’s dig in.

Quick Introduction

Compared to other equally popular sports, tennis also has a rich history that dates centuries ago. The game, as we know it today, was first codified in England around the 1870s, but it was adapted from a remarkably ancient sport by the name jeu de paume, which was invented in France long ago in the 11th century.

As a medieval sport, it was first played with bare hands before the racket was first invented in the 16th century and the scoring system around the same time. The name “tennis” was also adapted in the 16th century from the French word “tenez!” meaning “here it comes” or “catch it!”- something opponents would tell one another right before serving the ball.

Today, tennis is played in virtually all countries in the world by people from all walks of life thanks to the simplicity it offers. The game enjoys a massive following for the world's largest tournaments entitled the Majors, also called Grand Slam tournaments where the best players clash for a chance to win a Grand Slam title. The top stars who dominate the tennis scene include the likes of Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Maria Sharapova, Andy Murray, Rafa Nadal and, of course, the sister duo Serena and Venus Williams.

These crown jewels of tennis, including the French Open, the Australian Open, the US Open and Wimbledon, draw skillful players, spectators, promoters and money, which attracts gamblers. This makes tennis the most popular individual sport of all time as it has millions of players and more than a billion followers worldwide.

One of the best things about tennis that makes it one of the best sports to bet on is that the season runs throughout the year. As a result, punters have lots of opportunities to earn money while placing wagers all year round. You can do that at top online sportsbooks such as GGBet, which offers a vast range of tennis bets at very competitive odds.

Most Common Tennis Live Betting Types

One of the many factors that have made tennis a popular game is, without a doubt, the broad array of bet types that online sportsbooks offer. Bettors have the opportunity to make many different predictions: who will win the French or US open, what the final correct score will be, who will be the first set winner, how many sets will be played, and all that. Besides, with live betting offered by top bookies such as GGBet, you have the chance to pick from even more bet varieties to earn money from correct predictions.

Match Betting and Outrights

Match betting is the most straightforward method of betting on tennis. As the name suggests, it relates to one match where you can either bet on the first or second player to emerge the winner.

Outright winner bets, too, are just as simple. With an outright bet, you simply back the player whom you feel will emerge the winner of the whole tournament, not just a single match. So if you think Roger Federer will emerge the winner at Wimbledon, you can back him with an outright, and if he wins, you win!

Set Betting (Correct Score)

Set betting in tennis is like correct score betting in football where you predict the exact final score of the match: for instance, Serena Williams beat her sister Venus Williams 3-1 in sets. As you can see, this can be a bit difficult. Nevertheless, you should anticipate a rather healthy payday.

Handicap Betting (Point Spread)

Handicap betting in tennis is a means of leveling the playing field where a player is offered some sets or games as an advantage over their challenger. The sportsbook will set the handicap number so you can place a wager on the underdog (positive handicap) to have an advantage or on a favorite (negative handicap) to overcome a handicap.

Didn’t get it? Let’s have a look at an example. If, say, Novak Djokovic holds a +3.5 handicap versus Roger Federer, and the match is won by Roger Federer 6-4, 6-4, 4-6. In such a case, your bet on Djokovic wins since when you add all the games, Federer has a total of 16 compared to Djokovic’s 14. By adding 3.5 to Novak Djokovic's score, makes him better than his opponent.

Parlay Bets

A parlay bet is a kind of bet that consists of two or more bets types such as handicaps, totals, outrights, and correct score. As a result, a parlay bet will have a bigger payout than a single bet.

Totals (Overs/Unders)

The tennis totals market is like Overs/Unders betting in football betting. In a total games/sets market, the bookie sets a given figure for the number of sets or games that will be played before the match ends. Thus, you can bet on whether the total number of sets or games will be over or under that figure.

Live In-Play Betting

In addition to the aforementioned tennis bet types, one of the most favored wagering ways in the tennis betting fraternity is live betting. Also called in-play betting, tennis live betting provides you with even more opportunities to earn money while the match is on. The finest betting sites like GGBet online allow punters to place wagers in real-time on a vast array of markets like match winners, correct scores, handicaps and totals, among others. This offers you the chance to trade on pre-match wagers so that you can lock in a given profit or minimize losses, just in case the events work against you.

Types of Tennis Betting Odds

Online sports betting sites use live odds and pre-match odds to indicate the likelihood of a given outcome in a sports event. However, novices aren’t aware that the various odds actually illustrate the bookmaker’s anticipations as well as the cash they are ready to pay winners. For this reason, you ought to be able to see the value in both pre-match and live tennis odds – at times, the prospective prize is unreasonably higher than the risk accompanying a wager.

All the same, for you to notice the best tennis odds, the first step is to understand them. Sports gambling odds come in various formats, and tennis odds are often presented as fractional or decimal odds. Let’s take a closer look at each type of betting tennis odds:

• Decimal Odds

The decimal type of odds is popular in European bookies, and they usually show the total return of a $1 wager. To calculate your total returns when you have the decimal format of odds, you only need to multiply the odds figure by your stake. If you make a $50 bet on Maria Sharapova to win a match at 1.50 odds, your potential winnings would be $75 = ($50 x 1.50). Take away your initial stake from $75, and you have a $25 net profit.

• Fractional Odds

Fractional format odds are the standard type of odds for bookies in the UK and Ireland, and they show the net return from a winning wager in fraction form. The decimal 1.5 odds would be equivalent to 1/2. Thus to work out your net return, you divide the numerator (1) by the denominator (2), then multiply the result by your stake- 0.5 x $50, which equals $25.

So from the example above, we can compute the implied probability by dividing one by the odds, then multiplying by 100%: (1/1.5) x 100, which gives 66.7%. From the fractions point of view, we'll get the implied probability by dividing 2 by 3 (1 + 2), which is equal to 66.7%.

GG Bet Online - The Best Tennis Betting Sportsbook

Whether you’re betting on tennis Grand Slams, Men’s tennis, Women’s tennis, or the Davis & Fed Cup, you'll require a top online betting tennis site like GGBet. GG Bet online is a sportsbook and tennis betting oddschecker worth the weight in rackets and will provide you with a strong customer support service, impressive lines and odds for live tennis betting, as well as an easy-to-use interface that works smoothly both on mobile and desktop devices.

Also, at GGBet, sports bettors are entitled to a first deposit bonus that will match your initial deposit once you sign up for an account. On top of that, you might come across other regular promotions like free bets that will help boost your bankroll whenever you want to wager on tennis or any other sport that you enjoy.

Tennis Sports Betting Strategy & Tips - How to Win

With tennis and any other sport out there, several factors affect the outcome of every single bet, and a little research before making bets matters a great deal. Here are some of the best strategies and tips you can utilize to start your GG.Bet online tennis betting on the right foot.

• Be cautious about court surfaces

A tennis match can be played on three different court surfaces: a clay court, a hard court and grass. Every surface is a very different possibility, and every tennis team has their favorite playing surface. Having that in mind, the very first thing you ought to consider before you decide to bet on tennis matches is how a player performs on a specific surface. If a player is known to underperform on a clay court, you can never bank on them when they play on that very court.

• Analyze head to head trends

Just like preferred court surfaces, tennis players have rivals with who they struggle over and over again. A player like Roger Federer enjoys the biggest portion of win-related records when it comes to men’s tennis. Despite this, the Swiss still struggle against Rafael Nadal with a 16-24 head to head record versus Rafael Nadal. Thus, whenever the two rivals meet, there’s a good chance that you’ll get a bang for your buck when you bank on Nadal.

• Recent form matters a lot

Speaking of player form, nothing matters more, as is the case in any other competitive sport. If a player has been struggling in, say, the last three or four matches, they are likely to struggle tomorrow, so why put your money on them for the next match? But then again, tables sometimes turn depending on who the opponent is!

• The stats don’t lie

Statistics don’t lie, and on the internet, you can always find a mass of free, readily available statistics on every tennis player. This includes data such as the player's serving speed, breakpoints, the number of matches lost, the number of trophies won, and so on. All of these should influence who you back and why.

Summing It All Up

Your kit bag is now packed with everything you need to know about how this racket sport works, tennis odds betting and the various strategies and tips that you are supposed to have at your fingertips before you start betting. To top it all off, we recommend you to play at GGBet, a top tennis betting site that offers odds for all the major world championships, along with the most popular markets. Start placing wagers today, and you’ll be glad you read this guide. Good Luck and remember to have fun as you bet on tennis!