Parlay Bet Definition

Posted By admin On 26/03/22

A parlay is a type of sports bet in which you combine multiple individual bets (typically 2-10 bets) into one bet or “card.” Combining the bets gives you worse odds to win, but a larger reward for winning. 2 days ago Super Bowl LV parlay picks and teasers for the Kansas City Chiefs vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Our top Super Bowl 55 parlay bets provided by Covers staff!

What Is A Parlay Bet? A parlay bet is a sports bet that combine multiple straight bet wagers on one ticket. Usually, you would pool straight-up bets with spreads and totals. However, you can have multiple versions of the same bet as long as it’s on different games. How Do Parlays Work? If even one bet in your sports parlay is a loss, your entire parlay bet loses. That's just how parlay bets work. Parlay: A parlay is a single bet that links two or more wagers. To win the bet, the player must win all the wagers in the parlay. To win the bet, the player must win all the wagers in the parlay. Parlays are very popular because you can take a wager as small as $2 or $5 and turn it into hundreds and thousands of dollars.

A parlay is a single wager that is comprised of multiple results. The payout for a parlay is greater than an individual wager on each player or game. Underdog moneyline parlays are becoming popular because the payouts can be very large.

Download 'Basic Parlay Betting' as a PDF file

Once an edge has been established - that is, once a steady and consistent horse race betting approach has returned a profit over the medium term - the question arises . . .

'How can I maximize these betting profits?'

How does the race player get more money out of a specific series of wins and losses?
Of course - the horse bettor can simply raise his bet level every so often. This, like everything else related to a serious horse race betting approach, should be done methodically and systematically.
One could, for example, raise the bet level 20-25% on every doubling of the betting bankroll - ex: Starting bank = $500, win bet level $10.00 - when bank reaches $1000, raise bet level to $12.00 or $13.00.
There are complex formulas that best cope with 'risk of ruin' per average bet size as related to average payoff etc. - but that's not what I'm going to go into in this article.

Parlays are the subject here.

Parlay betting is kind of magical.

It's often been said that you can't turn a flat bet loss series into a profitable series by applying any sort of horse betting method or money management plan.

Well, yes, you can. Parlays can do that!
Parlay Bet DefinitionHere is a series of 10 horse race wagers:
loss, loss, loss, loss, $9.00, $10.00, loss, loss, loss, loss.

Flat betting $2.00 each time, you've got $20 in and $19 out for a loss of 5%.

Betting a straight two horse $2.00 parlay - you've only got $18 in - but $45.00 back out for an ROI of +150% !

Okay - but don't run out and tap the savings account just yet. The order of wins and losses becomes crucial in parlays. Move either of the above two wins by one race and you'd miss the parlay and have a 100% loss!
Just as parlays can turn a flat bet losing series into a winning one - they can turn flat bet winning series into a losing one.
Here is another series of 10 races:

loss, 8.00, loss, $10.00, loss, $12.00, loss, loss, loss, loss.

Flat betting $2.00 = $20 in, $30 out for an ROI of +50% Straight 2 horse parlay - $18 in, $0 out for and ROI of -100%
Yet, a different parlay betting approach - the 'round robin' can gain great profits on the same (above) series.

A 'round robin' attempts to catch all possible parlays occurring in any given multi-race series. In a 10 race series, the bettor would start with 9 $2.00 bets, then 8 $2.00 bets etc. as follows for the above series:

race 1 - bet $18 = loss
race 2 - bet $16 - pays $8.00 = return $64.00
race 3 - bet $14 + $8 = loss
race 4 - bet $12 + $8 - pays $10.00 = return $100.00
race 5 - bet $10 + $8 + $10 - loss
race 6 - bet $8 + $8 + $10 - pays $12.00 = return $156
race 7 - bet $6 + $8 + $10 + $12 = loss
race 8 - bet $4 + $8 + $10 + $12 = loss
race 9 - bet $2 + $8 + $10 + $12 = loss
race 10 - bet $0 + $8 + $10 + $12 = loss
Total of all bets = $262 in Total out = $320 for a good ROI of +22%
Or is it a +22% ROI on this series of horse race bets?

No, not really.

If you bet $100 on a pick six that you win and pays $800 - what's your ROI? Isn't it 800 divided by 100 for +700% profit? Or, let's say you bet a $2.00 daily double that pays off at $16.00 - what's your ROI? Isn't it 16 divided by 2 for +700% profit?
Parlays should be figured exactly as any other multi-race wager. In the above example, the total risk capital was only that amount which was started each race:18+16+14+12+10+8+6+4+2 = $90

So we had $320 total out on $262 total bet for a net of +$58.00

$58 profit on $90 risked is an actual ROI of +64.4%

The mistake made by players attempting to run parlays - is the same old mistake players are forever making . . .

Needing lots of wins to bolster their egos and verify their handicapping skills, they parlay low priced figure horses.

Most often their parlay approach isn't even planned - it's a craps shooter's mentality - 'press it up.'

An example would be a player who hits say a 9-5 winner for a $20 wager - his return around $57.00 - and he decides on the spur of the moment to parlay it all onto the next race where he's got another good looking figure horse going off at 2-1. He hits it at say $6.40 and gets a $182 return. Great! He feels really good about his 'score' - decides to stop while he's way ahead and go home with his good profit.

Definition
The ROI was an incredible +812% - I mean, that is incredible - right?
Well - yes, but there was this other guy who played the same day and had run a mere $2.00 five race parlay series. He had set his minimum acceptable odds at 7-1 and proceeded to smoke out the best contender in each race that qualified at those odds. He had his simple betting tables all laid out on a betting sheet so he could keep good and accurate records of his wagers and results - in other words, he had a betting plan.
The results of his horse race betting parlay campaign looked like this:
race 1 - bet $8 = loss
race 2 - bet $6 - pays $19.80 = return $59.40
race 3 - pass, no decent qualifier
race 4 - bet $4 + $20 (19.80 rounded up) - ( this was the race our other player won at $5.70) = loss
race 5 - bet $2 + $20 = loss (this was the $6.40 winner that completed our other player's parlay)
race 6 - pass, no decent qualifiers
race 7 - bet $0 + $20 - pays $37.80 = return $378 (this is bet #5 and
completes the series)
So player #2 has risked $8+6+4+2 = the same $20 as player #1, yet he has a total of $80 bet and $431.40 out for a net of $357.4.

As put forth in the previous article,Horse Racing Gold advocates the portfolio method of horse betting and money management.


There is no 'fantasy-world' perfect horse race betting system, or money management plan. They just don't exist. Serious wagering requires a bankroll, patience, self-confidence and nerve.
Parlay betting separates the men from the boys (and the women from the girls!). . . No sweet little old grandmothers allowed!
It takes a certain kind of race bettor to be able to have just cashed a good paying ticket, yet be willing to risk that 'bird in the hand' profit looking for the really big profits 'in the bush.'


A parlay is a single sports wager that involves two or more bets combined into one. This can include point spreads, moneylines, totals, futures, or even prop bets, as long as the bets are on different games.

Parlay Bet Definition

The allure of these bets has always been a larger payout than choosing a single team to win. But there’s more gamble to these types of wagers because every “leg” of the parlay needs to not lose in order to win. If one leg loses, the whole parlay loses.

The flexibility of a parlay bet also makes it attractive to gamblers. You can combine multiple sports into your parlay bet; for example, you can include the Cowboys from the NFL, the Celtics from the NBA and the Coyotes from the NHL into a single bet. If they all win, you win.

Test out the parlay calculator above and compare odds at different sportsbooks to see how it works!

Placing a parlay bet

There are two ways to place a parlay bet and both are quite simple. Bettors can either tell the ticket writer directly which teams and totals they’d like to bet on and how much they’d like to risk on the bet. Filling out a parlay card is the other option for placing this kind of bet. Once the card is filled in, the bettor simply needs to visit the sportsbook desk to place the bet.

Some mobile sports wagering apps offer both types of parlay bets.

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Winning a parlay

There are two instances when a parlay can be a winning bet. A parlay only wins if none of the sides, totals or moneylines selected is a loser. The parlay can still be a winner if a game is canceled or ends in a tie. The pay schedule will simply more down to the lesser payment. For example, the bettor will win if a baseball parlay for four teams has three winners and one game is canceled because of rain. The bet will only pay based on the schedule for three winners instead of four as originally planned. The bet is a loser if one pick for a parlay is wrong.

Parlay odds

Not all parlay payouts are the same. Sportsbooks may have different odds for the number of teams bet in a parlay. This can be very confusing when looking at online sports that have different odds and payouts for the same parlay. Further, these odds may change at any time so bettors should check with the ticket writer in sportsbook before placing a parlay.

Parlay payouts

Payouts for a parlay are fixed by the time the bet is placed. Even if the lines and odds for an individual game move, the parlay lines and odds won’t change from when the parlay bet was placed. The parlay bet won’t be changed whether the lines change for or against the bettor.

If the lines change for a game, or games, in the favor of the bettor another parlay may be bet with the new line. The original bet cannot be changed and the bet will stand. The good news is that the bettor has two live parlay bets.

Types of parlays

A parlay is a type of sports bet and there are different variations of this kind of wager. The most common types of parlays are Round Robin parlays and Teasers.

Round Robin

A Round Robin bet is placing multiple parlay wagers at once. It’s just that simple. Round Robin bets are just a way to simplify making multiple parlays. When a bettor “Round Robin’s” teams in sports betting it’s similar to a horse bettor “boxing” horses for an exacta or trifecta bet in a race.

The bettor will select anywhere from 3 to 8 teams or totals to be in the Round Robin. They will then choose how many teams or totals they’d like to tie together for the Round Robin. For example, a bettor may select eight teams and totals for a Round Robin and tie the parlays to as many three-team combinations as possible.

The combination of teams will dictate how many different parlays the bettor has. Continuing the example, if a bettor wants to Round Robin eight teams they will have 28 different parlays if they choose two teams. If the bettor chooses to make three-team parlays they will have 56 different parlay tickets.

The ticket will cost the amount chosen for each parlay. If the bettor only has $300 they might choose to Round Robin the teams by two, so they have 28 different parlays for $10 each. The payout for each winning parlay is the same as it would be if the parlay bets were each made individually.

Teaser

A teaser is similar to a traditional parlay where the bettor can select multiple teams or totals. However, there are no moneylines allowed with a teaser. Unlike a parlay, the bettor may move each point spread or total plus or minus a certain number of points. The additional points on the spread or total make these bets easier to win and thus they pay less than a traditional parlay.

Teaser bets can change the point spreads or totals anywhere from six to 10 points. However, each leg of the teaser must use the same number of points. Those legs of the teaser may go in different directions.

  • For example, the New England Patriots -7 can be teased down six points to -1. Meanwhile, the Cleveland Browns can be teased up six points from +4 to +10 points.

Much like a traditional parlay, the more teams involved with a teaser the better the payoff. Again, different sportsbooks have different odds and rules so they might have different payouts and teaser options available to bet.

Parlay Bet Definition Game

Parlay Cards

Parlay Bet Definition Dictionary

The more popular way to bet parlays in casinos today seems to be with a Parlay Card. These are the long narrow cards where bettors fill in the numbered circle of the side or point spread they want to include in their bet. Once the teams and totals are chosen the bettor simply presents the filled in portion on the card to the ticket writer in the sportsbook along with how much they’d like to wager.

Parlay Bet Definition Meaning

Parlay Cards are especially popular during football season. There are many different types of Parlay Cards including a variety of teasers, ties win and reverse teaser cards known as pleasers. These are more popular every year so the mobile sports wagering apps have started to add Parlay Cards for mobile bettors.