Faces of the Vig.
Vigorish, or simply the vig, also known as juice, under-juice, the cut or the take, is the amount charged by a bookmaker, or bookie, for taking a bet from a gambler. In the United States, it also means the interest on a shark's loan. The term originates from the Russian word for winnings, ??????? vyigrysh. [1]
Bookmakers use this practice to make money on their wagers regardless of the outcome. To minimize their risk, some bookmakers do not want to have an interest in any side winning in a given sporting event. Instead, they are interested in getting equal betting on all outcomes of the event. In this way, the bookmaker minimizes his risk and always collects a small commissionfrom the vigorish. For this purpose, the bookmaker will normally adjust the odds or the line.
The concept is also sometimes referred to as the overround, although this is technically different, being the percentage the event book is above 100%, whereas the vigorish is the bookmaker's percentage profit on the total stakes made on the event. For example, 20% overround is vigorish of 16?2/3%. The connecting formulae are v o1o and o v1v where o is the overround.
It is simplest to assume that vigorish is factored in proportionally to the true odds, although this need not be the case. Under proportional vigorish, a moneyline odds bet listed at -100 vs. +100 without vigorish (fair odds) could become -105 vs. +105. Under disproportional vigorish, it could become -110 vs. +100. |
