What You Need to Know about Betting on These 4 Fringe Sports
In 2018 the federal ban on sports betting in the US was struck down by the Supreme Court, paving the way for states to introduce bills to legalize the activity. By 2020, New Jersey, Arkansas, Indiana, Mississippi, and Pennsylvania were among those that began accepting legal bets. Sports betting markets grew in these and several other states, but, like other industries, faced significant challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The pandemic shut down operations at each of the four major North American professional sports leagues. New Jersey, which brought the sports betting case to the Supreme Court and is the largest market outside of Nevada, handled only $54.6 million in bets in April 2020 due to limited options. However, as North American leagues remained sidelined over the next few months, people found other sports to bet on.
Handle reached $165 million in New Jersey in June 2020 as bettors took interest in golf, NASCAR, UFC, and even table tennis. The following is a look at betting options for these four fringe sports.
Golf
Golf was a big contributor to the $165 million in wagers handled by New Jersey sportsbooks in June 2020. Following a three-month shutdown, the PGA Tour resumed operations that month with the Charles Schwab Challenge and RBC Heritage. Bettors could place wagers via BetMGM and DraftKings, among other online platforms, on who would win these tournaments. Rory McIlroy was the betting favorite for the Charles Schwab Challenge at +700 and +750 on these respective websites, but Daniel Berger won the tournament following a tiebreaker playoff against Collin Morikawa. McIlroy finished tied for 32nd place, which highlights the difficulty of betting on golf, especially when predicting tournament winners.
However, there are several other betting options for golf fans looking to place wagers on tournaments. Less risky alternatives include “place” and “matchup” bets, the former of which is a wager on a particular player to finish in the top five, 10, or 20, while the latter involves a bet on one player to record a better score than another. There are also tournament prop bets on potential scenarios including whether or not there will be a hole-in-one or if there will be a wire-to-wire winner.
NASCAR
Similar to golf, NASCAR fans can register place and outright winner bets on every race during the season. Typically, race favorites are given odds of about +300, while good value bets can be found for those with odds at +1000, meaning a successful $100 bet would result in a $1,000 profit. Select sportsbooks offer place bets, meaning bettors can wager whether they think a driver will finish in the top three or five positions.
Futures betting is also popular in motorsports. At the beginning of the NASCAR Cup season, sportsbooks offer odds on each driver to win the series. These odds are altered throughout the season based on driver standings and performance. For instance, BetMGM listed Chase Elliot as the favorite to win the 2021 NASCAR Cup at +500 in mid-March. However, after a disastrous 38th place finish at the QuikTrip 500, the sportsbook raised his odds to +600.
UFC
UFC benefited from a lack of competition as it was the first major sports organization to return to action during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. UFC 249, which took place in Jacksonville, Florida on May 9, 2020, was headlined by a bout involving Justin Gaethje and Tony Ferguson. Gaethje won the fight via TKO in the fifth round. Bettors could have placed wagers on the outright winner of the fight (moneyline), the round over/under, and method of victory. Some sportsbooks even offered betting options such as the exact round in which the fight finishes and whether or not the fight goes the distance.
The early return of UFC, coupled with a recent partnership with DraftKings, has made betting on mixed martial arts increasingly popular. DraftKings is the official UFC sportsbook partner, and its betting odds on select fights are highlighted on UFC PPVs and broadcasts.
“Combat sports, and UFC in particular, have scaled significantly across both our sportsbook and daily fantasy verticals, evolving from a niche offering to a high-demand category that we believe will only grow further as we innovate,” noted DraftKings CEO Jason Robins.
Table Tennis
Based on TV ratings, table tennis isn’t even a top-10 most popular sport in the US. However, its popularity among bettors was evident with a lack of sports options during the early stages of the pandemic. In May and June 2020, $15 million in wagers was placed on table tennis in Colorado alone. Moscow Liga Pro, among other leagues, continued as scheduled without much restriction, although there were concerns of match-fixing among players for personal gain. New Jersey suspended betting on table tennis in July 2020 for this reason but has since lifted the suspension. Betting options include moneyline and over/under, which is typically set at around 70 points.
