Moneyline Betting in Wyoming
The simplest sports wager, pick which team or player wins, with no points or margin involved.
What is a moneyline bet?
A moneyline bet is the simplest wager available on any Wyoming sportsbook: you pick which team or fighter wins. There's no spread, no margin, no point handicap. The team has to win outright for your bet to cash. The trade-off for that simplicity is that the price (payout) reflects how likely each side is to win, short prices on favorites, longer prices on underdogs.
Every legal Wyoming sportsbook, DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM, Caesars, and Fanatics, offers moneylines on every major sport: NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, college football and basketball, soccer, UFC, and tennis.
How to read American odds
Wyoming sportsbooks display moneylines in American odds format. Two formats appear:
- Negative numbers (e.g. -140) indicate the favorite. The number tells you how much you must risk to win $100 in profit. -140 means you risk $140 to profit $100.
- Positive numbers (e.g. +120) indicate the underdog. The number tells you how much you profit on a $100 wager. +120 means a $100 bet returns $120 in profit (plus your $100 stake back).
The two prices are roughly inverse. A -140 favorite implies the opponent is around +120, but books always include their margin (called "vig" or "juice"), which is why the implied probabilities of both sides will sum to slightly more than 100%.
Worked example: Broncos vs Chiefs
Broncos -140 vs Chiefs +120
Bet $140 on Denver. If they win, profit is $100. Total return is $240 ($140 stake + $100 profit). If they lose, you lose $140.
Bet $100 on Kansas City. If they win, profit is $120. Total return is $220 ($100 stake + $120 profit). If they lose, you lose $100.
Implied probability, what the price actually means
You can convert a moneyline to an implied probability with two formulas:
- Negative odds: probability = -odds / (-odds + 100). So -140 implies 140 / 240 = 58.3%.
- Positive odds: probability = 100 / (odds + 100). So +120 implies 100 / 220 = 45.5%.
In our Broncos-Chiefs example, the two implied probabilities (58.3% + 45.5% = 103.8%) sum to more than 100%. That extra 3.8% is the book's margin. To break even on moneyline bets long-term, you need to win at a higher rate than the implied probability of the price you take.
When to use the moneyline
The moneyline is the best wager type when:
- You have strong conviction on who wins but the spread doesn't reflect that conviction. If you think the Broncos win 65% of the time but the spread is set so they're "only" 55% likely to cover, the moneyline is the better bet.
- You're betting an underdog with momentum. Underdogs at +150 to +400 are where most professional bettor edge lives, small probability errors multiply into real value.
- You're betting a low-scoring sport like soccer or hockey, where point spreads are awkward (Asian handicaps and puck lines exist but most betting volume sits on the moneyline).
- You're betting a non-team event like UFC fights or tennis matches, where there's no spread anyway.
When the moneyline is the wrong choice
- Heavy favorites (-300 and shorter). Risking $300 to win $100 carries terrible bankroll efficiency. Use the point spread instead, buying points down to -1.5 or -3.5 returns far better risk-adjusted value.
- Big underdogs you "kind of like." A +400 dog you think wins 22% of the time has -EV. Stay disciplined.
- When the action's already locked. Live moneyline pricing during a game often runs wider hold than pre-game lines because compilers don't have time to update precisely.
Line shopping moneylines in Wyoming
Pricing on the same moneyline can vary by 5-15 cents between books. Across hundreds of bets per year, line-shopping is the single most actionable edge available to Wyoming bettors. Example from a typical Broncos Sunday:
| Sportsbook | Broncos ML | Chiefs ML |
|---|---|---|
| DraftKings | -138 | +118 |
| FanDuel | -135 | +115 |
| BetMGM | -140 | +120 |
| Caesars | -142 | +122 |
If you want the Broncos, FanDuel at -135 is the best price ($35 less per $100 of profit than Caesars). If you want the Chiefs, Caesars at +122 is best ($2 more profit per $100 wagered than DraftKings). Holding accounts at multiple books is how you capture this edge consistently.
Moneylines on Wyoming-relevant teams
- Denver Broncos, Wyoming's #1 NFL team, biggest moneyline volume in the state.
- Wyoming Cowboys, UW football and basketball, full moneyline coverage.
- Denver Nuggets, NBA regional team, daily moneyline action.
- Colorado Rockies, MLB; underdog moneylines are the most-bet baseball market in WY.
- Colorado Avalanche, NHL; moneylines come in regulation, OT, and full-game versions.
Moneyline variants
3-way moneyline (soccer)
In soccer (and the rare overtime-not-included football market), the 3-way moneyline includes a "draw" outcome. You can bet home, away, or draw. Standard NFL/NBA moneylines are 2-way (the bet pushes if the game is tied at the end of regulation in NFL, overtime included by default).
Regulation moneyline (hockey)
NHL games can end in overtime or shootout. The full-game moneyline includes those; the 3-way regulation moneyline resolves at the end of 60 minutes, home, away, or tied.
Method moneyline (UFC)
UFC books offer method-of-victory moneylines: Fighter A wins by KO, Fighter A wins by submission, Fighter A wins by decision, etc. Each is priced separately. Combining a method ML with a winner ML is a common parlay pattern in MMA.
Common mistakes
- Always taking the favorite. Books make their living off this pattern. Disciplined bettors take prices, not teams.
- Ignoring vig. A -110/+100 line ($110 to win $100, or $100 to win $100) carries less vig than -120/-110, even if the favorite shifted by less. Compare hold across books.
- Confusing implied probability with personal conviction. Convert every price to a percentage and ask: "Do I think this side wins more often than that?"
- Live moneylines during emotional swings. Right after a turnover or scoring run, lines move wider than the actual probability change warrants. Be patient.