Don't bet what you cannot afford to lose - This really is often known as the golden rule of sports betting and is one area you absolutely don't want to do because you definitely will hit a cold streak at some time and lose all your rent money.

Use proper bankroll management - It is crucial to use proper bankroll management because betting sports can be very streaky. Even professional bettors can lose 9 or 10 games in a row and for anybody who is betting too much per game you go bust. Think of your bankroll like your child and do what ever it is important to protect it.

Do not bet too many games - You know when Sunday comes and there is 15 NFL games you do not have to bet all of them, you only want to bet the games you've got an advantage on and most successful bettors will only be able to find 2 or 3 games that they have an advantage on.

Line Shopping - This is an element that takes almost no effort and it makes a tremendous difference. If you like the Packers and most sports books have them listed as a -7 favourite but one sports book has them listed at just -6.5 you would be crazy not to bet the -6.5. At the end of the season it shall probably make the difference from being a winner or loser. Every sports bettor should have at least 3-5 outs.

Bet with your head not your heart - A lot of people love betting their favourite teams given that they have an obvious bias towards them and want them to win. Wanting a team to win differs then thinking a team will win. It's best for most bettors to just skip right over games involving their favourite teams because they can not separate heart from using your head.

Don't bet big parlays - This goes for a whole lot of the exotic type bets like futures, teasers and parlays. 10 or 12 game parlays do not hit oftentimes, they can be 100% gambling and we are not here to gamble if you want to gamble buy a lottery website ticket because there's no difference.

Don't bet drunk - There are a number of things you do not want to do drunk and betting is just one of them in case you are not 100% in control of your emotions you want to stay very far away from the sports book because just like banging a fat chick you will wake up disappointed.

Do not pay for picks from touts promoting a 70% win rate - If it sounds too good to be true it probably is so if you're going to use going to make use of a tout and pay for picks use common sense. No-one can pick 70% winners even the best handicappers only hit 58% or 59%

Keep good records - This is an issue that almost nobody does and I'm even guilty of this sometimes. You want to keep very meticulous records. The more you keep track of you may look back and see where your losing or winning the most money and after that have the prop data to make changes.

Play at reputable sports books - If you play online you want to be absolutely certain you get paid if you win. There are lots of reputable sports books online so do some research and avoid the scam books because there could be nothing worse than winning and after that not being able to receive money.