Super Bowl Halftime Bets
Long-time gamblers might look at the Super Bowl halftime bets and assume these are silly propositions that can't be analyzed in any logical fashion, so they should ignore them. That's a mistake I want to rectify in this article, because the these propositions offer some of the greatest disparities among all the Super Bowl wagers you could place. It appears that some Las Vegas and online handicappers take the same attitude that these prop bets aren't worth their time, so any two sports books can spit out much different betting lines. Once you realize this and start searching for the best lines, you'll find good betting opportunities.
How to Handicap Halftime Bets?
The next step is the art of handicapping halftime bets. Many of these require little more than common sense, though you and I both know the words "gamblers" and "common sense" don't always go hand-in-hand. When a wager asks whether Madonna is going to wear a hat or not, you have to take the "yes". Of course Madonna's going to wear some kind of hat. She's flamboyant. What's funny, that was the underdog bet (according to one sportsbook) at last year's Super Bowl. I'm getting a little ahead of myself, though, so let's start by looking at typical Super Bowl halftime bets.
Super Bowl XLVI Specials - Halftime Bets
Here are some examples of last year's halftime bets. I wanted to include these examples, because they show a stark contrast in some of the bets being offered. The smart gambler can find extremely lucrative moneylines among the halftime bets, but you must be prepared to search a little and find the best lines. Let's get to the examples.
Will Madonna wear an NFL Jersey or shirt at any point during the Super Bowl Halftime show?
Yes +250
No -400
Will Madonna wear fishnet stockings at any point during the Super Bowl halftime show?
Yes -130
No -110
What will Madonna be using to start the Super Bowl Halftime show?
Headset -200
Handheld Microphone +150
These were listed at one online sportsbook under the heading "Super Bowl XLVI Specials". As it comes time to wager on the 2015 Super Bowl, you might try searching for terms like "Super Bowl XLVII Specials" or "Super Bowl 47 Halftime Bets". When betting online, it's best to search using several terms, so you can comparison shop. Most of the Internet sports books are going to have similar proposition bets, but the moneylines on these are going to be different. They great thing about gambling on sports online is your ability to shop for the best bets with a few well-placed clicks.
To illustrate my point, I wanted to post the moneyline bets from two different sources. As you can tell, they have wildly different betting arrangements for the exact same proposition. The one handicapper got lazy and simply placed the "Yes -130, No -110" moneylines on a whole series of bets. The other bookmaker decided to create tailor made betting lines, with much different results. This illustrates how you can find nice deals on the halftime bets.
Will Madonna wear a hat at any point during the Super Bowl Halftime show?
One Sportsbook's Odds on Madonna's Hat:
Yes -130
Yes -130
A second sportsbook's Moneyline on Madonna's Hat:
Yes +150
No -200
Super Bowl 47 Halftime Prop Bet
As soon as a performer for the halftime show is announced, you'll start to see similar bets involving that performer. Many of these are the same from year to year, especially when female performers are included. These inevitably have to do with what they're wearing.
Serious Halftime Bets
Before I end, I wanted to mention on other type of Super Bowl bet which involves halftime. Many sportsbooks offer wagers which end at halftime. These might involve which team is ahead at halftime, which team has the most total yards or first downs at halftime, which teams had the most penalties in the first half, or which team scored the most touchdowns or field goals in the first two quarters. Imagine any bet which applies to an endgame scenario and you'll be able to find gambling opportunities which cut off at halftime.
The reasons you might prefer these bets are many. Perhaps one of the two teams is a slow starter or, the reverse, gets out to early leads. Perhaps one of these teams is veteran and the other is full of young players. You might think the rookie Super Bowl participants are going to be too nervous at first. Also, there's such a thing as a coaching staff which does great preparing their team in the week or two before the game, but struggles with halftime adjustments. Study the trends of both these teams and see if one appears to have a decided advantage in the first half, then bet accordingly
Super Bowl Halftime Show Prop Bets
That's one more option at your disposal, but let's talk about halftime proposition wagers again. Some gamblers might remain unconvinced, so let me give you one other reason to consider these proposition bets. If you watch the big game with a large group of friends, you're almost certain to have one or two members of the party who are more interested in the commercials, the National Anthem, and the halftime show. If sitting through Madonna and the Rolling Stones and the Black-Eyed Peas is your idea of torture, place a couple of wagers on propositions throughout those shows and you'll find the presentation is a whole lot more interesting.
That's the wonderful news about Super Bowl betting: so many people are interested in the outcome of this one game that many bets appear you would never see any other time of the year. The pressure to mass produce betting lines to draw in the casual gambler puts a lot of stress on the handicapping abilities of Las Vegas oddsmakers. I'm not saying they aren't up to the challenge, but if there's a time all year when they might let one or two excellent betting opportunities slip through the cracks, it's going to be in the glut of prop bets on things like the halftime show, the Super Bowl commercials, or what kind of Gatorade gets dumped.
