Betting Exchanges: Why do Bookmakers still dominate the market?

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The traditional bookmaker offers a product that nobody would typically buy. Their offering is ‘Send us £1 and we’ll return £0.95’. This is based on the general margin / edge of 5% across sportsbooks and casino games although it can be both significantly better and worse than this in certain situations.

Whether the customer places a bet, plays a slot machine or spins the roulette wheel the bookmaker (house) has an edge. Typically of a few percent as stated earlier. So every person doing this is trading their money for slightly less money. Of course this is long term – it’s possible to win signficiant amounts in a single session and equally lose vast sums. Never risk more than you can afford to lose – Gamble Aware is a vital resource.

Focus: Sports Betting

Let’s illustrate this with an example from the world of tennis (it seems appropriate as that’s kinda our thing). There is a match between ‘Player A’ and ‘Player B’. The bookmakers traders have calculated that each player has the exact same chance of winning (i.e 50%).

So what should the odds be for both players to win? 1/1 (2.00). However, have you ever seen a bookmaker offering evens or above on both sides of the line? Probably not. If so, their traders should be fired, as they would not make a profit from that market long term. Instead bookmakers take the actual odds (based on implied probability) and then add their margin which varies from bookmaker to bookmaker. Marathonbet and Pinnacle will only reduce it by 2-3% on average whereas lower quality bookmakers will often apply a margin in excess of 5%. Larger events typically have a higher payout as bookmakers need to be more competitive.

What odds will the punter actually get? In the scenario above it would most likely be 1.80 – 1.95 or close that range. So although the match is essentially a coin flip – they are paying out slightly less and lets how they make a profit. It may not seem much but imagine it amplified over turnover of millions of even billions when considering the worldwide sports betting market.

Where do Exchanges come in?

The concept of an exchange is to match customers. The market liqusity is provided by others with a different opinion. So in the example above one person may think Player A will win and another Player B. The exchange brings them together. The person who predicts it correctly walks away with the money. No bookmaker margins – fair odds that actually reflect real probability. So what’s the issue? In a word, the dreaded – commission.

Exchanges offer the same coverage as bookmakers in terms of the matches and events however some bookmakers still have the edge in terms of speciality markets. Often exchanges don’t offer the more complex handicap markers or ‘total aces’ (for example) on tennis due to the projected lack of liquidity.

Why use Betting Exchanges?

Sports betting is one of the few forms of gambling where it’s possible to gain an edge. Roulette has a fixed house edge and there is nothing the player can do to alter this. However with sports betting an educated bettor can disagree with the bookmakers traders regarding an outcomes projected probability. This individual may still struggle to profit consistently due to excessive bookmaker margins but on an exchange he or she doesn’t have to worry about this. Just the commission on profit of 2-5% which is relatively easy to overcome. There is also a ‘Premium Charge’ for those who place large bets and meet certain profit thresholds.

Crucially though; an exchange will not close or limit your account for profiting long term, it will not charge a margin through its odds only commission and it will increase your profit by 10-15% on average. For an individual who’s serious about sports betting this a no brainer.

Remember to track all bets to clearly monitor profit/loss, liability, ROI and other essential statistics with a reliable platform such as Betting Metrics.

Liquidity: Significant Issue?

Generally – the short answer is no. Large tennis events have more than enough money going through the market to satisfy the needs of virtually all bettors. Those using extremely large stakes may struggle. Betfair is the largest exchange with the highest average market liquidity.

TENNIS TIPS UK Club Membership – How it Works

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Synopsis: An email service where members receive regular betting picks direct to their inbox. This clearly states the match, specific bet and advised stake. There is a ‘best bet’ which is the highest value selection our team has found across all markets. This is exclusively available through the club membership. Club members should expect to receive 1-2 bets per week on average.

Who picks the advised bets?

Tennis Tips UK have a team of analysts built over the past decade. Each has shown a proficiency in beating ATP, Challenger or Grand Slam markets consistently. See an example of the email format members receive below. To make the service more practical to follow we send out picks twelve hours before the scheduled start time on average so it should be feasible to follow regardless of client timezone.

Odds sourced from Pinnacle or Bet365. Match winner (moneyline) markets used so practical to follow with any bookmaker. Those with access to an exchange account are likely to comfortably exceed the recorded profit figures even after commission is deducted so this is highly recommended.

How much profit have the picks made overall?

As of late 2025; a £100 bettor has enjoyed profits in excess of £10,000 assuming they backed the quoted price. Please note the image below is updated once annually – see the link below for the most up to date performance figures.

Full tracking is available publicly via a third party verification platform.

How do you profit from tennis betting?

There is no single ‘one size fits all’ approach. Tennis Tips UK have been fine tuning the selection process since way back in 2013. For a comprehensive insight into our thesis try exploring our tennis betting research articles.

I’m looking for a more hands-on approach, what do you recommend?

Some punters prefer to actively select or trade their own markets. The same thesis as before regarding compounding can still apply in this situation but crucially you’ll need to be able to find and back value bets yourself. There are advanced tools that let you identify +EV bets, see where sharp money is betting and apply complex filters to find markets that meet your criteria.

What about responsible gambling?

All forms of sports betting, including club picks, need to follow strict responsible gambling principles. The crucial one – never bet with funds that you can’t afford to lose. This means the assigned bankroll needs to be surplus to requirements. Adopting a long term, investment style approach as described previously will put you on the right path but this never replaces the ten golden rules of responsible gambling.

Why join the club?

It offers an investment approach to sports betting that allows disciplined members the ability to gradually grow their bankroll over time. Another key benefit of staking a fixed percentage of bankroll per match is that it scales and crucially compounds returns. Here is an explanation of the concept. This means over time your bankroll can grow exponentially and has resulted in multiple long term club members building pots in excess of £1M. Just remember at this level new challenges present themselves such as trying to get such large stakes accepted or matched but there are solutions out there and of course there is also the option to quit and retire.