Pay Per Heads Let You Move Your Own Betting Lines

“Full-service” is often times an overused term in business. While it is easy to find companies that make a habit of over-promising and under-delivering on the goods or services they sell, it is the rare company that does the exact opposite.

As a bookmaker, setting lines is a big part of your job. You’ll need to do your research, determine who’s most likely to win, and deem that team the favorite (and the other team the underdog.)

Then, you’ll need to explore the lines that other sportsbooks have set and see what kinds of payout they’re offering.

While Ace Per Head offers 100% configurable odds boards, they also offer assistance from expert oddsmakers who know how to set high-quality lines. You don’t need to do all the heavy lifting on your own and can instead focus on turning a profit.

How Do Bookies Come Up With Lines?

Bookmakers balance data, trends, and intuition to create lines that keep bettors engaged!  From predicting wins to setting odds on your favorite players scoring, bookies work hard to make every wager exciting.

Bookmakers don’t just write unstructured paragraphs about the odds of a given outcome. A bulleted list won’t cut it, either. Lines should be written in a standard format so that bettors can read them easily.

There are three structures for lines that a bookmaker may use: American odds, fractional odds, and decimal odds.  The latter tend to be more popular outside of North America, specifically in Europe and Asia.

The former should be the main focus for most US-based bookmakers.  These figures have a + or – sign in front of a number.

The – sign indicates that the team is a favorite, meaning that they are more likely to win. The following number represents the amount that you would need to stake to get $100 in a payout.

The + sign indicates that the team is an underdog and is therefore less likely to win. The numeric value after it represents the amount of money you can win for every $100 that you bet.

So, if your odds look like the following hypothetical figures:

    Cowboys -500
    Steelers +300

You would need to bet $500 to earn $100 in payout on a Cowboys bet. If you bet $100 on the underdog Steelers instead, you could earn $300.

You would be amazed how many folks looking to gamble simply do not understand how to read the lines.

To Set Your Own Lines or Not to

Not all bookies set their own lines. While some do, others hire professional linemakers.

This is beneficial in part because it saves you time. You will be able to focus on other aspects of your business such as finding new bettors, creating promotions, setting limits, managing players, and engaging with those who work with you.

It also ensures that your lines will always be competitive and professionally constructed.

AcePerHead.com offers a professional line service.  Their odds feed is available to Gambling911.com readers here.

Bookmakers using the AcePerHead service can set their own lines.  This might be beneficial in particular for games that feature local teams. 

Pennsylvania sportsbooks learned the hard way with the 2025 Super Bowl.  Maybe offering the Philadelphia Eagles at -1.5 or -2 would have enticed even the most hardcore Eagles fans to get down on the Chiefs, who knows?