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Sports Betting Glossary

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Back	To back a team or a horse is to bet at it. To bet that the selection will win. It is the opposite of lay. But a heavily backed horse has a lot of bets laid on it.
Backed	When a bookmaker takes a lot of money on one particular selection, this is said to be "backed". This scenario usually causes the shortening of odds.
Bad Beat	Tough loss.
Banker	1. An almost guaranteed winner bet. When a punter thinks he has a selection highly expected to win, this is said to be a banker bet. 2. The strongest selection in an accumulator bet. A selection that must win to guarantee any return in permutation bets. It is often called the cornerstone of permutation bets.
Bankroll	The funds available to the punter for gambling.
Bar	When you see the betting market open before a horse race, you may see odds against only some of the runners in the race. Those runners in the race not quoted with a price during this early betting are said to be "bar". The bar price is the minimum odds for any of those selections not quoted. Eg. '50 - 1 bar' means those not quoted are 50-1 or greater.
B.R.	Bankroll.
Beard	A friend or acquaintance or other contact who is used to placing bets so that the bookmakers will not know the identity of the actual bettor. Many top handicappers and persons occupying sensitive positions use this method of wagering.
Beef	Dispute.
Bet	The act of staking a sum of money on the outcome of an event.
Bettor	A person who places a bet.
Board Prices	Refers to the currently available odds displayed on the boards of on-course bookmakers. It is from these that the starting prices (SP's) are derived.
Book	Before the start of an event a bookmaker will open a book of bets, i.e. he will come up with a range of bets and an opening betting market for the event. As the betting proceeds, on the basis of what the punters think will win and bet on, the bookmaker will change the odds to ensure a profit regardless of the final result. Therefore for an event, all the odds times by all the bets laid at those odds will never be greater than the money a bookmaker has taken in bets.
Book Is Closed	When the event or the race has started, no more bets will be accepted.
Bookie	Short for bookmaker.
Bookmaker	A person or company who is licensed to take bets. The bookmaker takes clients' bets and pays the clients if they win.
Bottle	UK Horse Racing slang. A 'tic-tac' term for odds of 2 to 1.
Buck	A $100 bet.
Bumper	A flat race for jump horses, in which they gain racing experience before going hurdling or chasing. The term originates from the days when they were restricted to amateur jockeys and is a description of their slightly ungainly riding styles.
Burlington Bertie	UK Horse Racing slang. The 'tic-tac' term for odds of 100-30.
Buy Points	Buy Points means that you can move the pointspread so that you give away less points with the favorite or get more points with the underdog, for both football and basketball. To do this you must pay an extra % for each ½ point you buy in your favor.