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How to Bet on Tennis

How to Bet on Tennis Matches

Tennis is one of the most popular sports to bet on worldwide. As an individual sport, there can only be one winner when two players go head-to-head, making it appealing. Additionally, tennis is one of the few sports with professional ATP and WTA tournaments taking place year-round. 

Subsequently, you are never short of betting options for tennis, no matter the time of year. Speaking of the wealth of tennis betting opportunities, you don’t always have to bet on the winner of an individual tennis match (moneyline betting) when exploring the available markets. As it happens, tennis is an excellent sport for spreads, totals, and other exciting options - all of which we’ve covered in this comprehensive guide. 

So, ready to take your tennis betting knowledge to the next level? Let’s get started.

Tennis Moneyline Bets

As mentioned above, moneyline bets in tennis focus on the individual winner of a given match. Therefore, when placing a moneyline tennis bet, you will always bet on players A or B to emerge victorious. This is unique compared to other sports, as a tennis match cannot end in a draw, thus removing one of the common moneyline markets seen in sports like soccer or American football.

How to Read Tennis Odds for Moneyline Markets

As with all betting markets, moneyline options have corresponding odds that help you understand a few essential things. Starting with + and - symbols, these identify the underdog and favorite to win the match, respectively. For example, if Jannik Sinner took on Stefanos Tsitsipas and the moneyline odds were -150 and +200, respectively, you’d know that Sinner was the favorite to win.

This has other implications, too, particularly with the wager value placed and the possible payouts. Using the above example, if you bet $100 on Jannik Sinner to win the match and he did, you’d receive a return of $150 (due to the -150 odds). But if you bet on Stefanos Tsitsipas to win and he did, you’d get a return of $200 for the same $100 wager (due to the +200 odds).

In rare cases, you might even encounter a ‘pick’em’ situation in tennis betting. This is when both players have a perceived equal chance of winning the match, and as a result, both players might have moneyline odds of -110 before the game starts. However, this isn’t all that common when browsing professional tennis betting markets.

For many reasons, moneyline tennis bets consistently rank as one of the most popular market choices among tennis bettors. Firstly, these bets are as simple as they get, as the outcome is based purely on the ultimate winner of the match. As a result, these markets are great for beginners who just want to get their feet wet with tennis betting. 

Additionally, these markets are usually published ahead of the specialized options. This gives you more time to research the players and determine whether ‘value’ in the markets is based on the current odds. 

Tennis Spread Betting (Games and Sets)

You’ve now completed your introductory crash course to tennis betting, understanding why it's a popular sport to bet on while learning about one of the most common markets (moneyline). But to take your knowledge of how to bet on tennis to the next level, you need to master some of the other options out there. This brings us to spread betting - a method whereby you place wagers on the margin of victory instead of just the outcome.

Specifically for tennis, the most common types of spread betting involve betting on the ‘game spread’ and the ‘set spread.’ These options are worth considering if the moneyline odds are not particularly enticing for either player, usually when there is a heavy favorite. 

Let us explain both types in greater detail now.

Game Spread Betting in Tennis

As you may already know, tennis uses a scoring system that involves points, games, and sets to determine the eventual outcome of a match. This opens the doors to game spread betting, which is based on the number of games a player wins in a match in connection with the actual outcome. For example, if you backed a game spread on player A at -4.5 games, this player must win the match by a margin of 5 or more.

But if you backed a game spread for player B at +4.5 games, they would need to lose by 4 or fewer games, or win the match for your bet to win.

Set Spread Betting in Tennis

The exact same principles apply to set spread betting; only these markets are based on sets instead of games. For example, if you backed a set spread for player A at -1.5, this player would have to win the match by a margin of at least two sets. Such options are particularly common for ATP Grand Slam betting, as men play using a ‘best of five’ format in these events instead of a ‘best of three’ format.

As for the other side of the market, if you backed player B at +1.5, they would need to win the match or lose by a margin of just one set for this option to win.

Tennis Over/Under (Total Games) Betting

Focusing on the unique scoring system used in tennis, this always lends itself to more exciting markets in the form of over/under totals bets. Once again, you can explore over/under totals bets for both games and sets in tennis. And just like the spread betting options discussed above, you may wish to explore these markets if the moneyline options aren’t overly enticing. 

We've discussed how over/under totals work for both games and sets in further detail below.

Over/Under Totals Betting for Games

Sportsbooks will determine the number used as the marker for over/under totals in tennis betting. However, in many cases, you might see an over/under total games option with a marker of 22.5 games, particularly if you have two reasonably matched players involved. Of course, you can then bet that the match will involve over or under 22.5 games once all is said and done.

For example, if a match finished 6-4, 7-6, you’d add all games together to see that the total played was 23, and thus the ‘over’ option would win. The' under' option would win if the same match finished 6-4, 6-4 (20 total games).

Note that the number can be significantly different between best-of-three and best-of-five contests. However, best-of-five contests only take place in ATP Grand Slam events.

Over/Under Totals Betting for Sets

For set betting, the over/under totals number will usually be 2.5, 3.5, or 4.5, depending on the event in question. And that’s because a professional tennis match will always have at least two completed sets that determine the match result, no matter what the level. As for the associated wagers based on these numbers and the results needed for such markets to come through, we’ve presented these below:

  • Over 2.5 / 3.5 / 4.5 - Result Needed: 2-1 or 3-0 / 3-1 or 3-2 / 3-2 only
  • Under 2.5 / 3.5 / 4.5 - Result Needed: 2-0 / 3-0 only / 3-1 or 3-2

Note that for any over/under totals for sets involving a ‘3’, this only applies to ATP Grand Slam competitions.

Tennis Futures Bets

Up to this point, the previous three tennis betting markets have been related to individual matches. But if you look beyond the markets associated with individual matches, you will also encounter ‘futures’ bets for tennis. As indicated by the name, futures bets cover events and outcomes that will occur at some point. This could be a few months or even years.

Regardless of how far into the future these markets cover, they always share a few common traits. They don’t focus on individual match outcomes. They always relate to tournaments and events as a whole. And they always have options related to individual players for the events in question.

Futures tennis betting markets are more diverse than many people think. Here at Fanatics, we offer several common and exciting options in futures markets for tennis.

  • Player to win a Grand Slam

For ATP and WTA tennis, four Grand Slam competitions are held each year. These are the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open - ordered by the date they are played in the season. Since these are the biggest tournaments in tennis, you can always put forward a futures bet on who you think will win these individual tournaments.

  • Player to reach a certain round

If picking an outright winner is a little daunting, you may pursue the futures options that cover a player reaching a predetermined tournament stage. This might be the quarter-finals, semi-finals, or finals. And the more unlikely the player is to get the stage in question, the greater the odds will be.

  • Season-long markets

To broaden your horizons, you can look into season-long futures markets. These aren’t quite as common as the betting options for the previous two futures. However, here at Fanatics, we offer markets such as ‘year-end number 1,’ for example. Since this happens at the end of the season, these are good options if you wish to make a wager that keeps you interested all season long.

Note that timing significantly affects the odds and the subsequent value you get for all three futures markets. For all three, the further out you place your bets, the better the odds will be (meaning higher odds for a better potential return). 

Tennis Prop Bets

If you’d like to get even more advanced with your tennis betting adventures, you can also explore prop bets for mainstream matches. These bets always involve wagers on specific events in a game, each with its chances of coming through or not. Coincidentally, this is another form of tennis betting where the outcome of a match (player A or player B winning) doesn’t matter. And that’s because you are betting on specific events occurring or not occurring.

Such bets are exciting among fans who have a deeper understanding of playing styles, match-ups, court surfaces, and other information that goes beyond the basics. As for some key examples of prop bets for tennis, we’ve discussed them below.

As mentioned above, prop bets involve wagers on certain events occurring in a match, not the eventual outcome. These options are often particular, as evidenced by the following popular prop markets:

  • Match to go five sets - yes/no

For ATP Grand Slams only, you may find prop bets for a match going five sets or not. You can cover this market in other ways, too. And here at Fanatics Sportsbook, you may even find this market listed as ‘match to go the distance.’

  • Tie-break in the match - yes/no

In all forms of tennis, a player must win 6 games to win a set. Additionally, a player has to win a set by two clear games. However, if a set goes to 6-6, the set is decided with a tie-break, a type of decider where players compete in a ‘first to 7’ battle. As for the prop market, you can bet ‘yes’ or ‘no’ on whether a match involves a tie-break.

  • Number of aces or double faults

The serve is one of the most critical shots in tennis. It is the first shot in the point, and it can lead to aces or double faults. Because of this, we offer prop bets that cover the number of aces or double faults a player might hit during the match. Some even offer a unique prop bet whereby you can wager which player will serve the most aces or double faults.

Live Betting on Tennis Matches

Moving from pre-match to live betting now, the latter provides even more exciting opportunities when wagering on tennis. By definition, live betting is the action of wagering on various markets while a match is currently in progress. Additionally, due to the scoring system in tennis and other factors like breaks of serve, in-play tennis betting is a great place to find value due to huge momentum swings and odds shifts.

For example, if player A breaks serve first against player B, they will automatically become favorites to win the set (in most cases). The more specific you go with live tennis betting markets, the quicker the odds shift. So you need to be quick on the trigger here and vigilant to snap up undervalued markets fast.

Once a game is underway in tennis, the live markets become open for business. Many pre-match options, like moneyline, spreads, and under/over totals, remain available for live betting, but the odds are dynamic instead of fixed. Moreover, these aren’t the only forms of live markets you can explore for tennis. 

If you’d like to switch things up a little bit, the following provide exciting options to explore when ready:

  • Next set winner

Professional tennis matches are played under best-of-three or best-of-five conditions, so you can always look at the ‘next set winner’ market once things are underway. The odds for this market will swing dramatically whenever there is a break of serve.

  • Updated match/moneyline odds

If you’d prefer to keep things simple, you can continuously monitor the moneyline market during in-play betting. This is a good option if the pre-match favorite decreases by a set or two.

  • Will there be a break in the next game?

For faster-paced live betting, you may wish to bet on the games that you believe will end with a break of serve. We usually present this market in a yes/no format, and it’s a good option for matches involving great returners, such as Novak Djokovic.

Tennis Parlay Betting

The final form of tennis betting we want to inform you of is the riskiest of the lot and the most rewarding (potentially). A ‘parlay’ bet in tennis is a wager that combines several individual markets into one long bet slip. We multiply the odds for individual selections together to generate the total cumulative odds, and all selections in the slip must be correct for the bet to win.

This means that the more selections involved in a parlay wager, the riskier the bet becomes. However, the potential payouts also increase substantially for each slip addition. You can combine different types of markets to create a parlay bet. This means you could form a parlay that includes moneylines, totals, spreads, etc.

As for how these bets work in the real world, let’s assume you want to make a three-leg parlay. You could form this parlay by making a moneyline bet for Novak Djokovic, Jannik Sinner, and Carlos Alcaraz to win their Grand Slam matches. If each pick had -110 odds, the overall odds would be +596, meaning a $100 wager would yield a return of $596 - if all three selections won!

Final Tips for Betting on Tennis

Betting on tennis doesn’t come with any form of profit guarantee. However, if you become familiar with different players and are particularly diligent with your research, you can find ‘value’ bets. As for how you go about finding these value bets, you may wish to consider the following tips when assessing which wagers to make:

  • Check the court surface: Different players perform differently on various surfaces such as hard courts, grass, and clay.
  • Look at head-to-head stats: Some players consistently challenge and beat others, regardless of rankings.
  • Monitor injuries and fatigue: Players coming off long matches or with recent injuries may be disadvantaged.
  • Beware of weather delays: Rain or extreme heat can affect outdoor events, leading to delays and possible momentum shifts.
  • Stick to matchups you understand: Focus on matches where you have researched and feel confident in your analysis.

Glossary of Tennis Betting Terms

  • Moneyline: Betting on which player will win the match outright.
  • Game spread: Betting on the margin of games won by a player.
  • Set spread: Betting on the margin of sets won by a player.
  • Over/Under: Betting on whether the total number of games or sets in a match will be over or under a set number.
  • Push: When the result of a bet is exactly the same as the spread or total, a refund is issued.
  • Futures: Betting on events that will be settled in the future, such as tournament winners.
  • Break point: A point where the receiver can ‘break serve’ by winning the next point.
  • Ace: A serve that the receiver does not touch, resulting in a point for the server.
  • Prop bet: A bet on a specific event within a match.


Tennis Betting FAQs

How do you read tennis betting odds?

Tennis betting odds with US odds always display betting lines with positive or negative numbers. For example, negative odds of -150 mean you must wager $150 to achieve a $100 profit. In contrast, positive odds of +200 show that you must wager just $100 to achieve a $200 profit.

The most popular betting option in tennis is the moneyline markets, a type of wager that covers the winner of an individual match. Other popular options include spreads, over/under totals, and futures.

What tennis matches can I bet on?

Here at Fanatics Sportsbook, you can bet on all kinds of professional events. These include Challenger or ITF events (lower tiers) and 250, 500, and 1000-level tournaments (higher tiers). You can also bet on Grand Slams, the highest-level tennis tournaments.