Hey Dan Tanna..
I also keep in touch with and make wagers thru a local book but for different reasons, I've found it best to go thru locals if you intend on going against local teams...the reason of course is local lines on local teams tend to be inflated and often an extra point can be found locally when going against the home town team.
However, I Personally also use five outs that I have come to trust over the years in order to "Line Shop", most do not realize the importance of opening up and using multiple sportsbook accounts.
Firstly a dedicated bankroll at the seasons beginning is a must, one of the most over looked aspects of opening up off shore accounts is the bonus's they give to new or re-loaded accounts, this is not to say you should simply sign on with any fiy by night sportsbook because they are offering a 15% or 25% sign up bonus.
Many reputable off shore sportsbooks offer 10% or 15% sign on and/or re-load bonus's which in essence is FREE MONEY, thus if you intend on starting with lets say $5000 and open up five offshore accounts and put $1000 in each account and with each account recieve a 10% sign on bonus....that adds up to an extra $500 to your starting bankroll...try to find a local that do this for you.
The value of "Line Shopping" can not be stressed enough as a half point here and a half point there can and often does add up to a HUGE difference in terms of Money Management...its hard enough as it is to show a profit thus the importance of finding the best available number on a game.
The thing to be very careful of in my humble opinion when using offshores is the instant availability to make wagers. meaning that while easy accessability to make wagers is indeed a good thing...its also a bad thing if you are not disciplined in your wagering habits.
I personally almost NEVER play teasers or parlays because I believe them to be sucker plays for the most part, without sounding like a John Kerry "Flip Flopper", there are indeed times where a teaser or parlay might be the advantageous way to bet a game....but you have to pick your spots or you'll go broke betting on teasers or parlays for sure.
I've found the best thing to do is to try and finish your handicapping as early as possible in the week, if you like a favorite its a MUST to get on them as soon as possible before the public has a chance to drive the number upward, however, if you like the doggie its generally best to wait for the public to drive the number upward....personally the only time I deviate from this is when the dog is on a "Key Number" of 3, 4, 7, or 10, if this is the case I'll wager on the dog early as to not lose any value should the number go the opposite way.
The very best advise I can give is to practice DISCIPLINE with regard to your wagering habits, NEVER and I mean NEVER wager more than 5% or your bankroll on any given game and NEVER wager more than 25% of your bankroll on any given day.
The sportbooks that I have come to trust over the years are Bestlinesports, 5 dimes, sportsinteraction, pinnacle and carib....Bestlinesports has reduced juice of -108 on games daily and sportsinteraction usually post lines that are really good if you like wagering on doggies, I've personally never had trouble in collecting with the above five sportsbooks I've listed.
take care and good luck!!
Deb
I am with you bro....
