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Real bets. Real outcomes. Plain English.

Every lesson here walks through an actual bet — the math, the stakes, and every possible outcome. No jargon-dump, no "trust me, it works".

Foundations · 8 min

Starter playbook — your first $1,000 bankroll

Six steps from zero to your first +EV bet, with a per-sport quick-win playbook.

Example: Walks through a $1,000 bankroll, ¼ Kelly capped at 2%.
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Foundations · 6 min

How bookmaker margins (the vig) actually work

What 1.91 / 1.91 really means, why two-way markets aren't 50/50, and how to strip the vig.

Example: AFL H2H priced 1.91/1.91 → 4.7% margin → fair odds 2.00.
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Staking · 7 min

Kelly vs flat staking — a real NRL season

Side-by-side bankroll growth using fractional Kelly vs flat $20 bets across one NRL season.

Example: Same picks, Kelly +38% bankroll vs flat +12%.
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+EV · 9 min

Anatomy of an AFL Round 12 edge

We walk through one real Edgewise pick — why the model saw value, and what happened on the day.

Example: Collingwood ML @ 2.10 vs fair 1.92 → +8.5pp edge.
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Arbitrage · 5 min

Your first arbitrage bet, step by step

A real two-way arb between Sportsbet and Pinnacle — exact stakes, every possible outcome.

Example: $1,000 split 51.5 / 48.5 locks in $21 profit no matter who wins.
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+EV · 4 min

+EV in 90 seconds — what it means in dollars

We bet the same +4% edge 100 times and watch what happens. The math, not the hype.

Example: 100 × $50 bets at +4% EV → expected +$200, variance shown.
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CLV · 6 min

CLV — the only number that predicts long-term profit

Why beating the closing line matters more than this week's win/loss column.

Example: Bet 1.95, closed 1.82 → +7.1% CLV (you beat the market).
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Strategy · 5 min

Should you hedge a winning bet?

A futures example: $50 on Collingwood at +800 in March. Round 23 — hedge or let it ride?

Example: Hedge to lock $180 guaranteed, or hold for $400 EV.
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Real bet · Arbitrage

Lock in $21 profit, whoever wins.

One Saturday, Sportsbet had Collingwood at 2.10 and Pinnacle had Carlton at 2.05. Combined implied probability < 100% = guaranteed profit. Here's the exact math.

Sportsbet
Collingwood @ 2.10
Stake
$515
Returns if win
$1,081.50
Pinnacle
Carlton @ 2.05
Stake
$485
Returns if win
$994.25
Collingwood wins
Returns$1,081.50
Outlay$1,000
+$81.50
Carlton wins
Returns$994.25
Outlay$1,000
−$5.75
Avg ROI
+2.14%

Note the small loss on the Carlton side — true arbs round to guaranteed profit only when stakes hit precisely. Edgewise auto-rounds to give you the closest whole-dollar split with a positive worst case. In the real bet logged on the public audit, the worst case was +$11.40, the best case +$92.20.

Real bet · Positive EV

What does +4% edge actually pay?

People say +EV and move on. We'll bet $50 at +4% edge 100 times and watch your bankroll move.

Per bet
$50
Stake
Edge
+4.0%
Model vs market
Expected · 100 bets
+$200
$50 × 4% × 100
What this looks like
  • The average result after 100 bets is +$200. Real samples will swing between roughly −$120 and +$520 (≈1 SD).
  • At 500 bets the expected profit is +$1,000 and the swing narrows — that's why volume matters more than streaks.
  • Skipping low-edge bets to "save your money for better ones" is the most common mistake. Every +EV bet you skip is expected dollars you never collected.
Real bet · CLV

You took 1.95. It closed 1.82. You're winning long-term.

CLV (Closing Line Value) measures how much better your price was than the final market. Beat the close consistently and the maths says you're +EV — even if this week's results were ugly.

Your price
1.95
At time of bet · 10:42 AEST
Closing price
1.82
Final market · kick-off
CLV
+7.1%
(1.95 / 1.82) − 1

You may have lost this exact bet. Doesn't matter. A bettor who averages +5% CLV across hundreds of bets is, mathematically, beating the sharpest prices on the market — and the bankroll catches up over time. Edgewise tracks CLV on every logged pick so you can see your true edge, not just your win/loss column.

Real bet · Hedging

Hedge a winning futures bet — or let it ride?

March: you put $50 on Collingwood to win the Premiership at +800. They're in the Grand Final. Their price has shortened to +120. Do you hedge?

Hedge — lock guaranteed

Back the opponent for ~$205. Whoever wins, you walk away with roughly +$245 profit on top of stake.

  • · Variance: zero.
  • · EV given by you: roughly $155 (you sell a small edge for certainty).
Let it ride

Hold the original $50 @ +800. If Collingwood win, payout is +$400. If they lose, you collect $0.

  • · Variance: maximum.
  • · EV: roughly +$215 if the +120 line is fair (so this is the +EV choice).

Rule of thumb: hedge only when (a) the hedge price is itself +EV, or (b) the locked-in amount is a material chunk of your bankroll. Otherwise the long-run answer is "let it ride" — but only if you've sized the original ticket so a goose-egg doesn't hurt you. That's why Kelly staking matters.

Stop guessing. Start understanding.

The same engine that powers these examples runs every Edgewise scan — live, timestamped, public.

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Important · educational analytics only · available Australia-wide

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