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Swedish punter ‘Zami‘ has just won €10,000 and the title of bettingexpert Tipster of the Year after outperforming more than 1,500 other tipsters who give their tips for free on bettingexpert.com.
How does it feel to win the very first bettingexpert Tipster Of The Year award?
It feels great to be the winner of the bettingexpert Tipster of the Year competition. I have been on bettingexpert for several years and followed the development of the site, but only on the Danish and Swedish bettingexpert sites. It was an interesting challenge to compete with tipsters from other nations, tipsters I didn’t know much about, not to mention their ability as tipsters.
From the very beginning I was aiming for the Tipster of the Year €10,000 cash prize, but it wasn’t until around October/November last year that I really began looking at the competition and thinking that I could seriously win it. It was a fun competition, but it’s always more fun when you win.
What plans do you have for the prize money?
Right now I am on vacation, so spending some of the prize money here. Normally I watch football live, that’s my passion. With the prize money, I can now attend games without any worries about the cost. My favourite team is Helsingborgs IF, and I attend every match, so I’ll be spending a lot of money on tickets.
I may also travel to see Manchester United. I’ve supported them for over 16 seasons but have never seen them play live. Attending the Euros in 2016 would be a great experience too. And of course, some of the money will go towards my betting bankroll.
When did you start betting? Do you remember your first bet?
I started betting when I was 18 years old, about the time that I started here on bettingexpert. I don’t really remember my early bets, probably because they were small in size, something like €1 for 1 Unit.
My early betting experience was more about money management and learning as much as I could about betting theory – not so much about winning money.
Are you a full-time professional bettor or do you work in another profession?
Neither. Right now the only thing I do is work as a table tennis trainer/coach, but that doesn’t currently take up much of my time. That’s also one reason why I have posted so many tips.
What are your own personal betting ambitions?
I don’t see betting as the way I will choose to earn a living. It could become more serious though, now that I have a larger bankroll, but I still prefer to keep it at a fairly controlled level for the time being. I don’t really have great ambitions for my betting, for now I just want to make some money betting on sports.
How would you describe your approach to betting?
I see myself as having great discipline, which is very important. I am very relaxed, and take my time to consider each of my bets. I have some methods for identifying value and in certain leagues I can identify a value opportunity quicker than other leagues.
How has being a bettingexpert tipster helped your betting?
When I started betting, it was about betting on the events I would watch on TV. I quickly realised that it was very hard to beat the bookies on the big events and the big football leagues, so I began to look at smaller sports and more obscure leagues. I have always been interested in many sports but never really thought I could use my knowledge for betting. I liked to watch sports and it was always more fun to watch when I had a bet on it.
Being a tipster has helped me experiment on different sports and leagues and to try different bet types. Being able to track my overall tipster stats as well as my tipster stats for particular leagues and sports has helped my development as a tipster very much.
Which sports, leagues or bet types do you focus on? Why?
Football is a sport I focus on, but not the leagues other tipsters prefer. Allsvenskan and Division 2 are my major focus in Sweden, and division 2 and 3 in Norway. These are the leagues where my edge against the bookmakers is the greatest. I know the teams well and have a great deal of information about the teams easily accessible, information such as injuries and suspensions. Other leagues are also on my radar, and I am always keeping my eye on football in Finland.
Table tennis is another focus for me. I have played the sport for around 10 years and I know a great deal about current tournaments and players. Match ups and form are two really important factors for me in table tennis betting, and for the most part, it appears the odds are merely based on the current world rankings, which is great for guys like me who have a better idea of each player’s tendencies.
Having said that, I think handball is my most profitable sport to bet on. It doesn’t matter what the event is, men’s or women’s handball, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, German or Spanish, I feel like I have a pretty good eye for spotting value. Odds are generally available on Pinnacle Sports on the day of the match or the day before. For Over/Under bets the match up and team news is crucial. When I bet on 1×2 or handicap it is mostly because of injuries.
I have also watched a lot of basketball this year because I have seen the market changing. In basketball I mostly like to bet the “under” because, if a team normally shoots 55% on their 2 point field goals, and they play in a tough match up against a good defensive team, I see the chances of them shooting at 40% for that game greater than say 70%. The main factor for over/under betting is again the match up.
My latest experiment, beginning in January/February has been to bet under 0.5 Goals in the first half of football matches. I have looked at leagues with a low-scoring average and then looked at teams which are defensive minded. Sometimes you see odds around 2.00 for the draw in first half but you can also get 2.60 for under 0.5 Goals in first half. So I find a game which looks like a low scoring game and pick the under. In big games you’ll also see this.
Are there any sports or bet types you’re looking to add to your betting?
The under 0.5 goals should be an active bet type for me soon. So far it hasn’t produced much but I think I have the edge to win long-term. I can improve a little more with my basketball betting. In tennis I am surely much better tipping matches played on grass surface, but I want to improve my tennis betting on other surfaces too.
There are many things that I could improve on and I know that being a tipster at bettingexpert will help me do this. For now, it’s important to keep doing what I am best at and maintain my profitability.
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