Sportsbooks Will Often Limit But Not Close Accounts

Published on July 20th, 2019 2:34 pm EST
Written By: Dave Manuel

The sportsbook reserves the right to limit a player bet amount. Illustration.

As legalized sports betting starts to spread across the United States, one of the most common questions that we hear is this - can sportsbooks close the accounts of winning players?

The short answer - sportsbooks can close your account for any reason and at any time.

The long answer - shutting the account of a winning player is a bad look for a company, and they will minimize exposure to winning players in different ways.

Many sportsbooks, in this day and age, are regulated and licensed by government entities. These government entities would not look kindly upon a sportsbook closing the account of a winning player just because that player is winning.

Sportsbooks do not like winning players, aka "sharps".

If a sportsbook identifies a "sharp", they will look to minimize this player's action by limiting the amount that they can bet, which essentially results in the sharp moving on to another book.

Here is how the situation will usually transpire:

1. A "sharp" opens an account and starts winning. Days, weeks and even months go by, and the sportsbook is a net loser to this player.

2. The sportsbook will identify this winning player. Instead of simply closing their account, the book will usually limit the amount that a player can bet on a game.

So, if the sharp was betting $5,000 per game, the sportsbook might decide to limit their bets to just $500, or even less (I've heard of people being dropped from $10,000 bet limits, all the way down to just $50).

This essentially accomplishes the objective of the sportsbook without them having to actually close the account, as the sharp will almost certainly move on to another book.

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Sportsbooks are money-making enterprises and they will look to maximize profits when they can.

If you are a winning player over time, there is a very good chance that the sportsbook will ultimately limit your account, hoping that you leave.

This is well within their rights, even if it doesn't seem fair.