If you are here reading this guide, you are no doubt one of the millions of other Americans who have entered the world of online sports betting. As more states legalize sports betting each year, it has become increasingly ingrained into our society as an acceptable form of entertainment. Sports betting was first legalized in Rhode Island back in 2018, with mobile sports betting becoming legal the year after. This makes Rhode Island one of the newest states to legalize sports betting in the entire country, so what better time to roll the dice and get involved in the Rhode Island sports betting scene. This is the ultimate Rhode Island Online Sports Betting Beginner’s Guide that will help you navigate the brand new world of Rhode Island sports betting, from signing up for online accounts to actually getting into the action and placing your bets.

Sports betting is brand new to Rhode Island, and it is quite evident in the sparse landscape of locations to place bets The small state has only two casinos and any horse race betting has to occur online. The two casinos also act as the online sportsbooks in the state, but registration at the physical casino is needed before online access is granted. It is a stark contrast to how immense the sports betting scene is in Nevada, New Jersey, or even Pennsylvania, but for a state with only a little over one million residents, the industry is just starting to take off. The 2019-2020 year so far has seen Rhode Island report $18.7 million in revenues from gambling, and that includes the down period during the COVID-19 pandemic. As more companies and online sportsbooks begin to penetrate this burgeoning market, the revenues for Rhode Island should rise each year as the industry continues to expand.

The legal age for gambling at either of the two casinos in Rhode Island is 18, which is much younger than the legal ages in states like Nevada or Pennsylvania. For anyone over the age of 18, Rhode Island is an excellent place to be for sports betting, especially during bigtime events like March Madness or the Super Bowl. After reading this Rhode Island Sports Betting Beginner’s Guide, you will be fully equipped to jump right into the action and join in one of the fastest-growing entertainment industries, not only in America but the world.

Since there are only two sportsbooks in Rhode Island currently, the selection process should not take you very long. It is basically between the two Twin Rivers casino locations in the State and you will need to register in person at one of them to activate an online sports betting account. Until there are more options in Rhode Island, you will be relegated to playing with one of these two William Hill owned sportsbooks, luckily, their mobile platform is ready to go!

So what happens when more online sportsbooks inevitably come to Rhode Island? Check out the user reviews online and see which one suits your style of play. If there are a lot of negative reviews and complaints from customers about things like slow payouts or bad lines/odds for games, then it probably is not a company you should trust your money with. So do some research into some sites you are interested in signing up for. If you use the analogy that many sports bettors use: that sports betting, when done right, is more like investing than gambling, then you should look at sportsbooks like you would banks. If a bank had a reputation for customer dissatisfaction and shady practices, you probably would not feel great leaving your money with them either. The same should apply to your online sportsbook.

When first starting out with any sportsbook, make sure you are well aware of their Welcome Bonuses for new customers! These welcome or sign up bonuses are only offered once when you sign up for a new account, so it is something we recommend you take full advantage of. There are various sign up bonuses that are offered and we will go into detail about how each one works.

Sign Up Bonus: The most obvious and widely offered bonus, the Sign Up bonus can really give players a head start in terms of building their bankroll. These are nearly always paid out as a set percentage of your initial deposit and are paid out to the player via a rollover system. The rollover system is a method for online sportsbooks to ensure that people are not just left with a lump sum of cash in their accounts, but forces the player to bet a certain amount before being able to cash out their winnings. Here is an example:

Sportsbook offers a 100% Sign Up Bonus with a 2x rollover. 

Player deposits $200 and receives the $200 in Bonus from the sportsbook. 

The player must wager $800 or ($200 + $200) x 2, before being able to cash out any winnings. 

Deposit Match: Nearly every online sportsbook will also offer players a Deposit Match when they will match what the customer deposits into their account, up to a certain amount. For example, a sportsbook may offer a 100% Deposit Match up to $500, with a 2x rollover.

Sportsbook offers a 100% Deposit Match up to $500.

Player deposits $500 and receives the $500 in Bonus from the sportsbook.

The player must wager $2000 or ($500 + $500) x 2, before being able to cash out any winnings. 

These are the two most prevalent Welcome Bonuses that online sportsbooks offer and are probably one of the most important things that players can do to get their bankrolls off to a good start. There are some additional bonuses that can be offered by some online sportsbooks to reward a customer’s loyalty over time including things like Free Bets, Enhanced Odds, and Reload Bonuses. While these are great bonuses to receive, they pale in comparison to how lucrative the initial Welcome Bonuses can be.

When you decide on a sportsbook that suits your needs and playing style, players should begin the process of educating themselves in the world of sports betting. As with any new endeavor, especially one that involves money, you should set out some limits to ensure that you are able to remain in control while betting. We can’t tell you how to manage your bankroll, but we can definitely provide you with some tips on how to succeed:

• Bankroll Management: This is the rule number one in sports betting. Players need to learn the art of controlling the amount they bet and learn to be able to walk away when either winning or losing. We recommend that players set a limit as to how much they can afford to spend in one day, one week, even one month. Always keep in mind that this should not be a ‘get rich quick’ plan. Sports betting is a controlled form of entertainment and should be played with money that players can afford to set aside.
• Bet on What You Know: Always start out by placing bets on the sports that you know and understand. If you understand the rules of the NFL, bet the NFL. If you understand the rules of NBA basketball, bet the NBA! There is a longer road to profitability if you start out with sports that you already have an interest in. Also, learn to stick to what you are good at: if you can learn to read spreads well, then bet spreads. If you aren’t as sharp at point totals, then steer clear of point totals. Here are a few examples of bet types to get you started:
• • Money Line: As simple as a bet gets, pick the winning team of the game you want to bet on. The odds for money line favorites can be quite low depending on how lopsided the matchup is perceived to be, so betting large favorites is not always profitable in the long run.
  • Point Spread: Probably the most popular way to bet on a particular game, the point spread is betting on the difference in points in the final score. In games like the NHL or MLB, these can be called puck lines or run lines, but point spreads are most commonly used in basketball and football. Here is an example:

• • • Pittsburgh Steelers @ New England Patriots -3
    • The Patriots need to win the game by more than the three-point spread in order for bets to cash.
    • If you bet the Steelers, they need to finish within three points or win the game outright for bets to cash.
  • Over/Unders: Pick the total points of the game over or under this mark. This can be for the total game, a period, a quarter, or a half.
  • Futures: Think you have insight on what will happen in the future? Picking division winners, conference winners, and even championship winners is a popular bet for many sports bettors as you can get some high returns on the odds for some teams. There are also futures bets available on individual player accomplishments, statistical totals, and even end of season awards. The only drawback with these bets is you usually have to wait until the end of the season so your money is tied up for several months.

• Learn the Odds System: Always, always, always, take the time to do your due diligence and learn the vocabulary and lingo of a sportsbook and the sports betting industry in general. It rarely pays to jump in blindly to something that includes your own money so betting parlays or yankees is a sure way to burn through your bankroll. Figure out which type of odds make the most sense to you: decimal odds, American betting odds, or fractions. Anything that can help you understand things better, the more chance that you can be profitable in the long run. Learn how odds are calculated across the different systems: American Betting odds of +200 is not the same as decimal odds of 2.00.
• Watch the Games: This may be the most obvious thing you can do to improve your understanding of sports betting. The more games you can watch, the more you will understand how games are handicapped by sportsbooks, and you may even be able to begin to formulate some transparencies and values in the lines and odds. For example, you may notice after a while that a certain team plays better in night games, or maybe they get off to slow starts when playing a back to back. Anything you can educate yourself with will help you when it is time to place bets. All of the information and resources are available to you, it is a matter of making the effort and taking the time to learn.

Rhode Island is similar to Nevada in that you have the ability to load up your bankroll in person at brick and mortar casinos or online through the sportsbook website. Of course, if you are using an online sportsbook, it is always much simpler and faster to deposit directly from your computer or mobile device. Let’s take a look at some of the most common ways to deposit with an online sportsbook.

Credit Cards: Easy, fast, and the most common way that players can deposit right into their accounts. Nearly all major credit cards are accepted including Visa, Mastercard, and American Express. Be aware though that some credit cards do not allow the cardholder to make purchases on gambling sites, so make sure you know of any such issues before reaching for that credit card.

Debit Cards/Bank Transfer: Very similar to the credit card, and debit cards can also be used in person at the brick and mortar casino or sportsbook. A bank transfer is a direct debit from your personal bank account and is just as fast and easy as paying by credit card.

PayPal: PayPal is another popular money transfer company, but you do need to sign up for an account and link it to a bank account before you try and use it at your sportsbook. It is safe and easy to use though and has become increasingly used at online sportsbooks as a method of payment.

Other eWallets: PayPal is probably the most well known of these, but there are other smaller eWallets that are starting to become popular as well like Skrill, WorldPay, and Sage. All of them work the same way, and it is definitely easier for a player to set limits on their spending if they use a secondary account like these.

Bitcoin/Cryptocurrencies: Cryptocurrencies are also becoming more commonly used as a payment method on many sites, not just online sportsbooks. Similar to an eWallet, a player would link their Bitcoin or Crypto wallet and use the funds from there to place bets on the site. Using cryptocurrencies is not for the faint at heart as there are near daily fluctuations in the value of Bitcoin that can have a positive or very negative effect on the value of your bankroll.

If you find you have any questions or concerns about anything that happens at the online sportsbook, most of them have customer service representatives available around the clock. Online sportsbooks and online casinos do not sleep and are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, so there is always some form of customer service available via methods like e-mail or a chat function. These customer service representatives can assist you with anything from deposit or withdrawal issues to questions about certain types of games or betting styles.

As more states legalize sports betting around the country, it will be interesting to see what Rhode Island does to keep up with larger states. It seems like only a matter of time until more companies push into Rhode Island. With William Hill as the only sportsbook operator in the state, we may see some future penetration from companies like FanDuel or DraftKings down the road for sure.

The future of any sports betting industry hinges on the online presence of the sportsbook, especially with mobile phones. It was only in the not too distant past when sports bettors needed to line up and place bets at a sportsbook counter in person. While people still do this today at brick and mortar sportsbooks, a vast majority of the action is played online now. In a post-Covid19 world where in-person activities and limitations on how many people can be in the same building may be the norm, it is easy to see the appeal in playing at an online sportsbook. With increased competition will come a faster development of the sports betting infrastructure in Rhode Island. In its current primitive state, players don’t have many options, but with time, Rhode Island can be just as reputable and profitable as other states in the country.

In 2019, the sports betting industry in Rhode Island was just developing so it is difficult to compare numbers with other states. For the first half of 2020, the Rhode Island Lottery reported revenues of $12 million, showing just how quickly the industry can grow. As Rhode Island develops more of an online presence outside of their two casinos, we can reasonably forecast exponential growth, just as every other state that has introduced online sports betting and gambling. The convenience of placing bets on the go from a computer or mobile phone is much easier than having to attend at an in person sportsbook, so it goes without saying that increased user interaction would lead to higher revenue streams for the State.

One thing working against Rhode Island is the lack of any professional sports teams. The New England Patriots are nearby and definitely are favored in the entire New England area, but a lack of a local team may hurt their revenues in the short term. Nevada saw a surge in sports betting when they adopted the Las Vegas Golden Knights from the NHL and it should be more of the same this year as the Las Vegas Raiders from the NFL come to town. College sports are always a huge part of any state’s sports betting, so if the NCAA returns for the fall seasons, we could see an upswing in sports betting action shortly.

The NFL remains king of sports betting though, as an estimated $6 billion was wagered in America on the Super Bowl game alone this year. Other popular sports to be on include the NBA, MLB, NHL, NCAA, MLS and European Soccer, UFC events especially when held in Vegas at places like the MGM, and PGA Golf. Stand alone events also bring in tons of betting action, including the Super Bowl, March Madness, the Haskell Invitational or any other big horse race like the Kentucky Derby or Belmont Stakes, and Golf majors like the Masters or U.S. Open. You are not limited to professional sports leagues though as even things like Triple-A league Baseball games, eSports, and politics can be gambled on online at sportsbooks.