Is a Wager a Bet?

Last Updated on by Will Writing

A wager, in simple terms, is an amount a gambler stakes on the result of a particular event. A bet, on the other hand, can be an agreement between different parties, where one party will receive some payment based on the particular’s event outcome. There’s a subtle difference between the two terms, and most people use them interchangeably.

A wager can be against either an opponent or the house and in some cases, both. A player can place a wager on various event outcomes including sports matches, roulette spins or dice rolling. If the player gets the desired result, his wager and winning amount are awarded to them. Most of the times, players wager inside formal casinos, but they can also do so in informal settings like friendly challenges with peers.

 

Wagering in casinos

Typically, players can wager with any amount, but some casinos have introduced limits to maximum and minimum bets. For example, there’s a set limit to wagering amounts for each turn in specific games like poker or slots. Following a wager, the odds of the outcome which a player bets against will determine how much the punter gets in return. For this reason, the odds vary significantly, ultimately forcing players to come up with efficient wagering strategies.

 

Casino Wagering Requirements

When playing casino games, you might encounter various bonuses and promotions by sites. When signing up for a casino, you may receive a generous offer for free cash to play with. When depositing some money, you may receive a percentage of your deposit as a bonus. The former type is known as the No Deposit bonus, while the latter is the Match bonus where players receive double the money they deposited. These bonuses are an elaborate ploy to get players to participate in casinos, and in return to get the casinos some profit. In fact, these days, almost all casinos employ this tactic – you’re unlikely to find a casino with no bonuses.

In the earlier days, casinos made huge losses through the prevailing abuse of bonuses. With the realization that they could make some cash from welcome bonuses, many players opened different accounts unscrupulously, received welcome bonuses, then withdrew them immediately. Casinos, therefore, shook things up and implemented policies that made it hard for players to swindle them. These policies are now widely known as wagering requirements.

If you’re an experienced casino player then you may be familiar with the requirements. They’re not popular to the casino fanatics, but they play a major role in doing away with the fraudulent players. For genuine, casino-loving players who gamble for fun, then the stipulations may not affect them.

For those who don’t know what wagering requirements are, they’re the stipulations that each player has follow to cash out their bonus winnings, including the bonus reward. These stipulations guide players on how much money they need to stake, to activate their bonus and winnings. While not favourable to players in general, the good news is that these requirements are less strict for free bets.

Wagering requirements are usually on the terms and conditions. As boring and hectic as it may be, as a responsible punter you should always read the T&C to understand casino requirements, and to cash out your free bets.

Final Thoughts

In the gambling industry, there’s a subtle difference between the terms wagering and betting. It’s not too uncommon to see both words used interchangeably. The difference shouldn’t worry you though. There’s a lot you need to understand to make some significant profit for casino betting, and wagering is just a piece of the puzzle.