Curling is popular for betting when the major tournaments are taking place. This includes the World Championships and the Winter Olympics. While curling does have its own following, it is during these times that it is brought to the attention of a much wider audience and people are more interested in placing a bet on the outcome of individual games or the tournament. The number of teams that take part in the Winter Olympics is usually 15, making it relatively easy for fans to study performance of players and teams to form an opinion about the potential for winning.
The World Championships is a larger tournament for curling as more countries take part. For those who follow the sport, there are more curling betting options for a larger tournament like this and more of an opportunity to study the form of each team.
About curling
The sport has been described as a combination of ice hockey, ten pin bowling and lawn bowls. The players have eight curling stones and they have to slide them down the ice, that is set up a little like a bowling lane, and get them as close to the target as they can. The target is also known as a ‘house’ and it has four circles that get smaller as you get closer to the centre.
Points are given for each of these areas of the circle, with higher points earned by getting close to the centre. The work is a team effort. One member of the team is responsible for pushing the stone down the ice, trying to carefully judge the angle of the push and the speed needed to get the stone close to the centre.
Game of precision
The other members of the team are responsible for preparing the ice in front of the stone using the sweeping brushes. This will help them to increase or decrease the speed of the stone or even help them to alter the course slightly. They will need to be able to negotiate the way of the stone through smaller gaps and past other stones to try to get the highest score.