Ask RAS: You have questions. We have answers.
We often get asked good questions from subscribers and non subscribers about the RAS service and a variety of other betting topics. Many of the same questions come up over and over again, while others are more specific and unique. In this space, we’re going to make semi periodic attempts to provide answers. If you ever have something you’d like to ask us—questions on literally anything—please feel free to reach out and we’ll do our best to answer. You can email us or message (see contact methods at bottom of this post.) We’ll never use your name. In some cases, the questions below have been edited for brevity.
Where is a good place to bet releases? Are there any lesser known sportsbooks that are good for betting RAS plays?
Finding places to bet is one of the biggest challenges of using our service, and we try to be very up front about that. For some subscribers, it can be a grind to get outs, to keep outs, and to replenish them. It can and often does require significant experimentation, trialing various books and bet amounts, setting up beards, and so on. It’s all the usual stuff that most pros have to go through when trying to bet winning plays.
We try to shy away from giving specific sportsbook recommendations to subscribers. The reason is simple. Let’s say, for example, that Jazz was a great place to bet RAS releases. If we promoted and advertised that to our users, it wouldn’t be a good place to bet anymore. That’s how it is for just about any sportsbook. Most of our subscribers have been successful in locating places to play the releases, and in the legal sportsbook era, hopefully it keeps getting easier.
You’ve always made it clear that you are a betting group. But how can we be sure that you’re releasing your best plays?
We’ve had win rates exceeding 56 percent across every market we’ve participated in through the years. We have gotten better, not worse, competing in markets that have become more competitive and tougher to beat. Even in the NFL, which we’ve now offered for six years, we have achieved win rates above 57 percent between preseason and regular season. Trust us: We don’t have plays that are hitting at higher rates than what we are releasing!
Now, are there times when we’d like to release a play but can’t? Yes. This typically happens when lines move before our release window, or when there’s breaking news that spreads too fast to accommodate a release. Our subscribers want release warnings and need sufficient time to get in position to place their bets. When news breaks, especially in a market like NFL preseason, you often have seconds, not minutes. It makes it very hard to execute our release procedure in those situations.
You’ve probably noticed, but we’ve been making a more serious effort at marketing our products in recent months after literally a decade of doing zero promotion. To grow the service, we need to deliver results, and the best way to do that is by releasing our best plays.
What do you do when one of your games steams before or during a release?
We plan for it, because it’s something we’ve grown accustomed to through the years. When a line move hurts us, we have to make a quick judgment on if we still want to release the play at a worse line, or if we want to scratch the play entirely. We just try to make the best decision possible, and fortunately we have a lot of talented guys who more often than not make the right choice. Every once in a while a line move before release actually works in our favor, but it’s rare.
It’s often overlooked, but one of the biggest challenges of operating a public service is announcing exactly when you’re going to release plays. Like, could you imagine an influential betting group going on Twitter and saying, “Hey, we’re going to start hitting our college football totals in 30 minutes!” No one would ever do that. So it puts us at a big competitive disadvantage to any other group.
Is there a Twitter Spaces Tuesday night at 9 pm ET?
Nobody actually asked this question, but indeed, there is! You can listen to the show, hosted by pro bettors Michael Craig and Eddie Walls, by clicking here. They will talk for roughly 30 minutes and then take questions. (There will also be a replay available if you can’t tune in live.)
Have questions for us?