Sport’s betting popularity has blown through the roof in the past couple of years. While it is competitive and fun, some people seem to dive into it for all the wrong reasons. Some start out casually, but eventually deviate from the initial plan of having fun to making high stake bets.
Now there’s essentially nothing wrong with that. However, the problem is that most people transition into high stake betting without a plan or strategy. The allure of winning big is just too much for some punters to bear. But even then, it will do you good to remember that high stakes come with even higher risks. So, before you dive in head first, make sure that you can survive to lose a couple of times.
In this piece, we will delve into the world of high roller betting and detail some of the best high stakes betting sites online as well as point out how you can participate responsibly. For some of you, a lot that will be said will sound like common sense, but nonetheless, we feel it’s important to reiterate it.
Best Betting Sites For High Stakes Punters
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Our Recommended Top 3 High Stake Betting Sites
William Hill
William Hill is known for offering lots of great promotions to their members, along with having WHTV where you can watch streams for free. Our resident horse racing feature columnist is a long time William Hill user and can confirm they offer lots of regular promotions to its loyal users.
The maximum bet size at William Hill is £500,000 which is very substantial. However before you place half a million pounds on a 10/1 shot, be aware that the maximum payout amount is £2,000,000!
This is the joint highest payout in the UK, along with Bet365, and therefore warrants inclusion on this best high roller round up.
Bet365
This bookmaker opened its doors back in 2001. It has since grown into one of the best betting sites in the world. It prides itself in great customer service, which helps them keep their betting experience high. They have high roller loyalty and numerous options to deposit and withdraw. Speaking of withdrawal, they have unlimited withdrawal limits (which is great for high-stake bettors).
Betfred
This bookmaker has one of the highest maximum payout limits in the industry. Additionally, it has some of the most competitive odds on horse racing, tennis, and football. The maximum payouts on horse racing and football apply to a wide range of markets and events. Although it doesn’t have a publicised VIP program, it has some account VIP managers who offer special rewards and bonuses for high stake rollers.
What to Look For in VIP Bookies
When you are betting small monies on different games, you can afford to overlook some betting site qualities. After all, the risk involved is low and chances are your wallet can cushion the losses. However, when you get into high-stake betting, the stakes are well, high. You now have a lot more to lose. As such, the list of attributes a bookmaker or a betting site needs to have is long and strict.
We’ve taken the liberty of listing down some of the most important attributes to look for when choosing a high stakes bookmaker. These attributes are non-negotiable. Bear in mind that this is the list we used to decide the betting sites to feature and review on this piece (more on this later on).
Low to No Deposit Fees/Withdrawal Fees
Since most betting sites will charge a percentage of the deposit/withdrawal as a fee, it’s clear how this can end up being expensive for you in a high stake betting scenario. It’s better that you choose a betting site that doesn’t have fees. And even if it has, they shouldn’t be insane.
With that said, most betting sites don’t have a deposit or withdrawal fees. However, different withdrawal platforms like banks and eWallets have. Read through their rules to check if the charges are reasonable or crippling in comparison to other options.
Faster Payments
A good high-stake betting site should have a large payout limit and a couple of options that are quite fast. But speed in the sports betting industry is relative. Different payout options are processed at different speeds. Moreover, it is expected that large payouts take a little more time to process. The extra time is necessary to ensure no mistakes are made. However, if the betting site says it will take 5 days, it shouldn’t take a day longer.
We do not condone unnecessary and unexplained delays and you shouldn’t either.
Winner Friendly
Although betting sites run high-stake bets, they often have problems with customers who win large monies way too often. While you might be doing it legally, your wins translate into reduced profits, and at times, even losses for the betting site. Because of this, most betting sites resort to shutting down your account without an explanation. And since they reserve the right to accept and deny service to customers as they see fit, there’s nothing you can do about it.
As such, you are better off confirming that the site accommodates winners and won’t send you packing for winning a couple of times. It’d be rather unfortunate if you have to start over in a new site.
Good Odds
Good odds make the bets even sweeter. Though the risk is still high, it is worthwhile for the potential win is huge. And truth be told, you want to be with a site that will give you the highest possible payout when you win for a specified amount of money. Even a 0.01 odd difference can translate into a huge reward difference.
Great Support
When dealing with large amounts of cash, you’ll want your queries and problems addressed fast. You don’t want to be waiting in line for more than a couple of hours. As such, it’s important that the bookmaker has great customer service. Some sites offer high-stake bettors a direct line to high-stake dedicated customer service or offer a mechanism of taking you to the front of the line.
VIP Club
Almost all betting sites have reward and VIP programs. But unfortunately, most of these rewards are tailored to entice ‘normal’ bettors – the kind that place low and average bets. And there’s nothing wrong with that, only that a $200 deposit bonus is barely enough to entice a high-stake bettor like you. What you should be on the lookout for are programs that have cash back promotions every so often.
How to Deposit Large Amounts Online
By now you already know that betting sites offer a variety of deposit and withdrawal options. Below are some of the options you’ll come across in high-stake betting as well:
eWallets (Skrill/Neteller)
With eWallets like Neteller and Skrill, you need to have an account with enough money to make the deposit. All you need to do is click on the preferred payment option and enter the amount you want to deposit.
Next, click on deposit and log into your eWallet account through the pop-up window. Lastly, authorize the payment and you are done.
Paypal
Processing funds through PayPal is fairly easy. All you need is click on the PayPal payment option on the betting site and enter the amount to deposit. When you press deposit, the site will redirect you to your PayPal account where you’ll authorize the payment. If you don’t have a PayPal account, you’ll be prompted to create one first. Read our in-depth guide on betting sites that accept paypal for more information.
Debit/Credit Cards
Payment with these cards will require you to enter the card number, card name, expiry dates as well as the 3-digit security code on the card. Once this is done, you’ll be prompted to enter the amount you wish to deposit.
For credit cards, betting sites check if you have enough credit to make the deposit and debit cards, they confirm you have sufficient funds in the account. Once this is done, your betting account will be credited and you can wager.
Bitcoin
Most people feel like using bitcoin to deposit funds is a complicated process. But it isn’t. Once you get a hang of it, it’s the easiest option. To complete a deposit, you need a bitcoin wallet. Some of the best options available include Blockchain.info and Coinbase. These two are cloud wallets that also have Android and iOS apps.
Desktop wallets include MultiBit, Bitcoin Core and Electrum. Once you have a wallet, you can use the private keys to authorise deposits to your betting site.
Steps Bookmakers Take To Ensure Responsible Gaming
Know Your Customer Requests
If you want to participate in high stake gambling, you’ll be required to provide your you ID to prove you are who you say you are and proof of address. They do this to comply with the law, avoid fraudulent activities, and protect players and operators. Luckily, this is a one-time thing.
You May Be Asked for Proof of Earning
This is not mandatory. A betting site will ask for proof of wealth when a certain threshold has been triggered. This too is a requirement by most licensing bodies that also helps to prevent money laundering and fraud.
Time Outs
During a time out, you cannot bet. The times out runs in a day, two days, 7 days or even 30 days. Once the time elapses, the ‘ban’ is lifted automatically. These force customers to take breaks. You can also request for a time out.
Self-exclusions
Betting sites allow for self-banning. This means that you can voluntarily exclude yourself from the site to keep you from excessive gambling.
Pop up warnings if logged in for too long
These warnings are designed to make you aware of the time you’ve spent on the site. They help you not to lose track of time while on the site.
Trained staff to spot early problem gamblers
Betting companies invest in training their staff to spot gambling addictions. Although your betting makes them money, they have a responsibility of ensuring you don’t bet your life away. The staff spots problems through your gambling habits.
Set deposit limits
The deposit limits are not only designed to protect the betting company as earlier pointed out but also the customer. Even if you wanted to, you cannot bet more than a predetermined amount.
Only bet with money you can afford to lose
This is the best advice yet. It doesn’t matter how sure you feel the bet is. You should never bet money you cannot afford to lose. This means that you should never bet your school fees, rent, or any money meant for your livelihood as it could have detrimental outcomes.
High Stakes Bets Extra Considerations
For Customers
Like many people, you probably have your sights focused on the potential win that you forget that you are participating in a game of chance; you could win or lose. This is to mean that in as much as you stand a chance to win big, you can also lose big.
As a customer, participating in high stake bets means placing large bets as well. This opens you up to the risk of losing a lot of money fast. Luckily, many betting sites have restrictions on the amount that can be wagered, which is usually 5% of all the money deposited. This rule helps to protect customers from going broke. Some players who understand the risk involved take the initiative of decreasing the limit to 1%.
For Bookmakers
On the other hand, bookmakers also stand to lose a lot in high stake bets. Think about it. In the event a high spender wins a wager, the bookmaker has to pay a lot of money in a short time. Luckily, most bookmakers don’t have a problem with these wins (provided they are not fraudulent).
So here’s what happens. Following such huge wins, betting sites often require players to verify their identities. They require the players to provide specific documentation as proof. They do this to ensure that they are not deceived and that the win was fair and followed the rules and guidelines laid down.
Unfortunately, there is no way customers can get around this requirement. But the good thing is that the verification process is a one-time thing. So once a payout has been processed for the first time and verification documents provided, subsequent withdrawals will be fast and without delays. As you purpose to get into high stake betting, it’s important to ready your verification documents. This will help speed up the verification process and avoid account closure.
No Such Thing as Betting With No Limits
We wish this were true, but the sad reality is that it’s not. Betting without limits is an illusion inexperienced punters has. Even the best betting sites and bookmakers have limitations they’ve put in place to shield them from sudden losses resulting from high stake wins. When you are choosing which bookmaker or betting site to sign up to, you should do your due diligence to check on the restrictions that the site won’t point out in large print. Always remember that the devil is always in the fine print.
Maximum Deposit Limits
For starters, most high stake betting sites have minimum deposit limitations. Additionally, they have predefined maximum deposits. For most, the minimum amount you can deposit is $10 and the maximum is a little over $10,000.
Maximum Payout Limits
With regards to payouts, the betting site reserves the right to dictate how much you can withdraw at a go. Usually, the maximum payout is $30,000. However, some betting sites allow payouts that are 10X the deposit maximum limit.
Asian bookmakers often have more flexibility as they allow customers to withdraw 6 figure winnings at a go. This move is often designed to attract high-stake bettors (their strategy pays off).
Generally, withdrawal limits are higher than deposit limits. But as we’ve pointed out above, remember to do your due diligence before signing up.
Know the limits of wagering requirements before you put your hard earned money on the line. Luckily, many bookmakers don’t allow bets higher than $5,000 on a single bet (even for high stake bets).
The Final Word
Hope we didn’t scare you off with all the honesty. It’s just that with such large amounts of money at stake, it’s important that you get the best deal and that you are protected. Follow this guide and you should be okay.