OLBG Help

Username and email?

Make sure you pick a username you will be happy with as your username cannot be changed once it has been set up. Please also use an email address you check regularly as if we contact you and the email bounces or if a number of mails are unopened then we may close your account. Also, this email is used for logging in when your session expires.

I've forgotten my username?

You can also log in with your email address.
If you can't remember your email then try to find any emails or alerts from OLBG - these will be addressed to your email. If all else fails please contact us and we will try to help.

Didn't recieve welcome email?

The email system is working fine but a few people especially those on Hotmail and AOL sometimes have problems. Check spam filters, spam boxes, or anything else that might be blocking mail from new sources. If that fails try a different email address. If you haven't received the welcome email and clicked the link then if you try to login with your correct username and password you will be given options to both:
a) resend the welcome email
b) reset your email, which will then allow you to choose a new email address

Why dont I need a password?

Passwords can be guessed or solicited from you by spoof emails and sites so we now use passwordless login.
To login now you should enter your username (or your email address) and you will be sent a link to that email account. Clicking on the link will log you into OLBG on that device for several days so you should not need to repeat this regularly.
For security reasons the links we send are only valid for 15 minutes.

Account suspended?

Most suspensions occur because a tipsters details appear very similar to those of another tipster so we like to clarify that these are in fact, two different people. Once this is resolved to our satisfaction then the account is normally reinstated.

Can I have more than one account?

Sorry - to make the competition as fair as possible each person is only allowed one account and you are not allowed to cancel and set up a new one if things go badly. Also, you are not allowed to cancel your account and start again as this makes a mockery of players historical profits, messes up alerts & is confusing for other users.

If we have suspicions that someone is running multiple accounts, you may be asked to provide ID, such as a passport or driving license to show that you are different people and not one running multiple accounts, failure to do so will result in the accounts being closed down.

Account deleted?

To keep the site running fast we do periodically delete inactive accounts. Any account where you haven't logged in for over three months will be mailed twice to confirm you still want it, after which it is deleted if you do not respond. Having a reliable email is also key - if we try to contact you and the email bounces you have 30 days to login (where you will be prompted to set a new email) before your account is deleted. Please use an email address you check regularly to make sure your account does not get deleted.

Why do you need my email?

We need your email for a few things:

1. We regularly send out emails with site news, extra competitions and exclusive offers we have arranged for you.
2. There are various alerts you can set up if you like for tips, free bets, special competitions etc. You are in complete control of these so you can completely stop them at any time just by logging in and changing your preferences in the "My Emails" section of the member's area.
3. Within the forum, there is a private message system and various alerts to let you track if people make posts to threads etc. Your email is used for these alerts and alerts you when you get new messages. Again though you can choose not to get these (and this is the default option).
4. If you don't use your account we need to be able to contact you to make sure you still want it, as we like to delete inactive accounts as this helps the site run quicker.

FAILURE TO PROVIDE A RELIABLE EMAIL MAY RESULT IN ACCOUNT DELETION.

How do I make a tip?

To Make A Tip you need to be logged into your OLBG account.

On your dashboard, there is a quick link to ‘Make A Tip’ via the My Tipping section.

You can also make a tip by selecting the Members & Tipster Competition from the main menu and then Make A Tip.

Select your sport, tip selection and enter your stake (50 to 500), bet type and add a tip comment if you wish and then click ‘confirm tip’

Check the tip details you have added and click confirm or cancel via the final confirmation pop-up message.

You can now select, make another tip on the same sport, go back to the main tips menu or see your current tips.

How do I add a tip comment?

After selecting your tip you can also add a tip comment explaining your selection. We encourage all our members to add tip comments as we want other members to be able to read and benefit from your knowledge.

A quick tipping comment reference guide can also be found by clicking on the ? next to the tip comment box. Once you have added your tip comment you then click "Confirm Tip".

What Should a Tip Comment Contain?

Useful pointers

Easy To Read = Easy To Back

Tips with typos and lack of punctuation can be difficult to read and are therefore less likely to be followed by others. Always check your tips before submitting them, avoid using all capitals and make sure they are written in good English! 

Don’t Just State The Obvious

Just saying one team is better than another isn’t enough, we need to know why. Good tip comments should use valid reasoning to back up the opinion. Tip comments should make others want to back your tip so explain why you fancy it, don’t just tell everyone that you do fancy it.

• “BARCELONA WILL WIN COZ THAY ARE BEST AND MESSI PLAYS FOR THEM”
• Not particularly informative and lacks punctuation.
• “Leaders Barcelona have dropped just one point at home, Messi is available after injury.”
• Start off on the right note!!

Find The Right Balance Between Stats And Explanation

Nearly all research can be quantified into statistics and it’s almost impossible to argue against them but simply listing a load of stats without any explanation isn’t that helpful. Back up what you have to say with stats but remember that you are making a case for a selection, not just giving out information.

• “Barcelona have won eight games, Valencia have won one game and lost seven”
• Who did they beat ? .. Who beat them ?
• “Leaders Barcelona have dropped just one point at home, winning eight of their last nine and four were against top six sides. Valencia have only beaten the bottom side Deportivo.”
• Stats are okay, but even better with a little explanation and analysis.

Give The Reader A Surprise

Think outside the box when giving your tip reasoning to make your tips stand out from other tips on the same outcome. If you can include information that hasn’t been widely reported or use trends that are being overlooked you could gain more followers by showing punters angles they haven’t considered. Also try not to make your tips all follow the same format.

• “Leaders Barcelona have dropped just one point at home, winning eight of their last nine and four were against top six sides. Valencia have only beaten the bottom side Deportivo, but did win here at the Nou Camp last season after another poor start.”
• Additional analysis can make all the difference!!

Beware Overconfidence

Hopefully, you are confident about your selection’s chances but stating a selection “will win” or is a “dead cert” isn’t helpful as sure things don’t exist in betting. If you are really confident about a selection just concentrate on emphasising the chances rather than talking about how confident you are.

• “barcelonA will wIN COz THAy ARE BEST and mesSI PLays FOR THEM, PuT YOUr MORTGAG AND SPARE CASH ON, they’re a DEAD CERT Lump ON !!”
• Not informative, not useful, not helpful and very irresponsible advice.

The finished article – Barcelona to beat Valencia

"Leaders Barcelona have dropped just one point at home, winning eight of their last nine and four were against top six sides. Valencia have only beaten the bottom side Deportivo but did win here at the Nou Camp last season after another poor start. In conclusion, Barcelona’s recent form looks hard to oppose especially with Messi available after injury and with Neymar and Suarez amongst the goals recently, the firepower available should be decisive.”

Be Aware of Other Tips

Why not have a look at the tips posted by others before you post your own tips? You’ll get a good idea of the sort of quality write-ups that are expected and you might even notice something that affects your confidence in your own tip.

Can I copy content from other sites to help with my tip comments??

No, definitely not.

We have to be very careful regarding copyright laws so copying of any nature is not allowed.

This includes copying content from other OLBG members.

Anyone we suspect of copying will be banned from the competition.

Can I edit my tips?

We don't allow editing of tips so you need to be careful when making your selections like you would with a real bet with a bookmaker.

The reason for not allowing editing is that it can cause many complications, not least for the people who follow your tips or get alerts and who may end up following your old selection.

My tips have disappeared?

Only future tips appear on your Current Tips page in the member's area, to see tips from yesterday or before click on the Tips History.

Can I make multiple bets in the tipster comp?

No, we don't have the facility for making multiple bets in the tipster competition. The main reason is that it can make the competition more about luck and can also kill the competition in months where someone wins very big at the start of the month.

We like the competition to be more about long-term consistency and sharing your best tips. We wish to discourage people from making desperate tips at the end of the month to try to get into the prize money.

The exceptions to this rule are:

• Horse Racing: You can make a win tip and each way tip on each horse race.
• Football: You can tip a maximum of three players in each of the Anytime Scorer & Player to be Booked markets.
• Golf tournaments: You can tip a maximum of one player to win only and up to 4 further players each way.
• American Football: You can tip a maximum of three players in the Anytime TD Scorer market.
• F1: You can tip a maximum of three drivers in each of the Points & Podium finish markets.

I've made a mistake in a tip?

Unfortunately, we don't have the resources to make changes to your tips for you. We have 1000s of members and as a free competition, we don't have the amount of staff we would need to be able to cover something like changing tip comments.

Also, we need to be sure the members following your tips are not confused by any changes.

How do I win money

Money is won by adding enough successful tips to finish in the prize positions of the relevant table.

The more winners you pick at good odds will mean you will show in the table of the particular sport you are tipping on.

Once you have met the criteria for the sport concerned, if you finish the month in one of the prize sports you will be credited with the respective prize for where you finish.

How do I see my unsettled tips and tips history

Once you have placed tips in the tipping competition, there are two sections where you can view these tips, one for ‘Current Tips’ and the other is ‘Tips History’.

Explaining your virtual balance

Your virtual bank is reset to 1000 at the start of every month. It is also increased by 100 every day so you will always have some funds to play with. Also, your bank will change when you make tips, and when they are settled if you have some winnings. Virtual balances cannot be converted into real cash.

Why make tips with comments?

We encourage all members to add tip comments as we want other members to be able to read and benefit from your knowledge. Plus adding tip comments can double your chance of winning a cash prize.

Why am I not ranked in the tipster table?

If you are not ranked in the table, you have yet to reach the minimum criteria for that competition. 

Check via the 'My Performance' page and the table criteria for more information.

How are tips settled?

Most tips are settled in the same way as they would be with a normal bookmaker. There are however a few exceptions regarding non-participating players.
Results of tips will wherever possible be updated daily on the day following the match/race. We will endeavour to ensure that results are processed promptly and winnings credited to "banks" to allow sufficient time to reinvest these winnings prior to monthly resets, however, this cannot be guaranteed, and any failures on our part in this respect are just bad luck.
Tips are void if a race is not run or there is no official result - this will result in a refund of your tip stake. From time to time results may be processed inaccurately. Where this happens we will do our best to correct such errors when we are made aware of them, but we regret that we cannot always guarantee that this will be possible.
Disputes and concerns should be emailed to us and we will endeavour to sort the matter out in the fairest way possible. However, our decision is final.

When are tips settled?

We attempt to settle tips around the clock but we don't guarantee to settle a tip until 12 pm the day after the result is known. In the case of a match at 1 pm on the 10th this would mean settlement by 12 pm on the 11th at the latest. We do try to do them sooner though!

My tips haven't been settled yet?

Whilst we are trying to settle tips around the clock we don't guarantee to settle a tip until 12 pm the day after the result is known. In the case of a match at 1 am on the 10th this would mean settlement by 12 pm on the 11th at the latest. We do try to do them sooner though!

I think my tips have been processed incorrectly?

Please tell us immediately, due to the number of events on a daily basis despite our best efforts, there will be times when errors are made, please use the contact form to let us know.

When are the tables updated?

The tipster tables are updated at least once a day, typically between 10 am and 1 pm. If you've had a big win then please allow 24 hours for that to show up in any of the tables. Even if your tips are showing as settled that doesn't mean its updated the tables.
the time and date the table was last updated are shown in the table stats information above each table.

Do I get my money back on a non-runner in horseracing?

Yes.

Do you settle tips on first past the post in horseracing?

No. We settle horseracing on the amended result only.

How are Hong Kong races settled?

Races at either Sha Tin or Happy Valley will be settled by the SP displayed on the bet365 results page.

An event I tipped on wasn't completed?

Where a match is not played to a conclusion some tips could be voided even if an official result has been declared. If a match has not been completed due to player retirement then any completed markets will be settled as normal. Any markets that were incomplete (such as correct score etc) will be voided.

A player I backed to score didn't play?

If you tip a player to score first or anytime but they never get on the pitch then we mark these as losers as its too complex to introduce an effective non-runner system for the hundreds of matches we process every day.

A player I tipped didn't start the game or tournament?

If you back a player in a game, tournament or race (e.g. Golf, Cricket, Tennis, F1 race, etc) and they don't take part then the bet is a loser. Whilst bookies may treat this differently, it's too demanding for us to keep track of who does and doesn't take part in every event. We suggest you confirm a player will participate before selecting him/her.

What happens if I back an event in a future month?

If you make an ante-post bet then the stake comes out when you make the bet, and the returns and profit/loss are credited to you in the month that the result is known.

Golf 1st Round Settlements

Some golf tournaments can cross over into the next month and whilst the first round may be played in a different month to the completion of the tournament, all tips on a golf tournament will be settled on the date of the completion of the tournament.

That means if a tournament runs from Thursday 30th May and is completed on the 2nd June, ALL tips on that event will be settled and counted towards your June totals.

What is OLBG?

OLBG is a community and guide to help you with your betting.
We are not a bookmaker, but we do link to lots of different bookmakers and other betting content.
The main aim of OLBG is to help you find interesting events to gamble on and then to provide useful information about that event such as the best odds, where it's on TV, some tips and what sort of bets can be made.

How We Work?

1. OLBG is an entirely free site that costs a lot of money to run let alone give out free prizes.
2. In order to do this, we need to be very efficient about dealing with enquiries meaning we really can't afford to spend time answering simple questions that are answered on the site.
3. The OLBG philosophy is to try to spend as much of our time and money on improving the site and its features so your assistance with this would be appreciated :)

How Can I support OLBG?

OLBG is a free site making its money from bookmaker advertising. You can help us in three ways:
1. Help us keep costs down by only asking us questions when you really need to and you're sure it's not answered in the help sections.
2. Using the links on OLBG when you open accounts with bookmakers, casino & poker rooms etc as often that is how we make our money.
3. Share useful information with others through tips and the forum to help everyone enjoy their betting more.
4. Tell your friends about OLBG.

Why So Many Errors?

Our approach is to keep the site improving as rapidly as possible. You might say the whole site is in test in some ways as we are always tweaking stuff. This means that there will be errors from time to time but they'll often be fixed a minute or so later.
However, if you do spot any errors and they don't disappear within an hour then please let us know.

Do you have any Jobs?

If you are interested in working for OLBG then please check The Invendium Website

What is OLBG Racing

OLBG Racing is a new venture into the world of racehorse ownership. You can come along for the ride and learn more about the life of racehorses and those who care for them. You can buy a share in our very own OLBG horse or you can follow the info and help shape the future of OLBG Racing. More info here.