Math question?

[ofishil]

What percent does the guy taking the bet have against the better?

Lets say there is 3 football games. You make a bet but you have to pick the winner of all 3 games.

Is this correct?
If you are betting on 1 game you have a 50/50 chance of winning. If you are betting on 2 games you have a 25/75 chance of winning. 3 games would be 12.5/87.5 chance of winning.

[TexMax]

Yep. Think of it like rolling dice. Odd you win, even you lose. Roll three times. 1/2 x 1/2 x 1/2 x 100 = 12.5

[Tubby]

I think so but the wording would have to be different...

The ratios are more than just a "chance of winning" but rather "the odds of winning all 3 games".

[TexMax]

But there's odds to consider when actually betting games. This only works in a straight roll or any situation like the example I gave.

[BoneDigger]

No, not correct at all. If both teams were evenly matched, exactly, then you would have an even 50/50 chance. But football is never that way, so the chances of any individual game, or the chances of three in a row would be based on the odds of a particular team winning a specific game.

Now, if you took something that was completely split with a 50/50 chance of winning, such as a coin toss, then your math would make more sense. But, also remember that your odds do not change based on whether or not you won the first or second time. So, to use an example, if you had a 1 in a billion chance of having an airplane crash into your house, the chances of another airplane doing it stays the same. Or, if you play the lottery your odds are the same after you win as they are before you win (if the same number of people play).

Todd

[Bow Daddy]

Percentage chance for the bookie-> 87.5%
Probability of better winning-> 1/8
Odds of better winning -> 1:7

[Burnadell]

TexMax is correct for the purely statistical probabilty of getting all 3 answers correct in simply guessing 3 true/false or yes/no questions.

Bonedigger and Tubby are correct for the "odds" of sporting events because there is more than simple luck involved. Betting odds on sporting events involve more than games of chance.