What is a push in betting?
A push is a bet that ends in a tie against the line, such as a favourite at -7 winning by exactly seven points, so the bet is cancelled and your stake is returned.
Not a win, not a loss. The result landed exactly on the number, so the book hands your money back and everyone moves on.
“Push” is American. UK and European bookies don’t really use the word. They’ll show the bet as void, “stake returned” or “refunded”, and the effect is the same. See void bet for the wider family of cancelled bets.
A push is only possible on whole-number lines. That’s why so many lines end in .5.
Example
On a spread. You bet $110 on a team at −7. They win 28–21, by exactly seven. Push. You get your $110 back, no profit, no loss. At −6.5 you’d have won. At −7.5 you’d have lost.
On a total. The line is 45 points and the game ends 24–21. That’s 45 exactly. Over and under bets are both refunded.
In a parlay. Three legs, each at 2.00, for combined odds of 8.00. One leg pushes.
| Legs counted | Combined odds | Return on $10 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| All three win | 3 | 8.00 | $80 |
| Two win, one pushes | 2 | 4.00 | $40 |
The pushed leg is simply removed and the parlay carries on at the shorter price.
Watch out
- Teasers and special parlay cards may treat a push differently. At some books a push in a two-team teaser refunds the ticket, at others it counts as a loss. It’s in the house rules.
- Asian handicaps have pushes on whole lines and half pushes on quarter lines, where half your stake is refunded.
- Three-way markets have no push. Bet a football team on the 1X2 line and a draw is a loss, not a refund. If you want your money back on a draw, that’s draw no bet.
- Buying the half point. Books will sell you −6.5 instead of −7 for a worse price. Sometimes it’s worth it around point spread key numbers. Usually it isn’t.