Olympics Betting Time Difference
Just when you thought legal offshore sportsbook sites had made betting on any sport as easy as falling down while wearing skis, the Winter Olympics had to come along and make things sorta hard again.
Although there is no room for debate that online bookies have made it more convenient than ever before to wager on the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympics, the fact remains that the time difference adds a layer of difficulty back into the process. This is completely understandable if you really think about it: South Korea is a solid 17 hours ahead of bettors on the West Coast of North America (that’s Pacific Standard Time), 14 hours ahead of the East Coast and somewhere in between for in-between time zones. This means that, as of early afternoon on February 8, 2018, the first day of PyeongChang 2018 competition is already in the books – so if you had plans to bet on the mixed doubles curling events or even more popular events like the team figure skating completion, you are sadly out of luck.
While consideration for the time element is hardly anything more than a minor annoyance for more casual viewers or even dedicated fans of the Winter Olympics, a 14-to-17 hour gap adds an element of strategy worth taking note of for sharp sports bettors. While other Olympics fans are likely happy just to watch replays and highlights or – at most - will just stay up late or wake up early to tune in for the favorite events, those who gamble on sports have to consider multiple factors related to timing their bets.
Fortunately, the legal offshore sports betting sites offering olympic betting odds that we recommend for our US readers – those sites being Bovada, BetOnline, SportsBetting, 5Dimes and BetDSI – are all offering their PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympics betting lines on all events well in advance of the scheduled date and times. Those dates and times are clearly marked on or around the various lines, so be sure you pay careful attention to the Olympics or Winter Sports betting sections of each of our recommended sportsbooks for all the details. Another good tool to help you make sure you’ve got all your bets locked in on time (or even get the odds you want, as these things may change from day to day throughout the two-week PyeongChang Winter Games) is complete schedule of events put together by Sports Illustrated. You can find that up-to-date schedule by clicking the appropriate link at Sports Illustrated’s Olympics homepage at http://si.com/olympics/2018.