Oscar Grind Betting System: How Does It Work?

The Oscar Grind betting system is quite well-known in casino betting.  Its design is aimed at even money bets such as blackjack and roulette.  That said, it’s also been known to be put into practice with sports betting.

Known as a progressive betting system, the logic is to take advantage of winning streaks whilst keeping losses to a minimum when hitting a bad run.

So, which cunning gambler came up with the Oscar’s Grind system?

This isn’t entirely clear from the archives.  The first person to publish the betting system was a gentleman by the name of Allan Wilson in 1965.

Wilson reported that the system was shown to him by a dice player in Las Vegas.  He said the player had made profits from playing the system over several years.

We can only summarise that this dice player was somebody by the name of Oscar. 

As we continue, we’ll explain how the Oscar’s Grind system works, the sequence involved and what to consider when using the betting system.

The Oscar’s Grind Betting System

As mentioned, this is a progression betting system with similarities to other betting systems such as the Labouchere, Fibonacci and Martingale betting strategies.

All of these betting systems follow some sort of betting sequence based on unit betting stakes.  

There’s three important principles that govern the Oscar’s Grind betting system:

• A win results in an increase - If your bet wins, you up the stake by one unit.
• A loss results in no stake change - There’s no stake increase after a loss. It remains the same.
• Start the cycle again after a one unit profit - Once you achieve a net profit on one unit, you re-start the sequence again.

We know the algorithm can seem a little daunting but here it is anyway.  Don’t panic, we’ll walk through how it works to clear the murky waters.

Before we go through some examples of the the Oscar’s Grind betting system, let’s just do a quick recap on the parameters of the system:

• Only place even-money bets such as high / low, red / black or odd / even.

• Decide what unit stake you want to use (£10, £20, £30 etc)

• Place your first bet of one unit

• For each loss, stake one unit on the next bet (the same amount as your last bet)

• Each time you win, you increase your bet by one unit stake

• The above rules apply until you hit a net profit of one unit. Once you achieve this, the cycle starts again

• IMPORTANT - The aim is to make 1 unit profit. If the sequence could result in you exceeding the 1 unit profit, then you should lower your unit stake so the potential profit remains at 1 unit. For example, let’s assume your unit stake is £10 and you’re down by 3 units (-£30). The standard sequence would suggest that you place a bet of 6 units because your net profit isn’t 1 unit. However, if the 6 unit bet won, you’d be £30 (3 units) in profit. Therefore, you’d reduce the unit stake to 4 units (£40)

The Oscar’s Grind Betting System In Action

Okay, is that now clear as mud?  Maybe it’s time to run through an example to see it in action.

Just to keep things as simple as possible, we’ll stick to a unit stake of £10 and the odds of your bets are evens:

So, from the above example, the sequence was adjusted on the last bet.  The normal sequence would suggest we increase the unit stake by 1 unit to 4 units (£40).  However, after the 9th bet, we were only £10 down.  As our target profit is 1 unit, we reduced the stake to 2 units in order to hit our target if the bet wins.

At bet 10, the sequence stops and you start again.

Of course, this is just a middle of the road example and there will be occasions when you go on a lucky streak or a bad run.

Here’s an example of when things are going well and the sequence is much shorter:

You may have noticed that we didn’t increase our stake when we had a win.  This is because an increase in the unit bet size could have resulted in having a balance over our target of one unit.

What Is The Oscar’s Grind Betting System Suited To?

The Oscar’s Grind betting system was most definitely created to be used in casino games. Over recent years, the types of bets that can be placed now has meant that this betting system can also be used in sports betting.

Blackjack

Backjack is very popular amongst gamblers and is an easy game to play.  It’s also appealing because the casino house edge is low and the Return to Player (RTP) is very high.

Blackjack is suited to the Oscar’s Grind method because the odds are almost evens (50/50).

It doesn’t matter whether you’re victorious with a double down or a split hand, it counts as a winning bet and you carry on with the Oscar’s Grind betting sequence.

Roulette

A little like Blackjack, Roulette is very much suited to even money bets and Roulette provides an almost perfect split of 50/50.  We say almost because there is a zero on the wheel.  Other than that, the wheel is split into 18 black numbers and 18 red numbers.

This means you can place bets such as red / black, 1-18 / 19/36 or odd / even.  Please note, the Oscar’s Grind system is not suitable for placing bets on specific columns or numbers.

For example, place a 1 unit bet on Red and if it wins, you place a 2 unit bet on your next choice (unless you have already achieved your goal of 1 unit).

Alternatively, if your bet loses and the ball lands on Black or Green, you place another 1 unit bet on your next selection.  This continues until you win a bet.

Football

We did mention that the Oscar’s Grind betting system could be used in sports betting and it can.  However, to apply the principles of this betting system takes a lot more effort than casino games.

That’s because even odds on a team winning a football match don’t happen that often which can result in you struggling to get into an uninterrupted betting rhythm.  

If you’re adamant you want to apply the Oscar’s Grind strategy to football, you might need to move from win only bets and consider other football betting markets.  Thai can include first goal scorer, goal line betting and scorecast bets amongst others.

Basically, scour through all of the football betting markets to try and find any betting markets that have even odds.  It doesn’t matter if each bet is on different betting markets as long as it works in the Oscar’s Grind betting system.

Horse Racing

It’s a similar story to football when it comes to applying the Oscar’s Grind system to horse racing.  In fact, it’s probably a bit harder to find regular even money bets. 

Whilst there are plenty of types of horse racing bets you can use, most of them are not suited to the Oscar’s Grind strategy.  In reality, you’re only likely to find the odds you need on win only bets and sometimes, each way bets.

Advantages And Disadvantages Of The Oscar’s Grind Betting System

There’s no such thing as a guaranteed system when it comes to betting.  Every type of bet and betting system has its merits and flaws.

Shall we look at what’s good and not so good when it comes to the Oscar’s Grind betting system:

Advantages  

Relatively Low Risk - As the unit stake stays the same when you lose, your bankroll shouldn’t deplete too quickly.  It’s lower risk than the Martingale system where the bets double after a loss.

Disciplined Betting - Stops bettors from placing impulsive bets and encourages systematic betting that is structured.  This should help with managing your bankroll.

Simplicity - Thankfully, the Oscar’s Grind system is quite a simple betting sequence so it’s not difficult to get the hang of.

Longer Betting Sessions - Because you only increase the stakes when you win, you can have more sustained sessions of betting than if you were using more aggressive betting systems.

Lower Variance - As the Oscar’s Grind betting system uses a moderate progression method, your bankroll fluctuations shouldn’t be too drastic.

Disadvantages

Slow Profits - Because you’re only aiming for one unit of profit each cycle, it can be extremely slow to show any substantial gains.

Bookie House Edge - Whilst the system is designed for even money bets, the bookies still have a slight edge in most games.  This means that over the longer term, losses are possible and in fact, inevitable.

Recovering Losses Can Take Time - If you suffer long losing streaks, your bankroll can take a hit and take quite some time to recover.

Bankroll Risk - As with any betting system, the Oscar’s Grind betting system isn’t infallible.  This means a long bad streak could potentially wipe out your entire bankroll.

Oscar’s Grind Betting v Other Progression Betting Systems

There are other types of progression betting systems similar to the Oscar’s Grind betting system. They are usually one of two types of system:

Positive Progression System - Increase unit stakes when you win and reduce unit stakes when you lose.

Negative Progression System - Increase unit stakes when you lose and reduce unit stakes when you win.

Tips And Considerations Of Using The Oscar’s Grind Betting System

Tips

Use on bets with even odds: Oscar’s Grind is designed to be used on bets with a 50 / 50 probability such as black or red in a game of roulette.

Establish a Budget: Set a unit stake that’s affordable to your bankroll.  It’s recommended that you use stakes of 1 to 2% of your bankroll.

Don’t Chase Losses: Once you’ve established your budget, make sure you stick to it.  Never increase stakes to try and recover any losses.

Track Your Bets: Keep records of the bets you make and the outcomes.  Thai will help you know your current bankroll and ensure you’re following the strategy correctly. 

Utilise Free Simulators: Practice implementing the Oscar’s Grind betting system on free online games.  This will allow you to learn how the system works before risking your own money.

Set Limits: Have a predetermined plan of how much you’re prepared to lose in one betting session.

Expect Losses: There can be times when losing streaks happen.  It’s important that you understand the exposure you might face.

Patience Is Important: The Oscar’s Grind system is not designed for get rich quick punters. It’s intended for small wins and slow loss recovery.

Considerations

• You may require a substantial betting budget if you encounter a long run of bad luck.

• The bookies will always have a house edge over customers which means that they are usually the winners in the long run.

• This type of betting strategy is not suitable for those with small budgets

• You need to be patient with the Oscar’s Grind betting system. It’s slow to make profits.

Oscar’s Grind Betting System FAQs

Is the Oscar’s Grind Betting System legal?

Yes, it’s totally legal. The system doesn’t involve any underhand tactics such as card-counting that can impact the outcome.

Can I use the Oscar’s Grind Betting System on football?

The system can be used on football, yes.  However, as we mentioned earlier, finding the right bets to use it on is harder with sports than it is casino. This is due to the requirement to find even money bets.

Does the Oscar’s Grind System Work?

Hmmmm, good question and the answer depends on who you ask. In theory it does work but we don’t consider it to be a particularly good strategy.

If you have a bad run, you can accumulate losses easily and struggle to win them back.

Conclusion

Oscar’s Grind betting system is a straight-forward system with the objective of making a profit from small but consistent wins. 

It provides bettors with a disciplined and controlled betting strategy that is less aggressive than some other betting systems.

However, as with all betting systems, there’s risks of encountering big losses that can easily wipe out your previous small wins.

When this happens, you can find yourself stuck in a betting cycle trying to hit that one unit profit.

We suspect this is where the word ‘Grind’ came from.

Last Word - There’s no betting system that can beat the house edge in the longer term so pick your betting strategies wisely.

However, provided it’s done correctly, Matched Betting can guarantee profits and value betting can take the house edge away from the bookies.