What happens if a leg of a parlay voids? A comprehensive guide for bettors

Hey friend! As an avid sports bettor and fan myself, I know how frustrating it can be when a leg of a parlay gets voided. You spend time researching matchups, picking your wagers carefully, only to have one pick invalidated for reasons out of your control.

In this expansive guide, I‘ll walk you through everything you need to know about void bets in parlays – from what causes them in the first place to how different sportsbooks treat them. My goal is to help you better understand void bets, manage your parlay card risks, and ultimately become a smarter bettor. Stick with me!

Let‘s start with the basics – what is a parlay bet?

Simply put, a parlay combines 2 or more wagers into a single bet. All legs must win for the parlay to be successful. This increases the difficulty significantly, but also amps up the potential payout compared to betting each wager individually.

A typical $100 two-team parlay might pay out $260 if both teams cover the spread. A 10-leg parlay could see odds of 50/1 or more and turn $10 into $500. As you add more successful picks, the payouts increase exponentially.

Of course, missing on just one leg results in a losing parlay bet. This is where voids come into play…

What exactly does "void" mean in sports betting?

When a sportsbook voids a wager, it essentially means the bet is cancelled or invalidated. Your wager amount is returned, as if the bet never happened in the first place.

Some common reasons a sportsbook might void a bet:

• A player gets injured or has an unexpected absence
• The game is postponed or cancelled
• The game ends prematurely due to weather or other factors
• There‘s an error in the sportsbook‘s betting lines or odds

You can see how these situations arise frequently in sports. Now let‘s get to the heart of the matter – what happens if one of the legs in your parlay is voided?

Potential outcomes when a parlay leg is voided

Sportsbooks have different rules on how to handle a parlay with a void leg. Here are the most common scenarios:

1. The entire parlay is voided

Some sportsbooks will void the full parlay wager, returning your total stake amount if any leg gets voided for any reason. Essentially, your bet disappears as if you never made it.

Sportsbooks that tend to void the whole parlay: DraftKings, FanDuel, Circa Sports

2. The void leg is removed and odds are adjusted

In this case, the voided leg is taken out of the parlay equation. The odds and potential payout are then recalculated based on the remaining active legs.

For example, your 4-team parlay now acts as a 3-team parlay. A void would turn a "20-to-1" payout into "15-to-1" with one less leg.

Sportsbooks that remove void legs: BetMGM, Caesars, FOX Bet

3. Parlay loses if the void leg was the only losing pick

Some sportsbooks will consider the parlay a loss if the void wager ends up being the only unsuccessful leg. The logic is that you still would have lost the parlay otherwise.

This one is less common but can happen at certain books. Always check the specific rules.

Examples of void bets in parlays

To make this crystal clear, here are some real-world examples of voided parlay legs:

• In an NFL parlay, you bet on a Monday night game. It‘s postponed until Tuesday due to weather. The sportsbook voids this leg.

• You bet an NBA same-game parlay on a player to score 30+ points. He suffers an injury in the first quarter and is out for the game. The leg is void.

• Your MLB parlay includes a game total over/under. The game is rained out after 5 innings before going the required 9 innings. That total bet is voided.

• You took Oregon -7 in an NCAAF parlay. Their opponent has to forfeit due to COVID-19 cases before kickoff. The leg is refunded.

As you can see, injuries, weather, forfeits, and truncated games are prime causes of void parlay legs.

How major sportsbooks handle voids

The sportsbook‘s house rules dictate how void bets are treated. Policies vary significantly, so you need to do your homework. Here‘s how some of the top sportsbooks handle voids:

DraftKings: Voids the entire parlay wager, refunding all stakes

FanDuel: Same as DraftKings, full parlay refund if any leg is void

Caesars: Removes the void leg, drops to the next lowest parlay payout

BetMGM: Also removes the void leg and adjusts odds downward

FOX Bet: Removes void legs and recalculates parlay odds

PointsBet: Varies depending on when the void occurs and which sport

BetRivers: Usually removes void leg, but consults house rules

Circa Sports: Voids the full parlay wager

As you can see, DraftKings and FanDuel are the most aggressive in voiding full parlays, while Caesars, BetMGM and FOX take a more leg-by-leg approach. But when in doubt, read the fine print!

Void odds: Parlays vs. same game parlays

Standard parlays across multiple games tend to have void legs removed or odd adjusted. But for same game parlays (SGPs), most sportsbooks void the entire bet.

The logic is that the legs are all deeply connected within one game. If any leg is void, the entire SGP wager is thrown out.

For example, an NBA SGP with a player‘s points scored leg voided would typically result in a full void. But a standard NBA parlay would have just that one leg removed in many cases.

Tips to avoid void bets

While void bets are often unavoidable, here are some tips to reduce the likelihood of a voided parlay leg:

• Don‘t bet on players with known injuries or who are questionable

• Avoid odds boosts or specials based around one player‘s performance

• Monitor lineups, injury reports, and player news right up until game time

• Pay close attention to weather forecasts before betting games prone to delays

• Let bets on suspended or postponed games play out rather than voiding immediately

• Spread your parlay legs across multiple games rather than stacking one game

Recapping the key takeaways

• A void bet is cancelled and refunded as if it never happened
• Injuries, weather delays, truncated games often trigger voided wagers
• Sportsbooks have different rules on how they handle parlays with voids
• Best practice is to read the house rules on void bets at your sportsbook
• There are some strategies bettors can use to reduce void likelihood

I know that was an overload of information, but I hope this guide better prepared you to deal with void bets on your parlay cards. Void wagers are never fun, but knowing the ins and outs can help significantly reduce frustration when they do occur. Thanks for sticking with me to the end here. Now get out there and win some parlays!