What are sportsbook house rules?

The published terms a sportsbook uses to grade bets, covering overtime, postponements, player participation, errors and payout limits. Each book writes its own, often per state.

Can a sportsbook cancel a winning bet?

Licensed books reserve the right to void or re-price bets placed at an obvious error, such as a price far out of line with the market. Some, like Caesars, need regulator approval first where the state requires it.

Does overtime count in sports betting?

For most US full-game markets, yes. Quarter markets, 60-minute hockey lines and soccer's 90-minute markets are common exceptions; the market name and house rules say which.

What happens to a player prop if the player doesn't play?

It is usually void. But books define playing differently — stepping on court, starting, or recording a plate appearance — so check the sport's section of the rules.

Settlement

Sportsbook house rules: the fine print that decides your bet

Every sportsbook publishes house rules that decide how a bet is graded when something unusual happens. They differ between books, and the differences are where hedges come apart.

Updated September 27, 2026 · TrueEdge Academy

A sportsbook's house rules are the published terms that decide how a bet is graded when anything unusual happens: overtime, a postponement, a player who doesn't play, a price the book says was a mistake, a payout over the book's cap. Each book writes its own, often per state, and they are not the same. For a single bet that is fine print. For a hedge, an arbitrage or a converted promo — two bets at two books that are supposed to cover each other — a rule difference can leave one leg voided and the other live, or both losing. This guide covers the five categories that matter and how to check them.

Where to find them

Every licensed book links its house rules or sports rules from its help or support pages, usually with a section per sport. The version for your state is the one that applies. The examples below were read on September 27, 2026 from FanDuel's Colorado house rules, Caesars Sportsbook's support house rules, and Circa Sports' Nevada house rules. They are examples of how rules are written, not a substitute for reading your own book's, and books change them.

1. Overtime and periods

Most full-game markets in US sports include overtime; soccer is settled on 90 minutes plus stoppage time. The traps are the segment markets and the explicitly labelled ones. FanDuel's rules say overtime counts for NBA markets unless stated, but the fourth quarter does not include overtime and second-half markets do. Circa labels markets “GAME” when they include overtime and “REGULATION” when they don't. A bet and its hedge have to settle on the same slice of the game; overtime and retirement rules goes sport by sport.

2. Postponements, suspensions and abandonment

Books set a window. FanDuel's Colorado baseball rules void wagers if a game does not start on its scheduled day, and let bets stand on a suspended game that resumes within 48 hours of the original start. Caesars' hockey rules require the game to be played on the scheduled date and to reach 55 minutes of play. Some markets that are already decided stand even if the game never finishes. If your two legs sit at books with different windows, a rain-out can void one and not the other; if one leg is on a prediction market, its contract may resolve at a set price instead of refunding.

3. Player props when a player sits

The usual rule is that a prop is void if the player takes no part, but “takes part” is defined differently. FanDuel's NBA player-performance bets stand once the player takes the court, however briefly. For MLB, FanDuel voids pitcher props if the listed pitcher doesn't start and batter props if the batter isn't in the starting lineup; Caesars requires batters to be in the starting lineup with a plate appearance, and pitchers to throw their team's first pitch. A player who plays three minutes and leaves hurt is the case where your prop and its hedge are both live and both graded on three minutes. Pitcher changes get their own guide: listed pitchers vs action.

4. Obvious errors (palps)

Every book reserves the right to void or re-price a bet placed at a price that was plainly wrong — industry shorthand is a “palp”, for palpable error. FanDuel's rules list prices materially different from those generally available in the market, bets accepted after an event started, and bets placed after the result was knowable. Caesars' list is similar and says it will not void or resettle for an obvious error without the regulator's prior approval where that is required. The practical point: an arbitrage built on one price far out of line with every other book is exactly the bet most likely to be voided, leaving the other leg unhedged.

5. Maximum payouts

Books cap what any single bet, or group of related bets, can pay. FanDuel's Colorado rules set $1,000,000 per bet or combination of bets on the same event or outcome, and apply it across customers acting together. Circa's Nevada rules cap parlays at a 2,000-to-1 win ratio. These rarely touch ordinary stakes, but a long parlay or a large boosted bet can hit one and be paid less than the ticket shows.

How one rule difference breaks a hedge

Book 1: Team A −1.5 at +150, $100: decimal 2.50
Book 2: Team B +1.5 at −130, $141.30: decimal 1.769
Either side covers, as planned: +$8.70
Starting pitcher scratched: Book 1 refunds run lines: $0
Book 2's run line stands alone: +$108.70 or −$141.30

Illustration. This is the real difference between Circa's and FanDuel's published MLB rules — worked in full in the listed pitchers guide.

A five-minute check before any two-book position

1Open both books' rules for the sport, in your state.
2Confirm both markets settle on the same period: full game with overtime, or regulation only.
3Check the postponement and suspension windows match, or accept that a delay can void one leg.
4For props, check what counts as playing, and for MLB, whether a pitcher change voids either leg.
5If one price is far better than every other book's, assume it can be voided as an error and size accordingly.

Where TrueEdge helps, and where it doesn't

TrueEdge reads the settlement wording in each book's market labels and keeps regulation-only hockey lines apart from overtime-inclusive ones, so a board row compares like with like. It does not read your book's house rules for you: pitcher, retirement and postponement rules stay your check. When a leg is voided, mark it void in the bet tracker so your records match your balance — the bet tracker walkthrough shows how, and hedging covers placing the pair.

Frequently asked questions

What are sportsbook house rules?: The published terms a sportsbook uses to grade bets, covering overtime, postponements, player participation, errors and payout limits. Each book writes its own, often per state.
Can a sportsbook cancel a winning bet?: Licensed books reserve the right to void or re-price bets placed at an obvious error, such as a price far out of line with the market. Some, like Caesars, need regulator approval first where the state requires it.
Does overtime count in sports betting?: For most US full-game markets, yes. Quarter markets, 60-minute hockey lines and soccer's 90-minute markets are common exceptions; the market name and house rules say which.
What happens to a player prop if the player doesn't play?: It is usually void. But books define playing differently — stepping on court, starting, or recording a plate appearance — so check the sport's section of the rules.