Edge without discipline goes broke
Even a genuine +EV bettor can lose their entire bankroll by staking too much on each bet. Bankroll management is how you turn an edge into realized profit.
Units, not dollars
Track everything in units — typically 1% of your bankroll. A "3-unit" bet is three percent of your roll. This normalizes performance across bankroll sizes and is exactly how Overlay records tipster stakes.
The Kelly criterion
Kelly tells you the growth-optimal fraction to stake given your edge:
f = (b * p - q) / b
where b = odds - 1, p = true win probability, q = 1 - p.
Because your probability estimates are noisy, most pros bet quarter- or half-Kelly to cut variance. Smaller, steadier, still growing.