A point spread is a sportsbook handicap that levels the playing field between two unevenly matched teams. The favourite "gives" points (e.g., -6.5); the underdog "gets" them (+6.5). Your bet wins if the favourite covers the spread or the underdog stays within it.
Also known as: spread, line, handicap
Standard NFL and NBA spreads are priced -110/-110 on both sides — the sportsbook’s vig sits in those identical prices. Adjusted spreads ("alt lines") let you take more or fewer points at correspondingly different prices.
Half-point hooks (e.g., -7.5 vs -7) matter a lot in football, where 7 is the single most common margin of victory. Sharps will buy or sell half-points to land on or off key numbers.
In hockey, the analogous bet is the puck line, almost always set at ±1.5 goals because hockey is too low-scoring for traditional spreads. The same idea applies in baseball as the run line.