LCS Summer 2019 Playoffs Betting Primer

The regular split of Summer is over, and LCS playoffs are upon us! Six teams have qualified for the playoffs and round one matchups decided. Today we cover all six teams, going from sixth to first, talking about each team, their odds, and how you should place your bets among the six teams.

That is a wrap on the regular season! Thank you for joining us this summer and we will see you next weekend for the first round of the 2019 #LCS Summer Playoffs!



Saturday at 2PM PDT: @TSM (4) vs @ClutchGaming (5)



Sunday at 12PM PDT: @clgaming (3) vs @OpTicLoL (6) pic.twitter.com/w9hdSAx61g — LCS (@LCSOfficial) August 5, 2019

LCS Playoff Fever

OpTic Gaming

OpTic Gaming 2.85* vs. 1.4* Counter Logic Gaming

This team fell off a cliff midway through the season, going from 5-2 and an upset victory over TSM to barely making LCS playoffs. OpTic had to run the gauntlet on the last day, taking down 100 Thieves and Golden Guardians to earn their sixth-place spot. OpTic have solid performers on their team, but they lack consistency. This sounds super general but it isn’t when one considers that OpTic has been inconsistent EVERYWHERE. Players, macro, communication, all have been extremely suspect over the past five weeks. Some days OpTic will look like world enders, others they will be rolled by Echo Fox.

The real problem for OpTic is their LCS playoffs round one opponent. CLG have looked great as of late, only dropping their momentum on the very last day against 100T and C9. OptTic even lost against CLG outright in the final week of the regular split. Betting on OpTic against CLG could cash you in, but they must be on their A-game. But even if they do upset CLG, there is no way they get past Team Liquid.

Clutch Gaming

Clutch Gaming 3.33* vs. 1.29* Team SoloMid

What a wild ride for the Dignitas boys. Clutch Gaming coasted into LCS playoffs by winning four of their last five to end the regular split. Since mid split, they have only lost to teams that have placed top four, and are synergizing unlike anything we've seen thus far. Huni has played on a level not seen by him in years, drafts have been fantastic, and they have momentum.

Their matchup in round one actually is the far better one for them. TSM come into LCS playoffs with no momentum after being beaten by a Glacial comp to end the split. Yes, TL played a TFT comp into them and won. Clutch are not exactly favored, but a bet on CG would not be unwise. Several pundits predict them to win over TSM, and given the trends of both teams it isn’t out of the question. They will be destroyed by C9 or Team Liquid, so don’t bet beyond that.

Team SoloMid

Team SoloMid 1.29* vs. 3.33* Clutch Gaming

What the hell happened here? A team that looked like a legitimate contender to Liquid’s throne has struggled mightily in Summer. The players seem to be on different pages, and that was best seen against Team Liquid. TL played a Teamfight Tactics composition, and beat TSM soundly. TSM seem incapable of beating the top three, and we are not convinced they will even beat their round one LCS playoffs opponent.

As stated previously, Clutch will be facing TSM in round one. On paper TSM should win this one outright, boasting superior talent and going to finals in Spring. But they have been too inconsistent lately to go purely off of that. Betting on TSM over Clutch would make sense all things considered. However, don’t be surprised if Clutch pull the upset. Even if they don’t, TSM is too risky a bet for the rest of the LCS playoffs.

Counter Logic Gaming

Counter Logic Gaming 1.4* vs. 2.85* OpTic Gaming

CLG are the team that is the most surprising addition to LCS playoffs. Ruin has proven to be the shot in the arm that CLG needed, proving to be a top team in the LCS this split. PowerofEvil and Biofrost are having one of their best splits each, and the rest of the team is no slouch. They will drop games here and there but have proven to be fairly consistent over the course of the season.

In round one, CLG have the weakest challenger: OpTic Gaming. On paper, CLG have the advantage in every position, as well as the overall better macro play. They lost to the surging Cloud9 and 100T on the final day, but should still be the overwhelming betting favorite. If they make it to the second round expect them to play against the number two seed in Cloud9. Team Liquid would be insane to choose CLG over the alternatives.

In a matchup versus Cloud9, CLG are an underdog. C9 won their tiebreaker matchup, but CLG won the previous game in a closely fought battle. This is realistically a matchup that could swing to either side, but C9 is the safer bet.

Cloud9

They did it again. Cloud9 closed out Summer as the second seed in the LCS Playoffs for the second year in a row. They picked back up to close out, earning their spot by beating the upstart CLG in a tiebreaker. The boys in blue have swept Team Liquid this season, admittedly under circumstances that need an asterisk.

Cloud9 have a round one bye in LCS Summer playoffs, meaning they cannot play against Liquid until the finals. They should be favored against everyone except the reigning champions, with the only other team seen as a threat being CLG. See the CLG section for coverage on that matchup, in which C9 should have the advantage in terms of macro and talent.

Team Liquid would be the real test in finals, but we’ve seen that song and dance too many times to get excited. Yes, Cloud9 has swept the champs in summer, but that’s not the whole story. In the first game, Team Liquid played uncharacteristically poorly, and the second they ran a test of the Sona bottom lane as a final sign for playoffs. We expect C9 to get neither of these advantages come finals if they meet Liquid there.

Team Liquid

Hail to the kings. Team Liquid have lost only four games the entire split, two in the first two weeks, the other two to Cloud9 in very uncharacteristic games. They are set into the number one seed in LCS playoffs, meaning they get to choose their opponent in the semifinals. They get to avoid CLG and Cloud9 until LCS Finals, and would be favored to win regardless. The smartest decision to make while betting on the LCS playoffs is to bank on Team Liquid. This team has never lost a best of five in the LCS since franchising, and should absolutely be the favorites to win it all.

LCS Summer 2019 Playoffs Expectations

Now that we’ve looked at all of the teams, let’s make a prediction for LCS Playoffs. For the OpTic versus CLG matchup, 3-0 CLG is the logical outcome, sending CLG to face Cloud9 in the semifinals.

We think the Clutch versus TSM series will go to a full five games, with Clutch getting the win and facing Team Liquid.

Team Liquid dominates Clutch 3-0 to guarantee Worlds, and Cloud9 beats CLG in five games to reach the finals for the rematch.

To end it, Team Liquid 3-1 Cloud9 to become the first team to win four straight LCS titles, completing the next level fourth memes and earning the Pool 1 spot at the World Championship.

So ends our betting primer of the LCS Playoffs! Check back later for primers on the other Power Four regions League of Legends Betting Tips!

*Odds are subject to change.