Gambling Thread

[Songbird]

Sonner and I have been kicking it back and forth in messages. Both of us bet sports, and there are others here who do (TBF comes to mind). So why not have a thread.

But there are other gamblers here, you know, the Vegas casino types. Poker, 21, etc etc. Mahjong!

I primarily bet sports, and especially pro and college football. By now you know I love the 10-, 11-, 12-team parlays for $2. I've won a 10-teamer and I've hit 11 of 12. I'll usually do one a week.

I usually stick to the 4- through 8-teamers. Won a 7-teamer Sunday night. Would've been 8 but pushed a game. Won $469. Last night I won a 5-teamer (Seahawks straight, over-41.5, Red Sox straight, North Carolina plus-10) that bumped down to 4 with a push (Red Sox over-7). Won $112. Had North Carolina held on to beat Miami, I would have won another $274. So things are going pretty well right now.

Bovada is a nice site to play though you wait longer to get your money than they do withdrawing money from your bank account.

I'm probably putting all $112 on Louisville tonight against Central Florida. Depending on the O-U I might parlay it but make the bet $50.

Who do you like this weekend?

 

[TheSportsPredictor]

Was just discussing the lines last night. I'm clearly out of it because I barely know who's playing this weekend, much less the lines. Used to be I could predict the line before it came out.

I did read a recent WSJ article that said for each person who won $5k gambling, 128 lost that much.

 

[Songbird]

The 7-teamer I won was dependent on the Red Sox rallying from the 5-0 deficit, late. I fell asleep when it was 5-1.

Woke up at 3 a.m. to check the score. Big smile when I saw Tigers 5, Red Sox 6. Fell right back asleep, happy.

 

[YankeeFan]

Xan, you're not terrified of gambling?

As a guy who seems to have done a good job of getting the vices out of your life, I'm surprised you still gamble.

(Not trying to be judgmental at all, btw. Personally, I'm not a gambler. As a former trader, and someone who's dropped some decent coin in Vegas previously, it does scare me, and I know those casinos weren't built on losses. I also think it sort of "contaminates" my enjoyment of sports viewing. But, if someone can stick to a "budget" and does it as entertainment, I have no issue with it.)

 

[The Big Ragu]

I am not supposed to bet on football. And I mostly don't -- anymore, at least, even though I miss it.

But I do one fun little thing with four other people every week. We all think we know college football really well, although as you know, from a betting perspective most people really know squat.

We each pick one game and do a 5-team parlay (even though I'd normally tell gamblers that parlays are suckers bets -- with each team you add, you decrease your expected payout on a dollar, so over time there is no way you can be profitable betting big parlays).

We have fun with it. We do a conference call every Wednesday and give each other ship for a half hour.

Two weeks ago, our bet was Clemson -14, Oregon -40, Miami -6.5, Kentucky +21 and Northwestern +7.5. My pick was Kentucky against South Carolina. I didn't particularly like the Northwestern / Ohio State pick. I saw the game as a coin toss, but someone else picked it.

We had already gotten the Clemson, Oregon, Miami and Kentucky games and were waiting on Northwestern. We were finally going to win one of those parlays! ...

You know what happened. Northwestern is down by 3 with time for one last play from inside their own 20. They try a hook and ladder, which leads to an abortion of a play with no time left. A bad lateral and it rolls into the end zone. Ohio State dives on it and we get back-doored and just like that we go from congratulating each other in text messages to being sick to our stomachs.

It also is what betting is so much fun. You get stories like that. Plus, it gives you a reason to watch Tuesday night MAC games.

 

[Songbird]

YF, I have cut out (most of) the vices. But I doubt I'll give up gambling. There's a great thrill and intensity when the hunt involves money. Watching a game takes on new meaning when you have money on it. The silent intensity came be deafening.

That being said, I can control things much better now. I have to because I don't have much money. And this helps because I have to deposit money instead of having a bookie who, in the past, always let me place bets without ponying up -- so if I lost I'd just make another bet, and another. Some Saturday's I lost upward of $500. If I lost the weekend I paid on Thursdays. If I won I got paid on Thursdays. It was so very convenient.

These days I deposit $20 on Saturday and that'll be it for the day. Always bet parlays. If I win I use winnings for Sunday's parlays.

If I lose all $20 on Saturday I'll deposit $20 on Sunday and that'll be it.

 

[Songbird]

I got fuct by that Northwestern abortion, too.

 

[Boom_70]

I don't think it's unfair to question if time has pashed on HBCU education model.
All the top quality athletes that Grambling used to get are now going to SEC schools.

 

[Buck]

I'm an avid poker player, but I haven't been playing lot recently.
I'm an avid sports bettor, but I'm not playing right now.
The reasons for both are the same - time and money.
We're trying to save money for some things, and I won't gamble money can't lose.
And time is an issue for both, too. I haven't had time too play cards and I haven't had time to follow sports as closely as I'd like.


As an aside, no one should give up all his/her vices.

 

[heyabbott]

I did read a recent WSJ article that said for each person who won $5k gambling, 128 lost that much.

then take the bet, don't make the bet

 

[mjp1542]

Enjoy gambling, but have backed off a bit in recent years. I do like to hit Delaware for the NFL parlay cards 3-4 times a year, but other than that, it's maybe a casino trip or two per year. Enough to fill that thrill but not overplay my cards.

Nothing beats a full Saturday-Sunday in Vegas, though, like I did last year during football season. What an experience. I'll be doing that again, for sure.

And speaking of Saturday, this weekend I'm liking Iowa +18 at Ohio State. What exactly have the Buckeyes done to be such huge favorites? They don't blow out anyone, and Iowa isn't awful. I expect Ohio State to win, but that's a ton of points.

 

[RickStain]

Was just discussing the lines last night. I'm clearly out of it because I barely know who's playing this weekend, much less the lines. Used to be I could predict the line before it came out.

I did read a recent WSJ article that said for each person who won $5k gambling, 128 lost that much.

It's a perfectly legitimate leisure hobby, imo, but anyone who claims to come out ahead on it is almost certainly lying or fooling themselves.