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Do you enjoy gambling?

dontcallme

SC Supporter
Mar 18, 2005
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Probably a weird question in a gambling forum, I assume people gamble and enjoy it.

I remember before I started gambling watching ads say sports are more enjoyable when putting money on it.

I started gambling 3 years ago and worked out I am £200 up each year. So I am not making any real money out of it.

At the beginning I hedged my bets. I put numerous small bets on results I thought would happen with low odds. So if 7 out of 10 bets were right I'd win a little, 8or more and upa bit more.

Problem with this was I was betting for the favourites and much of the joy of watching sports is supporting the underdog, especially as a Spurs fan I wanted our rivals to lose. I remember watching Man City play Norwich with my Norwich supporting mate. Norwich equalised around 80 minutes, I should have been happy and celebrating with my mate instead I was slightly annoyed at losing, City scored a last minute winner and it gave me no joy. I also bet on Arsenal to beat Bournemouth when Bournemouth went 4 up.

Since then I have stopped betting on sure things as it did nullify my enjoyment instead of enhancing.

I now bet on results I want to happen and bet bigger.

Guess it is a weird mix in trying to win money but not at the expense of your enjoyment.
 

spurs mental

Well-Known Member
Mar 10, 2007
25,075
49,234
They say when the fun stops, stop. I've given it up in the last year and deleted any online accounts. Might do an accumulator now and again or bet on the golf but find I now enjoy watching football a lot more without having any money riding on it.
 

dontcallme

SC Supporter
Mar 18, 2005
33,986
81,913
They say when the fun stops, stop. I've given it up in the last year and deleted any online accounts. Might do an accumulator now and again or bet on the golf but find I now enjoy watching football a lot more without having any money riding on it.

I bet on Germany winning yesterday, don’t hate them but always fun seeing them lose. Losing the bet did nullify the enjoyment.
 

Blockbuster

Well-Known Member
Jun 28, 2007
2,765
1,568
Gambling is only fun when you win,
i find it makes games more interesting when you have money riding on it, especially if its those teams you hate and you bet against them, thats always a comfort.

I miss the world cup and betting on every.single.game.... if you play the system you can end up using 'freebets' for the more outrageous offers which is where the fun really starts

I bet on the boxing over the weekend, stake £10 get £5 free, i lost my original £10 on request a bets which didnt come in, but my free £5 i placed on both boxers to be knocked down 24/1 and it came in..happy days
 

'O Zio

Well-Known Member
Dec 27, 2014
7,405
13,785
To be honest I'm not a huge gambler because I know I'd never be good enough to make money from it like some people do. I'll occasionally have a bet e.g. during the WC etc. and it definitely does help make the game more exciting if you've got some money riding on it, but I don't enjoy it enough to be down the bookies every Friday etc. I think that's when it starts to become a problem when you're regularly just betting on stuff for the sake of it regardless of whether there's good value there or not. That's when it becomes a slippery slope IMO.

My great uncle used to make a lot of money betting on the horses but he was smart about it and would study the form and all that but wouldn't bet anything until he found a horse that he thought was underrated by the bookies and then he'd bet big on that one. He might only place a bet every month or so but when he did he more often than not came away with big winnings as opposed to people who just go down the bookie every week and just bet on any random horse just for the sake of having a bet.
 

Blockbuster

Well-Known Member
Jun 28, 2007
2,765
1,568
To be honest I'm not a huge gambler because I know I'd never be good enough to make money from it like some people do. I'll occasionally have a bet e.g. during the WC etc. and it definitely does help make the game more exciting if you've got some money riding on it, but I don't enjoy it enough to be down the bookies every Friday etc. I think that's when it starts to become a problem when you're regularly just betting on stuff for the sake of it regardless of whether there's good value there or not. That's when it becomes a slippery slope IMO.

My great uncle used to make a lot of money betting on the horses but he was smart about it and would study the form and all that but wouldn't bet anything until he found a horse that he thought was underrated by the bookies and then he'd bet big on that one. He might only place a bet every month or so but when he did he more often than not came away with big winnings as opposed to people who just go down the bookie every week and just bet on any random horse just for the sake of having a bet.

I hate going into bookies, feel like a fish out of water, i place maybe 300 bets a month but go into a bookies and i feel uneasy,

pretty soul destroying to see people who dont have much money betting away whatever theyve got,
 

dontcallme

SC Supporter
Mar 18, 2005
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I guess with online options now there is no real need to go into a bookies.

I guess there is a social side and those betting on the horses can watch it live. Not my social seen though.

I bet on both Chisora and Whyte at the weekend. Whyte was a 50/50 and Chisora the underdog so really enjoyed seeing those bets come through.
 
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HertsYid

Im here
Aug 18, 2005
1,098
580
i used to be a big gambler and lost a fuck load of money over the years. occaionally i won a lot too but it soon gets a grip on you if youre not careful. Ive now not had a bet for about 3.5 years and have never looked back. i miss the odd thing about it, mainly playing poker with my mates but i had no self control with any form of it so steer away from it all now.

i have no resentment to thsoe that gamble and those who can take it or leave it fair play to them. But what pains me is seeing or hearing about these young lads going into the betting shop on a friday after work and all weekend and blowing all thier wages on the roulette machines. Those things are fucking evil (was one of my main vices them things). Guessing betting is all part of lad culture nowdays but some of them poor bastards need help.
 

cider spurs

Well-Known Member
Jul 5, 2016
9,399
23,731
“You've got to ask yourself one question: 'Do I feel lucky?' Well, do ya, punk?”
 

tototoner

Staying Alert
Mar 21, 2004
29,387
34,059
when I win Yes, when i lose No

must admit i bet less and less now, Cheltenham is a must as I go every year and I like the big meetings like Aintree, Royal Ascot and Boxing Day , but I rarely bet on football now - maybe 2 / 3 times a year when it used to be every Saturday and only bet on the big Golf events as the value and places is usually pretty good.

saying that sometimes when i am very drunk I wake up the next day and can see I have bet on the Aussie A-League , Japanese J-League or even US College Football.
 
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Japhet

Well-Known Member
Aug 30, 2010
19,232
57,391
I'm not a gambler and have no interest in it at all. What I'd like to add to the thread though is the amount of online betting adverts on TV. What I particularly take exception to is the stupid strap line 'When the fun stops, Stop'. How fucking ridiculous is that. It's like saying to an alcoholic 'When you feel yourself getting a bit tipsy it's time to switch to soft drinks'.
 

dontcallme

SC Supporter
Mar 18, 2005
33,986
81,913
I'm not a gambler and have no interest in it at all. What I'd like to add to the thread though is the amount of online betting adverts on TV. What I particularly take exception to is the stupid strap line 'When the fun stops, Stop'. How fucking ridiculous is that. It's like saying to an alcoholic 'When you feel yourself getting a bit tipsy it's time to switch to soft drinks'.

I find the mentality of gambling really interesting.

I have really enjoyed working out what works and what doesn’t.

A few times I bet small amounts and lost a bit. As a result I then bet more on a different game to recoup my losses. More often than not I just lost more.

But when I stick to my plan I enjoy gambling and overall am winning.

For some people though they don’t know when to stop. They just keep going and delude themselves that they are winning.

The message of knowing when to stop is a valid one, both with drinking and gambling. But an advert is not the way to do it. It is only for the company themselves to save face and pretend they are being responsible.
 

Paolo10

Well-Known Member
Apr 6, 2004
6,179
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I enjoy winning things sporadically and clinging to the delusion of hope.

This is a Spurs forum you know!
 

Japhet

Well-Known Member
Aug 30, 2010
19,232
57,391
I find the mentality of gambling really interesting.

I have really enjoyed working out what works and what doesn’t.

A few times I bet small amounts and lost a bit. As a result I then bet more on a different game to recoup my losses. More often than not I just lost more.

But when I stick to my plan I enjoy gambling and overall am winning.

For some people though they don’t know when to stop. They just keep going and delude themselves that they are winning.

The message of knowing when to stop is a valid one, both with drinking and gambling. But an advert is not the way to do it. It is only for the company themselves to save face and pretend they are being responsible.


Addictive activities are only a problem for people who can't handle their addictive traits. Gambling wrecks vulnerable people's lives in the same way that alcohol and drugs do, but the massive amount of gambling adverts (particularly during sporting events) seems to target those people in a particularly callous way. There are so many ways now for the bookies to relieve you of your money it's quite mind-boggling.
 

dontcallme

SC Supporter
Mar 18, 2005
33,986
81,913
Addictive activities are only a problem for people who can't handle their addictive traits. Gambling wrecks vulnerable people's lives in the same way that alcohol and drugs do, but the massive amount of gambling adverts (particularly during sporting events) seems to target those people in a particularly callous way. There are so many ways now for the bookies to relieve you of your money it's quite mind-boggling.
I agree and believe my post touched on some of the same points.

Telling an addict when to stop will never work. But telling someone who is not an addict to stop is not the worst message.

Gambling sites are very clever with advertising deals that are actually terrible.

I also wonder about online transactions in general. I have made bets worth hundreds of pounds, not sure I would have if I had to hand the cash over.
 

Paolo10

Well-Known Member
Apr 6, 2004
6,179
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FoBT addiction is fucking grim btw. Almost feel sorry for those guys.
 

montylynch

Fandabeedozee
Jun 23, 2005
5,817
3,988
I've watched people pour 1000's into those machines, convinced they know what the next number is going to be. I've been in some shops where people have proper lost it, picking up stools and smashing the machines. Saw one guy once in my local bookies pick up a stool and smash the 52" telly on the wall, not once, but 6 times, just to make sure it was proper smashed. He then just walked out.
 

HertsYid

Im here
Aug 18, 2005
1,098
580
the adverts during sporting events should be banned also in my opinion. its not right. when the fun stops stop is a load of bollox too.

the machines are all fixed anyway. and yeah, i used to be able to tell you within one number where the ball was going to land the second it was put on the table.

the fact ladbrokes earn more a year from little machines in their shop than off horse racing these days surely says there is a problem there.

the point about spending online is a great one too. I'd never have physically handed over the amount of cash to bet on a game of football as i did online.
 

Paolo10

Well-Known Member
Apr 6, 2004
6,179
7,621
I heard a rumour today that if banks etc. see online gambling on your statements etc. you can be denied a mortgage...you'd like to think it'd only be substantial gambling, but still.
 
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