Gambling

fryup · 03-07-2016 11:42AM #1

Do you gamble? is it a mugs game? i usually do it myself during major football tournaments i.e. Euros & WC

whats the most you've won/lost? were you ever addicted to it?

so many scanarios you can bet on nowadays esp in football and with it being 24/7 on line on your smart phone ..its scary....are we facing a generation in secret depth crisis because of it??

biko · 03-07-2016 11:44AM

I never gamble. Too many people have lost their families and houses over gambling addiction.
If you want to gamble go ahead but I'm not interested to hear about a dead cert in the third race..

Penny Tration · 03-07-2016 11:46AM

We're not facing a secret problem now, we already were. There are already many people addicted, from the granny spending her pension on scratch cards to the man spending all day in the bookies. walk into any place like Dr. Quirkey's, the amount of old ladies addicted to the slots is scary.

As for me, I'll place a bet at Cheltenham usually, for about a tenner, and buy the odd scratch card. Yearly, I gamble about €25 and usually break even or win €100 ish.

I won't go higher than that because even though it's a bit of a laugh, I saw what gambling addiction and alcoholism did to my family so I'm incredibly careful around anything addictive nowadays.

super_furry · 03-07-2016 11:50AM

I do now and again but I'm awful at it. Don't have the discipline to be even half-way decent and if I put a bet on, it's one of the mugs ones - high odds for something I want to happen rather than think will happen - like Liverpool winning. Don't think I'd bet or lose more than €150 in a year though.

Used to do alright in the pub poker games about a decade ago when that was all the rage, won €1200 at one of the bigger tournaments but you only remember wins like that and I probably lost as much over the course of that year in the pub tournaments. The only thing there was that was a night out for me really, as soon as I spent the money on the buy-in, it was gone and I went in with the thought that I was spending it as part of a night out rather than trying to earn money back.

There was some serious cash thrown about during the cash games afterwards though, never really got involved in that more than throwing down €20 or so if I was knocked out of the tournament early. The longer they went on, the higher the money got and more desperate people were getting. I knew some of the people could never afford the money they were throwing down and losing and it was tough to watch at times.

Wibbs · 03-07-2016 11:55AM

I'll buy a quick pick line if the euromillions goes over 100 millions but that's about it. Never really had any gra for gambling of any nature TBH. Just don't have the gene for it I suppose. Nobody in my family does from what I know. I have seen it destroy lives though.

03-07-2016 12:00PM

Don't know any regular gamblers who make money from it, once in a blue moon they announce some coup but God love them you know they've pumped a lot more in over the years.

Alf Stewart. · 03-07-2016 12:13PM

Of the many afflictions I have, thanks be to Allah, the gambling bastard isn't one.

Especially nowadays with the rise of technology, its actually possible for a gambler to lose it all, right down to the house, while still in his bed using his mobile.

Gamblings a bastard. I know first-hand.

Outlaw Pete · 03-07-2016 12:13PM

People are always gambling in one way or another. Chose one career path over another and you are gambling that it will pay off in the long run. The company could go bust, boom you lost your stake, which of course was your time. Invest in stock and you are gambling that it won't nosedive. Devote yourself to someone and you are gambling they won't get tired of you and fall for someone else. As long as you are risking something in the hope of a pay off, then you're gambling.

So if you want to stick a fiver on Bad Boy in the 4:40 @ Doncaster. Go for it* Life's too short not to.

*Unless of course you have a gambling problem in which case ignore my advice as I have no idea what the hell I am talking about.

Shenshen · 03-07-2016 12:16PM

The lotto between us at home and the Euromillions with the guys at work, that's about it.

The most I ever won was €3,000 on the lotto once. I know that you're more likley to be struck by lightning and all that, but I also figure that if you don't play, you definintely won't win. So I keep playing and hoping a little bit

hairyslug · 03-07-2016 12:26PM

On big events only now, gold cup, English grand national, a football accumulator now and again, small bet but huge odds.
My dad used to do accys every day, betting no more that £1 but I could count on one hand the amount of times he won.

I won about 200 on last year's GN, I would tend to go E/W bets, I'm not much of a risk taker throwing a lump on a single result.

Myself and a work colleague used to bet very small amount on races, watch the odds and bet as late as possible waiting to see which horses odds would drop the most, again E/W bets but we had a high win rate.

dan1895 · 03-07-2016 12:28PM

As a side. The amount of ads for gambling companies on during the Euros is sickening.

gigantic09 · 03-07-2016 12:40PM

Remember my first bet,£10 on man utd to win the f.a cup many moons ago.was only a kid so had to say the bet was for my father.They got beaten by bournmouth that year in the 3rd round.Last best was feb 2015,€2000 rugby accumulator ,looser.Have lost a fortune over the years gambling so in my case it definitely is a mugs game.Only positive i can take is that I only hurt myself and nobody else suffered.Most problem gamblers loose even that little bit of dignity,ruining others lives as well as their own.

fryup · 03-07-2016 12:50PM

gigantic09 wrote: »

Remember my first bet,£10 on man utd to win the f.a cup many moons ago.was only a kid so had to say the bet was for my father.They got beaten by bournmouth that year in the 3rd round..

thats going back a long way....1984 iirc ?

Grayson · 03-07-2016 12:58PM

I'm currently unemployed and looking for work. I work in IT. I'm applying for everything I can find. However the one industry I won't apply for is gambling. A report released by paddy power found that up to 2/3 of people who gamble online are addicted to gambling. It's an industry that feeds off addicts and lives of their misery.

That doesn't mean that I'm against gambling in it's entirety. I just think there should be limits in place by the major companies and financial institutions to stop people at a certain point. I knew a girl who got married and after the wedding she discovered that her husband had over 300k in gambling debts. His parents had even signed off on loans so he could keep gambling. How the hell can a bank and the gambling companies allow that kind of **** to happen.

Winterlong · 03-07-2016 01:06PM

I love gambling! I stick a few quid in to my account every cheltnham and see how it goes. If I win big I withdraw.
I would bet on two rain drops trickling down a window pane.

gigantic09 · 03-07-2016 01:09PM

fryup wrote: »

thats going back a long way....1984 iirc ?

Ya, i 10 at the time,I earned the money helping out an elderly neighbour for a few hours.While it was irresponsible of the bookie to take the bet,it pales in comparison with the modern day poison that is online gambling.I know 'ordinary decent people' that have set up online accounts so their children can have a bet.

cajonlardo · 03-07-2016 01:12PM

Man I knew told me a great story.
He was a serious gambler and loved to bet. Back in the '50's and '60's when he had a win he would rent a Tux and Top hat and get the train to Bray. He would book into the International Hotel ( burned down since). The staff all treated him very well because he'd always remember to tip generously from his winnings . The respect and deference the staff showed him played a part in his plans. After a meal and a good scrub he would spend the weekend ballroom dancing with the American lady tourists who all believed he was a man of means. In reality he was a bloody hard manual worker and came from a tough inner city area. Always liked that story.

Winterlong · 03-07-2016 01:12PM

Someone living in Frankfurt will be along shortly to condemn gambling as the pastime of the great unwashed while in the same breath talking about his good fortune on the financial derivatives market.

donegaLroad · 03-07-2016 01:12PM

Grayson wrote: »

I'm currently unemployed and looking for work. I work in IT. I'm applying for everything I can find. However the one industry I won't apply for is gambling. A report released by paddy power found that up to 2/3 of people who gamble online are addicted to gambling. It's an industry that feeds off addicts and lives of their misery.

That doesn't mean that I'm against gambling in it's entirety. I just think there should be limits in place by the major companies and financial institutions to stop people at a certain point. I knew a girl who got married and after the wedding she discovered that her husband had over 300k in gambling debts. His parents had even signed off on loans so he could keep gambling. How the hell can a bank and the gambling companies allow that kind of **** to happen.

you would have to wonder just how much PP is taking out of the Irish economy?

I have seen it in Canada, the sudden huge popularity in online poker, casinos, and the poker channel on tv. Houses re-mortgaged, people dropping out of school, bank loans and money borrowed to gamble... it will end in large scale multiple bankruptcies, only winners are the fkers who own the sites.

With so many people now gambling online in Ireland, a huge amount of €€ will be drained out of the country.

sword1 · 03-07-2016 01:18PM

Penny Tration wrote: »

We're not facing a secret problem now, we already were. There are already many people addicted, from the granny spending her pension on scratch cards to the man spending all day in the bookies. walk into any place like Dr. Quirkey's, the amount of old ladies addicted to the slots is scary.

As for me, I'll place a bet at Cheltenham usually, for about a tenner, and buy the odd scratch card. Yearly, I gamble about €25 and usually break even or win €100 ish.

I won't go higher than that because even though it's a bit of a laugh, I saw what gambling addiction and alcoholism did to my family so I'm incredibly careful around anything addictive nowadays.

Not sure if that gambling statement is tongue in cheek, the chances of winning year in year out on scratch cards are 0 ,or maybe you only recall the winners. I gamble a bit, but for small money, the big gambles i have taken have been on stocks and shares, had winners and losers ,i can see no difference between the 2,you try to get a little more info to make the right decision and hope for a bit of luck, same with property speculation etc ,yet they are viewed very differently

FalconGirl · 03-07-2016 01:19PM

Won €16k from €3 in poker a few years back. Would not have any interest in the sports betting.

ziedth · 03-07-2016 01:19PM

I'm a huge fan of it. Not as a form of making money now but as an experience I would get more laugh/buzz off a casino then I would in 100 pubs,clubs, stripclub and meals out.

If I was aware for a stag or something it would be at most €100 into the casino but in my head that money is gone and I gamble away until u loose that €100 whatever I ein in that time is put to the side and cashed out. Had some very decent wins doing that say taking home maybe between two and three hundred however on the absolute opposite end of the scale I dropped well over €2k when I went to Vegas high rolling (by my standards) for 8 nights.

Would throw maybe €40/50 at something like cheltenham over the course of a week.

Then every Friday all I would ever do is €2 on my 4 numbers for the euro millions and like €3 on something like a six bet accume over different sports that never comes in but it makes it interesting over the weekend.

I don't agree with the adds or anything like that on TV and if there was ever a day that I bet on something just to try and win money I would stop as I have seen what conic gambling has done to people.

Outlaw Pete · 03-07-2016 01:20PM

I would guesstimate that a large chunk of the profit of the bookmarkers is actually social welfare money. Bookie shops are always full during the day and it is hardly being filled with people who are working, lets be honest. Racing seven days a week is being funded by bookmakers also and they are not sponsoring those races for fun. They are sponsoring them so that there will be racing there for those that would bet on two flies walking up a wall. Not that they need to now with the advent of virtual dog racing, virtual horse racing, virtual roulette, all of which are shoehorned between the gaps in the actual dog racing and horse racing.

Mr_Muffin · 03-07-2016 01:21PM

I usually spend a 5 euro a week on the soccer - i find it makes it more interesting and it's something i have control over, i can go months without betting and not even notice.

I worked in a bookies briefly and it really opened my eyes to how people think they can 'beat the bookies'. The amount of people who 'had a tip for a horse that's a sure thing' was laughable. Sometimes every horse in a race would be a tip that someone got wind of!

zSparc · 03-07-2016 01:22PM

I've tried a few times, never won anything and scrapped the whole idea as useless.

cantdecide · 03-07-2016 03:47PM

If I have a €5 note, I'd rather spend it rather than it and maybe lose it chasing either a rush or the chance of free money. There's nothing in gambling of interest to me.

Those bingo app ads make my teeth itch- Bored? Try gambling- it's easy!

A_Sober_Paddy · 03-07-2016 03:52PM

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Don't know any regular gamblers who make money from it, once in a blue moon they announce some coup but God love them you know they've pumped a lot more in over the years.

Go over to the football betting forum, couple of lads on there make a decent wedge most monthd

03-07-2016 03:54PM

I enjoy gambling and am ahead overall since I started. I only bet spare cash in small amounts on long odds and it's worked for me. I know far too many people who are problem gamblers and it's one addiction I find really hard to understand. I just don't see the appeal of getting paid on a Friday and having nothing left by the time ya get home. I know there's a lot more to it than that but it just seems like a delusion or compulsion rather than an addiction in some ways.

03-07-2016 03:57PM

Outlaw Pete wrote: »

I would guesstimate that a large chunk of the profit of the bookmarkers is actually social welfare money. Bookie shops are always full during the day and it is hardly being filled with people who are working, lets be honest. Racing seven days a week is being funded by bookmakers also and they are not sponsoring those races for fun. They are sponsoring them so that there will be racing there for those that would bet on two flies walking up a wall. Not that they need to now with the advent of virtual dog racing, virtual horse racing, virtual roulette, all of which are shoehorned between the gaps in the actual dog racing and horse racing.

A fair bit would be but a lot of the bigger betters in physical shops would be part-timers, shift workers or labourers and the like who can get in in the afternoon/evening.

osarusan · 03-07-2016 04:35PM

I will put a couple of quid on a horse or football match every couple of weeks or so.

I might walk to the bookies later and put a bet on tonight's game between France and iceland, just to make it more interesting.

Bookies are depressing places to spend time though.

Muahahaha · 03-07-2016 04:42PM

I opened up my Paddy Power account about 8 years back with a deposit of €20. Since then its been as high as €110 and as low as €4 but never have I topped it up or withdrawn from it. Its currently at €72 as I won a nice few quid on backing Brexit but I've had three bets in the Euros and all three flopped. Most of my bets are €5 with the odd €10 one. For me its just a bit of fun and I get a kick that Paddy Power haven't made a cent off me yet.

On the flip side though addictive gambling is a real problem in Ireland. The gambling industry in Ireland also gets a free ride from government to cause societal problems without having to pay to clean up after. At least you can argue that alcohol and tobacco are taxed heavily to pay the costs of health services. But gambling gets off scot free.

Gambling

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