[AgainstAllOdds]

Can you really quit once you start? I think its like "you can take the person out of the ghetto, but you cant take the ghetto out of the person" type thing...Im thinking im gonna be barrelled in for life!

[pokernut9999]

Very few have.

[pico]

first step, stop coming to sbr.

[pat venditto]

the best way to quit gambling is to bet the right way to give you an advantage so its not gambling. 1% on each bet and no chasing. and no betting 20k on the patriots -7 in the 1st half.

[Francis Sollozzo]

AAO , have to pick up something else like drinking

[pico]

Originally Posted by pat venditto

the best way to quit gambling is to bet the right way to give you an advantage so its not gambling. 1% on each bet and no chasing. and no betting 20k on the patriots -7 in the 1st half.

what?

[pokernut9999]

Originally Posted by pat venditto

the best way to quit gambling is to bet the right way to give you an advantage so its not gambling. 1% on each bet and no chasing. and no betting 20k on the patriots -7 in the 1st half.

You have a lot to learn kid, quit dreaming.

[WileOut]

The only available advantage betting where the player actually has a small advantage on each bet he makes is at matchbook now with their 1% juice on baseball. You can see if you have an advantage on your bet by putting the numbers into the half point calculator. If its a bet at matchbook dont forget to factor in the juice which is 2% for everything other than baseball.

[bettilimbroke999]

Originally Posted by AgainstAllOdds

Can you really quit once you start? I think its like "you can take the person out of the ghetto, but you cant take the ghetto out of the person" type thing...Im thinking im gonna be barrelled in for life!

Very difficult to quit, there is something unique about gambler's that they are not usually ever able to stop, more about the action than the money. Stu Ungar they say went from broke to millionaire to broke many times in his life, he won a dozen tournaments with 5k+ entry fees as well as being one of the best card counters at blackjack in history, he is estimated to have won 30 million dollars at the poker table and died without any assets to his name. The best strategy is to go about gambling in such a way as to wait for the best wagers possible, ignoring games where you have little/no edge, if you do this over the long haul excercising money management skills, it's entirely possible to win long-term. If you play every game, chase, etc. it is entirely unavoidable that you'll be barrelled in. Excercise the one advantage you have over the bookie, choice, which games to play and which side to take.

[Reload]

It's real tough because the "fever" is always there. Even if you quit for a few months, something generally comes along to draw you back in. Your only real chance is if you have something you enjoy more than gambling eventually coming along to fill the void left behind. And that's pretty hard to consistently have.

[pokernut9999]

Originally Posted by bettilimbroke999

Very difficult to quit, there is something unique about gambler's that they are not usually ever able to stop, more about the action than the money. Stu Ungar they say went from broke to millionaire to broke many times in his life, he won a dozen tournaments with 5k+ entry fees as well as being one of the best card counters at blackjack in history, he is estimated to have won 30 million dollars at the poker table and died without any assets to his name. The best strategy is to go about gambling in such a way as to wait for the best wagers possible, ignoring games where you have little/no edge, if you do this over the long haul excercising money management skills, it's entirely possible to win long-term. If you play every game, chase, etc. it is entirely unavoidable that you'll be barrelled in. Excercise the one advantage you have over the bookie, choice, which games to play and which sides to take.

Yea , Unger made millions at cards and blew it all on sports, horses and drugs.

His best friend told him to stick to what he was best at but he never did.

[bettilimbroke999]

Originally Posted by pokernut9999

Yea , Unger made millions at cards and blew it all on sports, horses and drugs.

His best friend told him to stick to what he was best at but he never did.

True, but I don't imagine Ungar as being a practitioner of money management, more like blow your winnings on coke, hookers, and partying when you're up (and apparently often just giving 10s of thousands away to his friends when he was winning...must've been nice for his friends) when you're on a winning streak and chase like a demon when you're losing and blow what's left on coke. In fact he was so strung out on drugs that he refused his backer's offer to stake him in the 98' WSOP ME even though he was flat broke, also he only smoked crack in the last couple years of his life b/c he had snorted so much coke it had destroyed his nose to the point he could no longer snort it (now that's what I call a gambling/drug addict).

[pokernut9999]

No he had no money mangement skills at all , just no one could beat him at poker or gin. Doubt he ever won at horses or sports from what I heard.

[DAWGPEN]

Originally Posted by AgainstAllOdds

Can you really quit once you start? I think its like "you can take the person out of the ghetto, but you cant take the ghetto out of the person" type thing...Im thinking im gonna be barrelled in for life!

Why in the world would you want to quit gambling? It's fun being a degenerate.

[AgainstAllOdds]

Originally Posted by DAWGPEN

Why in the world would you want to quit gambling? It's fun being a degenerate.

For me, its the grind...cant take it anymore...and by grind I mean capping games for 2-5 hours then watching them and if they dont lose you have to sweat them out. Nothing like capping games for 3 hours just to go 0-3 or 1-2. Also the poker is starting to get to me. Nothing like sitting at a table for a 5 hour session just to break even or come away with $20.

[CrazyLou]

Originally Posted by AgainstAllOdds

For me, its the grind...cant take it anymore...and by grind I mean capping games for 2-5 hours

Tell me you're not serious.

[pico]

Originally Posted by pokernut9999

No he had no money mangement skills at all , just no one could beat him at poker or gin. Doubt he ever won at horses or sports from what I heard.

Ungar is a sad example. gambling is not a financial problem.

[BuddyBear]

No. Once you get going it's a psychological thing that you can't escape. There is nothing in the world that compares to having action on a game for most of us. It does not matter how much you bet as long as you bet. And you don't care if you win, you just want to keep betting and betting and betting. Most guys here would pass up sex to bet. Fortunately for most guys they don't have to make that choice very often.

Just about everyone on here suffers from the same gambling addiction. Some guys are at more advanced stages of their addiction, but we're pretty much all in the same boat and need each other's company to get by. We'll be on here together 10 years from now sharing our sorrow about how our lives passed us by while we were busy getting ready for the Sunday night game. Nothing changes for us on here, it's the same thing everyday....we've all lost even if we've won some money in the process.

[AgainstAllOdds]

Originally Posted by crazyl

Tell me you're not serious.

whats wrong with that? Sometimes it does take me that long...specially when its a big card night or I see alot of games I like...I guess thats just my style...

[pokernut9999]

I agree, only a few if any actually gamble for financial gain. I know why I do it and it has nothing to do with money.

[pico]

Originally Posted by BuddyBear

No. Once you get going it's a psychological thing that you can't escape. There is nothing in the world that compares to having action on a game for most of us. It does not matter how much you bet as long as you bet. And you don't care if you win, you just want to keep betting and betting and betting. Most guys here would pass up sex to bet. Fortunately for most guys they don't have to make that choice very often.

Just about everyone on here suffers from the same gambling addiction. Some guys are at more advanced stages of their addiction, but we're pretty much all in the same boat and need each other's company to get by. We'll be on here together 10 years from now sharing our sorrow about how our lives passed us by while we were busy getting ready for the Sunday night game. Nothing changes for us on here, it's the same thing everyday....we've all lost even if we've won some money in the process.

hit the nail there. sad but true. i tried to quit many times, never lasted more than two weeks. whenever i am up, i always find ways to blow most of it on overbetting.

so true.

[BuddyBear]

I withdrew Thursday...and then redeposited on Friday

[pico]

Originally Posted by pokernut9999

I agree, only a few if any actually gamble for financial gain. I know why I do it and it has nothing to do with money.

when i first started, it is about making quick bucks for beer money. now it is pretty much all about the action. i can't really quit completely. my only strategy now is whenever i am up and trying to take it easy, i start to bet 5 dollar games to stay in the action. kind of sick...

[pico]

Originally Posted by BuddyBear

I withdrew Thursday...and then redeposited on Friday

tell me about it. whenever i get money from one book, two days later it goes to reload another book.

[pokernut9999]

Been at it for 32 years, tried many times to quit and it is the hardest thing to do.

[CrazyLou]

This thread isn't cool. Many of us like to remain in denial about our compulsive gambling habits and wasting away our time

[pico]

Originally Posted by pokernut9999

Been at it for 32 years, tried many times to quit and it is the hardest thing to do.

buy a ps3...that works for a while.

or join a sports league...that works too

[pokernut9999]

I actually got tired of online poker and have quit that , only bet sports to pass time.

[pico]

Originally Posted by crazyl

This thread isn't cool. Many of us like to remain in denial about our compulsive gambling habits and wasting away our time

hey, i was in denial for a long time. that just seem foolish after awhile. gambling is not a good thing, but i think it is too late for me to quit now.

[pico]

Originally Posted by pokernut9999

I actually got tired of online poker and have quit that , only bet sports to pass time.

i got into online poker 1 year before sports gambling. i guess i was in the same boat. i used to like play poker while watching NL games during the summer.

[BuddyBear]

Best you can do it to hope to minimize it. What i've started to do is to plan social events around games like going to the dog park, going out to eat....last night went to an art gallary and then a show, etc....

It's really in your best interest not to watch these games at all if possible.

[Francis Sollozzo]

I'm a gambler , been one since I was 12yo , will die one. I'm not proud of that statement , just the truth. As Jim said , "No one gets out of here alive."

[imgv94]

Originally Posted by AgainstAllOdds

For me, its the grind...cant take it anymore...and by grind I mean capping games for 2-5 hours then watching them and if they dont lose you have to sweat them out. Nothing like capping games for 3 hours just to go 0-3 or 1-2. Also the poker is starting to get to me. Nothing like sitting at a table for a 5 hour session just to break even or come away with $20.

Capping games for 5 hours? How do you cap games for 5 hours? WTF what is it that you are looking at for 300 minutes?

[Iwinyourmoney]

I think you will never quit........you may stop for X amount of time, but it always comes back. Just like cancer

[CrazyLou]

Originally Posted by BuddyBear

It's really in your best interest not to watch these games at all if possible.

This is true, especially through rough stretches. It's always enjoyable watching when you've had a great week or month, but when nothing seems to go your way all watching does is stress you out further.

There's no good emotion to come from watching, whether a thrill or a low, both are bad. I think the reality of it is, most of us watch because we have nothing else to do or choose to do nothing else because gambling is how we pass time.