Gambling problem in Ireland

byronbay2

weldoninhio wrote: »

Costs the health system millions, gambling addicts cost the taxpayer nothing. Let them at it.

God almighty - that's your rationale for acting (or otherwise) to help people with addiction issues!! As my dad used to say:I hope it stays fine for you!!

yomamma

Im a 23 and I am a chronic gambler. Gambling since i was 16. Got my first job when I was 18 and worked up till 22 years of age. I always got paid by the month.

I used to get paid average 2 grand every month in all my jobs. When I was living at home I never had rent to give to my mam, I never went out with my friends to socialise, I never went on hollidays.I never had money for food in work and I never had money to pay for train fair. All my money goes on gambling. I have easily gambled over 1 million euro (Not lost or won a million but gambled a million easily!!!). I would get my 2 grand I would either have it all lost the day i get paid or if I won then I had more money to gamble which would last at max 3/4 days. I might have won 3 grand but I still wouldnt buy clothes for myself or my train ticket as if I spend that money on other things then I have less to gamble with (Might sound weird but thats what happens) I could go betting thousands one day and after losing it then I would steal coins from my mams bag or off people in works desk to throw on a dog or a horse.If I had money I would go to bookies shop every morning break and lunch break. Even when I didnt have money I would go to the bookies cause I didnt want to be around anyone else going for there lunch time walk etc...

As I said I got paid by the month and this is gods honest truth There was not one month in 4 years that I had money after the first week of getting. I would lose my months wages, suffer for three weeks and when I get paid saying I wont do it again but obviously I did. I have also often lost my months wages before I even arrive into work on payday. Money would come in at 12am I would go on the internet and I would play until it was time to go to work. I would arrive into work, everybody in good mood cause it was payday and I couldnt even buy myself a sandwich.

When living in familly home all this was going on. I never left my house and i Was stealing money from my parents. Sneaking into their room while they were sleeping and taking money etc... I was asked to leave house one year ago at age of 22. I found a place to rent. Again I was getting paid by the month. I would get my months wages and blow it all very quickly. This time its a landlords rent so if I didnt pay then I was out. I had to get someone to help me out first month to pay my months rent and bring food to me for the month. I would get paid and not pay this person back as I would have gambled my months wages. Again I needed money to pay rent and get food for the month. I would get a different person to help me out and same thing would happen. This happend for 6 months every single month, getting help off 6 different people for food and rent. Anyway I ended up going to treatment after 6 months. I spent 4 months in treatment.When I was in treatment I was on welfare so that paid for it. When I left treatment I got help off someone to pay a deposit for me on a house and I was using rent allowance. I lasted three weeks cause I went back gambling.

I have now been homeless for three months. 6 weeks of this has been living on the streets and for last 1 and half months I have been living in a homeless hostel. I get my welfare every thursday and Not once have I had money on the friday within this three month period. I have to get manager of hostel to walk down with me to post office every thursday to pay the rent cause if he doesnt I would risk my rent money on gambling.

Anyway so thats were I am today. I am still a young man but gambling has destroyed my life. I know its only me that can help myself but I have a serious gambling addiction and I know that there are many more out there just like me. The only difference it has to other addictions is that it is not visible but it is just as dangerous and damaging. I dont blame the bookies or anyone else for what I have been through but looking at the amount of bookie shops and the age of people going to them is getting worse. It might not be seen as a serious danger to society yet but in the next 5-10 years treatment centers will be packed with gambling addicts. If I won 10 million in the lotto I would still gamble even though I dont need to do it.

brokenarms

I just lost 1 million chips on Zynga poker.

Gutted.

Blisterman

Gambling just a bit of fun? Look around a bookie or casino sometime and count how many people look like they're enjoying themselves.

FTA69

Personally I find the amount of bookies springing up everywhere awfully depressing. Up the road from me in Tottenham there are at least five bookies visible on the high street, usually sandwiched between payday-loan companies, sh*t pubs and off licenses. Some of these have opened up next to mental hospitals and you can see two of them from the JobCentre (dole office.) Kids on their way to school will be constantly bombarded by displays advocating gambling and will unfortunately go home all too often to see more of the same in their house. It seems these businesses exist to extract profit from communities where desperation, joblessness and addiction are already rife.

I understand that people make their own choices. I also understand that pubs/bookies/off-licenses etc are amenities which people use responsibly and in the case of a good pub they're often valued focal points. However, nobody is an island and communities exist. Many working class communities are already under ferocious pressure these days without being constantly targeted by vultures seeking to prey on the misery and vulnerability of others.

I'm not saying that bookies etc should be abolished but there should be strict controls on the amount of these businesses which are allowed to set up in a given area.

FTA69

Blisterman wrote: »

Gambling just a bit of fun? Look around a bookie or casino sometime and count how many people look like they're enjoying themselves.

It can be though, I gambled in Las Vegas and had a great laugh. I also saw a youngfella about my age lose $400 alone playing high card in the space of about a minute and a half while his girlfriend was crying next to him to stop. Even the dealer was telling him to quit but had no choice to deal once your man kept slamming down chips.

While people are able to make their own choices, it stands to logic that having bookies and whatnot saturate a community won't do much good for that area. It's not a coincidence most of them are in deprived areas to begin with.

muppetkiller

yomamma fair play to you for posting what you did. It takes guts to say that you've a problem . Gambling in ireland is a serious problem, Bookies are everywhere and online casinos can be accessed anywhere now.

The terrible thing about gambling addiction is that it's a hidden problem. Nobody can tell from looking at you that you've a problem and it's not like Drinking where you can only drink so much. You can literally Gamble every penny you have and there's nobody there to stop you when you've lost too much.

I think gambling online also affects your credit rating when it comes to getting Mortgages ? Might be wrong though.

kingcobra

There's barely images of him on Google Images, all they I can see are pictures of him in a beige jacket, nothing else other than that!

yomamma

muppetkiller wrote: »

yomamma fair play to you for posting what you did. It takes guts to say that you've a problem . Gambling in ireland is a serious problem, Bookies are everywhere and online casinos can be accessed anywhere now.

The terrible thing about gambling addiction is that it's a hidden problem. Nobody can tell from looking at you that you've a problem and it's not like Drinking where you can only drink so much. You can literally Gamble every penny you have and there's nobody there to stop you when you've lost too much.

I think gambling online also affects your credit rating when it comes to getting Mortgages ? Might be wrong though.

Cheers ye just feels good even posting that out.

Ye Online gambling does affect credit ratings. All my bank transactions are large withdrawals and online betting transactions. Lucky for me I have been refused loans because of this.

Henlars67

Seedy Arling wrote: »

Around where i live three bookies have shut down, sign of the times that the recession is even affecting them.

I know a young guy with a very serious problem. He has been away to different places trying to address it, but to no success. Any money he earns he gambles it. In the past he has borrowed/stolen money without repaying it.

It's very sad for the guy because it really has a hold on him. He's only 24. He has limited interest in women or drinking. It's all gamble, gamble, gamble.

Read somewhere that the gambling industry is one of the few that doesn't take a massive hit in a recession. Don't know the reason for that.

The bookie shop is suffering as a result of more people doing their gambling online rather than a reduction in the amount of gambling.

Handsome Bob

I know a bloke who took €6,000 off of the local bookies a few weeks ago and gave it all back and then some to them within a week. It's as yomamma said, if you have an addiction to it it doesn't matter what you win, you'll give it back to them in the end.

I've worked in a betting shop and it's horrible to see people lose their bollox and get more and more stressed. You know they can't afford it and you know they've fcuked themselves up, but you can't refuse them. So whoever you blame, don't blame the people working in the shops or manning the phones, they're only doing their job.

flanders1979

Its a mugs game and we have loads of mugs in this country.

Celly Smunt

I have only gambled once (other than the grand national) and it did pay off.I was down on rent,and really really needed college fees,such horrible days.I through a large sum on black in roulette and it paid off for me and got me out of a hole.However I would never EVER do anything as reckless or stupid ever again.I put it down to panic and youthful stupidity now.

HTML5!

Caveman1 wrote: »

Exactly, there's only so much drink someone can have or drugs someone can take, but if a gambler has access to funds he could gamble till there's nothing left.

Only so much you can drink? You can go on one bender and end up killing yourself by drinking too much.

Alcohol kills you over time too. Gamblers don't necessarily lose all their money in a few bets. Takes a while to get to that level.

Sill argument to be honest.

Banning gambling isn't tackling the problem. Why take away something (I and many others like to do and that every right to do) because some people are addicts?

Hardly tackling the problem.

If that's the answer why not ban alcohol too?

Some people are addicted to food. Let's ban that as well.

kfallon

Gambling is like breathing :P

Way more disciplined in my gambling now, could go a few weeks without having a bet, would rather pick out a target to have a bet on rather than just pop into the bookies to bet for the sake of it! Prob won't have another bet now til The Cheltenham festival

HTML5!

kfallon wrote: »

Gambling is like breathing :P

Way more disciplined in my gambling now, could go a few weeks without having a bet, would rather pick out a target to have a bet on rather than just pop into the bookies to bet for the sake of it! Prob won't have another bet now til The Cheltenham festival

I actually prefer going to the bookies with a mate for an hour. Put a few bets on the football maybe a small reverse forecast on the dogs. Maybe spend 20 or 30e max depending.

I enjoy myself in there. And then when you leave you've hours to contemplate winning!

It can be fun.

yomamma

I just hope that there is more awareness from parents of the dangers of gambling addiction. Its a known fact that one in five compulsive gamblers have attempted suicide and in America Las Vegas has the highest suicide rate. When I was in school we had volunteers come in talking about dangers of drugs and alcohol but never for gambling. I have been to many GA meetings and some of the stories you hear are un believable. Its just one of those things where you have to suffer from it to understand it. I wouldnt put my worst enemy through the pain gambling has brought me. I am still young but I hate seeing 15/16 year olds gambling. Its different today than 10 years back as internet gambling is 24/7 with no limit on deposits. Its only getting worse and worse and unfortunately will only be seen as a serious problem when **** hits the fan and more and more horrible stories come out in open.

muppetkiller

They say that Gambling addiction is like drug addiction. It affects the same areas of the Brain so when people say it's the Gamblers fault you really have to look at them as Junkies looking for their next hit. The hit is a win , and when they get one they want another. When they lose they feel they will win on the next try etc...
Really sad and depressing addiction to have I think.

kfallon

HTML5! wrote: »

I actually prefer going to the bookies with a mate for an hour. Put a few bets on the football maybe a small reverse forecast on the dogs. Maybe spend 20 or 30e max depending.

I enjoy myself in there. And then when you leave you've hours to contemplate winning!

It can be fun.

For somebody who likes to bet I can't stand bookies! Don't like to be in there for any longer than 5 minutes. Pick out all my selections at home and just go in, write it down, take a price (if BOG) and get out of there. The amount of pocket-talkers, aftertimers and downright loons in these places make them unbearable. And they seem to think that just cos both of ye are having a bet it's ok to strike up a conversation with you

P_1

At the end of the day its all down to personal responsibility.

Be it gambling, drinking, smoking, eating the wrong food or simply spending too much money on crap, it all falls down to each individual and their own sense of personal responsibility.

Should we legislate based on some people having no personal responsibility for their own actions? That is the main question. Personally I would say no, it's your own fcuk up. why should others be curtailed in their liberty just because you fcuked up. Others will likely disagree but that's my opinion on it.

dirtyden

Handsome Bob wrote: »

I know a bloke who took €6,000 off of the local bookies a few weeks ago and gave it all back and then some to them within a week. It's as yomamma said, if you have an addiction to it it doesn't matter what you win, you'll give it back to them in the end.

I've worked in a betting shop and it's horrible to see people lose their bollox and get more and more stressed. You know they can't afford it and you know they've fcuked themselves up, but you can't refuse them. So whoever you blame, don't blame the people working in the shops or manning the phones, they're only doing their job.

I would not blame the people in the shop, but i would blame the companies. They like to allude to responsible gambling but they make no effort whatsoever to enforce it or have any kind of regulation.

There probably should be some kind of reasonable limit to what a person can stake at any one time. I only deal in fiver and tenner bets myself but like most on here I know of people who can be totally wreckless in their gambling.

It is very difficult for a person behind a counter to refuse a bet to a regular customer unless there is a strict set of rules there to support them. But a problem gambler would probably find another way of getting his kick anyhow.

Slattsy

kfallon wrote: »

Gambling is like breathing :P

Way more disciplined in my gambling now, could go a few weeks without having a bet, would rather pick out a target to have a bet on rather than just pop into the bookies to bet for the sake of it! Prob won't have another bet now til The Cheltenham festival

Thats my plan too.
Is Ante-post classed as betting before the festival though ??

kfallon

Slattsy wrote: »

Thats my plan too.
Is Ante-post classed as betting before the festival though ??

No, it's classed under 'Long term investment'

Slattsy

kfallon wrote: »

No, it's classed under 'Long term investment'

Thank fook, cos Bet365 go NRNB tonight

lahalane

Caveman1 wrote: »

My main problem with all this is that its too easy to get caught up in a gambling addiction, especially when people will eventually turn to crime to feed their addiction.

Gamblers might steal money to pay for their gambling. So might somebody who is addicted to buying designer clothes. You can't just say that gamblers eventually become thieves.

There are lots of addictions out there and sure, gambling is a pretty bad one but is there really any way of combating it? What's the best suggestion?

Gummy Panda

I can't stand gambling.

I learned a valuable lesson as a kid when my dad let me put a bet on the grand national with pocket money. I learned I'd rather have little money then risk losing it all for the chance at more.

Handsome Bob

dirtyden wrote: »

I would not blame the people in the shop, but i would blame the companies. They like to allude to responsible gambling but they make no effort whatsoever to enforce it or have any kind of regulation.

There probably should be some kind of reasonable limit to what a person can stake at any one time. I only deal in fiver and tenner bets myself but like most on here I know of people who can be totally wreckless in their gambling.

It is very difficult for a person behind a counter to refuse a bet to a regular customer unless there is a strict set of rules there to support them. But a problem gambler would probably find another way of getting his kick anyhow.

The thing is though is that if someone's addicted, putting a cap on stakes won't stop them; it'll only take longer for them to lose it all. The end result will be the same unfortunately.

lahalane

When people who do the lottery give out about gambling, I want to slap them.

retalivity

i still enjoy the odd flutter, but not like when i was younger. In college used to be in bookies at lunch time, lucky 15s, friday/sat nights in a well known establishment off camden st in dublin, etc...
One of my friends from that time still gambles pretty heavily, and is 'always up'. Or so he tells me me...id have my suspicions. With gamblers, you only ever hear about the times they won, and never when they lost...

Freddy Smelly

Caveman1 wrote: »

Ok so I done a quick search on this and there's threads from 5 years ago so I decided to start another one.

Has anyone noticed how crazy Ireland has gone on gambling?

I gamble on a regular basis (once or twice a week) on football. When I first started gambling I would back horses, dogs, virtuals etc.

I quickly realised how dangerous it was to get caught up in so I stopped gambling on all sports except football, which I wouldn't spend more than 10e a week on.

I know people who gamble all their wages on a regular basis and borrow money just to gamble. Now thats their own business but recently i've noticed a lot of the bookmakers shops that have kids (15+) in them placing bets.

Also you can't walk 100 yards through town without walking past a bookies, arcade or a casino.

My main problem with all this is that its too easy to get caught up in a gambling addiction, especially when people will eventually turn to crime to feed their addiction.

Does anyone else think that Ireland has gone overboard with gambling?

i used to work with tony o reilly (the guy that gambled 1.75mil of an post's money) in a pub in carlow about 17 years ago.

even back then he would often run into paddy powers for a punt on the horses. he was well pissed when i won 2000 punts from a 10 punt bet on a 5 horse run at 200:1 odds, at cheltenham 97

i dont gamble very often though... last time i had a few bets on was a staff xmas party at the dogs near landsdown. the boss gave us all 100 yoyos to gamble with... i lost about 30 of it overall.

kfallon

Gummy Panda wrote: »

I can't stand gambling.

I learned a valuable lesson as a kid when my dad let me put a bet on the grand national with pocket money. I learned I'd rather have little money then risk losing it all for the chance at more.

I'd rather risk the euro in my pocket to get a tenner than keep the euro, I mean what in the name of Jaysus can you get for a euro these days?

Gummy Panda

kfallon wrote: »

I'd rather risk the euro in my pocket to get a tenner than keep the euro, I mean what in the name of Jaysus can you get for a euro these days?

Two snickers in some shops at the moment. I like snickers

Handsome Bob

kfallon wrote: »

I'd rather risk the euro in my pocket to get a tenner than keep the euro, I mean what in the name of Jaysus can you get for a euro these days?

The general principle is sound. Say you have €80, but you have to go out the next night. You plunder the €80 in the hope you can turn it into more for your night out but lose it all.

The €80 in itself would have provided you with a good night. Maybe not a night where you could guzzle a load of shots, but a good night all the same if you have a sensible head on your shoulders. Most addicts don't have that.

P_1

Handsome Bob wrote: »

The general principle is sound. Say you have €80, but you have to go out the next night. You plunder the €80 in the hope you can turn it into more for your night out but lose it all.

The €80 in itself would have provided you with a good night. Maybe not a night where you could guzzle a load of shots, but a good night all the same if you have a sensible head on your shoulders. Most addicts don't have that.

You see that's where personal responsibility comes into it.

Some would risk the full 80
Some would risk 40 of it
Some would risk 20 of it
Some wouldn't risk a red cent of it

Handsome Bob

P_1 wrote: »

You see that's where personal responsibility comes into it.

Some would risk the full 80
Some would risk 40 of it
Some would risk 20 of it
Some wouldn't risk a red cent of it

I'd agree. And I think any recovering addict would agree regardless of the vice: it's up to the person to realise and act on the problem. No one else can be blamed.

Caveman1

HTML5! wrote: »

Only so much you can drink? You can go on one bender and end up killing yourself by drinking too much.

Alcohol kills you over time too. Gamblers don't necessarily lose all their money in a few bets. Takes a while to get to that level.

Sill argument to be honest.

Banning gambling isn't tackling the problem. Why take away something (I and many others like to do and that every right to do) because some people are addicts?

Hardly tackling the problem.

If that's the answer why not ban alcohol too?

Some people are addicted to food. Let's ban that as well.

I never said that we should ban gambling, I actually enjoy the occasional bet myself. My biggest concern is the amount of young kids you see in bookies now, it's all well and good just doing football coupons etc but eventually it escalates.

I just think that in 10 years or so there is going to be a serious amount of people strung out on gambling. You only have to look at the amount of Casino's, bookies, slot machines in pubs etc that are around now compared to 10-15 years ago.

@Yomama sorry to hear about your problem. hopefully you straighten your life out soon, a couple of positives you can take your situation, the first one is that you've obviously recognised that you have a problem and are trying to get the necessary help, the second thing is that you're still only young and have the rest of your life ahead to make amends for the time you've missed out by letting the gambling take control of your life.

Hope it all works out for you.

bigneacy

I've worked at a few levels in a few different sectors within the Irish gambling industry. And I can tell you first hand that a ridiculous amount of people have gambling problems and most of them think they don't.

I don't think it's the governments job to regulate it however, I'm all for small government and personal responsibility.

In terms of underage gambling I can tell you for sure that the bigger names have very stringent age rules and there are a lot of intermediate checks on this.

As for the guy who bet €15k on a horse and lost. Tip of the iceberg. We had customers trading up to €500k a day and not breaking a sweat.

And it's true. The house always wins. Even if you think they've lost- they haven't. If you ever doubt that remember this- they employ teams of dozens of highly paid and highly skilled traders, who are much much smarter than you and know more about sport and gambling than you ever will to stop you from winning. They are very very good at their jobs.

lahalane

I blame teddy pickers, that's what most gamblers started on.

carly_86

I admit i have a problem with gambling. I work in a bookies but i never gambling in the shop i bet online on my phone and i think that's worse. I tried to delete the account but that means having to ring someone. I see addicts all the time wouldn't ya think i would learn from there mistakes

7 7 12

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/finance/2012/0830/1224323262532.html

boboldpilot

I bet regularly, hell I drink regularly. Neither means I have a problem. In fact I completely specialise in horse racing. As it happen I do believe that I could in fact make a living from betting on horse racing. More than a few people do make a living on betting on horse racing and indeed other people do live off gambling as their specialist subject. In all seriousness I really wouldn't want to make my living that way.

But gamblers who make a living actually treat it like a job. Like any job they speculate and make a profit on turnover.

Gambling addicts are different. They love the excitement of it all. It's about the excitement, the thrill of the win. Any winnings are always bet again. A winning run is considered lucky. They double it up.

On the other hand the pros know losing runs always dilute the profit. Professional gamblers know it's a long game. If they get 10% profit on turnover. They're happy.

The bookies make their living from the mug punters. The pros are tolerated because it gives the impression that anyone can win.

Every dog has it's day.

redarmy

boboldpilot wrote: »

I bet regularly, hell I drink regularly. Neither means I have a problem. In fact I completely specialise in horse racing. As it happen I do believe that I could in fact make a living from betting on horse racing. More than a few people do make a living on betting on horse racing and indeed other people do live off gambling as their specialist subject. In all seriousness I really wouldn't want to make my living that way.

But gamblers who make a living actually treat it like a job. Like any job they speculate and make a profit on turnover.

Gambling addicts are different. They love the excitement of it all. It's about the excitement, the thrill of the win. Any winnings are always bet again. A winning run is considered lucky. They double it up.

On the other hand the pros know losing runs always dilute the profit. Professional gamblers know it's a long game. If they get 10% profit on turnover. They're happy.

The bookies make their living from the mug punters. The pros are tolerated because it gives the impression that anyone can win.

Every dog has it's day.

any tips

HTML5!

redarmy wrote: »

any tips

United to draw against QPR tomorrow.

7 7 12

HTML5! wrote: »

United to draw against QPR tomorrow.

Don't quit the day job!

RATM

Motivator wrote: »

I worked in the industry for the guts of 15 years, in that time I saw a lot of stuff I wish I didn't i.e. grown men crying because they've lost money they couldn't afford to etc. I love the industry, I made a lot of money out of it & my opinion is that if people walk through the doors then what they do inside is their own business & nobody is holding a gun to their head.

I had a woman come into the shop one day calling me a scumbag for taking her husband's money after he had gone home & told her his wages went on a horse. She ranted & raved saying she wanted the money back because they couldn't afford to feed their child. After a long arguement with her I finally got her out of the shop. The next day I was behind her in the newsagents down the road & saw her spending €80 on lotto tickets & scratchcards. She accused me of brainwashing her husband into gambling yet she was blowing €80 on the lottery? Gambling is everywhere & anywhere in Ireland & many view bookmakers as a scourge on society. In my opinion I don't see much difference between a bookies & cigarettes, alcohol, lottery tickets scratchcards & even excessive shopping. All are seen as addictions but to single out gambling is unfair as the industry employs about 5,000 people in Ireland.

Is that all ?

When looking at regualting any addiction like alcohol, smoking, gambling etc what we need to do is look at it from the perspective of a cost benefit analysis.

The alcohol industry here is huge, it employs tens of thousands of people. But in terms of what it costs the tax payer to fix the problems it cause well we know that figure to be a stunning €3.9 billion a year, every year. Even a district court judge came out last week and said that 50% of the cases in front of him every week are alcohol related. For every case he has that means the tax payer is stumping up taxes to pay the Gardai, free legal aid, nurses and doctors and the judge himself as well as assorted court staff to bring justice to the case. And all because some fool got rat arsed and didn't know how to handle his drink. Abuse of alcohol is a massive cost to society.

However on the other hand there is excise duties and VAT on alcohol of some 50% of the price of any alcoholic drink you purchase. So there is an argument that people are dumb but at least the taxation from the negative consequences of alcohol are 'priced in'. Now that won't be a nice argument for the Gardai and nurses who have to deal with the sh1t but from a pure economics perspective it stand up.

The same is NOT true of gambling. Taxation on gambling is at 1% of the stake you lay down and even then the customer does not pay it directly, the bookies pay it on your behalf.

But the damage to society from gambling is destructive. I don't think we have any concrete figues but it is not hard to see that if a gambler loses the family home and his job then society and the taxpayer will bear the cost in terms of housing him and social welfare payments.

Now in my mind tax gambling at levels of 1% does not in any way make up for the cost to society. The gambling industry have been having a free run in Ireland since the days of Champagne Charlie McCreevy who brought in a range of tax incentives for them to operate with. That needs to stop and we need to get to a situation whereby the costs of gambling on society are met by the gambling industry themselves.

osarusan

I used to go to the bookies regularly enough when I lived in Ireland. Especially on Saturdays because they had EPL on and you could watch it basically for free - just make a small bet once or twice (and you didn't really even have to do that I'd say).

What I noticed was the number of people who bet on one race, and as soon as it was over, went to the papers up on the wall to look at the next race - it was clear that they were looking at the race for the first time, and there would only be about 5 minutes til the race started. How did they expect to make an educated bet in that time?

And the people who even bet on those fake races with computer generated images from 'Fakingham racecourse' or the fake greygounds. WTF?

My own highly unsuccessful strategy was to put on some 2 euro accumulator on the weekend football matches. Every week I'd decide to go for sure things that would turn my 2 into 20 ('I won't be greedy'). Then when in the bookies, I'd always end up adding one,two, three more 'sure things', until my 2 euro bet would turn into 40 or 50. Of course it never did.

Ane one last thing - it really pissed me off when some people made say a 5euro accumulator bet on say 3 races, and then the bet failed on some part of the accumulator, and after that the guy would say 'that horse cost me 80 euro' (or whatever the potential winnigns were) instead of 'that cost me 5 euro'.

Ruudi_Mentari

Have you tried the latest service tapping directly into your mother's purse, you'll lahve it.

there is a deluge of really annoying betting adverts seemingly aimed at teenagers of late.

Motivator

RATM wrote: »

Is that all ?

No not at all, I should have specified that figure just includes people working in the retail side of it. There are just over 5,000 people employed in the hundreds of shops around Ireland. I'm not taking into account the thousands working in HR, Advertising, Marketing, Trading etc. in the different big firms. There's also the on track lads aswell! Its a huge, huge industry in Ireland.

dodderangler

Pretty sure gamblers Havint got a problem
Reckon they have it figured out

JONJO THE MISER

bigneacy wrote: »

Even if you think they've lost- they haven't. If you ever doubt that remember this- they employ teams of dozens of highly paid and highly skilled traders, who are much much smarter than you and know more about sport and gambling than you ever will to stop you from winning. They are very very good at their jobs.

That is true when it come to the vast majority of sports but not everything gambling related, i have made big money from political gambling, i have a great record on it and have beaten the traders 9/10, just go over to the gambling forum where im well known for political betting and all my bets are on record there if you can dig up my old posts, i can say this the traders in all the big bookies had not got a clue how to price up political markets, maybe they just did not research it but the value bets i have had are unreal, example a 3/1 shot when it should be of been priced at evs if i was doing the market.