Gambling - what is it to you?

Gambling is bipolar. On the one side you have fish. Over on the other side you have thieves.
The fat part of that spread includes astute risk managers and the lucky as well as astupid risk managers and the less fortunate. This section provides ample cover for the thieves - those well versed in the ways of "winning"; allowing for distinctions like "successful gambler", "professional gambler", as well as the victims who may also be lucky or unlucky. Essentially, on the victim side, you're a schill or food.
...
 
Why is the casino business so lucrative? Vegas continues to prosper, and new ones spring up everywhere daily it seems. The house’s overwhelming %/odds and not exactly a secret, so what is the attraction?
People dream of being lucky. A mediocre player will often take on someone better, and refuse a spot. It’s seldom about the money. If the bet is enough to worry, but not enough to signal a problem, it can be truly stimulating. I have to wonder how popular slot machines would be if they were merely “PacMan’ type video game entertainment.
 
Those would be the fish. You know Jack? CEO of Jack in the Box? Him and his clown buddies look at their spread sheets and know immediately what it is and where it's at. By the time anyone gets to a casino, they been played.
 
Casinos are all clip joints. That’s not gambling for either side. It’s a predictable flow of $ from the stupid to the educated with the govt getting their piece of the action.

Playing a zero sum game of skill against another person with no vig is gambling if they play at the same skill level. If they play at different skill levels then the more skilled player is expected to win & deserves to.

The 2 examples above are very different things yet often confused and are thought to be the same by people who are shallow and don’t think things through for what ever reason.

The sharps get the $, the rest spend the $. That’s what makes the gaming economy exist. The promise of easy $, when it’s not easy is a powerful tool-when used right. Isn’t that the idea?

Fatboy<———doing alright so far…..
 
I don't call it gambling. I call it a contest of skill for stakes.🤷
I play good enough to play for money, do you? My first rule is never play for more than I can afford to lose or be cheated out of.
We can call it a tournament if you like.😉
Can't remember where I picked up this piece of wisdom.
Wisdom said:
The only way you can be hustled is if you are trying to hustle.
Click to expand...
 
who is the bigger sucker. the guy who flies to vegas for the weekend and has a great time and loses say a thousand dollars, but maybe sometimes wins.

or the real smart guy who hates gambling and buys insurance betting on his car getting in an accident and also being his fault. and gives the insurance company way more the best of it than any casino has.. and has nothing to show for it
 
there is the story of the guy standing on the fire escape over the alley and freezing in the winter. and the passerby says hey what are you doing?

he says-- i am out here waiting while some sucker is paying 50 dollars to bang my lady inside.
 
Its like having intercourse with someone you dont know. They may or
may not have an STD. Its fun and then the truth is learned.
 
I gamble for the thrill and the action, to get in the box and feel some heat. Lord knows I am not paying the bills with my pool game. So I bet my money and enjoy the action.

I guess I am stupid but I’ve had plenty a great time at the casino as well. I am not ignorant of what a racket it is. It’s just a fun time, entertainment, with a chance to win some money.

Gambling is fun. And I am glad I don’t have to do it to pay the bills.
 
Nick8400 said:
Gambling is fun. And I am glad I don’t have to do it to pay the bills.
Click to expand...
This, for the most part..

What I will add, is that for me. The wager is an honesty tax. I don't sweat the money (relative) but I'm not naive enough to believe I'm getting the most out of my opponent 'unless' they're risking an amount that they'll regret losing. What I really want is to measure myself against a higher spd, or validate the food chain as I see it. The wager is meant to force the opponent into playing to win. If the guy I'm playing opts to sandbag into a higher wager, then that's what the wager should have been in the first place.

Only the ignorant can be hustled

I generally don't go looking for action, but rarely turn it down. Most people who flap their gums in my direction feel like they have something to prove and the element of money will make me crumble. They usually figure out in short order that the honesty tax is the only thing that really makes me try.
 
Gambling. I’m the ef’n pits. Can’t play cards. In
Pool I need 99 to 100 and struggle. I never enjoyed it. What is to me? It’s something I’m glad I never got involved with. I have family members that won big… and returned it 100x. There is no jackpot or income. Most of times it’s a loan until it goes back. The best hustle for me was always a full time job with a check on Fri.
 
GoldCrown said:
Gambling. I’m the ef’n pits. Can’t play cards. In
Pool I need 99 to 100 and struggle. I never enjoyed it. What is to me? It’s something I’m glad I never got involved with. I have family members that won big… and returned it 100x. There is no jackpot or income. Most of times it’s a loan until it goes back. The best hustle for me was always a full time job with a check on Fri.
Click to expand...
So you idle at 400 but can rev to 850 with no load?

I have noidea what that means...
 
straightline said:
Did you even see it as a risk?
Click to expand...
There you go. I gambled. Looked good but risky. Should say more risky than good. Learned fast. Bet on favorites not long shots.

Pa lotto. I hit straight straight & boxed for $1/$1. Played my moving date 327. Payed $580. $2 a week ticket went to $20 a night and so on. I had to get my numbers in. Had to stand in line. I loved the feeling of hitting for a little chunk that never happened again. Took a while but got old eventually. Rather spend the money on a hobby.
 
Last edited:
JB Cases said:
The theme of the International Cue Collectors Show this year is Gambler cues. Well as most of know the gambler cues are generally cues with cards and dice and sometimes horseshoes in them. I think probably Meucci and McDermott can be credited with creating the genre and I don't know who was first.

Anyway I wanted to do a case that featured pool and what gambling in pool means to me as well as what I feel gambling is in general. Basically to me there are professional gamblers who treat wagering like a job and there are fun gamblers who do it for the thrill. But the guy who might be a great professional pool gambler/hustler could also be a fun/sucker at cards and usually is.

Now none of this is new information. We have talked about it a hundred times but I figured I'd open the conversation one more time and plug the case we made for the ICCS. My friend Dino Copreros drew out my concept and we tooled it.

The name of the case is Spot the Sucker. The idea stems from the old gambling saying that goes, "if you can't spot the sucker in the room in five minutes then it's you".

And perhaps some of you will get the double meaning behind the case title....I know the hustlers and road players will.

So here you go. My video of the case -

spotthesucker-a-front.jpg

spotthesucker-b-back.jpg


Go to the cue gallery later to see detailed pix.

Just tell me what gambling means to you? Are you a pro or a thrill player?
Click to expand...
  1. Gambling always meant dethroning a good player if possible to challenge myself (or paying to learn).
  2. I do enjoy the thrill of a good challenge (not a pro for sure)
Holy crap what an amazing case!!! (it should be in the Pool H.O.F)
 
maha said:
there is the story of the guy standing on the fire escape over the alley and freezing in the winter. and the passerby says hey what are you doing?

he says-- i am out here waiting while some sucker is paying 50 dollars to bang my lady inside.
Click to expand...
I have to admit I never heard that version
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top