Sports Gambling and Superstition


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Superstition has no place in sports Betting or gambling - or at least it shouldn't.

Many people are superstitious and they come from all walks of life, businessman, healers, athletes can be prone to superstition. So it stands to reason that a lot of gamblers and sports bettors are too, perhaps the more that is at stake, the more superstitious people are inclined to be. In gambling and sports betting, it always horrifies me the number of times I hear phrases like "...well my favorite color is red" at the roulette tables, or, "...that quarterback is wearing my lucky number".

You know it goes on, along with other forms of 'mumbo-jumbo' otherwise you wouldn't see ads like: "Astro Gambling Sports Locks" (something to do with star formations no doubt), or, "Bio-Rhythm Sports Betting Picks" (picks based on the state of human bio-rythms), or "Gypsy Jemma's Crystal Ball Futures Picks"...it is worrying. Advertisements aren't that cheap to take out so a lot of these people are turning some kind of profit by getting enough people to sign up to their scams.

There are also many ways to dupe the public on a Sunday NFL schedule or Monday night game.

For instance it is easy for a sports picks service to give a bettor five winning teams in a row, for example. You just take every possible combination or permutation of wins and put out each bit of advice on a separate phone line. People who phone the 'winning number / line' are quite likely to sign up to the tout's service. The rest of course lose, but that is of no consequence to the sports tout.

For example, on a Monday night NFL game, say the sports betting service is putting out an accumulator or parlay bet on the pointspread and the total.

Let's say the line reads something line this:

Atlanta Falcons @ Dallas Cowboys +6 / -6 Over/Under 40.5.

The various possible winning combinations would be:

Dallas -6.5 Over 40.5
Dallas -6.5 Under 40.5
Falcons +6.5 Over 40.5
Falcons -6.5 Under 40.5

The unscrupulous tout will take out four ads in different papers, under different names, with different phone numbers and perhaps offer a 'free parlay pick'. Three sets of customers will end up disappointed but the fourth set will win. It is already pre-determined because there are no more permutations or possibilities regarding the parlayed spread / total bet.

If for argument's sake each line receives 50 callers for the free offer, then 150 callers will end up disappointed, but the tout doesn't care because he hasn't lost any money, the callers did. 50 callers however will be winners and a decent proportion could go on to pay for bad picks in the future with the picks 'service'.

The other ads I hate are those sports picks ads which read - "Your win is guaranteed - That's right! - If we lose, your next pick is free of charge!"

Well that is all well and good, but if it was a real guarantee they would give you back the money that you staked and lost on their pick. Losing on one bit of advice they give you only to receive another piece of advice (in all likelihood badly researched advice) is hardly a guarantee!

The advice is to engage in sports betting not sports gambling. Research your own bets and don't get let down by scam artists.


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