Games & Recreation Gambling

[hamohawk1]

In relation to gambling on sports, at casinos etc.

Do you gamble often and if so how much?

Gambling seems to be an ever increasing issue in the media spotlight now with a news program without reference to Tom Waterhouse almost unheard of. Personally i am a bit perplexed on how i feel about the issue of promoting of gambling as a whole. It is a bit annoying in regards to the amount of gaming advertisements and odds placed within sporting contests yet we seemingly live in a world where people are perceived to make the best judgments for themselves with any encroachment on their decision making often coming with connotations of nanny state and strong feelings against the government (not necessarily the case with sports betting
How do people see this issue overall?

 

[Stratton_Gun]

I gamble once every couple of weeks. Socially of course but since I don't have a job I really shouldn't be.

 

[JuddsABlue]

I gamble lots on nearly all forms of punting except pokies

I like the inudstry, I want it around and I want it doing well. I dont want people blowing their dinner money or kids college fund on the punt either. I want a healthy balance of punting for all. There will always be addicts though like there are with basically everything out there, humans over induldge

The hottest topic (and imo is so far off the mark) at the moment is advertising on football games etc and displaying the odds. For the most part I just thought people were over reacting and I didnt believe that it would make people pick up the phone and punt to a point where it would be a problem (at least not in a substantial amount). But one thing that did get my attention was a football commentator talking about his son saying to him one day "Richmond are favourites because they're paying $1.60". The dads opinion was the kid should be saying Richmond are favourites because they have Jack Riewoldt and Trent Cotchin playing for them

Easily the biggest toxic form of gambling is poker machines and the fact so many are licensed (I have 5 different Pokie venues within 2km of my house - walking distance) in suburbs is a disgrace. I cant take any politician seriously when they talk about wanting to help problem gamblers and focus on places like the Casino when they allow a new place to be built once a month, flooding the suburbs with more pokies.

Its in the suburbs where mothers and fathers are punting away their house at the local venue down the road simply because its there. If it wasnt there, they wouldnt be there. People are bored at night, they find things to do, if theres a pokie venue down the road they go down for a play and within a week they're blowing their paycheck. If they had any balls and wanted to help people with gambling they would start at stopping licenses, then they would start removing them from suburbs.

 

[Smoooothy]

pokies are evil things. i'm still paying off my addiction to them (haven't really touched one in about 7 years)

 

[treefingers]

Usually chuck a $10 multi on the footy each week. Bit of fun, I know my footy so it's all good.

 

[BEEG]

Punt every weekend sports and racing this time of the year with AFL i try to not have much to do with the horses.

I find it hard not to do it but i always do it within my means i have a healthy bank account and pay a mortgage and other bills.

What i am worried about is its in my family my grandfather was a mad punter and grey hound trainer my dad loves the punt but he knows he can get out of control at times so he limits accounts to 2k and makes it very difficult for himself to get big money out but then again his very wealthy and can go hard when he wants to.

The thing that worries me i might have a son one day and the way its going with it in our faces all the time on TV and having such easy access opening a Sportsbet account is easier then setting up a phone plan so i sometimes think will he be the one who goes over the edge.

Government needs to step in and stop the advertising of it all and as JuddsABlue has said there needs to be bigger restrictions on how many pubs can have Pokies.

 

[Marlowe]

My grandfather is a huge gambler. He'll probably gamble my inheritance away. On his honeymoon, he snuck out of the hotel to casino, won, like, $8000, then went to back bed, snuck out again, and lost it all and thensome.

My mum used to have a friend who couldn't even walk past a pokies without going in. You couldn't even loan her a dollar, because you'd know she would compulsively gamble it.

I don't really see a point to gambling. And I really don't care for the plethora of gambling ads in footy, either.

 

[JuddsABlue]

My grandfather is a huge gambler. He'll probably gamble my inheritance away. On his honeymoon, he snuck out of the hotel to casino, won, like, $8000, then went to back bed, snuck out again, and lost it all and thensome.

My mum used to have a friend who couldn't even walk past a pokies without going in. You couldn't even loan her a dollar, because you'd know she would compulsively gamble it.

I don't really see a point to gambling. And I really don't care for the plethora of gambling ads in footy, either.

lol at what point does it stop being his own money and become your inheritence?

let your grandfather spend his remaining years doing what he enjoys with the money he worked his entire life for

Thats one thing people from the outside looking in dont quite grasp about punting. For lots of people gambling is an enjoyable part of their life. Some people like sky diving, others like movies, others like hiking and there are the few that like punting. They all cost money, gambling has a cost. Majority of gamblers are enjoying their hobby while the rest of the world raise their eyebrows at them for doing so

 

[BEEG]

lol at what point does it stop being his own money and become your inheritence?

let your grandfather spend his remaining years doing what he enjoys with the money he worked his entire life for

Thats one thing people from the outside looking in dont quite grasp about punting. For lots of people gambling is an enjoyable part of their life. Some people like sky diving, others like movies, others like hiking and there are the few that like punting. They all cost money, gambling has a cost. Majority of gamblers are enjoying their hobby while the rest of the world raise their eyebrows at them for doing so

Thats a fair point some people spend thousands on cars and do them up i think its a waste but its there hobby

 

[mantis]

I gamble lots on nearly all forms of punting except pokies

I like the inudstry, I want it around and I want it doing well. I dont want people blowing their dinner money or kids college fund on the punt either. I want a healthy balance of punting for all. There will always be addicts though like there are with basically everything out there, humans over induldge

The hottest topic (and imo is so far off the mark) at the moment is advertising on football games etc and displaying the odds. For the most part I just thought people were over reacting and I didnt believe that it would make people pick up the phone and punt to a point where it would be a problem (at least not in a substantial amount). But one thing that did get my attention was a football commentator talking about his son saying to him one day "Richmond are favourites because they're paying $1.60". The dads opinion was the kid should be saying Richmond are favourites because they have Jack Riewoldt and Trent Cotchin playing for them

Easily the biggest toxic form of gambling is poker machines and the fact so many are licensed (I have 5 different Pokie venues within 2km of my house - walking distance) in suburbs is a disgrace. I cant take any politician seriously when they talk about wanting to help problem gamblers and focus on places like the Casino when they allow a new place to be built once a month, flooding the suburbs with more pokies.

Its in the suburbs where mothers and fathers are punting away their house at the local venue down the road simply because its there. If it wasnt there, they wouldnt be there. People are bored at night, they find things to do, if theres a pokie venue down the road they go down for a play and within a week they're blowing their paycheck. If they had any balls and wanted to help people with gambling they would start at stopping licenses, then they would start removing them from suburbs.

There are 7 pokies venues in the Croydon/Ringwood area. It's scary thinking how much money people are losing, to keep these places profitable.

I go to pokies every couple of months, but only take a small amount with me & leave my cards at home, but even when I win, I get bored after a couple of hours & usually leave with money in my pocket.

 

[Jay C]

Usually put on a few multi bets mainly on AFL & MMA every so often, nothing too big.

Regularly play online poker mostly on the weekend spending no more than $5-10

 

[kickazz]

For years Tattslotto seems to be society's acceptable form of gambling for some unknown reason.

Many people are quite prepared to spend 20 to 40 dollars a week on a ticket, more than many recreational sport punters do.

The %age returned in prizemoney for lotto is only about 60%. Sports betting it tends to vary between 80 and 95 percent.

FFS lotto gets its own little segment in the nightly news, is often on the inside cover of the newspaper and has been legally allowed to advertise for years.

It really has flown under the radar and got a fantastically free run.

I agree with JuddsABlue. I go to a movie, I know I won't get that $15 back, but I am entertained. I go to the track and I know I could well lose money as well, but I'm being entertained.

I think the dangerous part is if we develop a culture where we cannot be entertained by football unless we bet on it. But for a bit of amusement, I think it is fun.

I think The Whitlams said it best when it comes to the pokies though.

 

[Gough]

I've enthusiastically embraced almost all of life's vices, and I'm pleased that gambling hasn't been one of them. If I had bet a $100 in my life I would be surprised.

 

[chargers 09]

I bet on the weekend with mate occasionally, which would just be a couple of bets on trackside. I like to have a decent punt during the Spring Carnival at the Caulfield meetings as well.

 

[hamohawk1]

For years Tattslotto seems to be society's acceptable form of gambling for some unknown reason.

Many people are quite prepared to spend 20 to 40 dollars a week on a ticket, more than many recreational sport punters do.

The %age returned in prizemoney for lotto is only about 60%. Sports betting it tends to vary between 80 and 95 percent.

FFS lotto gets its own little segment in the nightly news, is often on the inside cover of the newspaper and has been legally allowed to advertise for years.

It really has flown under the radar and got a fantastically free run.

I agree with JuddsABlue. I go to a movie, I know I won't get that $15 back, but I am entertained. I go to the track and I know I could well lose money as well, but I'm being entertained.

I think the dangerous part is if we develop a culture where we cannot be entertained by football unless we bet on it. But for a bit of amusement, I think it is fun.

I think The Whitlams said it best when it comes to the pokies though.

this is one issue i don't get. the key stakeholders of tattslotto are basically making a mint of something most australians that participate in it will never win. for arguments sake think of investing 20 bucks a week into tattslotto and then winning division two when you are in your 60's. its great you have won the division but the actual return would be next to nothing after the years of investment (not to mention the interest you could have recieved from investing it). i have no issue with people partaking in tatslotto to have a bit of fun, but the mathematics are just inherently against each player

 

[Poseidon]

I'm not a fan and I wish gambling ads would go the same way as cigarette ads.

 

[Selective Retention]

Thats one thing people from the outside looking in dont quite grasp about punting. For lots of people gambling is an enjoyable part of their life. Some people like sky diving, others like movies, others like hiking and there are the few that like punting. They all cost money, gambling has a cost. Majority of gamblers are enjoying their hobby while the rest of the world raise their eyebrows at them for doing so

In the end people's attitude towards gambling is going to be shaped by the experiences within their circle of family and friends.

I agree with your position 100% but for people that have been affected by gambling I can understand why they see it differently.

My Dad has every bet he has ever made recorded and over 30 years he has it worked out that he is down by ~$40k. When you put it like that, it sounds a lot, and I guess it would be even more indexed over that period. If you break it down however it works out to be $20 something a week. Grabbing the paper on a friday, doing the form and placing a few bets on Saturday is what he likes doing. He has owned horses, is a member of the race clubs and spends the majority of his saturdays at the track or at home infront of sky. The example he uses to rationalise it is that he has mates at work that go out fishing every weekend. They'd drop that amount of money buying a boat in the first place, let alone the licenses/registration/insurance/petrol/fishing gear etc. Different strokes for different folks.

Myself I've never touched casino games, tattslotto, pokies. They don't interest me at all. I bet on the races and sports most weekends and if over time (i.e averaging out winning weeks and losing weeks) I'm down on average $20 a week, big deal, it's an interest. A lot of people will call it a sad interest, but I would say the same about a lot of other people's interests as well.

 

[Selective Retention]

They had a liftout in the paper yesterday for responsible gambling week about kids being exposed to a lot of casino games through facebook, iphones and the like and the detrimental effect that is going to have in the future. I remember playing casino games on the atari computer we had when I was a little kid and as I have said above I have never bothered with it as an adult. What level the sports betting advertising will actually have on kids is largely supposition. Clearly though Tom Waterhouse has ramped it up and turned it into an arms race with all the other bookies joining in to maintain market exposure. They've stepped over the line with it and it is only a matter of time until legislation scales it back. Cut it back and move on.

 

[radiojake]

Pokies are by far the worst -

I worked at the Adelaide Casino.. I counted the money out of the pokies...

I know how much money goes through those things.....

I shudder to think how much more casinos in Melbourne and Sydney would take in, then to add all of the suburban pokies venues...

Keep them to the casinos, get rid of them out of pubs

 

[davo99]

Pokies are by far the worst -

I worked at the Adelaide Casino.. I counted the money out of the pokies...

I know how much money goes through those things.....

I shudder to think how much more casinos in Melbourne and Sydney would take in, then to add all of the suburban pokies venues...

Keep them to the casinos, get rid of them out of pubs

So glad we don't have them in Perth!

 

[SHAKESPEARE]

Watching the local pub full of cars at 4am every night...cars coming in and out at all times...very sad.

 

[hayes]

Occasionally have a bet on sports. AFL, NBA and NFL. Some I take seriously, others just for a bit of fun like coming up with some ridiculous odds and putting 1-5 bucks on it (one time I was one head to head game off winning 18 grand). Used to bet everyday and was doing fairly well, for a few months I was taking out 3-500 bucks a week out of my sportsbet account but eventually I wasn't having as much luck and could see where it was going so I stopped. Don't think I've been able to pick a winner for about 12 months now, extremely frustrating.

 

[Doss]

I've played pokies once in my life.

It was the day after I turned 18. I put a one dollar coin into the machine, spun, and it spat back $23.

I immediately put it down to beginners' luck, walked away from the machine with my winnings, and have never been near one since.

They just do not appeal at all.

 

[Run n Spread]

Very occasionally have a bet on the footy or buy a lotto ticket. Just not something I've ever got into the habit of.

 

[Simple Jack]

I've played pokies once in my life.

It was the day after I turned 18. I put a one dollar coin into the machine, spun, and it spat back $23.

I immediately put it down to beginners' luck, walked away from the machine with my winnings, and have never been near one since.

They just do not appeal at all.

Freaky.

I've played pokies once in my life.

It was the day after I turned 18 (my birthday was on a Thursday). I was at crown and as I was leaving I put one dollar in the machine and pressed a button. It kept flashing so I kept pressing buttons (hammered by this stage) and eventually it spat out 30 something dollars at me and off I went.

I immediately decided to retire from the pokies with a healthy 3200% lifetime profit.

Horrible things.