A professional gambler for seven years, William Baxter created a website called
Absolutely Free Sports Bets to help educate people so that they wouldn't have to pay other people for their picks. On the website, Bill also makes a point to explain possible pitfalls, encouraging people to only gamble with that with which they can afford to lose. Check out his
8 Basic Rules of Gambling on Sports and his list of
Top 10 Sports Gambler Mistakes.
1. Why do people choose to pay for gambling picks, and what do you see as the problems of doing this?
People who sell gambling picks are referred to as "touts." Generally, touts sell their gambling picks on the premise that they have some form of special insight or special information that the general public does not and therefore their picks are worth something. There was a movie written about the most well-known tout, Brandon Lang. Touts will explain that they have inside information that a player is injured and this information has not been released. I personally think that most Touts are a scam and people should avoid it like the plague. If you think about it, if they were so good at gambling on sports, they would not need to make money selling their picks: they could live off of their profits from gambling.
The most common "scam" that touts utilize: say a tout has a client base of 100 gamblers and he charges $20/play. He will release two picks one called a "Gold Play" and one called a "Platinum Play." He will give 50 of his customers the Gold Play and 50 of his customers the Platinum Play. The problem is the two plays are the exact opposite. Say Dallas is playing Los Angeles. The Gold Play is on Dallas and the Platinum Play is Los Angeles. He sold the opposite play to two sides at $20/each; he made $2000.00; the result doesn't matter. The next day, if Dallas wins; he puts on his website that his Gold Play is 1-0 and never mentions the Platinum Play. The tout makes a profit no matter what, but the gambler only wins 50% of the time.
Further, a gambler who pays a tout has to overcome the cost of paying for the pick. If a gambler pays a tout $20 and bets $100 and wins, he is only up $80; if he loses, he is down $120; had he not paid for the pick he would be up $100 or only down $100. Very seldom does a tout follow through with the promises made.
2. What can gamblers learn from visiting your site?
Gamblers can learn what to avoid in attempting to make money from a hobby. I guess that is the most important lesson. Sports-gambling should not be considered a way of life, but rather something fun. Most people do not have the time or money to dedicate to gambling for a living. However, people with the right knowledge can learn how to responsibly gamble and have fun and at the same time learn how to not permit gambling to take over their life, and actually make a little income from it.
Absolutely Free Sports Bets will provide insights on how to gamble, how much to gamble, what to gamble on, and what not to gamble on. A secondary lesson that any gambler--sports, casino, bingo, or any other gambler--is to only gamble with what you can afford to lose. Any gambler will tell you that there is no guarantee in gambling. If you think there are guarantees, then you will lose everything you put into gambling; if you know that nothing is or can be guaranteed, then you will be more cautious and careful.
3. How do you afford to keep your site free?
Honestly, I created the site for two reasons: 1) to educate people about the pitfalls and joys of sports-gambling and 2) to make money from the site. I promised myself that I would use my picks and articles to get people to the site and then make money on the site by selling advertising. There have been good months and bad months. I use gambling winnings to supplement the cost of running the site. For me it is a fun, interesting hobby that I have consistently made money from, and I wanted to share this information with as many people as possible. Trust me, it has not been lucrative by any means, but it has been fun.
4. What are some of the most common mistakes you see gamblers making?
I really see three mistakes that make gambling change from being fun to being a nightmare. First and most importantly is when people gamble with money that they can not afford to lose. The man who takes his rent payment and puts it all on a football team to win is destined for failure. The number one rule that any sports gambler should have is that he or she should only play with money that he or she can afford to lose. I think of it as entertainment money. Instead of going to a movie or going out to dinner, you are choosing to bet on a sporting event.
The second biggest mistake is when gamblers think that a particular bet is a "lock." A lock is a guarantee that something will win. There is never a lock in any game. Many sports gamblers think that when a gambler calls a play a lock, he has cursed the play and for that reason alone any one who hears the lock should play the opposite play.
Finally, I think the third biggest mistake that gamblers make is not knowing how much to bet per event. We explain on our website that the proper amount to bet per game is that amount which enables you to survive through a drastic losing streak. Essentially, you should only bet 2.5% of your betting balance on any given game. By using this system you would survive a 39 game losing streak.
5. In your years of experience, what have you come to see as the positive side of gambling?
There are two positive aspects of gambling that jump out at me. The first is excitement and accomplishment. To spend, sometimes, hours looking at a particular event and analyzing it and coming up with something you are willing to put out there attached to your name and actually risk money on your analysis and to have that result come through is exhilarating and satisfying. The act of having money risked on the outcome of a sporting event truly makes each play, each decision, each penalty, and each mistake impactful to you individually; this creates excitement.
The other aspect of gambling that is positive is the ability to make money. If a gambler follows a certain set of rules, that gambler can not help but make money. It is, however, when a gambler makes the common mistakes that they begin to lose money. Definitely, gambling provides exhilaration and profitability.
Thanks, Bill!
