Can You Make Money Gambling
Mar 26, 2013 If you win the lottery you may feel richer than your neighbours, and think that moving to a mansion in a new neighbourhood would make you happy, but then you look out of the window and realise. Out there that can beat these games outside of cheating. Does this mean you can’t make money at them? All it means is that in the long-run over thousands and thousands of hands, spins,. Once you have made £15,000-£20,000 you will need to move on to another way to make money gambling. Then once you have exhausted matched betting you can move on to making money from casino bonuses. Even more profitable but quite a bit harder. You can pretty much bet on any sport at the collegiate or professional level, including Olympic events. You can bet on football, bet on baseball, bet on hockey, bet on basketball and so many more. If you want to bet on darts, or bet on table tennis, you can do it at BetUS. Players can make larger bets when they have an advantage. For example, the players can increase the starting bet if there are many aces and tens left in the deck, in the hope of hitting a blackjack. Players can deviate from basic strategy according to the composition of their undealt cards.
Without a doubt, the number one question we get asked in regards to betting
online is “How do I make money gambling online?” The answer as you might expect
is not a simple answer. While we wish we could just tell you to “do x, y, and z
and you’ll be rich,” it’s just not that simple.
Making money online comes down to game selection and having clear
expectations of what you’re doing. The opportunities are huge, and there are
millions and millions to be made if you look in the right spots. Lucky for you,
we’re going to do our best to educate you and point you in the right direction.
The best way for us to approach answering this question is to answer it
individually for each different type of online gambling/betting that exists.
Specifically today we’re going to look at sports betting online, casino/table
games online, and skill-based online games. There are a few other obscure forms
of gambling online that do exist, but these main categories should encompass
almost all of the major types that are out there.
As a spoiler, I can tell you that it is possible to make money at each of
these, though, some will depend solely on your luck while the others are
sustainable based on your skill and abilities. The difference is going to come
down to whether the game is a luck based or skill based game. Let’s clarify the
difference first before we dive into each individual type of online gambling and
how to make money at it.
Luck vs. Skill
If you’ve ever hung around a casino or talked to gamblers before, you’ve
probably heard someone at least once tell you that they had a system to beat a
certain game. It might have been craps or roulette or maybe even blackjack. The
problem we always noticed when we heard this from someone was that they were
broke or were not rolling in the money. If they truly had a system to beat a
casino game, wouldn’t they be doing it 24/7 and living the high life?
The real reason they don’t do this 24/7 for a living and aren’t living the
high life is that
most casino games are luck based. Luck based games are games
where the house has the edge. This means that there are no super secret systems
out there that can beat these games outside of cheating. Does this mean you
can’t make money at them? Of course not. All it means is that in the long-run
over thousands and thousands of hands, spins, or rolls, the casino is going to
win.
This means you can most certainly make money in the short run. Many gamblers
go months and sometimes years winning at games. The thing to note, though, is
that this is a statistical anomaly that will correct itself. In the end, the
casino will ALWAYS win at luck based games. There is a silly cliché phrase
that explains this:
Spotting a luck based game is easy. If the game is run by a casino (live or
online) and you are playing against the casino and not versus other players,
this is a luck based game, and they are going to have a long run edge. Again,
you can still make money playing these games (and lots of it), but in the long
run over thousands and thousands of games, the casino will ultimately win.
Skill-based games, on the other hand, have no house edge. These games are
ones where players compete against each other instead of against the house (the
casino). The casino will take a small fee for facilitating the game, but
ultimately it is up to the players who wins the money.
Skill-based games are sustainable ways for people to make money long-term. If
you are good at a skill based game and can continually get people to compete
against you, you can make a full-time living playing the game. These games are
easy to spot as they are games where players are competing against other players
and not the house.
Making Money Online Playing Casino Games and Slots
Can You Actually Make Money Gambling
We have some good news, and we have some bad news when it comes to making
money gambling on your favorite casino games and slots. The bad news is that
online casino games and slots are games of luck that the house will always have
a long-term edge on. The good news is that regardless of this, you can still
make a lot of money at them!
Addressing the bad news first, you need to realize that there is no system
out there to “beat” online casino games to make a living playing them. You will
never be able to be a professional slots player or a professional roulette
player or anything like that. Ultimately, the casino edge and statistics are
going to prevail, and the casino is going to win. Understanding this is
imperative to have a great time playing these games online.
Regarding the good news, though, this does not mean you can’t make money
playing online casino games and slots. First, the casino edge is only for the
long term. The long term usually means hundreds of thousands and millions of
spins of a slot or roulette wheel or hundreds of thousands of tosses of the
craps dice etc. You may play the games and never ever experience the long term
statistics correcting themselves. The casino edge on most games is only a couple
of percentage points meaning you can totally have major winning sessions and
runs.
An Analogy to Help
Imagine this analogy. There are two bettors, you and a friend, who are going
to bet on the flip of a coin. You are going to take turns flipping the coin with
you allowed to bet on every flip. If the flip is heads, you win your bet. If the
flip is tails, you lose your bet. You do not have a choice; you have to bet
heads every time.
We all know that coins are going to land on heads 50% of the time and on
tails 50% of the time. Let’s say we alter the coin a little bit to make it more
like when we are betting against the casino giving them an edge. Let’s say that
this coin lands on heads only 48% of the time and on tails 52% of the time.
This represents the long-term edge that the casino is going to have.
You and your friend start flipping the coin and placing your bets against the
house. You each get to flip the coin 50 times. If everything happened without
any variance, you both would get heads about 48% of your flips and lose a tiny
bit of money to the casino over the course of the flips. But variance comes into
play. Variance says that over ALL 100 flips about 48% will be heads, but it
doesn’t necessarily say which of you two are going to get more or less of the
heads in the short run.
It’s possible that you get heads 48 of your 50 flips and your friend gets
heads zero times in their 50 flips. At the end of the day in the long-run, the
casino is still making money because it is winning 52% of its bets, but you’ve
made an absolute TON of money. The point here is that most recreational gamblers
will be operating in the short term for most or their entire gambling career.
Jackpots
Part of the way that this variance spreads itself out is through jackpots.
Not all players are going to win jackpots but if you do win one you can bet that
you’re going to be a lifetime profitable gambler (depending on the size of the
jackpot of course). Jackpots still fall in line when it comes to
statistics and house edge, but that doesn’t mean you can’t be one of the players
to fall outside of the statistical norm and strike it rich!
Bonuses
One way to fight back against the house edge and a lot of times turn it in
your favor (at least temporarily) is by
taking advantage of bonuses. Bonuses, as
you may already know, are free money/free spins/free play that online casino
sites will give you to try to attract your business. A lot of times the benefits
of these bonuses will turn the odds in your favor while you are using the bonus.
Of course, they won’t give you the bonus forever because they would lose
money and have to shut their doors. But in the short term, you can definitely
take full advantage of these promotions and clean up some easy cash. It’s also
of importance to note that there is no reason you can’t jump between a few sites
to take advantage of different promotions.
This is a lot like going to a different grocery store for a week because you
have a coupon for something. There is nothing unethical about it, and the sites
actually would prefer you use their promotions. The reason they run the promos
is to get you in the door to try out their product in hopes that you will stay
or make a change from your home site.
Making Money Online Sports Betting
Sports betting is a complete 180 the other direction from online slots and
table games. Sports betting is a skill based bet (depending on the bets you
choose). While you might think you are betting against the house, they are
actually manipulating lines so that you’re basically betting against other
players and they are taking a small fee for facilitating the bets. With proper
skill and a sharp eye, you can make a living as a sports bettor. Is this
difficult? You bet your butt it’s difficult but it’s completely possible, and a
lot of people do it every day.
So how do you make money online betting sports?
Simple. Join a sportsbook and
start making correct picks. Start with a sport that you know well and do
extensive research. If you can come up with a system to properly predict games
and outcomes, you can be a successful sports bettor.
One thing that is extremely important to point out is that you have to choose
the right type of sports bets or you’re going to be placing luck based bets
instead of skill based bets. As you may or may not know, you can bet on a lot
more than just who the winner of a game is going to be. You can bet how many
points will be scored, how many times they will do something, who will score
first etc. Some of these bets will require research and skill to make a correct
pick, and some are just going to be dumb luck.
Here are two different sports bet as an example. One is a skill based bet and
one is a luck based bet.
- Will Rob Gronkowski score more or less than 1.5 touchdowns in a game?
- Will the final score of the Patriots be odd or even?
As you can hopefully see, the first bet would require you to have strong
knowledge of how Rob Gronkowski is going to perform in a game. You would have to
look at the defense he is up against and predict the game plan of attack the
Patriots employ. There is a lot of skill that goes into picking this bet and the
more knowledgeable and skilled you are, the better off you will do. This is an
example of a skill based bet that you could profit from long term if you were
sharp enough.
The second bet about whether or not their final point total is odd or even is
really just dumb luck. You could make some crazy argument that you can predict
the exact game flow and how many points they score, but in reality, you are just
guessing. This is an example of a luck based bet that you can still make money
off of but it is not sustainable long term. As long as you’re aware of this,
have at it!
It’s important to point out that these bets are not segregated or separated
at all when you go to the online sportsbooks. The luck based and the skill based
bets are all going to be listed side by side, and it’s up to you to be able to
decipher the difference. Honestly, it should be easy to tell the difference by
just taking a few minutes to pay attention to what you’re betting on. If it is
something that you are struggling to find data and information to support your
pick, it is probably a luck based bet.
The Beauty of Line Shopping Online
One of the easiest ways to make MORE money online with correct sports betting
picks is through line shopping. Line shopping is a strategy that is not possible
with brick and mortar casinos due to logistics and has really only become
popular thanks to online sportsbooks. Line shopping is the process of checking
several different sportsbooks to get the best odds and payouts possible for your
bets.
You just can’t do this in real life unless you live somewhere like Vegas
where you have a ton of different sportsbooks right next to each other. Even
then, most of the books there are interconnected, so the odds are going to be
the same at all of them. Online, though, you tend to see a lot of greatly
varying lines for the same bet.
Let’s say you are planning to bet the Miami Heat to beat
the Golden State Warriors on the moneyline at +150. Let’s say you’re totally
confident on this bet and you think it’s the easiest bet in the world. Is this a
good bet for you to make?
A better question would be, is this the best bet you can make? If you were to
take a few seconds and line shop another online sportsbook, you would see that
one is offering the same bet for +170. This is the exact same bet except if you
place it at the second online sportsbook you will get paid out more money. If
you bet $100 and the Heat win, the first sportsbook will pay you $150 in profit
and the second will pay you $170 in profit.
By simply taking advantage of the technology that comes with betting online,
you can make MORE money on a correct pick just by taking a few seconds to check
a few different sportsbooks. We can assure that this is not a rare occurrence to
find varying lines. It’s actually a fairly common occurrence to find different
lines, and it can greatly affect the amount of money you make betting online.
Making Money Online Playing Skill-Based Games
You may notice that in the title of this section it does not say anything
about “gambling.” This is because gambling refers to placing wagers on a game of
chance that you have no control over. Out of all the different bet types on this
page, these are the ones that you have the most control over. Skill-based games
are games that pit two or more players against each other. Skill-based games are
NOT played against the house, but as we stated earlier, the house takes a small
cut for facilitating the game.
Skill based games can 100% be played for a living as long as you can continue
to get people willing to play against you. While some of these games do have an
element of luck, the majority of the game’s outcome is determined by skill. This
means that a worse player may win a few games in the short run, but the better
player will always win out in the long run.
For example, if you get your money in the middle playing Texas Hold em poker
(a skill based game) with pocket Aces against J-10, you’re supposed to win that
hand based on the statistics. However, it is entirely possible that you lose
that hand in an unlucky fashion. If you continue to get your money in
significantly ahead, though, statistics should even out, and you should make
money in the long run. Though you might lose in the short run, you will prevail
in the long run.
Some of the most popular skill games you can play for money online are:
For more information on playing these games online, here’s a guide we’ve put
together for you:
The Bottom Line of How to Make Money Gambling Online
Hopefully, if you’ve read until this point, you have a pretty strong idea of
the different options you have when it comes to making money gambling online.
Depending on whether you’re just looking for some recreational fun or a way to
make a living, we’ve given you several different options in both directions.
Remember, be realistic with your expectations and don’t try and make a career
out of a game that you are not statistically supposed to win long term at.
Can You Make Money Gambling On Football
Is it possible to make a living while gambling? The answer will surprise you.
I get this question all the time, and it’s something that I think boggles most people’s minds. The idea that someone can spend their waking hours doing nothing more than playing games and end up making enough money to live sounds almost absurd.
That being said, it’s definitely possible. There are quite a few people around the world who make a living gambling. Here’s how it works.
First, You Need Money
Coming as a surprise to no one, you actually need to have money to make money gambling. The old saying that “it takes money to make money” is as true for gambling as for anything else.
In fact, it’s more true here than anywhere else. If you want to make money gambling, you have to have some money to gamble in the first place.
Actually, let me walk that back a little bit—you need casino money, which can be a little different from money in general.
Let me explain.
When you walk into a casino, you’ll learn pretty quickly that they’re willing to do just about anything to keep you there.
One of the things they do often is to give you some free money to play around with. Now not all casinos are going to do this, but enough casinos do it that you can actually get a little head start on getting money to play with.
Still, it’s the rare person that can take a few free slot dollars and end up turning that into a legitimate windfall that you can then take and use to gamble for the rest of the year.
Can You Make Money Gambling Online
It’s all about luck really if that’s the route you’re going to take. You can easily walk into a casino, join a player’s club, get your free slot dollars, and spin the wheel.
But let’s say that you actually get some money out of this and start a little pile of cash that you’re going to use to gamble. You’re going to have to be particularly careful with that pile of cash for a simple reason—gambling for a living is mostly about math.
That’s why I say this only really works if you have money to begin with. The way you’re really going to gamble for a living is by playing the odds very, very carefully. And even when you’re doing that, you’re going to lose, and you’re going to lose regularly.
Can You Make Money Crash Gambling
Which means that a small pile of cash is likely going to be insufficient for your needs. You’re going to need a large pile of cash (probably $10,000) to really make this work, as you need to have the ability to keep playing until you get up enough to walk away.
Which leads me to my next point.
You Must Be Willing to Walk Away, And You Must Be Willing to Lose
So before we can get into the actual mechanics of how this works, we have to address what you might call a spiritual issue, or even just a personality issue: are you the type of person who can walk away when you’re winning?
If you’re not, don’t bother—this isn’t the career for you.
Gamling Professionally is No GameA lot of people who enjoy gambling and like the idea of gambling as a career are more in love with the idea itself than the practice. The practice, like any profession, takes serious discipline. If you’re the type of person who ignores the math and believes in hot streaks or cold streaks, professional gambling probably isn’t for you.
Here’s why: there’s only one way to win at gambling, and that’s by walking away at the right time, especially when you’re up.
The reason for that is the house edge. Most casino games are rigged against you. The casino designs each game to pay back a certain amount of money over the long haul. I’m not talking about each hand of blackjack here. I’m talking about thousands and thousands of hands played by thousands and thousands of people.
On average, just about every game is going to pay the house some small bit back.
Take Blackjack for Example:On average, you’re going to lose 1% of your bet each hour. Over time that accumulates, but here’s the trick—somewhere along the line to that 1%, you’re probably going to be up.
Now that’s not always the case, but it’s the case often enough to make a difference. The casino only wins if you keep playing.
However, if you play until you get up, and then you walk away, you have effectively short circuited their strategy.
Now the same applies for losing. Sometimes, you just need to give up and walk away from the table before things get worse. Unlike most professions, gamblers don’t exactly have an hourly rate. I think it would be more accurate to say you have an average weekly rate. So if you find yourself down a certain amount while playing, it’s probably best to cut your losses and walk away before things get worse.
And again, here’s where those house edges and averages come into play. The truth is that over time, you’re going to keep going up and down, you’re going to have an ebb and flow to how much you win and lose. Having a large pile of cash allows you to absorb losses and keep playing until you inevitably win again.
So, What Should I Play?
Now we’re getting into the nitty gritty of this thing. If you have a serious pile of cash and patience, the next step is to find the right game to play.
Become A Professional Sports Gambler
I’m going to bring up the house edge again because that should be one of the main things you consider when choosing what game to play. The games with the worst edge for the house are the best for you. You’re going to be much more successful at this playing games like blackjack or poker than you are playing something like roulette.
Keep Fun in MindYou need to play something that you’re going to enjoy, and I think this is something a lot of people don’t really think about either when they think about gambling for a living. Sure, you can play real money blackjack all day and possibly make some money, especially if you have a card counting system and a betting system, but what if blackjack bores you to tears?
Are you really going to play a game that’s boring hour after hour, day after day, week after week, if it takes a huge pile of cash to keep playing it and has some serious ups and downs?
No. Probably not.
I think this is the main reason that you see so many people playing poker for a living. Poker is a lot different from some of the other games where the house edge is low (like craps) because there’s so much going on, and there’s a psychological game happening alongside the actual game.
You’re playing against different people, the characters you play against can be interesting and strange, you can make friends, and each hand is different. Blackjack can get seriously repetitive, but poker, with its variety of hands and ongoing banter, can be quite entertaining.
You’re Probably Going to Have to Move Around a Lot
This is something else that I think a lot of people don’t really consider—casinos aren’t exactly super happy to have you hanging around their place and taking their money.
No, they aren’t going to beat you up or anything like that, but they can absolutely kick you out if they catch on to the fact that you’re winning too much.
You might think this is unfair, but the fact of the matter is that these are private businesses, and they can essentially do whatever they want. You don’t get a choice in the matter, so if you want to keep winning and keep money in the bank, you have to play by their rules.
What that means for the professional gambler is that you have to spend time moving from casino to casino. This is why most professional gamblers go to a gambling mecca like Las Vegas or Macau and live there permanently. It makes a lot of financial sense, and it’s easy to just walk or drive from one casino to the next as you work each day.
Trying to do this in a smaller city with only a single casino is probably going to end up with you banned from that casino and your career over before it really began.
Conclusion
Sure, it’s possible that you can make a living gambling, but for the vast majority of people, it’s not really an option, and even for the folks for whom it is an option, it’s probably not going to be much fun.
Are there any angles I forgot to explore here? Let me know in the comments.
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