We all see threads on bad beats, time and time again. Let's face it, they are going to happen to everyone who bets, not matter what the game is. It can be poker, blackjack, horse racing and in our case here, sports betting.
So, what is the best way to handle a bad beat? Yea, another one is coming to anyone who reads this unless you quit betting altogether, which is not likely going to happen. I just had a bad beat tonight which inspired me to write this. I once got the best advice from an old time professional gambler when I lived in Vegas. I was sitting in the old Stardust Race and Sportsbook and just took one of the worst beats a human being could take. To make a long story short, I had a bet on a baseball game and was leading by 8 runs, 9-1, going into the bottom of the 9th inning. I lost. I was livid. I was loudly cussing F bombs. Then the old timer sat down next to me, and calmly told me this. "They're going to happen, son, and you need to work on how you handle them". I looked at this guy like he had two heads. he then said "Look, I know that one hurt, but I'm going to tell you something that I want you to always remember" and went on to say "You lost by 1 run, doesn't matter how it happened, you still lost by 1. If you would had known it was going to be THAT close of an outcome, you probably would have bet another game. You see, bad beats are a result of bad handicapping, it should have never been that close, or you would not have bet the game, so see it as a mistake and bad handicapping."
So, with that advice from the old timer, I look at bad beats like a bad play. It never should have come down to that last shot, last field goal, last whatever, and in this specific case, inning, even though I had such a huge lead. Maybe I didn't know the bullpen was burnt from throwing the last 4 games in a row, which I found out later. So it goes to show, there are things you can miss that can cause a bad beat.
Next time it happens, see it as just another loss. Also, remember the ones you got away with.
So, what is the best way to handle a bad beat? Yea, another one is coming to anyone who reads this unless you quit betting altogether, which is not likely going to happen. I just had a bad beat tonight which inspired me to write this. I once got the best advice from an old time professional gambler when I lived in Vegas. I was sitting in the old Stardust Race and Sportsbook and just took one of the worst beats a human being could take. To make a long story short, I had a bet on a baseball game and was leading by 8 runs, 9-1, going into the bottom of the 9th inning. I lost. I was livid. I was loudly cussing F bombs. Then the old timer sat down next to me, and calmly told me this. "They're going to happen, son, and you need to work on how you handle them". I looked at this guy like he had two heads. he then said "Look, I know that one hurt, but I'm going to tell you something that I want you to always remember" and went on to say "You lost by 1 run, doesn't matter how it happened, you still lost by 1. If you would had known it was going to be THAT close of an outcome, you probably would have bet another game. You see, bad beats are a result of bad handicapping, it should have never been that close, or you would not have bet the game, so see it as a mistake and bad handicapping."
So, with that advice from the old timer, I look at bad beats like a bad play. It never should have come down to that last shot, last field goal, last whatever, and in this specific case, inning, even though I had such a huge lead. Maybe I didn't know the bullpen was burnt from throwing the last 4 games in a row, which I found out later. So it goes to show, there are things you can miss that can cause a bad beat.
Next time it happens, see it as just another loss. Also, remember the ones you got away with.
