What is the one mistake you wish you could go back and avoid when gambling?

[AaronHorvat]

Hello everyone,

I wanted to start a discussion and hear some honest stories from fellow gamblers. Looking back, what is the one mistake you wish you could go back and avoid when it comes to gambling?

It could be a bad decision at the table, chasing losses when you knew you should not, mismanaging your bankroll, or even just ignoring your gut feeling. We have all had those “I wish I had done that differently” moments, and sharing them might help others avoid the same pitfalls.

I will share mine once a few of you do. I am curious to hear your experiences and what you learned from them.

 

[SYPlayer95]

You've sort of gone about this the wrong way.

You'd get more traction if you shared your experience and then others that could relate are likely to share their experience as well.

Rather than a 'I'll tell if you tell'.

 

[geordiecolin]

The biggest mistake that I have made that I wish I hadn't was to think it fun to join every casino I could just to take their welcome bonus. I did this over a year or more and my rtp hit the floor.
These days I rarely take a bonus and restricting my play to a hand full of sites has vastly improved my spending for many years.

 

[Webzcas]

Easy to answer. Not to have reversed any of my historical withdrawals

 

[philderby]

About 9 years ago a factory I worked at for just under a decade closed. I was claimant UC for housing and living costs after that. This one night I was up late (as I didnt have any work commitments to get up for) and my UC payment went in my bank in the early hours. Now I always paid the rent immediately, and the rent included electric and gas so they were taken care of. Iirc I had something like £250 maybe £280 for the month. Easily enough to live on if I was sensible about it.

Most months were the same id say to myself 'just have £20, it wont make much difference'. I lost the £20, then deposited the rest and wasnt lucky on this occasion.

If this happened before then I would eek out what I had in the cupboard, drink black tea and wait for the day of the week that the church would hand out a food parcel.

This time I had nothing in at all and it was a good 3/4 days till I could go to the church for a food parcel. Strangely out of pride I would explore any solution other than go to family for help, and they knew I was getting hundreds of pounds a month from UC to support myself too.

I found that the Sikh community will happily feed anyone 7 days a week regardless of age, sex, religion or beliefs if you are respectful, wash your hands and cover your head. In their eyes nobody should go without food. Everyone sits on the floor to promote equality.

It was a cold rainy spring morning and I hadnt eaten for many hours so I started walking the 3 miles to the other side of town to go to the main sikh temples langar hall (thats the name of the community kitchen).

Got there and was cold and wet after walking for 50 minutes in light rain and didnt want to go in at first. it was a quiet monday and I walked in and asked an elderly indian fella if I could in fact eat? He shooed me out saying I have to take my shoes off first and cover my head before I come in!

Once I did that I was given a bowl of lentils, some chapattis and half a mug of tea. Sat in this nearly empty langar hall cold, wet and hungry thinking 'I'm probably going to have to do this every day this month' I decided id never ever risk food money ever again!

Im glad to say since that day I haven't made that mistake again. It shows the levels i used to go to not to bother friends and family for cash or food if I gambled too much!

Last little bit - these days I buy more milk than I need because of how many times I would normalize drinking black tea and coffee!

 

[slot_zombie]

Epic story that! Following on from the milk comment I got so sick and tired of running out of milk or the damn stuff just going sour. I bought a Dolce Gusto pod machine and now am free of milk related drama. Always stay well supplied from online discount pod shops so no worries on that front.

 

[andysbetting1187]

Weirdly, I wouldn't change anything. I have had some extremley profitable sessions over the years, coupled with some very dark times (2 failed marriages, lost a couple of properties in divorce settlements, been skint to the point where payday loan companies won't even touch you) - but I genuinley wouldnt change any of it. I needed the lows to get some stability back and appreciate more what I have and what I can do with the money I earn.

Im happy at home now, no real stress (apart from the usual work stuff) but have a beautiful 4 year old son with my new mrs. If I changed something early on with regards to gambling, I might not have what I do now.

 

[AaronHorvat]

You've sort of gone about this the wrong way.

You'd get more traction if you shared your experience and then others that could relate are likely to share their experience as well.

Rather than a 'I'll tell if you tell'.

I wanted to open up a conversation about the mistakes we have made while gambling and what we have learned from them. Looking back, the one mistake I wish I could go back and avoid was chasing my losses.

There was a time when I had a bad run and instead of accepting the loss and walking away, I convinced myself I could win it all back if I just kept playing. Of course, that only led to losing even more. It taught me a tough lesson about controlling emotions and knowing when to stop.

Now, I always set clear limits before I start and stick to them no matter what happens. It is much easier said than done, but discipline is everything in gambling.

 

[philderby]

I wanted to open up a conversation about the mistakes we have made while gambling and what we have learned from them. Looking back, the one mistake I wish I could go back and avoid was chasing my losses.

There was a time when I had a bad run and instead of accepting the loss and walking away, I convinced myself I could win it all back if I just kept playing. Of course, that only led to losing even more. It taught me a tough lesson about controlling emotions and knowing when to stop.

Now, I always set clear limits before I start and stick to them no matter what happens. It is much easier said than done, but discipline is everything in gambling.

It took me a long time to understand gambling should be entertainment and nothing more!

 

[dunover]

My worst mistake was starting in the first place. So basically the first coin I ever put in a coin slot.

 

[andysbetting1187]

My worst mistake was starting in the first place. So basically the first coin I ever put in a coin slot.

I get that mate I really do, but if you had not done that, you might never have landed here/been a foundation for the community/helped countless people etc.

I am a firm believer in "everything happens for a reason" - although I do sit there sometimes thinking:

1. Why has god put me with my current mrs
2. Why has Cheryl Cole not yet declared her undying love for me
3. Why does my Mrs not understand just how bad man-flu actually is - it is 100% a medically reognised illness

 

[TheAddict]

Taking on BOD on 1line/2p spins with a what can possibly go wrong mentality to pass time while stuck at home.

 

[Roll_TheDiceX]

Chasing losses when I knew I should have stopped. Blew way more than I intended and it took weeks to recover. Lesson learned: walk away while ahead or at least break even.

 

[Jono777]

Taking on BOD on 1line/2p spins with a what can possibly go wrong mentality to pass time while stuck at home.

This is why I ultra rarely play reduced lines.

That full screen of explorer is 100% popping out when I play 1 line 1p spins

 

[lukey141]

Biggest mistake? Winning on my first go

First time ever I turned a £100 welcome bonus on Rise of Olympus into £1500 that I was able to cash out

I should have left there and never touched a slot again. Instead I naturally thought to myself I could run it up further and as it was winnings already what was the harm. £1500 became £0 became a lot less than £0.

I have a rough idea how much I'm down lifetime and it's depressing to think about and it all stemmed from that first time.

 

[sufferinsilence]

This is why I ultra rarely play reduced lines.

That full screen of explorer is 100% popping out when I play 1 line 1p spins

Yeah, I had a full line of Rich on BOD on a line I wasn't playing...

But sometimes I go Billy Big Bollox and play €1 or €2 1 line Book of Ra after I had a big win, needless to say those are usually short sessions but I've also had full screens (sadly not of any premium).

Back on topic: accepting those 100 "free spins" because a bookie I played sportsbets at opened their casino. Turned out I had to wager the winnings, which turned into a pretty decent cashout and well... everyone knows how that goes. Nearly 10 years later, I know that's not that long for a decent part of the users on the forum, I'm still a regular player.

My 2nd biggest mistake would be winning close to €5k on Bonanza just to give it all back within a months time. Suffice to say that hasn't happened since. That was a serious wake-up call! I detoxed from Bonanza, high stakes and being an idiot without deposit limits.

My advice is when you have a big win: do something with (part of) the money. A Christmas present (even if it's only March), that pair of pants that's actually outside your usual price range, a night at a fancy hotel,... Doesn't matter what, just don't let it all flow back into the casinos or bookies

 

[lockinlove]

Depositing on Gamdom

 

[Nate]

My biggest mistake is getting bored playing the slots that are usually profitable to me.

Big DOA fan here - but DOA can be as boring as watching paint dry. So you explore, end up on Pragmatic Play and regret the day you started playing their games.

Because punishment isn't enough, you need repeated beatings. And 1.3 billion spins to prove their games aren't gimped

Eventually, You don't feel the pain anymore... And every session you ask yourself WHY...

 

[spindoctor99]

Years ago I was at the local casino, lost the cash I had on me, withdrew more money and lost that. I then waited until midnight had ticked over and withdrew a further $1k from the ATM and proceeded to lose that on the pokies as well. At the time I lived about 10km's from the city and taxi's didnt accept atm cards back then. Unable to get out more cash until the next day I had to walk the 10km's home in the pouring rain at 4am. I was a special kind of stupid back then. I would like to say I learnt my lesson but I guess I really liked walking.

 

[spindoctor99]

Depositing on Gamdom

At least it was only $1,700 and not $17,000.