Professional gambling might seem like an easy-money occupation. But that is a bit illusory. In fact, becoming a professional gambler is more like a hard way to make an easy living.
Even when you do have an edge – and finding that edge is integral to gambling for a living – you’re still dealing with downswings, people who wish you weren’t in action, and the need to remain extremely disciplined while under intense pressure.
When it comes to gambling in America, Las Vegas is the undisputed capital. It’s got great casinos, fantastic restaurants, cool nightclubs, and stage shows that are good enough to pull you away from the tables.
But Sin City, locked into the desert, lacks a beach, an ocean, and views of the rollicking waves. For those things, gamblers visit Atlantic City, a place that is the setting for both the game of Monopoly and the crime-centered HBO series Boardwalk Empire.
There are lots of ways to strike it rich in a casino. Go on a major blackjack run. Hit a roulette longshot. Crush a World Series of Poker tournament. But for sheer excitement, it’s tough to beat the exhilaration that comes from putting chump change into a slot machine, pressing a button, and suddenly being rewarded a princely sum.
Walk into most any casino, most anywhere in the world, from Atlantic City to Monte Carlo to Macau, and you will see wall-to-wall gamblers. They play the same games, adhere to the same rules, and generally have a blast.
A few might win, most will lose, and the casino will profit by an expected percentage. For the most part, these people are recreational players, out for a good time and a good gamble. Casino bosses love them.
Everyone loves to gamble. But the unfortunate fact of life is that our top casino games are meticulously designed to favor the house.
Unless you’re the kind of hyper-focused person who deploys an advantage playing strategy that allows gamblers to turn the tables, tilt the odds and out-house the house – those people and their techniques centerpiece my new book Advantage Players – you will essentially pay to play.
