Sports betting as a Profession...
 

Anyone care to share their stories?

How did you get started?

How did you get that big of a bankroll to be able to start? (I know I could never do it as a profession because I will never have a large enough Bankroll)

Do you enjoy making this your life or is it really a grind for you?

Anything else to add, please do. Even if you are not a professional and just want to share that is ok as well.

Re: Sports betting as a Profession...
 

If you are from the U.S., the lack of pinny is going to kill you. I know two people who made a career doing this by taking out $100K loans and making most of their cash off arbs and middles.

Re: Sports betting as a Profession...
 

Oh where is "The well" thread this week?

I just bet for fun... make it more exciting to watch the scoreboard [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

Re: Sports betting as a Profession...
 

I mean actual "gambling" not arbing or middles. Although, I would like to know how those people got enough money to be able to arb for a living.

I know if I went to the bank I am pretty sure they wouldnt let me take out a $50k loan for arbing [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

Re: Sports betting as a Profession...
 

They took out student loans

Re: Sports betting as a Profession...
 

From my time lurking this forum, I'd estimate a majority don't really bet / watch (or even know how to play) sports. I'd say the most it is for them is finding arbs and making an extremely small profit relative to the amount they're wagering. The rest just make retarded -EV parlays. Only seen a handful of real quality guys on here.

I got my start betting on baseball about 15 years ago, now I bet a couple different sports to generate a nice side income, nothing too serious but it's still very rewarding.

Re: Sports betting as a Profession...
 

I'd say it's next to impossible to make a living sports gambling.

To do so, you would have to have a lot of contradictory traits. First off, you'd have to have the risk aversion to size your bets properly. Then you'd have to have the patience to pick and choose proper bets.

Seems to me most people with those traits find themselves better off looking for arbs and middles. I hope to make A living off sportsbetting (not my living), and I have my own method. I believe it's mathematically sound but I'm sure i'm 90% likely to fail.

Re: Sports betting as a Profession...
 

why can't one arb/middle and handicap? come on man

Re: Sports betting as a Profession...
 

they can.

Re: Sports betting as a Profession...
 

lightem,

There's more money made in small market inefficiencies than in handicapping. You can get a nice living of >100k a year betting obvious line errors (well obvious to you) and arbing for 20 hours a week, which is much less stressful and easier.

Re: Sports betting as a Profession...
 

thremp- 100 k + without pinny?

Re: Sports betting as a Profession...
 

http://img204.imageshack.us/img204/8123/67125688jb0.jpg
I hope they won't ban me, I am a die-hard fan of SIA.

Re: Sports betting as a Profession...
 

[ QUOTE ]
thremp- 100 k + without pinny?

[/ QUOTE ]

Of course not.

Re: Sports betting as a Profession...
 

[ QUOTE ]
http://img204.imageshack.us/img204/8123/67125688jb0.jpg
I hope they won't ban me, I am a die-hard fan of SIA.

[/ QUOTE ]


What does that have to do with anything? You coulda made those bets elsewhere and won just as much...Anyone can make a living sportsbetting if they're 10/10 on most days.

Re: Sports betting as a Profession...
 

Started out as an employee at a book and watched how the smart money worked and tried to learn as much as possible through working and reading sites like this. I left the job to pursue as many poker and casino bonuses as possible and tried to build a br to scalp. It's not easy with living expenses etc. but was able to get into the arb scene with a mate a few years ago. We were able to do OK betting the weak side of arbs and hedging back to low risk at stupidly good prices. Unfortunately we couldnt really make good with the 2 of us so I left to try find an investor.

It's not easy, a bank won't touch it without any assets to back you up, but I managed to find some well bankrolled pro handicappers who thought what I had to say sounded good and supplied all the bullets needed for a 50/50 split.

It goes alright, monitoring markets and picking off weaknesses, betting as much as possible and hedging back to an accepted risk. I bet across all sports around the clock, about 60 hours per week. It's definately changed over the last year. Gone are the days when you can get a good scalp betting both sides at once, and some of the major books have drastically stepped up their limiting policies. Those mass spamming arb service sites are churning new arbers through these books at low limits who race to get their $100 bets in. At the start it was all about picking off the abvious weak numbers when they were there, now most of it is predicting line moves and being onto info, betting at mostly solid books and exchanges. Lots of back now and lay later. Fortunately I'm not in USA so still got pinny and access to many good outs that US citizens don't.

I enjoy doing it and my share pays better than working for any books, and it's taught me to have thick skin. To do it right, 50K downswings can and do happen, and speculating moves means you can be put in some bad spots. I see this lasting another year before I'm sick of it and/or it becomes too tough, so looking to move more into the handicapping, modelling side, or at least combine some of that to blind market play. At the moment I'm bottom barrel sports bettor, tailing in on the guys who can beat the lines straight up.

It's a tough game to get into. Big bankroll is required not only for the swings but to have enough money where it is needed and also keeping transactions to a minimum to save costs. I've been immersed in sports betting markets for the last 7 years and still get it wrong often enough.

Re: Sports betting as a Profession...
 

They will once you're up 25k. Exactly 25k.

Re: Sports betting as a Profession...
 

[ QUOTE ]
Oh where is "The well" thread this week?

[/ QUOTE ]

We've been doing The Well every Wednesday morning. I've got a PM in to the guy ready to take his turn to make sure he's ready to be thrown in. Once I hear from him, we'll get underway...

Previous episodes of The Well:
http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/sh...Number=9204073