Common Myths about Gambling

Compare these myths to reality:

• If I keep gambling, my luck will change and I'll win back the money I've lost.

  Each time you place a bet, the outcome is completely independent of the previous one. This means that the odds are no more in your favour on the tenth bet than they were on the first bet. Over time, the more you risk, the more you’ll lose. 

• I almost won; I must be due for a win.

  "Almost" winning in no way means that a real win is around the corner. Future gambling outcomes are in no way influenced by previous outcomes. 

• If I play more than one slot machine or in more than one poker game at a time, I'll increase my chances of winning.

  Sure, you may win more often by playing two slot machines or poker games at a time, but make no mistake about it: You’ll also spend—and ultimately lose—more doing so. Remember, over time, the more you gamble, the more you’ll lose. 

• If I see a certain card coming up frequently in a poker game, I should bet on it because chances are it will come up again very soon.

  There are 2.6 million possible hands in a deck of 52 cards. Since each hand is independent of the last, the chance of one card coming up again once it's already appeared is no more (or less) likely than that of any other card. 

• I have a special strategy that helps me win. I pick certain numbers for the lottery and press the stop button on a slot machine at exactly the right time.

  The outcome of most games of chance, particularly lotteries and slot machines, is completely random: You cannot influence it, regardless of what you do. For lotteries, this means that betting the same numbers every week won't help you win any more than betting different numbers will. The odds of winning Lotto 6/49, for example, are 1 in 14 million each and every time you play: It doesn’t matter how many people have purchased tickets or what numbers you play—the odds are the same, regardless.

  Whether or not you win playing slot machines is based solely on the randomly drawn numbers generated by the machine’s computer—numbers which determine the game’s outcome even before the reels stop. Pressing the stop button may speed up when you find out what the game’s outcome is, but it won’t influence what that outcome is in any way.

• I have a feeling that today is my lucky day. I just know I’m going to win.

  Hoping, wishing or even needing to win money has absolutely no influence on the outcome of a game of chance.