The Lesser of Two Evils

READ MORE: Cleveland Plain Dealer, Gambling, Horse Racing, Sports Betting

Cleveland Plain Dealer columnist Bob Roberts tells an all-too-familiar tale of getting caught up in the maddening(yet invigorating) world of sports betting. After too many tough losses, Roberts now just plays the horses because he couldn’t stand wasting so much time waiting on sports game outcomes. He chose horse racing simply because he can find out the winner of a race in less than two minutes. Regardless, he tells an amusing story of his time as a rabid sports bettor and the flurry of emotions when things go horribly wrong:

The agony of some of my wagering defeats hastened my retirement from sports wagering. I once bet an NBA game “under,” meaning the total combined points couldn’t exceed a certain number - say, 200 points. The score was 85-75 with a couple of minutes to go and I was counting my money. Then the trailing team got hot and sent the game not only into overtime, but double overtime. Yeah, I lost.

There was a New Year’s Day when I bet all four of the traditional bowl games - Cotton, Orange, Rose and Sugar - and lost them all. I watched every tortuous minute of play. When one of my players was tackled just short of the goal line in the evening game, I swung my arm down in disgust with such force, that my watch flew off my wrist, hit the wall and broke.

Sports Betting Horse of Different Color [Cleveland Plain Dealer]