Second Chance First Wager

With the legalization of sports wagering taking the nation by storm, I’ve been getting more and more emails regarding window etiquette.  It seems as though many of you out there are unsure of what to say and where to go when you walk into the sports book.  Not to worry, I totally understand!  Much like public speaking, walking up to another live person, saying your bet out loud, and then laying money down on it can be an intimidating experience.  These emails took me back, as I recall my own first wager, it’s amusing to think back on where I went wrong, and the anxiety I felt when approaching the window!  Now the whole experience is so second nature to me, and with a little practice, it will be to you as well!

“You Never Get A Second Chance, To Make A First Wager”

The first wager I ever made was on a Duke game.  Duke / North Carolina (UNC) to be exact, the most famed rivalry in college basketball.  I was about 23 years old.  A longtime fan and basketball junkie, I was positive that Duke was going to hammer the Tar Heels on their home court.  So, I decided to make a bet on it.  I’ll go through the entire 45 second interaction step by step to clearly explain what went wrong on that fateful day.

I approached the window feeling nervous.  Not nervous about betting on the Duke win, nervous that I was going to say or do something wrong and look like an idiot!  Looking back now, and interacting with the countless number of ticket writers that I have, I realize that my anxiety about talking to them was ridiculous.  These people see hundreds of bettors a day, and MOST of them ARE idiots!  The point is, that even if you do something dumb, you’re not the first or last person to do it that day, and the ticket writer is not going to remember… they don’t care!

I told the ticket writer that I would like to take Duke for $10.  Right out of the gate, I screwed it up!  There are literally hundreds of sports happening on any given day, the ticket writers do not use the team’s names to input them into the computer, they use what’s called a “rotation number” or “betting number.”  If you look up at the big light bright board, just to the left of your team’s name, there will be a number, usually a three-digit number; this is how you communicate to the ticket writer the team you would like to wager on! So instead of saying “I’d like to take Duke,” I should have said “I’d like to take 624 (or whatever the number on that day is).”

My first mistake was not actually in saying “Duke,” that was my second mistake. The first mistake was not retrieving a Betting Sheet or looking up at The Board before approaching the window.  As soon as you get to the sports book, find the area where they keep all of the betting sheets, you usually can’t miss them, they want you to find those things, you literally need them! If I would have had a betting sheet on me, I may have realized that asking for Duke, with a rotation number or not, was not actually the bet that I was trying to make.  In my head, I was making a wager that Duke would win the game, but had I looked (and understood) the betting sheet, I may have realized that particular match-up was not offering a Money Line.

The Money Line is where you wager on who you think will win the game straight up, but in match-ups where one team clearly favors the other, you must take a Point Spread.  I was completely unaware that buying a wager on Duke also came with minus ten points off their final score! If Duke only won by nine points, I lost the bet!  This wager was not my intention and cost me the $10 at the final buzzer!  It’s imperative that you know exactly what you are betting on, and how to properly bet on it!

The final blunder in this circus was not checking my ticket.  As you relay your picks to the ticket writer, the wager will pop up on a screen.  Paying attention to this screen is of crucial importance because it’s telling you what you are wagering on in real time.  Odds may have changed, point spreads may have changed, money lines may have changed; this is what they are RIGHT NOW, and if it’s not what you were thinking, this is your chance to say never mind and lay off the game (or wait for a better number).  Even after the tickets have been printed, it never hurts to look over them and make sure that everything is legit, again, this is your LAST OPPORTUNITY to change your mind, once you leave the window those tickets have been bought, and the sports book does not do refunds! It’s written right there on your ticket!

Looking back now, I can laugh at my novice experience.  Not just in remembering my ignorance, but how nervous and anxious I was to walk up to the window and make the bet.  After more than ten years of making wagers I can promise you that the first bet is your hardest one, it’s all downhill from there.  It never hurts to go with a friend, or to tell the ticket writers that you’re new at this and ask for some help.  You’ll find they’re mostly a friendly bunch, and part of their job is to help you make the bet you’re looking for, and if you do make a mistake, I promise, they’re not judging you.  Be friendly, honest, and with a little confidence, you’ll be a natural in no time.