Life As A Professional Sports Gambler: The Cons
We understand why the idea of making a regular and consistent income from betting on sports can be very appealing. It might seem like a great way to earn money, and in many ways it certainly is. Assuming you have the necessary skills and attributes, it can be a fabulous way to making a living.
There are, without question, some significant advantages to being a professional sports gambler. You have the freedom to set your own hours, you don't have to answer to a boss, and your potential income can be substantial. We discussed even more pros in detail in a previous article.
You shouldn't quit your day job just yet though, as a full time betting career certainly has its share of downsides. You should definitely be aware of these if you're considering taking up sports betting as your profession. In this article we take a closer look at some of the main cons associated with being a professional sports gambler.
You Need A Large Bankroll
You'll need a very healthy bankroll if sports betting is your sole source of income. It needs to be large enough so that you can place wagers at the stakes that will provide you with the income you want, and it also needs to be able to withstand a long losing streak.
It doesn't matter how good your betting skills are, you aren't going to win every single bet you place. Even if you generally win far more often than you lose, there will be times when you don't get the result you want. If your bankroll isn't big enough to withstand a bad losing streak, your sports betting career could be cut very short.
Your Income May Be Uncertain
Sports betting offers plenty of potential to make a good income, but that income is never going to be a guarantee. As a professional sports gambler, you won't be able to rely on a paycheck coming in each and every month. Your income will fluctuate, depending on your results, and this might be a problem for you if you rely on the security of knowing how much money you have coming in and when.
You should also consider the fact that, with an uncertain income, you'll really need to have some savings tucked away. You need to be able to cover your living expenses if you go through periods when you're not making much money. Hopefully you won't encounter times like that too often, but even the best gamblers in the world have losing streaks, so you have to be prepared for them.
When you combine the need for a large bankroll with the need to have at least a couple of months' worth of living expenses saved up, it becomes clear that you need a significant amount of starting capital before you can even consider taking up betting as a full time job.
Betting For A Living Can Be Solitary
Life as a professional sports gambler can be a very solitary existence. Most of your time working will be spent on research, analyzing your records, developing strategies and systems, and placing your wagers. Unless you are part of a team, you'll be doing this alone in front of your computer.
This might not bother you at all of course, but it's something you have to consider. For one thing, it can be hard to stay motivated and focused when you're working on your own. It can also get lonely, which may negatively affect you if you're used to working with others and enjoy being around people. It ultimately comes down to your personality.
Placing Wagers Can Get Difficult
One of the biggest problems that professional sports gamblers face is actually placing their wagers. Bookmakers are commercial operations and they are out to make money. If you consistently make money from your betting, then you can expect to start seeing your accounts being closed. At the very least, you will be limited in terms of how much you can stake per wager.
At some point, this may result in you not being able to place the wagers you need to place. There are some ways you can try to work around this, but it can be very challenging and take up more of your time than is ideal.
As you can see, betting on sports for a living does have some significant downsides. The question is whether or not they are outweighed by the advantages, and the answer to that question isn't going to be the same for everyone. It really comes down to whether you think sports betting is the right option for you or not.
Before you can make that decision, you'll need to know if you have what it takes. In the next article of this series, we're going to look at the attributes and skills required to be a professional sports gambler.
