If a bettor has been playing with a local bookie for years and has established a good working relationship with him, there isn’t any reason not to continue doing so. It’s always best to be able to deal with people face to face whenever possible.
If a bookie has a solid reputation for paying off on time… and with a smile, his players will continue working with him as opposed to sending money offshore to a sportsbook where they then have to wonder if their payout is ever going to arrive.
Bookies who had a reputation for treating clients badly and stiffing them when they won are most likely pursuing some other kind of business these days. Word gets around quickly and modern bettors simply will no longer tolerate that kind of behavior from a business associate. And that’s what the relationship really boils down to when all is said and done… it’s a business.
Gambling in general and sports gambling in particular does not suffer fools gladly. Make a foolish wager or a foolish move and you can lose it all in the blink of an eye.
If a player is unsure as to whether he is being taken advantage of by his bookie…be it local or offshore… there stands a good chance that he probably is.
Remember the old adage about playing poker… ’if you can’t spot the sucker at the card table, it’s probably you’. In the past some local bookmakers thought it to their advantage to mistreat their clients and take advantage at every turn. The level of transparency available these days in the wagering industry has pretty much put a stop to that as players are now able to see both sides of the picture thanks to the power of the Internet.
Long gone are the strong arm tactics once used by bookies in the old days to collect wagers from bettors who had fallen behind. Players today will simply not deal with anyone where the old threats are even hinted at.
Great care must be taken on both sides of the table where the use of credit is concerned. The best rule to remember is always ‘don’t wager if you don’t have the funds to pay off your bookie if you lose’. It sounds so simple… but, everyday bettors get themselves into trouble by placing bets with money that they don’t have. Just say no.
