My First Bet
By Pamela Pompeii, Tue Jan 10th
The first time I ever made a bet I was sixteen years old. Ilooked a lot older than my age and I had no trouble placing thebet. I had saved up $500 I had earned at the Dairy Queen thatsummer. As my father was a gambler I knew all about the ponies.By the time I was 12 I knew how to handicap a racing form. Myfather had taught me. Those were the things that we talked aboutover dinner.
There was a horse that I had been following that summer. Thehorse's name was 'Don't Tell Helen'. The horse rarely won butalways seemed to place or show. For some reason I took a likingto this horse. Maybe it was because I liked the name? Or maybebecause the horse was always an underdog and I sympathized withit?
It was a Tuesday in September when I decided to place my firstbet. I cut school in the afternoon to go to the race track.'Don't Tell Helen' was running in the third race. The odds werestacked tremendously against the horse. It had been moved up inits class for this race. And everything my father had taught metold me that I should not bet on this horse in this race. Butsomething inside me, call it a hunch, told me to take the chance.
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So I bet my $500 on 'Don't Tell Helen' to show.
I didn't watch the race. I went inside to the bar and had a cupof coffee. When the race was over I checked the tote board.'Don't Tell Helen' had finished dead last. I ripped up my ticketand left the race track.
I wasn't angry. My father was a gambler and he had taught meeasy come - easy go. But I had learned my first valuable lessonin gambling.
Never go with your emotions. If it is a feeling or a hunch don'tfollow it. If you are going to gamble be a professional. Followa system and stick to it. And that is what I have done eversince.
Copyright 2005 Pamela Pompeii. All rights reserved.
About the author:Pamela Pompeii is the resident article writer forhttp://www.gambleonthis.com
