Copyright 1994 by Scott Hays
Magazine: Men's Fitness
Topic: The Gambler
Byline: Scott Hays

Bobby had such a hot hand at the blackjack table that he forgot he was "slumming" in a casino in Indio, California. In just under six hours, he'd raked in more than $10,000 after starting with only six $100 bills. "I've got enough bank to pay off a few outstanding debts, including my trucks," he boasted. "Hit me again."

Bobby felt like a million bucks. He was so far ahead that he decided to bankroll the game. "Hell, it's only money," he said.

Wanna bet?

By the time Bobby left the casino four hours later, he had blown the entire wad and $500 more he bummed off a buddy. Compulsive gambler or simply a risk taker? Sometimes it's hard to tell the difference. One thing's for sure, though: Gambling is a costly habit that can ruin the lives of people who have it as well as those around them.

Lowering the odds

Fifty-one percent of American adults now find casino gambling acceptable , according to a survey commissioned by Harrah's Casinos. Even if you don't gamble, it's hard to resist the narcotic effects of casinos in Las Vegas or Atlantic City (some of which bill themselves more as family amusement centers than as gambling houses). And with state and local governments becoming increasingly dependent on gambling revenues, don't look for the ubiquitous legal lotteries, card houses and gambling meccas to be outlawed or curtailed any time soon.

Americans wagered $394 billion in 1993, an increase of 214 percent over 1982's $126 billion, according to New York-based International Gaming & Wagering Business, a trade publication serving the legal gaming industry. State and municipal lottery sales in 1993 hit $31 billion. According to another study, more people made first-time trips to casinos last year than to major league ballparks. And in less than five years, 95 percent of all Americans will live within a three- or four-hour drive of a casino.

As it is, lotteries, harness racing, card games, dice, sports wagering, riverboat gambling, football pools and bingo all increase the risk of becoming a compulsive gambler, according to the experts. Whereas it once took 20 years for someone to develop a serious gambling problem, these days the progression is much quicker. "It takes only two or three years before people need help," says Edward Looney, executive director of the New Jersey Council on Compulsive Gambling.

"We're making gambling legally and socially acceptable, and we're burning a lot of people," says Arnie Wexler, who runs a Bradley Beach, New Jersey, private counseling firm specializing in compulsive gambling behavior. "You can go into a store where you buy milk and bread and be in a gambling establishment. It's exploding."

Tipping your hand

Not everyone who drinks is an alcoholic. Not everyone who plays "twenty-one" has a gambling problem. The difference is that a compulsive gambler eventually becomes willing to risk everything—his home, his family, even his children's milk money—to fuel his habit. He begins lying about his gambling, and may borrow and steal money to pay off gambling debts.

A person who doesn't have a gambling problem expects to lose and never bets the pink slip to his car. Often, he plays merely to enjoy the free drinks or the casino ambiance. Too bad the distinction isn't always so clear. When Michael Jordan accumulated tens of thousands of dollars in betting losses and was spotted gambling in an Atlantic City casino the night before a 1993 NBA playoff game, rumors about his being a compulsive gambler flew. But, by definition, gambling addicts will continue racking up losses when they can't pay their debts. Jordan could fund his losses many times over, even though the sum was larger than the average American's annual income. Does that mean he doesn't have a gambling problem? Tough to say.

The guy who binge-drinks each weekend may be able to walk away from booze any time he wants; he may even be able to stop at one drink whenever he decides to. Still he doesn't. He has a problem, though it doesn't necessarily meet the strict definition of addiction. The same is true for gambling.

Gambling addiction is shared by an estimated 12 million people in the United States, or roughly 3 to 5 percent of the population, mostly men, according to New Jersey Council on Compulsive Gambling statistics. Most guys begin the betting ritual at about age 17 through football pools or Friday night poker games. In fact, studies indicate that 6 to 8 percent of college students are likely to be odds junkies. Durwood Jacobs, clinical psychology professor at Loma Linda University in Southern California, predicts that gambling will be the fastest-growing addiction among kids in the '90s.

Upping the ante

Bill first noticed he had a problem as a teenager. He'd flip baseball cards for pennies and bet on high school football games with friends. He liked the way the other boys treated him with respect when he was winning. Over the years, he never became a big-numbers player, but he didn't hesitate to gamble away his paycheck, either. "I wasn't seeing another woman or screwing up at work, but I was betting a lot on horses and sports," he says. My wife finally said I couldn't see the baby if I kept gambling." That's when he sought help.

The most effective treatment combines joining Gamblers Anonymous, making full restitution and finding constructive gambling substitutes. "It's not curable, but it can be arrested," Wexler says. "Compulsive gamblers always feel the next day is going to usher in that big win that solves all of their financial problems. If I bought a lottery ticket today and it said I won a free ticket, I know my head would say, 'Your luck has changed,' and I'd end up back in a casino tomorrow."