If Gambling Is All Probability, Why Aren’t Mathematicians The Richest People?

Photo by Chris Blonk
Reading Time: 3 minutes

As long as gambling has existed in any form, whether it be sports betting or table games, people have been trying to come up with creative and unique ways to beat the system. How to outsmart the system? How to get one up on the man? With a little bit of research, you’ll find that there is an immense library of strategies available. Whether you are a poker player or love the horses, you’ll find someone that offers a strategy to enhance your odds of winning. All this being said, most of these strategies come down to odds and probability. Given this information, you’d think that mathematicians or people with the ability to quickly calculate probabilities in their head would be taking advantage.

If Gambling Is All Probability, Why Aren’t Mathematicians The Richest People?
Photo by Chris Blonk

Psychologically Superstitious

This is simply because gambling is more than probabilities. Sure, it does have a lot to do with probabilities, but there is more to the whole concept than just knowing and being able to calculate the odds. There is the psychology end of things, and even the smartest mathematicians with the most impressive abilities are human. There are a lot of gamblers out there that don’t even play certain games based around the odds and probabilities. No, they take more a psychological approach, using other’s player’s superstitions against them. You’d be surprised to learn just how superstitious players are. Human psychology is a powerful thing and can be ever so powerful in gambling.

The Lack Of Satisfaction

There is simply no denying that scoring big wins on sites like bandar judi online is exciting. Scoring big wins in land-based casinos is just as exciting, but there can come a point when that excitement dies. The ambition and desire to win is about more than just money. Plenty of people have written papers and done studies about how counter-intuitive it is for gifted mathematicians to be drawn to a full-time gambling career. There is just much more intellectual sanctification and reward when you follow an academic path. Not only this, but the volatility must be considered. While it is possible to win big by calculating probabilities, it is also possible to lose big. Sometimes this is just too much for some people and they’d rather opt for a more stable career path.

Work In The Casino Industry

Another reason that a lot of mathematicians don’t chase the gambling bug is that they tend to work for the casinos themselves. That’s right, people that are really good at calculating odds and probabilities end up working for the casinos. They’ll be the ones behind the curtains making sure that certain individuals aren’t cheating. They’ll be the ones developing the algorithms for the software needed to scan for cheaters. On top of this, you’d be surprised to learn how much casinos are willing to pay them to do is. It is likely that they could earn more money doing this than actually taking the odds of gambling.

Conclusion

There is no denying that gambling is exciting and rewarding. However, it is only just that, gambling. For some individuals, this isn’t exciting enough. Not only this, but the thought of losing is enough to turn one’s stomach to force them into a different line of work. Some people that are good with odds and numbers had rather put those skills to use in other areas.


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