Gambling is such a broad term that it would be nearly impossible to fully describe what gambling is without publishing a few volumes of books.
However, not many people have the time to read a series of books, so this article aims to bring out the essence of gambling, especially the ones which are based on casino gaming, to give you a basic idea of the fundamentals that constitute gambling.
What is Gambling?
A lot of people, including professional gamblers themselves, tend to let this question of “what is gambling?” slide past. Some do it because they lack knowledge of what makes gambling different from other forms of gaming. Others do it because they are too engrossed in the act of gambling to pay attention to answering questions.
Indeed, gambling is an immensely exciting and entertaining activity which has fascinated human beings since time immemorial.
Back in the old days, people of the ancient civilization would place bets on the elements of nature. They would try to predict the weather based on their knowledge of Mother Nature and the climate. These bets were probably the most primitive form of gambling.
Gambling has come a long way since those days. Today, we do not even need gambling houses or brick and mortar casinos to be involved in gambling. The internet contains a myriad of different gambling websites which offer an impressive range of gambling games.
Taking a Leap of Faith
There is a lot of approaches that you can take to understand what gambling really is. Some people try to unearth the origins of gambling in history. Others try to study the commercial and economical implications of gambling in our society. Then again, there are those who have a philosophical view of gambling.
Gambling, in the purest sense of the word, is taking a chance. Gambling means to take a risk, and put your faith on something that is clouded with uncertainty. If you think about it, sales can be considered a form of gambling. When you are selling something to someone, you are trying to achieve an outcome that may or may not occur in reality.
However, the uncertainty of the outcome does not stop you from investing resources, both financial and physical, in making sure that your sale attempts are a success.
Similarly, when you are gambling in a casino or online, you are investing a certain amount of money, which you hope will exponentially increase with your steady progress in the gambling games. Every time you earn a victory in gambling, your wealth increases significantly.
Gambling and Cards
Cards and gambling are synonymous. Whenever people think of cards, they think of gambling games that are based on cards such as poker. As a matter of fact, the most prominent and popular online gambling game in the world today is Blackjack.
One of the reasons why gambling games that are based on cards are so popular is because of the simplistic nature of cards. Most people become soften up to the notion of playing with cards at a very young age.
This is why, when we grow up and get introduced to new gambling games that are based on cards, it is not common for us to feel nervous or perplexed. Our basic instincts compel us to think that games involving cards are easy and can be easily mastered.
Although this is not true for every single gambling card game, but the number of card games that are easy to learn and understand certainly outweigh those that are complicated. The beauty of card games lies in how you can conveniently incorporate gambling into it and take gambling out of it.
Almost every card game can be turned into a gambling game as long as you place a bet on it and get money involved in the game. You can take the gambling out of cards, but you cannot take cards out of gambling. Indeed, cards and gambling go hand in hand.
Gambling and Sports
Gambling has its roots embedded in nearly every form of entertainment that you can think of. Here in the United Kingdom, sports betting constitutes a huge part of gambling. Sports betting is all about placing a bet on the outcome of a sporting event.
The outcome does not necessarily have to be the result of a race or the score of match. It can be the outcome of any incident that is associated with the sporting event.
- For example, you can take part in gambling that allows you to predict whether or not a certain football player will receive a yellow card during the course of the match. If you are not acquainted with sports betting, this may seem strange to you. However, bets such as these are gambling in its unadulterated and uncontaminated form.
Three Main Rules of Gambling
Before you get yourself involved in gambling, you should be wary of the three main rules of gambling:
- The first one is quite simple; you must have fun. Gambling without fun makes no sense. Gambling without fun is like an aquarium without any fish. Gambling without fun is like having food without any salt. In simple terms, the emotions of excitement, exhilaration, enjoyment, exuberance and ecstasy make gambling a form of entertainment.
- The second rule of gambling is a little more difficult to follow. It states that you must come out with more than you had at the start of the game. As much as it is about having fun, gambling can be pretty serious too, especially when it comes to money. There are people who literally make a decent living out of gambling. Gambling can be a form of employment if you are really good at it. Therefore, whenever you make a gamble, make sure that your chances of winning are maximized. To do this, you must develop your gambling skills and acquire extensive knowledge about the game.
- The third and the most important rule of gambling is that you should be at least 21 years old before you get involved in any sort of gambling activity. This is the legal gambling age in most places around the world and you are strongly advised to abide by this law.
