The other pages on this website show how you can make money by gambling.  If done sensibly gambling can be fun and profitable.   However its easy for things get out of control.  Follow these simple commandments (all ten of them!) and you wont go far wrong - they are tried and tested.  Some of them will be difficult at first but if you get into the habit then smart gambling will save you money and will increase your enjoyment.  They do work.

• Flatbetting - In gambling you will have good and bad days - treat those both in exactly the same way.   If you have a bad day don't try to recover your losses by increasing your stakes.   Get into a habit of "flatbetting" i.e. using the exactly same stake on each bet no matter what.   You can easily track your performance, and if you are successful increase your stakes gradually as you "build your bankroll".  If you can't win constantly then don't move up the stakes until you prove to yourself that you have an edge.  This Commandment applies to Sportsbetting, Casinos, and Poker and is key to smart betting.
   
• Head not Heart - Its amazing at how often fans put bets on their favourite teams and bet against the teams they hate.  Just go onto any fans forum and you will see this in action.   Don't do this.   You are betting with your heart not your head and you will often bet poor odds just because it is "your team".   Get into the habit of not doing it.

• Make sure you have an edge - Always bet with knowledge.  I saw on a sports forum a guy who put a bet on a Swedish football match with no knowledge whatsoever about the team or any Swedish football.  He put the bet on because it was the only bet he could find that day with odds greater than 5/1.   He lost.     Only bet on things you have studied so you have some edge on the betting site.

• Don't be fooled by Tipsters-  What do they know that the bookies don't?  Watch for vague tips like "I fancy X to beat Y tonight".  If the tipster doesn't give a good reason that the bet has an edge then ignore him.  Even worse, if you take a tip from a mate which loses you could end up losing your "mate".   Friendships can be destroyed by following of your pals tips.  Likewise never tip your choices to others - you may get them into a nasty situation if they go in over their head based on your tip.

• Gamblers Ruin - This is when you think that (say in roulette) red has come up 5 times in a row so "it must be time for black to come up".  Wrong.  The roulette wheel has no memory - it is totally irrelevant that happened in previous spins.  The odds that red or black will come up are the same on every spin.

• "Betting Systems" - The most famous gambling system is the Martingale, where you keep on doubling your bets on (say) red on roulette.  In theory this is correct - sooner or later red will indeed come up.  However there are two practical reasons why you will eventually lose:  firstly, all bookies and casinos have bet limits: if you reach your bet limit before red comes up, then you lose a bundle.  Secondly, you may go bust before red comes up again.   Martingales are for amateurs - pros would never use them.
   
• Don't get into competition with your pals.  If they have a good win they will be quick to let you know but don't go out to try and match them.  Just like you, they will have good and bad days, but they won't brag so much about their bad days so don't be fooled into thinking they are "ahead" of you.   Don't treat gambling like a macho competition - treat it as a hobby.

• Check your well-being - are you going to bed angry?    Usually it means you are betting at too high stakes, so back-off to a lower stake and build back up from there.  Don't let gambling affect your families happiness.  Read through the gambleaware website every now and then.   If it isn't fun, then give up - you are not a professional gambler so don't let it upset you - your family will notice.

• Do you sweat the game?    Don't bet more that you can afford to lose.   You can get as much enjoyment winning a $10 bet on a game as winning a £50 bet and if you lose $10 it is a lot easier to take than losing $50.

• Poker Players - Bad beats happen so take it on the chin and laugh about it.   If you are following Commandment 1 then you should be playing within your limits anyway so its nothing to get upset about, but if you start chasing your losses by betting more you will be caught by a shark.
   
• Shop for odds - The differences in odds for your selection between bookies can be huge.   Make sure you have a choice of bookies so you can get the best deal.   This is easy online - you just need to open accounts with different bookies so you can shop for the odds.  Usually the best odds are in Exchanges like Betfair, but not always.