I came across something quite strange the other week, when I noticed at a Rugby League game on the weekend, a group of supporters for the home team put together a kitty of about $50 each. One of the supporters then took this kitty to the TAB and placed a to win bet in the away team.

I asked them why they thought that the away team was a good bet (it was about $3.50), and they told me they didn't think that the away team would win. They informed me that they did not think the away team would win, or even that the odds were good. The bet was put on the away team as a "Bad Game Insurance". These guys reasoned that if their beloved team won, they'd be happy to lose the $50. But if the away team won, and they lost, at least they could pick up their winnings from the TAB and go to the RSL.

I've never heard of this before. Does anyone else use gambling like this as a kind of 'emotional insurance'? Should I have put a deuce on England to win the Rugby World Cup in the final so I wouldn't feel the pain so much when Australia lost? If I was betting not to make money, but for insurance, I would.

Is this a new thing? Are people so upset about their team losing that a winning bet eases the feeling of loss?

Nah, rather keep emotions out of betting. But that was a really strange thing to see.



[ This Message was edited by: jakelee on 2004-07-21 09:43 ]