[ul]
[li]What skills and abilities are required of being a profitable bookie? [/li][li]Should I make contacts with large, muscular and intimidating men before trying to break into this business?[/li][li]On a related note, will it matter at all that I’m not physically imposing?[/li][li]Any secret techniques to getting people to pay up that may not be more publicly available (i.e. collection agencies)?[/li][li]Most importantly, how do bookies actually do what they do? That is, how do they calculate the odds that they assign each team/player/organization?[/li][/ul]
Anything else I’ve missed will of course be greatly appreciated, since I don’t even know what sorts of questions to be asking.
My understanding is that it’s like a pyramid. You won’t have your own independent bookie operation. You’ll sign on as a franchise with some other bookie, who’ll have connections with somebody else, who’ll know somebody else, and so on up the ladder. Your role in this operation will be to take bets, collect a share of the money, and pass the rest up the ladder. In turn, you’ll receive the money you’re paying out, get the “line” on what odds you should be offering, and receive some protection for what is probably an illegal business.
I’m pretty sure it not cool to ask about illegal activity.
I will say that from my experiences in real life you’re probably better off taking the quick route and just punching a cop because you’re gonna end up in jail anyway. You might get away with a nickle and dime operation but if you plan on making your living this way you’re gonna attract attention you don’t want pretty quickly.
All it takes is one guy in over his head who doesn’t want to pay and is willing to go to the cops to get out from under.
Look, I don’t know what kind of business you think I’m trying to run here, but the profession of odds setting and bookmaking is a vibrant, profitable and upstanding career choice for any individual that is interested in utilizing their outgoing and charismatic personality to do business with a rich and diverse clientele base.
Bookmaking is not illegal everywhere. Some soccer teams (outside of the USA) have gambling sites as sponsors. In Germany you can go to a machine in the pub and places bets during the games. Let’s not let our puritanical American ways influence a valid, vibrant and profitable career choice. Or she could become a hooker in Amsterdam.
ETA: Assuming CiB! is a she. If he’s a he then hooker is still a career option, I suppose.
I realize this thread may be in jest, but it still is a thread asking about help for something that is an illegal activity, so I’m going to shut it down.
I would imagine basic accounting skills like addition and subtraction, profit and loss, etc. Also, one should probably know something about assigning odds.
If you don’t, you’re sure to make contact with large, muscular and intimidating men when you do try to break in.
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That depends on how you deal with large, muscular and intimidating men.
Blackmail can be effective. Threats to health and welfare, or health and welfare of family members is traditional. Also, not taking new bets from people that already owe you is sensible loss mitigation. Murder should be reserved for the worst offenders, not only repeat deadbeats but ones who disrespect you.
That is an interesting question.
What is the best method of intimidation? What kinds of injuries are the most likely to lead to repayment of debt, without getting you in more serious problems? How does one simultaneously get publicity enough to get lots of clients while keeping a low enough profile/cover to not be arrested? Do the chicks prefer bookies who do their own intimidation, or are they fine with bookies who hire muscle for the dirty work?
Let’s assume it’s legal where you’re are, and forget the muscle stuff. (I can’t help you there, anyway; I’m a wimp.) Even so, you’ll need connections with bigger bookies. It’s a lot like insurance. Unless you’ve got tons of capital, you won’t be able to cover all your bets. You’ll need to lay some of them off with a bigger book, and get a line of credit for when you can’t or don’t.
Unless you’re taking really unusual prop bets, or bets on really local events (like high school football), setting odds shouldn’t be a problem. You’ll use odds set by others. If you deviate from those odds, you’ll lose business on the side which you give shorter odds, and you’ll open yourself up to a shit-ton of risk on the side you give longer odds. Just stick with the Vegas line.
Even though you’re legal, security will be important. You’re handling lots of cash and are vulnerable to robbery. Get good insurance, too. Don’t take bets on credit, and you won’t have to worry about collections. Beyond that, it’s mostly marketing and cash management.
A friend of mine is a very small time bookie to the back yard BBQ crew. He deals with the guy that likes to bet $5 or $10 a game. He won’t let anyone have a big line of credit and expects to settle up twice a month. I don’t think he nets more than a couple hundred dollars a week from the “juice”. A $10 per bet, I think $200 in juice is booking 200 bets at $10/bet
He only deals with NFL CFB and CBB and the big horse races. He won’t do anything special.
He does have big timer contacts. If one of his clients wants to put up a big time bet, he gets the bet done through the Vegas bookies.
He uses published odds at Vegas bookies (or newspapers).
Lots of online sites with published odds. betfair, paddypower
FWIW, this is not advice on how to become a bookie.
The big key that a lot of people don’t realize: The odds a bookie offers are not just a function of the actual probabilities, though the probability is one of the major ingredients. A bookie’s goal is to be in a position where he doesn’t care who wins, and will rake in the same net either way. So if one team is more likely to win, you have to reflect that in the odds, to move folks to the other side of the bet… But things like the fanaticism of the fan base can also tip the scales. There are some folks out there who will bet for their favorite team no matter what the true probabilities are, and you have to balance them out, too.
Yep, ideally you just want to walk away with your juice (or vig).
You do this by adjusting the odds from time to time to encourage bets on the side your light.
Folks are sort of dodging the question by saying to use Vegas odds (though, to be fair, this is presumably what you’d actually do if you were a small-time bookie nowadays). How does Vegas come up with the odds? I think Chronos is probably in the right neighborhood for at least some of the factors, but I’d actually love to know what really goes into coming up with the numbers.
Ultimately, I’m sure there are a handful of very well-paid folks in Vegas who use a combination of heavy statistical models like what you see from Nate Silver, and intuitions that were extraordinarily good to begin with and trained by decades of experience.
You’ll need a nickname. Something classy, yet with a hint of seediness.
You’ll also want to pick up some sort of accent. What kind of accent depends on the clientele and nature of bets you’re looking to attract.
A hat. Gotta have a hat. Do you have a hat yet? Gotta have one.
You also want to make sure you have proper travel papers. If possible, you’ll want to arrange for a visa to Cuba (or whatever paperwork is necessary), because you’ll eventually want to jet down there with someone you meet (perhaps at a Salvation Army mission) for an evening.
Consider what prop you’ll be most comfortable with. A constant toothpick? A cigar? A cane? Something that will fit your overall style and give you something to fiddle with during conversations.
Jowls are important, but take a long time to develop. Start working on them as soon as possible.
I’m sure there are more, but this is all I have at the moment.