The Most Common Gambling Superstitions
Superstitions are prevalent in all walks of life, especially in the gambling world. Gamblers will do anything if they think it helps their chances of a winning pokie spin, beating the dealer at blackjack, or have their number come out on the roulette wheel.
Basketball legend Michael Jordan had his own superstitions. He always wore his old North Carolina college shorts under his Chicago Bulls uniform. Furthermore, Axl Rose, lead singer of Gins N’ Roses, refuses to perform in cities whose name begins with the letter “M” because he believes they are cursed.
Gambling superstitions range from seemingly making sense to outright outrageous. Keep reading to learn more about some common gambling superstitions.
Superstitions Linked to Bad Luck
The most common of bad luck superstitions is avoiding betting on the number 13. The number is associated with bad luck in Western cultures, and many gamblers avoid it like the plague. The number four is considered unlucky among Chinese gamblers. This is because it sounds like the Chinese word for death. Similarly, the Chinese word for books sounds very much like the word lose.
Many gamblers refuse to enter the casino via the front entrance. They believe walking through the front door brings them into contact with people leaving the casino. Those leaving are likely to be doing so because they have lost. Making contact with losers can see their bad luck rub off. It sounds irrational but so are most superstitions.
The MGM Grand casino in Las Vegas used to have a front entrance shaped like a roaring lion’s mouth. The casino management team noticed a severe lack of Chinese people gambling at the venue. This was until they learned it was because entering here was akin to being eaten alive by the lion! MGM Grand paid a small fortune to replace the entrance in 1998.
Not paying or receiving $50 bills is a common superstition in the United States, particularly in Las Vegas. Mobsters used to put a $50 note in the jacket of their victims before burying them in the Nevada desert. Some people go as far as refusing to accept $50 notes from the cashier’s cage.
Rituals To Bring You Good Luck
Blowing on the dice in craps games is the most popular of the positive superstitions. It first appeared in the 1955 movie Guys and Dolls, where Marlon Brando pleaded with Lady Luck not to blow on some other’s guy’s dice. The ritual is still going strong more than 60 years later.
Wearing the colour red is considered lucky when it comes to gambling. Red is a colour of wealth and prosperity in Chinese culture. Furthermore, Chinese brides wear a red dress, and red envelopes filled with money are handed out as gifts. Chinese gamblers have many superstitions; wearing red is one of them.
Where 13 is unlucky in Western cultures, the number 7 is considered lucky. This is why you see sevens on pokies everywhere. Likewise, the number eight is considered lucky in China, so expect your Chinese friends to bet on eight or in multiples of eight whenever possible.
Remember how we said Michael Jordan always wore his old college shorts? He did this because they were his lucky charm. People have used charms, trinkets, and symbols for centuries. The most common include horseshoes, four-leaved clovers, and even rabbit’s feet! You find some people always take a particular charm with them when gambling. This grows more common if the player won money whilst in possession of a specific item or clothing.
Do These Rituals Work?
The answer to the above question is a resounding no! Luck dictates the outcome of pokies and almost all casino table games. There is nothing you can do that increases your chances of winning or reduce your chances of losing.
However, that said, having a superstition cannot do any harm. Respect other people if they are superstitious instead of mocking them. Gambling is all about having fun when all is said and done.
