3 Great Reasons to Avoid Gambling at Night

At first, this is going to sound a little ridiculous.

“Don’t gamble at night? Isn’t that when most people are going to be gambling?”

Yes, it is—and that’s just one reason you need to avoid it.

Let’s talk about why gambling at night is just a bad idea (and why gambling during the day is going to be a better bet).

1- Your Skills Aren’t Going to Be Sharp

Above everything else, I think this is the best reason to avoid gambling at night—your skills just aren’t going to be where you need them to be.

Let’s go through a potential scenario and see how gambling at night plays out and how it affects your skills.

Let’s say you worked all day and want to unwind at the casino. This is a pretty common scenario for a lot of gamblers, especially if they live close to a casino.

So your brain is already pretty much fried from working all day, especially if it’s been a stressful day.

On top of that, you’re going to be tired, especially if you had to get up early in the morning to go to work.

Even worse, you might have had to drop off the kids at school and then pick them up, which means you probably had to get up even earlier than normal and that you had to deal with the stress and chaos of getting the little rascals ready and off.

Next, you probably haven’t exactly been eating great, which means you’re going to be hungry by the time you get to the casino on top of the fact that you already are going to have low energy during the day because of what you’ve been eating.

All of that means you’re going to eat some of the food at the casino, which isn’t exactly known for having the best food in the world (though many casinos have high-quality restaurants, you’re probably going to eat something fast so you can get to gambling).

Now given all of that going on, do you really think your mind is going to be up to making all the necessary decisions needed to read opponents and kick their butts in poker, or that you’re going to be at the top of your blackjack game?

I think not.

Now imagine the opposite scenario—gambling during the day.

First of all, if you’re gambling during the day, that almost always means you have the day off from work, so you’re probably well-rested and ready to start the day.

You’ve probably also gotten the kiddos (who are less cranky because they didn’t have to get up early) all squared away with someone to watch them, so you’ve got less stress, and because you didn’t have to work, there’s even less stress.

You also probably had a nice healthy breakfast because you were able to take your time and make something delicious and nutritious, which means you’re going to be able to think more clearly and be sharper mentally.

You’re also going to have less stress because you won’t really have a deadline—you can play as long as you want and not have to worry about it being too late and having to get up the next day to go to work.

All of that means you’re going to be at the top of your game by the time you sit down at the poker table or the blackjack table to try your skills and see if you can win big.

2- You’re Going to Be More Likely to Drink

Gambling and drinking just don’t mix, but for a lot of people, it’s hard to separate the two.

I think a lot of this has to do with the time of day that you’re real money gambling.

For most people, drinking during the day just isn’t something that’s going to happen, and night time is pretty much when any drinking is done.

I’m sure you can see where this is going. If you’re gambling at night, it will feel completely natural to have a few drinks. In fact, many casinos actively encourage drinking and gambling.

What’s more likely to happen is that you’ll have your free drinks too quickly, you’ll get more inebriated than you intended to, and you’ll find yourself making bets you wouldn’t normally.

That’s where the real trouble starts. When you’re gambling, especially in poker or blackjack, you need a strategy, and you need to follow it closely if you want to have any chance of success.

That means you only take risks when it makes sense, but one of the most common effects of alcohol is the reduction of inhibitions, which means you’re going to be more likely to make a bet or a play that you wouldn’t while sober.

If you’re gambling during the day, you’re going to be much less likely to drink, if from social pressure if nothing else. That means your mind is going to be as sharp as it should be, and you’re going to make better decisions—ultimately, that may lead to a more profitable gambling experience.

3- You’ll Be Tempted to Stay Up Later Than You Normally Would

Another problem with gambling at night is just a matter of simple math—if you’re gambling at night time, you’re going to be tempted to stay up late, and the later you stay up (and the more tired you get), the harder it’s going to be to play well.

Let’s look at this a little more closely. By the time you get to the casino after what might be a long drive (if you’re playing at night), it’s probably already a bit late—let’s say 9pm or 10pm (and yes, for people who get up at 5am or 6am, this is already pretty late).

So you’ve gotten there late, you’ve had a couple of drinks, and by the time you’re really getting into it, it’s already almost midnight.

If you’re going to the casino mostly to just have a good time and blow off some steam—that is, if you’re going there just for the entertainment value with some friends—then that means you’re treating the casino the same way you might treat a bar.

This means you’re going to be tempted to stay up way later than you intended (because you’re having a good time, the time is flying by, and you and your friends just don’t want to leave).

I don’t know that I need to tell you that playing while you’re tired is a bad idea, but it definitely is, and if you’re treating the casino as a place to party, then you’re going to be distracted, you’re not going to be making the best bets, and you might even be making crazy bets due to peer pressure.

All of this leads up to an empty wallet. And the later it gets, the lower your performance is going to be, not to mention the fact that if you keep drinking late into the night, you’re going to get drunker and drunker as the night goes on, further reducing your ability to play well.

You’ll also be drinking less (as I mentioned before) or not at all, which makes your judgment even better.

Finally, and this is a big point where your wallet is concerned, if you’ve been up drinking and gambling all night, you’re either going to end up paying for an Uber or a taxi to get home, or you’re actually going to end up paying for a room.

While it’s possible you’ll get the room comped if you spent enough money on that particular day, it’s just as possible that you won’t, so there’s no way you can rely on this.

If you get a ride home, that means you have to get a ride back the next day. If you’re playing during the day, it’s unlikely any of these problems are going to come up.

Conclusion

Gambling at night is just not a great idea if you’re a serious gambler who wants to do well at the casino. If you want to gamble responsibly, you need to consider playing only during the day.

Agree or disagree? Let us know in the comments.