While many students occasionally put a few dollars down to bet
on their favorite sports teams, other students are raising the
stakes and taking betting to a higher level.
Since the 1998 passage of Proposition 5 in California, people 18
and over, including many UCLA students, have gambled at casinos
built on Indian tribal land.
Antonio Kim, a first-year marine biology student, said he
gambled at a casino with his friends from home earlier this year on
two separate occasions.
Though his friends “won big,” winning $1,000, Kim
said he netted a $400 loss on those two trips after spending most
of his time at the blackjack table.
“I’d be up a hundred. Then I’d lose it,”
Kim said.
Kim said he also places bets when he plays cards with friends
because it is not enjoyable if no money is involved.
“When there’s money behind the chips, you play
different ““ it’s more fun,” Kim said. “It
gets intense.”
Second-year political science student Chris Simonoff wagers on
sports on the Internet.
Simonoff said he bets on all sports, professional and college
level, including basketball, baseball, boxing, football and
hockey.
“When I win I average $150 a week and if I lose … maybe
$200,” he said. “It’s usually big
money.”
The site Simonoff gambles on says it is based in Costa Rica, but
a “bookie” who acts as an agent for the site meets one
of Simonoff’s friends in the Los Angeles area on a weekly
basis.
The bookie either pays or collects money from Simonoff’s
friend, depending on whether Simonoff and his four friends net a
loss or a win on any given week.
Simonoff said he gambles less now than he did when he first
started gambling two years ago, placing three or four bets a week
instead of four to five bets a day.
Though he gambles less often, Simonoff said the individual bets
he places now involve more money.
Simonoff, who gambles using money his parents give him, also
acknowledges that his total losses far exceed his winnings.
“You focus on when you win, but generally you lose,”
he said. “Guys think they know a lot about sports, but
you’re only fooling yourself.”
Once every two months, Simonoff goes to casinos with friends. He
said he starts out at the blackjack table, then continues on to the
slot machines when he starts to lose in blackjack.
“You still get that feeling ““ “˜I’ll put
my money on it.’ It’s hard to explain. You just think
you can get it back,” Simonoff said.
Aaron Torchio, a first-year student, plays cards at least once a
week despite the fact that he almost always loses.
“If you win you forget all the times that you lost,”
he said.
Torchio said the stakes never get too high, and he enjoys
gambling for its social aspect.
“It’s just fun to hang out with the guys, just hang
out and play poker. It’s just like watching (a) basketball
game,” he said.
Though he didn’t bet on college basketball this year,
Torchio said he usually contributes to NCAA pools in March.
Everyone contributes $5 or $10, Torchio said, and the winner and
second-place winner walk away with all the money.
Jon Chua, a UCLA alumnus who works as a programmer at
UCLA’s Information Services Department, said he gambled while
he was in college, visiting casinos, playing poker, and betting on
sports.
Chua continued gambling after college, and now bets on
basketball on the Internet, placing about $50 in bets each
week.
He said he visits Las Vegas once every six to eight weeks, but
that he doesn’t go just to gamble.
“I’ll bring about $300 to play with,” he said.
“I don’t play as much as others … it’s more of
a big amusement park than a place to gamble.”