How to Handle Cold Streaks and Bad Beats in Sports Betting

Much like the games on which we’re betting, sports betting itself is filled with highs and lows. We love to celebrate our big wins but knowing how to rebound from a tough loss (or a series of them) is an integral part of keeping your gambling experience both fun and responsible.

No one is immune to the peaks and valleys of sportsbetting; even the sharpest bettors in the world experience cold streaks and would be thrilled to have a win rate over 60%. It’s just the name of the game.

So, how do we keep ourselves mentally strong and formidable in the face of betting adversity? Try to keep the following tips handy in the back of your mind to deal with the inevitable bad beats that come our way.

Don’t Chase Your Losses

This one is of extreme importance. As sports bettors, we can all too often be swept up in the moment, both with wins and losses. But when you suffer a particularly bad beat, especially at the end of a game, it can be tempting to double down on another bet to recoup your losses. This is a dangerous path to go down and the impulsive nature that comes with chasing losses leads to less informed decision making, which itself leads to a higher probability of making a poor bet.

It’s a notorious tendency for high-volume gamblers at casinos to try and “win it all back” with another buy-in or a bigger hand at the blackjack table, and far more often than not, it leads to further disappointment. Losses happen, but they can be mitigated by knowing when to “take the L” and come back next time.

Take a Day Off (or Two)

Betting can be exhausting work. Just look at the influencers around "gambling Twitter" or the big-time pros who have made a career out of betting on sports. It’s a dedicated process, with early morning starts and late nights watching your bets. Cold streaks and bad beats can make that work feel like it went for nothing, and just like a full-time paying job, you need time off.

It doesn’t even have to be just because you’re losing; taking breaks from gambling is critical to your own mental health and for a successful process. Sometimes that time off can give you an opportunity to step back and evaluate your process, identify room for improvement and attack the next day with a little extra motivation. Speaking of the process…

Evaluate Your Losses and Don’t Overreact

Not all losses are created equal! There’s debate about whether or not a winning bet can still be “bad” but there’s no questioning that good bets can still lose and that a losing bet does not guarantee that the wager was wrong in the first place.

Raise your hand if you’ve ever lost a bet due to: injury, bad officiating, unrelated penalties, bone-headed plays, weather ... need more reasons? Any of these factors can take a well-researched and data-backed bet from a winner to a loser, from looking like a lock to a head-in-your-hands loss. As part of the game, these things happen. While you can’t do anything to turn back time, it’s easy to overreact to a losing bet.

Consider all the factors; did a wide receiver come up just short but had multiple drops? You had a good read backed by strong data but that player turned into stone hands. Did you bet on a player to get a hit because they’re in good form, but didn’t realize they don’t hit lefties well? That’s something to consider for your research the next time. These are just two examples of the near-infinite ways to evaluate your own betting strategy. If your process is sound, trust it. If you make mistakes, learn from them.

Please remember to enjoy gambling responsibly. Responsible gambling means setting limits, staying in control, and understanding that luck is just part of the game. Make informed choices, set a budget, and know when to take a break. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, crisis counseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER.