reluctant punter

Sticking to strategy paid dividends today with a 12% increase in the bank. Topflight Wildbird paid up in running at 1.5, Spiritual Society came in as did Hidden Agent and the Fav Lupinar came in at evens rounding off a satisfying afternoon. Started at 2:10pm and time now 15:04 and I am going to walk the dogs.
Another trick is to quit when margins have been made and one is ahead. There are other chances to trade this afternoon but enough is enough.

Some say a gambler is only truly free when he has lost it all and broken his bank.
I am not convinced of this, though there is an unusual sense of relief and clarity when the bank is blown and the dreams are all gone to dust.
Yesterday, whilst not losing the whole bank, it none the less came close and the overwhelming feeling was one of shame. The most frustrating factor being my capacity to deviate from years of carefull research and a winning formula. Up to that point I was quietly generating a profit of 5% a day. Day in, day out, week in week out. Then for no reason at all, save things not wholly going to plan (which is normal for systematic gamblers), one deviates and makes a mistake. Mistakes are like a contagion, one often makes for another and another and in the space of 45 minutes weeks of profits are wiped out in a series of oh so easy trades.
A trick to sucessfull professional gambling is maintaining the fine balance between discipline, intellect and instinct. Failure to respect any of the above result in severe and heavy loss. It is a very serious profession and the stakes are high and easily lost. When one feeds ones family and pays bills with the proceeds of ones trades a heavy loss has ramifications beyond ones own need to win.
So why do it?
Why indeed.
When one spends ones life evaluating and taking risk the habit becomes difficult to break. If one has spent 18 years dodging bullets the step down to simply risking money is an easy one. Not so easy for a wife to accept, save she is happier just losing money instead of becoming a widow.
Welcome to the relutant punters blog.
A blog about trading on horses and football.
Welcome to the rollercoaster that is gambling for a living.