4 ms·

Technically speaking, his title is incorrect: he didn't beat the bookies, he beat the punters. The bookies get paid either way, regardless of who wins.

• bluGill 9y ago
  The bookies in aggregate get paid, but not all of them have the same customer base and so some lose. I knew a bookie who lost nearly $100,000 on the world series - everybody knew that the White Socks would win that year and they did (2005 against the Astros). Thus every one of his customers bet on the white socks. Now someplace in the world was a different bookie (probably one living in Huston) who made big money because his customers bet on the Astros who lost. In Vegas they set the odds based on the overall nationwide averages and bookies on average won but not all. If you are a bookie you have to have enough saved up for a few of these events. Overall you will win, but sometimes your balance of customers is such that you cannot beat the spread. He knew going in that he would lose money, but you cannot refuse when someone wants to make a bet as that person will find a different bookie for the next time and not come back to you. (I suspect he was taking illegal bets so the fact that he paid up added to his reputation of someone you can trust in the underground economy)