I’m a person that likes my sleep. But I also love watching sport. This morning, the early hours of this morning, about 00:20 to be precise I was enjoying the conclusion of a crazy match of tennis. Enjoyment being the key word.

I’d stuck £12.50 on Mannarino to beat O’Connell at Evens. The key element I want to emphasize is the stake. These kind of bets are not going to win me a great deal of money in the long run. But it was a stake which gave me the interest in the contest and I wasn’t stressing about the outcome. Mannarino saved 4 match points before eventually winning in a third set tie break. It was a crazy but entertaining spectacle. Worth staying up for? Perhaps.

On Saturday I made the mistake of betting too much. I tipped Lerma to be booked v Arsenal. I’m still convinced the 11/5 on offer was completely wrong. He’d been booked in 8 of his 9 home games v Top 6 opponents so I went max stakes and risked 5pts. At the time £10 per point was my level, so £50!

For someone that hasn’t earned much money across the past 3 years (Betting Kingdom is struggling folks, please support the site and open some new bookmaker accounts today) £50 is a lot of money. I sat down to watch the Bournemouth v Arsenal game and I was stressed. I couldn’t enjoy the contest. The Arsenal fans certainly kept me entertained but all I could think about was my £50 bet.

It taught me a valuable lesson. Find that sweet spot when it comes to staking where you enjoy the game and not being on edge whether your bet will win or lose. So I’ve reduced my stakes to £5 per point for now in the hope I can enjoy my gambling more going forward. After all, it’s a hobby and so we should get satisfaction from it, not additional stress.

Lerma aside, I’ve been on a roll. Thanks primarily to the superb tipping of Nellberg and DSSnooker. When I wrote my last diary entry 8 days ago I was  -£72. My profit now stands at £134 with a ROI of 4.87%. That’s a great turnaround. There was a point 3 weeks ago where I hit -£385. That was worrying. But I knew I was following good tipsters and placing value bets. My confidence it would turn round proved correct.

I feel this week has been a big step forward. Whilst my long term profit may suffer as a result of reduced stakes, my enjoyment should increase and that’s my goal. I’m happy if I break even. If I do make a profit, then that’s a bonus and I can always change my staking in the future if I can build up that profit.

So please gamble responsibly folks. Find a level of staking that you are comfortable with, enjoy your gambling and hopefully you too can start making a small profit.

My Betting Stats – Started Tracking 12th July 2022

Bets: 303
Staked: £2755.57
Profit/Loss: +£134.23
ROI: 4.87%