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In a dream, Tommy witnessed the answer. He recalled, “I’m seeing myself from behind, and I’m holding [the instrument].” Since 1990, he had been hunting for a way to cheat the newest slot machines. To replace the awkward old equipment that had landed him in jail, he required a new one. He spent the day and night in his Vegas condo focused exclusively on a Fortune One video poker machine. But no matter what he did, a puzzle deep inside the unit would halt him.

The answer suddenly came to him in the deepest slumber in all its magnificent simplicity: a flexible metal piece wedged at the head and some piano wire. Tommy told the History Channel, “I got out of bed and created it”. The Monkey Paw, which Tommy has unearthed, is the answer.

Tommy Glenn Michael in 1980

When a friend of Tommy Glenn Carmichael went to Ace TV Sales and Service in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 1980, Carmichael was a repairman in addition to a pool hustler. Although the thirty-year-old had a few minor drug convictions and some juvenile misdemeanors on his record, nothing about him suggested that he would someday be regarded as one of the most cunning fraudsters in gambling history.

To play with, Carmichael’s friend had brought along a Bally’s slot machine and a top-bottom joint fraud device. When asked how his thriving illegal business got started that day, Carmichael simply responded, “We started playing around.”

To start a payout using the top-bottom joint was a clumsy method. The tool had a piece of guitar string for its “bottom.” It entered the machine’s left corner and pressed up against the circuit board, delivering low-wattage power to the component. The “top” was a metal disc that was bent and shaped like the number 9. It completed a strong enough circuit after it was entered into the coin slot to hot-wire the coin hopper.

The Jackpot

Carmichael shut down his repair business and moved to Las Vegas to use the top-bottom joint. He made about $35 in nickels from his first attempt; it wasn’t much, but it was enough to prove that he was onto something important. “You believe you’ll have boats and cars,” he later told the media. “You know, the American Dream.”

On July 4, 1985, that ideal was destroyed. After a few successful years, Carmichael was gambling slots at Denny’s near the Las Vegas Strip, and police pushed him into the wall and discovered his invention.

Conclusion

Last but not least, Tommy Glenn Carmichael has acquired the moniker “The Edison of Slot Machines” for his skill as a creator and hacker of slot machines as well as his knowledge of electronics and computer programming.

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They say there are three types of gambler: professional gambler, social gambler and the problem gambler.

For many punters, it’s a dream to become a professional gambler. You’ve seen all the big names: Phil Bull, Alex Bird, Dave Nevison, Harry Findlay & Patrick Veitch.

A selection of horse racing gamblers who are well-known for making a lot of cash although, for some, it was fleeting.

Most would-be pro gamblers have enjoyed these publications:

• Phil Bull: Professional gambler, racehorse owner and publisher. Founded Timeform since 1948.
• Alex Bird: The Life and Secrets of a Professional Punter (1986)
• Dave Nevison: A Bloody Good Winner (2007), No Easy Money (2009)
• Harry Findlay: Gambling For Life: The Man Who Won Millions And Spent Every Penny (2017)
• Patrick Veitch: Enemy Number One (2010)

A list of exceptional gambling publications.

No wonder many would-be professional gamblers dream of hitting the big time, making a bundle of cash and even enjoying the limelight.

I have been a successful gambler for many years. In fact, I’ve been interested in horse racing since 1986, at the age of 16. My brother and I got into racing from our Dad who loved a bet on a weekend. He wasn’t a big money gambler, a tenner on an each-way Yankee. We took our racing seriously and our niche of two-year-old thoroughbreds. I consider myself an authority within this niche and if someone knows more they are very good. Personally, I have never met anyone within this field who knows more. I don’t say those words to brag. I’m not saying it for any other reason than trying to explain the level you need to achieve and the confidence within.

It never pays to limit others because there are thousands of ways to win and lose money. If someone finds something which makes them money then good for them. Only a loser wants others to lose.

You may question why I have a niche. It’s simple. There simply isn’t enough time to know everything. And you need to understand that you don’t need to. It is better to know more about one thing than a little about everything. The Jack of all trades and master of none. Saying that, if you can make your betting pay then you don’t need me to tell you what works or not.

If you have little experience about what you need to do to make your betting pay then the following information may help you, keep you looking in the right direction, save you time and make you money.

There is no easy route to making your betting pay. No quick way to riches. Also, if your soul aim is the love of money above and beyond the love of horse racing you are unlikely to succeed. Only time and money will tell. If the subject matter doesn’t fill you with passion, enjoyment, intrigue and ambition it will be a long road.

Psychologists say it takes 10,000 hours to become an expert. Realistically, this is just the starting point. It’s like you opening the door to the bookmakers. I’ve spent over thirty years working on my niche of two-year-old horse racing and still learning. It has been a bloody hard road, filled with frustrations, disappointment, learning hard lessons but moments of great joy, financial success and ambition. My passion is still as strong today as it was bad in the day.

It needs to be.

This year has been a challenge. Sometimes things just don’t go to plan. Although I am very confident I won’t lose money on any given year. But there is a need to win good money. All the time and effort to endeavour to win can be a sacrifice. You don’t want to be working for a minimum wage. You could find yourself in the red. And if you don’t know enough you will lose. It’s not about being the best on planet Earth but it is about being better than most.

You can fool yourself but long term results will either show you a profit or a loss and that is the truth.

Each and every result tells you the answer to the question. Listen to what those winner are saying. They detail the truth of what it takes to win. As every loser details the negative. Don’t let winners and especially losers pass by without assessment or judgement. You will be selling yourself short.

You are investing time and money.

You can earn more money but you can’t make more time, so use it wisely. You will win or lose based on your knowledge. It has nothing to do with money. Skill is skill. Knowledge is power. It’s the key to making you hard-earned cash.

You wouldn’t want to bet on fixed odds because long term you cannot win.

Skill is the difference between you and the layer (who takes your bet). Is it possible you know more? It is. But also it needs to be the case. Gambling isn’t something you want to play with. Don’t bet for fun. Don’t create bad habits because they will drive you crazy, waste your time and cost you money. This happening may disappointment you so much you give up.

You can make money gambling but you need to be confident in your knowledge. The reason, when things go wrong, and at times they will, you will need to keep strong, hold your nerve and keep control of your emotions with exceptional discipline.

If you start losing the plot you will lose.

The problem with the journey of a professional gambler is that you will not see many of the problems until they slap you in the face. It takes years of experience to appreciate the good, bad and ugly. Even then you are still learning. Your progress in learning those winning ways will need to be slow and progressive. Push too hard and you will destroy what you have and all the good work may be lost.

Reinforce the positives. Eradicate the negatives.

You may just achieve your goal of being a professional gambler.

But remember the skill part comes before the money.

Good luck.

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For most people, betting isn’t a serious business when in truth it should be.

Even small losses week in, week out, add up to a sack load of money over time.

You want to win money.

But do you want to lose money?

That’s why it’s important to assess your gambling. Take it seriously. At least as serious as the amount of money you are playing with. Because unless you are serious about your betting you are playing at it. It’s a like a butcher in a supermarket compared to the bloodstained bloke at the abattoir.

A gruesome analogy.

It’s like someone who says a swear word not because they are uneducated but because it gets someone attention.

That bloke just killed a fuc*ing lamb.

I can’t say I’m big on swearing. It’s vulgar but often gritty and true.

Losing money shouldn’t be classed as acceptable or fun.

In truth, the foundation of gambling success has little to do with money. The betting part comes after or not at all if you don’t want it to. Like the person who enjoys a crossword, they simply improve their skills and the result is potentially the success.

‘I picked that winner and won 10 matchsticks.’

Without a level of knowledge you won’t be winning money gambling. Well, beyond luck. Not even Lady Luck is confident about beating the house edge. In fact, she knows she won’t.

Knowledge takes time to learn. It doesn’t come easy and it shouldn’t do. Those who put in the work might find some level of success. If they are good enough.

I don’t know many people who have made it their life’s ambition to learn a given subject matter. They live for it. However, they are addicted to the pursuit of knowledge and not the gamble.

If you lack knowledge you will lose. The more money you bet the more you will lose. You don’t want to be at that level as you are deceiving yourself. You simply lack because you haven’t put the work in or you don’t have the intellect or capacity to get beyond your average gambler.

Exceptional knowledge is a rare commodity.

You may be saying: ‘Money has something to do with success.’

It does.

Why would someone want to gamble? To win money. You need to win a level of money which outweighs the cost of living. Ideally, you would be making perhaps twice the money you could in a regular job. In theory, you could be winning one hundred times what you were previously earning.

What I am saying is that it gives you an opportunity to win a lot of cash. To live a comfortable life if not be a millionaire.

Very few people have achieved this goal but it happens.

Again, it happens because someone knows more than others. They have a skill which puts them ahead of the opposition.

But here’s the problem for most people. The profit they achieve is minimal. Some may be 1%. So that means you need to bet a lot of money or rinse and repeat the process. Probably better suited to a trader than a conventional gambler as seen betting on an individual horse. But anything is possible. I’m sure there are gamblers out there with a percentage that’s much higher. But if you have a 1% profit that just £10 for every thousand. You’d bet £100,000 to win a grand. You don’t need a fortune to bet such a vast sum because you could do it with perhaps a betting bank of £10,000. But you do need a certain amount of money to bet.

I’ve seen a few naive gamblers consider if they have enough money they are sure to win. The mentality of betting odds on horses thinking it’s a way to print money. Sadly, for them, it still comes down to knowledge and finding value when betting. Without value (a horse or bet is greater odds than it should be) you are destined to lose even if you have a lots of winners.

I had a couple of friends who used to lump on 1/3 shots and it turned out badly long term. They were lacking in everything but money. Then they were lacking money.

Ideally, you will be a gambler who has a level of knowledge and money. I’d advise any would be professional gambler to start betting small money and build up with the layer’s cash.

In truth, it is a difficult and challenging pursuit.

There is much more to it than knowledge or money. You have to cope with emotions.

You have to be a very disciplined gambler to get close. Even some of the most successful gambler in the world have gone through their money. They once had the edge, the knowledge, money but it was a moment in time. The day came when they lacked those skills and it was someone else taking their cash.

Knowledge is power.

Money comes and money goes.

Even the best people have run through their money.

Don’t let that be you.

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Have to ever been standing next in line at the super market when some old bloke pulls out a wad of lottery tickets, a few winning scratch cards and, after all that has been tallied up, buys another £50 worth of hopes and dream?

Don’t forget: ‘It could be you!’

Not only have a couple of minutes of your life passed away in the process (I really need to buy one of those dream catchers) but you begin to question what is going on before you.

What I am looking at here?

Unless that person starts jumping up and down, screaming, shouting, crying in disbelief, that they have won a life-changing amount of money [whatever that is in these times of high inflation] they disappear from the shop, still hopeful, that one of those scratch cards or lottery tickets is the ‘one’.

‘Big money.’

Not small money.

‘Big money.’

Inspired by a John Cristani YouTube video. Affiliate marketer.

You see most punters scratching away as they stand outside the shop. I guess it’s less walking if you have a bit of joy and have to come back. It’s like exercise is the middleman. I guess if you are overweight, a heavy smoker, like a few pints each night, all these things need to be considered. I obviously say that as some kind of stereotype of a gambler. However, they often hold a grain of truth.

You get all kinds of people buying let’s say a scratch card. Although a large number look as though they spend more money each week on fuelling their scratch card and lottery hopes than they do buying a decent pair of shoes, a new shirt, pair of trousers or even having a hair cut, shave or look in the mirror. A few of those things don’t really cost any money.

It’s a worry.

Most people, and realistically me included, don’t give a toss. My initial concern being held up by a scruffy bloke, who looks potless but splashing the cash, motivated by money. Which comes, for him, in the shape of a small piece of paper which glows with hope until that neon sign blinks a couple of times and goes out with the realisation of holding another loser.

Cast aside. Worthless.

I think the truth of fixed odds betting would come to the realisation of the individual if they saved up a life time of gambling money and had one big gamble. They purchased £50,000 of lottery tickets. I don’t know what the average return would be on that kind of money. But I will tell you this much. Unless you got very lucky (I should have said very about a million times) you would look at the return from 50K and be horrified.

I doubt you would even win a grand.

It would be such a shocking moment that you would never bet again.

This is the truth of fixed odds gambling. The more you bet, the more you lose. Yes, one person in however million wins a fortune but the odds state that for you to win a million you would have to bet more.

A sobering thought.

But not for the scratch card fan, hobbyist or addict.

I would so love to ask the bloke 20 questions about his gambling.

1) Why do yo bet?

2) How much do you gamble on a day, week, month, year?

3) What’s the most money you have ever won?

4) What motivates you in life?

5) What would you do if you won a million pounds?

6) Are you concerned about your gambling?

7) Why do you look like a tramp, stink of body odour, struggle with life, and base all your hopes and dreams on something which, sadly, is never likely to happen…

You can imagine any question you like. They can be yours. You don’t have to have a question. Who cares? People do as they do! It’s their problem.

True.

A blatant mix of hope against adversity there in a ticket.

This brings back fond memories of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

I think people see what they want to see. They behave how they behave. In that I mean, it is very unlikely anything I could say will change their thought process, opinion, motivation, willpower, hopes or dreams. My list of words could go on and on until they got bored and tell me to: ‘Fu** Off!’

I’d be accused of wasting valuable scratch time, jinxing them, scared to be out after 12pm in case they turned into a pumpkin.

I wonder if Cinderella read Charlie and the Chocolate Factory or the wicked step sisters bought scratch cards.

It’s just a little bit of fun.

‘You’ve got to be in it to win it!’

That’s how it works.

But that first scratch card leads to another, to even more, until every time you go to the shop you find yourself walking outside with a wad of scratch cards, lottery ticks but you still have your hopes and dreams.

Until they flicker like that aging neon sign.

That buzz continues but the light in the eyes has faded away.

Question your gambling.

Fixed odds compared to skill bets are bad news.

Take a look in the mirror and see the truth.

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You never know who is reading your post.

In an ideal world you want someone to enjoy your carefully crafted article. The more traffic the merrier. But you may get that corrosive person who is anti gambling. Who feels you are there to take advantage of everyone who may be naive to the consequences of a flutter. They’ll be sucked in one end of the line and thrown out the other penniless and brainwashed.

Addicted.

I guess in theory this could happen.

I find it irritating that someone could just turn up and read a post and then say they will contact Google defining it as spam. I can understand such a mindset if it turns up in your email and unsolicited. I’ve done it myself when I’ve been added to a list I didn’t subscribe. But to see an article on a website and view it as spam just seems to me like the action of someone with too much time on their hands. Someone who is as corrosive as they may be well meaning.

Who knows?

It disappoints me how gambling is viewed. When compared to drinking alcohol which seems to be normalised as though its a laugh. You buy a birthday card and it has someone on the front with a giant pint of beer. It reminds you of your cousin so you buy it and it’s one big laugh. You have only to see all the isles in supermarkets to realise why no one wants to make too much of a fuss about drinking. There’s so much money to be made from alcohol that any number of wasted lives or lives lost is fair game. What percentage of people in A & E every weekend are related to alcohol?  It’s only when you want to bet on who is going to succumb to drink first that it leaves a nasty taste in the mouth of the drinker, seller or public.

I believe in freedom of speech and responsibility.

If people fall victim to gambling or drink or drugs then the major part of the harm and responsibility is themselves. I’m sure a lot of readers will see this as wrong, harsh or untrue. But where do you place the blame on anything if it is there to be considered? I just couldn’t help myself. I’m addicted to robbing banks. Poor soul. He wasn’t himself when he walked into the bank with a sawed off shotgun. He was compelled to do it. It’s beyond his control. I can imagine the judge would listen to those words and lock the person up for even longer.

If someone has a problem then they need to find the strength to get help because if they can’t then who is to blame? You can only do so much. All these self help books. I just can’t stop buying them. I feel compelled to buy them. I just don’t think they should be sold any more to anyone as they are akin to getting people hooked on crack cocaine.

There’s a good reason I don’t take meths. I decided I didn’t want to get involved in drugs. The same reason I don’t drink too much or bet what I can’t afford to lose.

Sure some people kind of find themselves in a position. We all need help at times.

I don’t know who marked the post as spam.

They clearly have a reason for doing it. Perhaps they had a gambling problem and just see the danger involved.

I would feel slightly strange marking a post on a website as spam.

If it is not your thing then keep away from casino articles or gambling websites.

There are millions of things on the internet we could take offence to clearly those things which are illegal should be marked or detailed to the authorities.

But doing so to an article about gambling shouldn’t happen.

Cheers.