PGA TOUR celebrates start of Responsible Gaming Education Month
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Editor’s note: Birches Healthis a leading national provider of Responsible Gaming resources and Problem Gambling treatment, offering clinical care from the comfort of home covered by insurance and state government funding.
As the FedExCup Playoffs came to a close with the TOUR Championship this past weekend, Sunday officially marked the start of Responsible Gaming Education Month. Held every September, this annual campaign led by the American Gaming Association (AGA) aims to educate and empower both customers and employees with the knowledge and tools to play responsibly.
The PGA TOUR’s efforts around Responsible Gaming Education Month are already underway, including a new PSA video that highlights some key tips:
- Be sure to know and fully understand the odds.
- Set a betting budget before placing any wagers.
- View sports betting as entertainment only, not a means for financial gain.
- Know when to walk away. Never “chase losses” by betting more in an attempt to win back what was lost.
Golfbet also spoke this week with the AGA about the background and goals of Responsible Gaming Education Month. You can check out the full interview here.
Importance of responsible gaming
Encouraging responsible play is a year-round focus of the Golfbet team and the PGA TOUR as a whole. Throughout this season, the “Responsible Gaming” section of the Golfbet site has featured content on relevant topics, including:
Top responsible gaming tips and best practices
The start of RGEM is a great time to run through some reminders of Responsible Gaming best practices. These recommendations aim to keep betting healthy and sustainable for those who wish to take part. Let’s run through some of the most important tips.
- Don’t chase losses: A clinician at Birches Health has stated that chasing losses is the behavior that they have seen most frequently in individuals with gambling addiction. As mentioned above, this generally involves betting more – additional bets and/or larger amounts – in an attempt to win back what had been lost.
- Bankroll management: Your “bankroll” can be thought of as a betting budget and needs to be an amount that you can lose entirely without it impacting your financial well-being.
- View sports betting as paid entertainment: Statistically, you are likely to lose money in the long term when sports betting. Therefore, it’s wise to approach it as an entertainment expense, similar to going to the movies or attending a sporting event. If you end up winning, it can be a pleasant surprise, but winning wagers should never be something you are depending on financially.
- Set limits in your betting apps and sites: Most sportsbooks now allow users to set limits that the app or site will then enforce if you try to go past them. The main limits that you can set are deposit amounts, individual wager amounts and time spent per day on the platform. All three limit features should be utilized, as they can either block or at minimum force you to think twice about taking those actions.
Gambling addiction treatment & resources
Despite the best efforts to spread awareness about Responsible Gaming in September and throughout the rest of year, there’s still a chance that you or someone you know may end up having a gambling problem. Therefore, it’s important to know that there are specialized treatment options and programs available.
Birches Health is a telehealth treatment provider with a large team of therapists who have been specially trained to help individuals dealing with gambling addiction and related behavioral disorders. The entire process is quick, confidential and low cost for most individuals, with 94% of Birches patients paying $25 or less per session, thanks to partnerships with national insurance companies and state government organizations.
If you or someone you know would like to speak with a Birches Health care specialist, please call (833) 483-3838 or send an email to hello@bircheshealth.com. You can also refer a friend or loved one confidentially by clicking here.