Favorite Gambling Quotes

The subject of gambling is one that generates a lot of opinions, and some great quotes too.

On this page we have put together a collection of some of the best gambling related quotes.

We start with a few of our personal favorites and offer our own comments on these quotes.

Then we have some of the top poker quotes, again including our own comments.

Finally we have a further selection of more great gambling quotes and proverbs.

We have picked nine of our favorite gambling quotes and listed them below, along with some details about the people that made them and our take on what they mean. These quotes stand out for us as they either contain excellent advice or are great reflections of what gambling is all about.

This is a quote from Baltasar Gracián y Morales, a 17th century philosopher. We like it because, several hundred years later, it remains one of the single best pieces of gambling advice. If you can learn to quit when you are ahead, then you have an excellent chance of being a successful gambler.

This is an Irish proverb which highlights one of the biggest mistakes a gambler can make: chasing losses. In the same way that you have to know when to quit when you are ahead, there’s also a time to cut your losses and quit.

For many gamblers, this quote neatly sums why they gamble. It’s not just about the money itself, it’s the joy of winning it. The quote was from the movie The Color of Money, said by the character Fast Eddie Felson – played by Paul Newman.

Andrew Beyer highlighted one of the biggest failings of gamblers in this quote: letting emotions cloud judgment. Beyer was an expert on horse racing betting, writing four books on the subject. He also designed the Beyer Speed Figure, a system for rating Thoroughbred racehorses.

The origins of this proverb aren’t entirely clear. It’s a simple statement but entirely true. If a horse you have bet on wins, you’ll always wish you had bet more on it. The premise applies to any form of gambling.

Really, this quote could apply to life in general. It was actually made in the context of poker, by Steve Badger. Badger owned one of the first, and best, websites dedicated to educating poker players. In this quote he’s pointing out that if you think you know it all you are sadly mistaken.

This is from poker player V. P. Pappy. We could pick a number of quotes from him as he’s made several great ones, but this is probably our favorite in terms of the advice it contains. He is making the excellent point that good money management is absolutely essential to successful gambling.

This quote is from the James Bond book (and movie) Casino Royale, written by Ian Fleming. It emphasizes a mistake that many gamblers make: blaming bad luck instead of trying to work if they made a bad play or bet.

Something of a tongue in cheek quote this one, from Jack Yelton. He is essentially highlighting the fact that you are likely to lose money playing casino games. He’s right of course; the house does have an edge over the long term.

That doesn’t mean that casino games should be avoided at all costs, as they are great fun and it’s possible to win money if you get lucky. It’s just important to recognize that the odds are ultimately against you.

Poker is one of the most talked about games in the world and we could easily find hundreds of great quotes to write about. We’ve just picked a few of the very best ones though, which you can find below. We have also added some comments on the quotes too.

This quote is from Phil Hellmuth, one of the most well-known professional poker players around. He’s a goldmine for quotes, but this has to be one of his best. He is alluding to the fact that, even if you are a top player, luck will always play its part in poker.

Never was a truer word spoken about poker than in this quote from Robert Williamson III, a successful American poker player. One of the biggest appeals of the game is that it’s very easy to learn, but the intricacies and strategies involved make mastering the game a lifetime’s work.

This quote from author Alfred Alvarez is actually a great piece of advice. Many top players would agree that, in most circumstances, if your cards are strong enough to call, then you should actually probably raise.

This was said by Thomas Austin Preston Jr, commonly known as Amarillo Slim. He is, quite accurately, pointing out that no matter how good you are at poker you simply cannot win every time you play.

Professional player and poker book author Mike Caro succinctly states the importance of aces.

This is a quote from Johnny Moss, winner of the first World Series of Poker when it was a cash event in 1970. He also won the Main Event freezeout tournament in 1971 and 1974. It’s essentially a comment on the complexities of Texas hold’em compared to other poker formats.

No compilation of poker quotes would be complete without at least one from Doyle Brunson. Brunson is a two time World Series of Poker Main Event champion, member of the Poker Hall of Fame, and one of the most famous poker players of all time.

This quote from him, although somewhat simplistic, pretty much sums up what poker is all about.

Below is a few more of the best gambling quotes, along with some gambling proverbs.