The Different Types of Sports Bettors

When it comes to sports bettors, you’ll find a wide mix of different personalities. From the super analytical type to the recreational bettor, each type of sports bettor has unique qualities.

In this article, we’ll break down the top ten most common types of sports bettors out there.

For each one, we’ll go into detail about their characteristics allowing you to learn more about each type.

Ultimately, you’ll be able to pinpoint which type of sports bettor that you are currently and you might find some that you’d aspire to become at a later date.

Here are the top ten types of sports bettors:

Scrooge McDuck

Hopefully, you have childhood memories of the awesomeness that was the cartoon DuckTales. If not, do yourself a favor and look into it. In this animated television series, there is one character named Scrooge McDuck. Mr. McDuck is definitely a one percenter.

In fact, he’s even portrayed swimming in all of his money in the series introduction. In short, Scrooge McDuck is filthy rich.

When it comes to sports bettor types, you’ll come across a Scrooge McDuck from time to time. Scrooge McDuck types have more money than they know what to do with. While we all wish that we had that problem, it is a reality for these types of sports bettors.

Scrooge McDuck types are pretty notorious for betting on things simply just because they can. Unlike the vast majority of the population that has to budget their funds, Scrooge McDuck types can wager all day without batting an eye.

One interesting trait of Scrooge McDuck types is that they hate to lose money. In most cases, this type of sports bettor has worked hard to get to their current status and therefore, they hate to lose money. Often, Scrooge McDuck types will take it personally if they lose a wager.

Captain Addiction

Hopefully, you’re not reading this article and identifying yourself as this type of sports bettor. Captain Addiction types are sports bettors who just can’t say no when it comes to gambling. This type of sports bettor has an addiction to gambling which is often extremely detrimental to their life.

Often, Captain Addiction types are chasing a high much as a drug addict does. In the case of Captain Addiction types, their highs come from the rush of winning. This type of sports bettor is chasing the next rush by continually placing bets in the hopes of winning to get that high.

Due to the fact that Captain Addiction types are focused mainly on placing wagers, they don’t take the time to do much, if any, research. Because of this, Captain Addiction types tend to have terrible success which can often lead to a downward spiral of effects.

In many cases, this type of sports bettor will amass huge betting debts because they simply can’t walk away from placing a wager.

In many cases, Captain Addiction types don’t want to bother with watching a game unless they have some money wagered on that game. This type of sports bettor thrives off of the high of sports betting, so just watching a game to watch a game doesn’t get the blood flowing.

Unfortunately, gambling addiction is a real thing with real-world consequences. While gambling can be a good thing, in some cases it can take control of one’s life.

Luckily, many people gamble without any form of issue, but Captain Addiction types often need professional help in order to aid them in getting back on the right track.

Mr. Numbers Guy

Often the quiet type, this type of sports bettor is a numbers nut. Usually employed in the banking or accounting industry, Mr. Numbers Guy types live and breathe numbers. All joking aside, these guys love crunching data.

Instead of relying on their gut or what the bookmakers think, Mr. Numbers Guy types will crunch their own numbers in order to determine what they consider to be smart wagers.

In an effort to help them analyze things, Mr. Numbers Guy types will often end up building their own models and systems. If they happen to get things dialed in well, Mr. Numbers Guy types can sometimes end up turning themselves into a Wolf of Wall Street type down the road.

At the end of the day, the numbers are all that matter when it comes to Mr. Numbers Guy. Everything else is cast aside. No matter what the sportsbooks or friends might think, Mr. Numbers guy will always put his trust in the numbers over anything else.

That Guy

Unfortunately, we all have that friend. You know who we’re talking about, and if you don’t, That Guy is probably you. He’s that guy that can’t let anything go without trying to bet you on it. No matter what the argument is about, That Guy types want to put money on the line to settle the dispute.

This type of sports bettor tends to be very dominating and overpowering. The only opinion that matters to him is his own opinion. That Guy sports bettors tend to think that they are all-knowing. In short, unless you’re a That Guy yourself, you find this friend of yours super annoying.

That Guy sports bettors don’t stop with just sports wagers.

To That Guy types, all that matters is that they are always right. Should you think otherwise, That Guy will quickly ask you to put your money where your mouth is.

If you’ve ended up wagering a That Guy at some point and won your bet, I’m sure you know what comes next. That Guy will quickly demand a double or nothing wager on another completely nonsense wager. That Guy types just can’t let things go.

As best as possible, try not to be That Guy. Nobody likes That Guy. If you take a look in the mirror and realize that you might be That Guy, work to tone down yourself so that everything doesn’t have to be settled by a bet.

Mr. Recreational

The most common type of sports bettor out there is the Mr. Recreational type. For this type of sports bettor, sports betting is simply a thing of recreation. Unlike the vast majority of the other types of sports bettors, Mr. Recreational types don’t take things too seriously. For them, sports betting is a form of occasional entertainment.

In many cases, sportsbooks are big fans of Mr. Recreational types due to the fact that Mr. Recreational types tend to be pretty careless with their bets. In general, this type of sports bettor won’t do any form of research before placing a wager.

Due to this carelessness, Mr. Recreational types tend to be a big money maker for sportsbooks  since they come in without the same level of preparation as many of the other sports bettor types.

You’ll often find Mr. Recreational types wagering only on major sporting events such as the NBA finals. Since they are only using sports bets on a recreational basis, it is rare to find them betting on more standard sports betting options like just a normal Tuesday night NBA game.

For Mr. Recreational types, they often are not able to set aside their emotions like the Wolf of Wall Street or Mr. Numbers Guy types. Unfortunately, Mr. Recreational types will sometimes let their emotions and gut get the best of them even though the numbers might suggest something else.

Wolf of Wall Street

One of our favorite types of sports bettors, the Wolf of Wall Street, takes a much different approach to sports betting than anyone else. Instead of looking at sports wagers as a recreational activity, they consider them to be investments much like one would look at a stock. Often, these types of bettors are referred to as Sharps or sports investors.

What’s nice about this type of sports bettor is that they remove all emotion. While many other bettors end up getting sucked into things due to their ties with their favorite teams and players, Wolf of Wall Street bettors can put all of that aside.

Much like Mr. Numbers Guy above, the Wolf of Wall Street types rely more heavily on numbers than anything else. One big distinction between the two is that the Wolf of Wall Street often has some inside connections that help give him information that Mr. Numbers Guy doesn’t have access too.

Often, Wolf of Wall Street types are plugged in with some form of insider information from handicappers or their own connections that they have made.

Props McGee

This type of sports bettor is a rare bird. Props McGee types tend to focus all of their attention on proposition bets. More traditional sports bets are just too boring for Props McGee types. Instead, they love to wager on less conventional bets such as the over/under on the national anthem at the Super Bowl.

For Props McGee types, it typically doesn’t stop with just sports propositions bets.

While you might not ever consider betting on who the next Pope will be, Props McGee types are all about it.

Lonnie Loiterer

Most common in Europe, but occasionally found around US sportsbooks; Lonnie Loiterer is an interesting type of sports bettor. You’ll find the Lonnie Loiterer type at their local sportsbook almost every single hour of the day. Lonnie Loiterer types are practically living statues that seem to never leave the sports betting establishment.

At first, many people think that the Lonnie Loiterer types are homeless, as they usually look like they could be.

However, if you pay close enough attention, you’ll often watch Lonnie Loiterer types pulling out big stacks of cash to make wagers with. If you ever speak to this type of sports bettor, they’ll often tell you that they have a real job, but that doesn’t make sense because it seems like they are always there at the sportsbook.

If the homeless look didn’t set you off, you could often tell a Lonnie Loiterer type by how they interact with employees at the sportsbook. Often, Lonnie Loiterer types will interact with sportsbook employees like they would a friend. In many cases, Lonnie Loiterer types appear to be part of the sportsbook family.

Mr. Fantasy

The chances are good that you have a friend that is a Mr. Fantasy type of sports bettor. That, or you yourself might be one. Mr. Fantasy types can’t watch a game if they don’t have a wager on that game.

Watching the game itself simply isn’t enough.

In recent years, the exploding popularity of fantasy games such as fantasy football has made it even easier to become this type of sports bettor. Through fantasy games, Mr. Fantasy types are able to easily wager on every game which helps fuel their fire. This type of sports bettor receives a high from having a wager on a game.

In some ways, Mr. Fantasy types can share similar traits to Captain Addiction types. Many Captain Addiction types can’t watch a game without a wager on it.

Because these two types are so close in many ways, Mr. Fantasy types should be mindful of their betting actions and make sure that they are not crossing a line by becoming addicted to sports betting.

Career Gambler

While we’d all love to be this type of sports bettor, unfortunately, it is nearly impossible to become one. A Career Gambler type is a person that is able to make their living solely off of sports betting. We’re not talking someone that earns enough to pay their car note every month.

Career Gambler types are very rare. Statically, it is nearly impossible to be that good that you can earn enough to cover all of your bills. While we all might get lucky here and there on our wagers, Career Gambler types get it right more often than not.

Thanks to their ability to pick correctly more frequently than the majority of the population, these sports bettors can just bet on sports and call that their job.

In order to get to their level, Career Gambler types are not just relying on luck. Often, they have developed their own proprietary systems to aid them in making their sports betting picks.

Career Gambler types definitely have found some form of secret sauce that makes them better than the vast majority of the rest of us. However, since it is their secret sauce, it is unlikely that we’ll ever know all of the secrets that help this type of sports bettor rise above the rest.