The cost of a $5 bet

By Rodrigo Burgos Avila | Editor in chief

Gambling. It is a problem.

Let us be real for a second.

Most guys nowadays have dealt with it. I have dealt with it, and I know how detrimental it can be, not only to your mental health, but also to your pocket. This is where the issue lies mainly, in the mind and in the pocket.

The market and mainstream media are not helping either. They are marketing it to younger audiences in ways that seem more appealing than ever, with things like over/under bets, which are wagers where betting apps set a line for a player’s statistic, and bettors choose whether that player will go over or under the number set.

The trap of “Just five dollars”

There were times where I would be in class waiting for lines to be released just so I could build my parlay. That is how you know something is wrong.

At first, I thought, what would $5 here and there do? Five turned into 10. Ten turned into 20. Before I knew it, I had spent around $100 to win $110. That’s a 10-dollar gain.

Terrible.

That is how many students see it, though. It is just $5; it will not hurt. Well, it does, and it hurts a lot more than just your wallet.

Everyone is doing It

I used to think I was the only one struggling with it. It turns out that I am far from alone. A 2023 NCAA study found that two out of three college students have bet on sports, and many of them do it regularly.

Some have lost hundreds of dollars in a single day. It is not just “harmless fun.” It is something that is quietly becoming part of campus life everywhere.

When I read that, it hit me: if 67 percent of students are betting, then we are not talking about a niche issue anymore. We are talking about something that has become normal, and that is exactly what makes it dangerous.

In the old days, you had to find a bookie face to face, or you had to be in Las Vegas or Atlanta City. Now, with the internet and smartphones, that’s all change.

Betting apps make it look easy. They celebrate the wins, not the losses. The graphics are clean, the odds flash green, and the notifications feel like encouragement. It is designed to make you chase the next one.

That is how they get you, not all at once, but little by little. One more dollar, one more line, one more parlay to “make it back.” You do not even realize when the excitement turns into anxiety.

When the fun turns to anxiety

It starts as entertainment, but eventually, it becomes a quiet burden. You start checking scores during class, refreshing apps during dinner, or feeling that rush of adrenaline when a player you picked is close to hitting his line. You tell yourself you are in control. You tell yourself it is all for fun. But deep down, you know you are not watching the game anymore, you are watching the money.

And that is where the mental side hits hardest. Gambling changes the way you look at sports. It takes away the love of the game and replaces it with stress and frustration. Instead of celebrating a win, you are counting the stats you missed by one rebound or one three-pointer. You start rooting against players you actually like. You stop enjoying the moments that used to make sports special.

When you lose, you do not just lose money. You lose peace. You replay every bad pick, every “what if,” every bet you swore was a lock. You promise yourself you will stop, but the next time you open your phone, the app is already waiting for you. It is a cycle that feeds on emotion, and college students are the perfect target. We live busy lives, we crave excitement, and sometimes we just want something to distract us. That is exactly what gambling preys on.

The AU angle

Here at Augusta University, it might not seem like a problem. We are a NCAA Division II school, and gambling does not feel as visible here as it might be at a big Division I university. You do not see betting lines on AU volleyball or basketball games, and that creates the illusion that we are removed from it.

But the reality is, gambling does not stop at the NCAA Division I level. Apps do not care if you are betting on the NBA, the NFL or a random European soccer match at two in the morning. They care that you are betting at all. And that is why the culture still finds its way onto our campus.

I have seen it firsthand, people in group chats comparing parlays, talking about “locks,” bragging about the one win while staying quiet about ten losses. It is not just a money thing; it is social validation. You want to be the one who called it right, the one who hit the big parlay. But no one talks about the emotional hangover that comes after losing, or the guilt that comes from spending money that was meant for groceries or gas.

That is why awareness matters. Because it does not feel like a problem until it is one. The apps are built on psychology, dopamine hits, near-misses, colorful animations. It is all designed to keep you chasing that feeling of being “just one win away.” And when you are a student, already managing stress, assignments, and finances, that chase can spiral fast.

Gambling addiction does not always look like the dramatic stories you see in movies. It looks like a student in a dorm room, refreshing a live score instead of studying. It looks like someone telling themselves they will quit “after this weekend.” It looks like you or me, convincing ourselves it is all under control.

So what do we do? We start by being honest, with ourselves and with each other. We stop pretending that it is harmless. We talk about it, not as a moral failure, but as something real and common that students are facing. We check on our friends. We hold each other accountable. And if we are struggling, we ask for help.

There is no shame in stepping away. In fact, there is strength in it. I can tell you firsthand that once I stopped betting, the stress started to lift. Watching sports became fun again. I stopped rooting for numbers and started rooting for people.

And that is something worth holding on to.

Taking back the game we love

Gambling is marketed as quick excitement, but the truth is, it is quiet chaos. It drains your time, your money and your joy without you even noticing. The cost of a $5 bet is not just $5, it is focus, peace of mind and, sometimes, the love of the game itself.

If we want to protect that love, for sports, for competition, for being part of something real, we have to start by recognizing what is taking it away. Betting is not worth your sanity, your money or your passion.

And the sooner we realize that, the sooner we can take back what truly matters: the reason we fell in love with the game in the first place.

Note: Image at the top of the page by Heather Gill.

Contact Rodrigo Burgos Avila at rburgosavila@augusta.edu.