'I literally can't stop.' The descent of a modern sports fan [View all]
Jordan Holt typed furiously on his computer in his Phoenix hotel room, searching for information on Indiana Pacers guard Buddy Hield. Holt, a 43-year-old meter and relay technician, was steaming mad, having just watched an NBA game between the Boston Celtics and the Pacers.
Hield had made a 3-pointer at the buzzer in a game that the Pacers had already secured, breaking an unwritten rule in late-game etiquette. But Holt wasn’t angry about Hield’s rubbing in the score. He was angry because the three points pushed the final score to 122-112 … one point above the over/under line on his parlay bet.
Holt lost the $100 bet — but in his mind, he lost $700 in what should have been winnings.
“I started searching for his Instagram address,” Holt said. “I was going to scream at him. I wanted to go off on him.”
It was December 2023, and Holt was deep in the spiral of a rapidly growing problem: online sports betting addiction.
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5777632/2024/10/14/sports-betting-addiction-problem-fans/?UTM=NYTI_AUC_ATHLETC_COUSA_TW_SO_WTCP_XXXXXXXXXX_INTER_000000XXX_2PTW_XXXX_SPORTSINTXPRO_X18PL_COUSA_XXXXX_TWITOA_SBET_0X_EN_PG_NFLINKS&site=x&campaign_id=36578818&source=twitterpcads&ad-keywords=auddevgate&twclid=23gq91o1ajthkdhs3x6cmpl9y7
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