He lost $6,000 on one game. Ex-gambler sees good and bad in Kansas’ new sports betting
Draque Murff never really considered himself a gambler. That is until 2018, when he saw the frequency of his betting increase along with the size of those wagers.
“It was just the thrill,” says Murff, a 36-year-old barbershop owner. “Having money on the line made watching the game so much more exciting. The first big win was for like $2,000, and kept going after that.”
After a few years of betting with an up and down track record, Murff began to hit a rough patch. Thankfully he had the self-control to walk away.
“I lost $6,000 all on one game, and after that I knew I had to stop,” he says. “When you lose that much, you don’t just feel like you lost the game, you feel like a loser in life. I was beginning to lose and keep losing. Nobody quits gambling because they keep winning.”
He worries that last week’s launch of legal sports betting in Kansas will make the temptation — and the loss — worse for gambling addicts.
Murff, an alum of Shawnee Mission South High School, has owned Draque’s Barbershop at 106 W. 39th St. for the past 11 years. And over the course of those years he developed a love-hate relationship with sports betting. As the veteran barber’s business thrived, he began to have access to more disposable income.
“We have a lot of TVs and a lot of men,” says Murff. “We are always watching sports. Sports is just a part of American culture, much like the barbershop is a part of the culture. So when you put the two together, bets are going to happen.”
Kansas’ legalized sports betting had a soft launch Sept. 1 at Hollywood Casino. The official launch is set for Sept. 8, the day of this season’s first NFL game. The apps for Kansas gambling don’t work outside the state, so Missourians have to cross the state line to use them. In Missouri, sports betting is still illegal.
Murff believes betting is just a hazard of his line of work. The barbershop has long stood as one of the paramount locations for many in the urban core for placing bets. While Murff himself will not be partaking in sports betting, he does feel it is better to give people a place to go to bet legally instead of gambling with no regulations.
Murff admits he used to allow friendly bets to take place until an altercation between an employee and a customer over an unpaid wager. After that, he placed a prohibition on betting within the business.
“There was an incident. It didn’t go too well,” he says. “Now I don’t let barbers place bets with customers anymore. It is just bad for business. You end up not only losing a client but losing the money.”
It was a tough call for the young business owner, given the deep ties that sports and betting have with the culture of his industry.
Jodi Gusman, director of recovery services at University Health (formerly Truman Medical Centers), predicts a vast shift of the demographic that will make up Kansas’ new sports betting sector.
“If you look at the statistics, we are going to see more young adults being involved with sports betting,” says Gusman, “while the older, 50 and 60 on up will stick with those table games like poker and slot machines.”
Gusman, who has worked in the field of addiction for over 20 years, believes the quick and easy access to digital sports betting will appeal more to a younger, technology-driven generation.
“All you need is a phone. A lot of us in the older generation were not raised with cellphones. But young adults, that’s how they communicate and do a lot of their day-to-day activities, and being able to gamble online is going to be very easy for them.”
A gambling addiction can be harder for friends and family to spot than other addictions, Gusman says.
“Substance abuse addiction is pretty visual. People can see individuals who are suffering from some type of substance abuse problems,” she says. “You can’t see individuals are suffering from gambling addiction. So I think there is not as much attention that should be on the addiction that people have to gambling because it is very devastating if you don’t have control over it.”
Gusman says many gambling addicts have a “co-occurring illness” such as anxiety or depression, which can have dire conclusions.
“A lot of times when they reach out for help, it is their loved ones who are providing ultimatums. People who need the help are just like any other person that might be suffering. They are not going to seek it unless something actually happens. With gambling, people can lose their whole retirement, their house, their cars, their relationship and sometimes still not seek out treatment.”
Murff is one of the lucky ones who was able to walk away from gambling. Now he uses that extra money and time to engage with the community.
This year Murff started a nonprofit group called Operation Level Up to help urban youth. Last month, the organization held its first community event, donating school supplies and haircuts to children in need.
“I don’t think I would go back to betting,” he says. “I think it was a distraction and I choose to put that energy into focusing on my kids, on my business or just keeping that money in the bank.”
Where to get help for gambling addiction
Missouri Department of Health online treatment resources, dmh.mo.gov
Missouri’s Problem Gambling Helpline: 888-238-7633, 888betsoff.org
Kansas Responsible Gambling Alliance: 800-522-4700, ksgamblinghelp.com
Gamblers Anonymous: 267-807-9601, gamblersanonymous.org
National Council on Problem Gambling: 1-800-522-4700, ncpgambling.org
This story was originally published September 6, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
