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,i.e. losses minus winnings,
which by law must all be declared as income, he¹s
in the clear with the IRS though maybe not elsewhere.
He also stated, "When I win, I usually give at
least a chunk of it away (to
charity). I report everything to the IRS." You
don¹t see what I walk away
with," Bennett says. "They (the casinos)
don¹t want you to see it." How¹s
that again? Seems like when you¹re in a hole,
you should stop digging.
Now, I could have a field day with those statements,
but I will grudgingly
confine my efforts to your question¹s underlying
issue: Taxes on his
"unknown" winnings.
If he did his virtuous duty, the former Education
Secretary (an obvious
truant from Gambling 101, and only very modestly qualified
as a lecturer on
morality) offset his gambling losses by the amount
of his winnings on
Schedule A as an Other Miscellaneous Deduction, but
only to the extent of
his gambling wins, not income from his highfalutin¹
rhetoric on the Stygian
depths to which we moral lepers have sunk, nor on
the royalties on his
Bookie of Virtues.
Okay, I took a shot. But you note, Dave, that I forbore
to home in on this
plump target of opportunity, offering just a little
light-hearted humor
instead. Painful decision, I¹ll admit.
Gambling winnings are reported on tax form 1040 on
the Other Income Line.
Reportable gambling winnings can come from lotteries,
bingo, raffles, horse
and dog racing, mud-wrestling, and all casino games,
including those $500
slot machines where Mr. Bennett hangs his halo.
A loss-claimant, like Mr. Bennett, must substantiate
his loss claims with a
flawlessly documented, descriptive gambling diary.
That is done by keeping
on hand all wagering tickets, canceled checks, bank
withdrawal statements
made at the casino, and credit receipts as necessary
proof.
Also, gambling losses can be used only to counterbalance
gambling winnings
during that same tax period. They cannot be carried
forward or back to any
other tax year.
Dear Mark,
While playing a friendly game of Hold¹em with
friends, a player called out his hand as a flush instead
of the straight flush it was. I had a full
house, enough to beat a flush, but not a straight
flush. My friend believed he still gets the pot even
if he miscalled his hand. I don¹t. Who¹s
right?
Alex C.
At a kitchen-table game,
the enforceable statutes on such matters should be
Hoyle; but let¹s face it, we¹ve all sat
in on games where the rules are
based on whose house we¹re in, or who bought
the beer. As for casino Hold¹em
games, the iron rule is that "cards speak."
Your poker hand is what it is,
regardless of how you call or miscall it.
When the cards go face up, the dealer will call the
hands and award the pot
to the player who actually has the best hand, even
if, like your friend, the
player were to miscall it.
Gambling quote of the
week: "Things such as air quality, noise levels,
sound
patterns, colors, graphics, and aromas were identified
as having dramatic
influences on player behavior."Jerry L. Patterson,
Casino Gambling
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