gambling winnings question

[kegray1]

The IRS isn't stupid. They know this is the oldest scam run by guys like this! That's why the first question they ask when you drop thousands of dollars worth of losing tickets in front of them will always be:

"You had all those losers, but only that one big winner, huh?"

They don't buy it. Period.


You can take the chance that you don't get audited, and you probably won't. But if you do, and this is the course you wish to go........good luck.

The IRS is not going to question you losing $1200 bucks at the track if it is spread out over a few visits to the track. Many people take $100-$200 to the track on a regular basis.

As for where are the other winners questions. Only odds of 300-1 have to pay a IRS ticket claim at the track.
It is VERY EASY to claim you never had one of those over 10 trips to the track.

I think the IRS is onto people who hit a PICK 6 for $100K then pull out these type tickets.
Not $1200 guys.

 

[kegray1]

I thought you couldn't combine different types of gambling. For example, you can't claim you lost on scratch tickets to make up for wins on sports gambling. I'm not gonna research it because I really don't care, but I thought that was the case.

When I do my taxes with Turbo Tax the gambling part never goes into specifics on gambling winnings or losings.

Gambling is gambling.
I think.

 

[Trampled Underfoot]

When I do my taxes with Turbo Tax the gambling part never goes into specifics on gambling winnings or losings.

Gambling is gambling.
I think.

You're probably right. For some reason I always thought you couldn't combine them.

 

[The Joker]

 

[yyz]

The IRS is not going to question you losing $1200 bucks at the track if it is spread out over a few visits to the track. Many people take $100-$200 to the track on a regular basis.

As for where are the other winners questions. Only odds of 300-1 have to pay a IRS ticket claim at the track.
It is VERY EASY to claim you never had one of those over 10 trips to the track.

I think the IRS is onto people who hit a PICK 6 for $100K then pull out these type tickets.
Not $1200 guys.

You have no understanding of this, as is evident by that post. They are going to want DETAILED information about your wins/losses.

They will count your $2 win tickets that cashed for $8 apiece, too! They simply don't buy the story about you having one winning day at the casino, and then you have 200 losing tickets from the track with NO winners to report??????

You don't have to believe me. Go ahead and give this bright idea a whirl, and have a ball.

You'll get about as far as the guy who tells the cop, "I only had one beer".

 

[kegray1]

You have no understanding of this, as is evident by that post. They are going to want DETAILED information about your wins/losses.

They will count your $2 win tickets that cashed for $8 apiece, too! They simply don't buy the story about you having one winning day at the casino, and then you have 200 losing tickets from the track with NO winners to report??????

You don't have to believe me. Go ahead and give this bright idea a whirl, and have a ball.

You'll get about as far as the guy who tells the cop, "I only had one beer".

How do you prove that you cashed a $2 winner at the track??
They don't give your ticket back to you so there is no way to prove winnings that are not IRS claims.
You can claim an amount number of winnings.

You are aware people are suppose to claim tips on their returns as well don't you.
Do on you think antyone is honest in doing that.
Many don't claim ANY.

If I got $300 in losers in one day from the track then I can claim my losses on the day were like $200 then it is fine. They don't question small fish.

I would be afraid of doing this on a big number like you claim, but $1200 is just plain different.
$1200 in gambling is hardly a flag at the IRS.

 

[kegray1]

Keep track of your gaming losses
When you do claim your gambling losses on your tax return, it's a good idea to keep a record of them. While you don't have to send your loss data in with your return, documentation could come in handy if the IRS ever questions the claim.
Acceptable gambling-loss record keeping could include a written log detailing the date of your wagers, the location, amount bet, type of gaming, and wins and losses. You should also hang on to losing lottery tickets or bingo cards.

The good thing about deducting gambling losses is that, unlike some other deductions, you don't have to meet a certain level before you can claim them. But then again, they aren't completely unlimited.

You can only count as much in losses as you won. So if you spent $100 on lottery tickets and won $75, you can only deduct $75. The other $25 is just part of the price of playing the game.

 

[yyz]

I would be afraid of doing this on a big number like you claim, but $1200 is just plain different.
$1200 in gambling is hardly a flag at the IRS.

That, is the only thing you are dead on about. The odds of getting an audit based on this are very slim.

Still, I can promise that you don't know anyone who ever pulled that scam with success on the IRS in an audit.


You can google this, and see what they require of you if you'd like? It is "slightly" more than the gambler's word on what he won/lost.

 

[kegray1]

It is always a risk to play with the IRS, but like I said $1200 which is what Hedge is asking is by no means red flag to the IRS.

I am not saying just go grab $1200 in ticket losers.
You need more than that so you can tell the IRS you won on those nights as well.
$2400 in losses and $1200 in winning claims from the track leaves you with the $1200 to offset the casino loss.

If you are gonna do it then I would keep stubs for admission to track and keep a paper tracking date and winnings/losings.

YOU WILL NOT GET AUDITED SOLELY OVER $1200 GAMBLING OFFSET CLAIM, but I would have some sort of proof stored away..

The rest of your tax return may be a different story.

 

[kegray1]

Still, I can promise that you don't know anyone who ever pulled that scam with success on the IRS in an audit.

That is true, however I know tons of people who frequent the track and get multiply IRS claims each year and claim their losses against it and NONE have been audited.
Myself included back in the day.

I once saw these 5 guys win a Pick 6 for $125K out at the dog track when the track was booming.
I had never seen them before and I was out there every night. They were out there 5 or 6 days in a row grabbing dropped tickets before they could even hit the floor.
They got warned not to pick up other peoples tickets and were tossed.
The last night they were there, I saw two of them being taken off in cuffs.
It is illegal to do that. I am sure the IRS was notified of what they were doing which was probably a good thing because claiming those losses were heading them down a road they did not want to go on.

 

[hedgehog]

I am not going to go through garbage cans, but I will go to the track a few times this summer and pick up some losing tickets and buy some lotto tickets, hell I may hit 50 million lotto :SIB I think I will start tonight:00hour