Words You Don’t Necessarily Have to Know

These are the words and phrases commonly used by gambling enthusiasts. You might not hear them very often in your everyday life or from everyday people, but they can help you better understand Japan’s gambling culture.

(1) Torigami (Tori=get, gami=lose)

win a race, but lose at a payout

If you are solid and conservative, torigami sometimes happens to you. Your money decreases even if you win the race since your payout is less than the money you bet due to low odds. It occurs when you bet on too many horses or racers despite their lower odds.

(2) Tabiuchi (Tabi=travel, uchi=betting)

go on a trip just to visit and bet at racecourses

Most fans go to racecourses near their homes regularly and occasionally make day trips to distant racecourses. They sometimes escalate into overseas trips to hop around racecourses. The title of this website, “Wandering Gambling,” is my own translation of TabiUchi.

(3) Okera michi (Okera=penniless, Michi=road)

a road from a racecourse to its nearest station full of financially damaged fans trudging to their homes after all races finished

You’ll be sentimental when you follow fans in grayish crowds on okera roads after the final race. They all are tired, disappointed, and devastated because they lost their money. But they are more trustworthy than Google Maps, and you can get to the nearest stations just by following them 🙂

(4) Nomu, Utsu, Kau (Nomu=absorbed in alcohol, Utsu=absorbed in gambling, Kau=absorbed in buying an escort)

a phrase to depict the personality of men typically seen in the 1980s or before

People in the current generation have not heard of this phrase and might not be interested in it. It could be one of the obsolete phrases. When looking back on the days when it had some powers of conviction, I feel it was used merely to justify men’s negative and intractable nature.

(5) Yao cho

a plot to get payout fraudulently by coordinating race results with racers in advance

Yao cho is a criminal offense. Some fans are skeptical at all times, and they are likely to complain, saying Yao cho! whenever the race results didn’t meet their expectations. Disappointedly, there have been some cases not only in race gambling but also in Sumo wrestling.