We’ve all made promises we can’t keep from time to time—but sometimes, those mistakes can come at a cost. It’s never a good idea to bet more than you can afford to lose, and one patron learned that the hard way, according to bartender Ryan Kimble (@hrkcomedy).
The content creator, who frequently shares anecdotes from bartending for his 53,900 TikTok viewers, shared the gambler’s story in a TikTok.
“A guy came into the bar this week, sat down at the slot machine, and in no time at all was up like 50 to 100 bucks,” he began. “He’s super excited, I’m excited for him, everybody’s feeling good, he decides to buy a round for the bar.” There was, he noted, “a pretty good crowd,” which cost $240 in drinks altogether.
“I give him his change, he says, ‘I’ll tip you a little bit, I’m gonna keep, you know, gambling,” he recalls. Later on, as the customer continues to gamble, Ryan notes how he’s “on two machines at the same time” at a “rapid fire” rate; spending $8 every few seconds.
But as he continues to gamble, his promised tip to Ryan remains unpaid.
“I get off my shift,” he says. “Never hear from the guy again. He’s still f*cking sitting over there. I sit down. I have some drinks[…] I get off my shift. I go home. The guy’s still f*cking playing come in the next day. And the owner tells me that guy sat there, closed the fucking bar down, and paid all $5,000 that he won back into the machine, and then some.”
@hrkcomedy #bartender #slots #fyp #gambling #addict #barlife #tips #beer #foryou #viral ♬ original sound – Ryan Kimble
“So the moral of the story is, if you hit on the machines, tip your bartender first and then lose all your money,” he concluded. “You know, especially if you buy $240 out at least tip the 20% on the $240 you know, unbelievable. I don’t want to say I’m glad that he gave all the money back. But I will say that karma is a real b*tch.”
While the gambler’s situation may have seemed unique, plenty of commenters could relate to the story.
“I see this all the time,” one wrote. “They lose more than they win. I win by not playing.”
“I always used to tip after winning,” another added. “The bartenders loved me and when I’d lose they were always generous.” When all is said is done, one thing commenters seemed to agree on is that the bartender should have been tipped by at least 15%.
Ryan didn’t immediately respond to the Daily Dot’s request for comment via TikTok comment.