Positivity. Perspective. Humor. Open-heartedness.
Those are four qualities you don’t always find in an arena in which the tiniest tweak in the earth’s gravitational pull around, say, Soldier Field on any given Sunday could make or break a bettor’s week.
But those are four qualities you most definitely find in Minty Bets.
On her well-trafficked social media pages, the Nevada native drops positive, open-hearted sports betting advice videos, delivering her picks with charm, cheer, and, most importantly, proficiency.
In other words, she’s the Bettor Next Door.
Minty sat down with Playboy to discuss her journey from Las Vegas to…Las Vegas.
Minty: I’m first generation Thai-American. My parents came to Vegas to start their lives, and they both worked in casinos. My dad absolutely loves sports, so every night coming home from the casino, he would have a different bet slip [with him] and a different team to cheer for. The tradition in our house was that when he had a good night, he’d go straight to this casino to cash out his ticket. If he had a bad night, we’d hear him rip up his ticket.
Playboy: Was this a bonding thing with your dad, or were you on the periphery?
Minty: I watched from afar. He never ever taught me about betting, but we did do this thing every single year where, when the Super Bowl rolled around, he’d ask me, “Hey, Mint, who do you want to win, the Chiefs or the Niners?” And he’d throw $20 for me on whoever I picked. He would also tell me what point spreads meant—but I was 11 or 12 at the time, so I really didn’t care.
Playboy: So sports and family are a package deal for you?
Minty: Yeah, they correlate, because if you think about it, a lot of people who grow up loving sports do so because their mom or dad loves a certain team, right? I think it actually does bring our family closer. My dad lives in Thailand now, but he comes back as often as he can to come see some games and come bet with me.
Playboy: When did sports betting become real for you?
Minty: When I was 21, I was, of course, living paycheck-to-paycheck. I needed to make some cash without selling my eggs, so I was like, “How can I get some money on the fly? I know, I’ll bet on sports because it’s easy!” The thing is, it’s not. I had zero knowledge of sports and sports betting, and I was really scared to ask people about it. It seemed like everyone who bet already knew the lingo, and they had their own methods on how to win. So I asked a few of my guy friends who I trusted, and they all came back to me with “Don’t worry, sweetie, just follow my picks.”
Playboy: Were they a little condescending?
Minty: Absolutely. They would always brag about these crazy parlays they hit and show me the slips and say, Hey, I hit this parlay for two grand. I always thought it was a dick move, so I started betting myself. I had no clue what the odds next to the teams meant, and I lost a lot of money, and there were lots of ups and downs.
I stopped a few years later because I was making great money as a cocktail server, but then in 2018, I had some extra cash to blow, so I was like, you know what? It’s baseball season. Let’s get serious about betting. So I started a Twitter account just to follow different bettors and beat writers and immerse myself in betting, and figure out the game of baseball, because it was a sport I really struggled with.
I started posting my picks on Twitter for accountability and record keeping. I then posted a video of myself making picks, a quick video, something like, “Hey, I’m taking the Marlins. Bye!” It gained me hundreds of Twitter followers overnight.
Playboy: How have you set yourself apart from other betting content creators?
Minty: I want to be very relatable and show that I’m not the best bettor in the world, that I’m not a professional handicapper, and I go on cold streaks, and it’s okay to make fun of it and move on.
Playboy: Do you think the fact that you’re not a mind-blowing sharp has made you more relatable?
Minty: Absolutely. I want people to feel like I’m their equal when it comes to betting, because we all make mistakes, and we all have bad streaks, and we all place silly bets.
Playboy: You mentioned that when you first started getting serious about betting, your male friends were condescending. Now that you have some visibility, is that still a thing?
Minty: Yes and no, There are a lot of people who are very supportive of women in the industry, but there are a handful of people who…aren’t. I used to be very open about doing podcast interviews for anybody and everybody because I wanted to support other creators. But now I won’t go on podcasts for a few reasons, and one of them is that even though those who interview me generally respect me and want to highlight women in the sports betting industry, they treat me differently.
Playboy: How so?
Minty: The two questions that really irk me on these podcasts that I always get asked are, How do you make your picks and Do you really bet? I feel like that’s a slap in the face, that they’re wanting me to say, You’re right, somebody actually makes my bets for me. It’s just silly.
Playboy: Finally, what’s your favorite professional team, regardless of sport?
Minty: The New York Rangers, because right before the pandemic, it seemed like every time Igor Shesterkin started in goal for them, they were the underdog, so I just fired away on them to win. I think Shesterkin went on to win ten in a row, so I was like, Hell, yeah, the Rangers are my team. I’ve never been to New York, so now it’s a dream of mine is to go to Madison Square Garden and watch the Rangers.