Money you won while gambling is usually reported on Form W2-G, Certain Gambling Winnings. Gambling losses can be deducted if you itemize, but only up to the amount you reported winning.
For example, if you fed your local casino's slot machines $200 last year and won $50 of it back, you'd report $50 in winnings. You could then deduct $50 in losses (essentially wiping out $50 of taxable income) but only if you itemize.
On the other hand, if you don't itemize, or if the casino kept the entire $200, you cannot deduct anything
You will report the total of your gambling winnings as Other income on your tax return. You can deduct your gambling losses up to the amount of your winnings on Schedule A as a miscellaneous deduction as part of your itemized deductions. If the sum of Itemized Deductions in Schedule A does not exceed the amount of your Standard Deduction, Schedule A will not be beneficial to your return.
To make the mechanical data entry for such (non) W-2G gambling winnings and losses, you can simply enter the search term "gambling income not on a w-2g" into the box near the top of your TurboTax screen. Click the Find button, and then the "Jump To" link that will appear beneath. This should take yo to the relevant place in TurboTax. Please see the attached screen-capture images for a illustration of this process.
