How could we still make 30 -40 $ with a 1% house edge? Wagering 1000$ with a 1% house edge, will in theory lead that you get back 990 $ and thus looses 10$. Offcourse, it all depends on your luck also. You might get lucky and end with a profit or end with a bigger than expected loss.
You should read more carefully babygun
we are here talking about the Eddie's Guarantee. The maximum (half) refund is $50 then if you are interested in the Eddie's bet of the week but it finally loses, you will receive $50. To get this refund you need to have wagered $1000 at least before, that is to say theoretically "lost" 10$ at 1% House Edge. $50-$10=$40
(If you were not interested in his bet initially, of course it doesn't really result in a profit for you, except if it wins)
I am still in the firm belief that if you really want to gamble, do not do it based on what you could get back or what is the competition or what the promotion is and just bet because you want to.
Definitely there could be some eddie's pick situation where you could get something back, but if you wager just because there is a chance that you could get 50 bucks refunded, then you are going to lose a lot. Not because you ended up gambling, we all gamble and yes we all lose eventually, but because you wagered on something you didn't want to which is the quickest way to make a loss. I personally prefer the method where people gamble what they like, and not what someone else picked for them.