[From a book I wrote]
THE BASIC RULES OF GAMBLING
This is not meant to be a complicated set of rules to memorize. It's just a list of things IÂ’ve learned over the years that seem to make sense.
1. HARD MONEY NEVER WINS. If you can’t afford to lose it, don't play it! The realistic way to look at gambling is that it's a form of entertainment during your visit. You budget money for gambling as you would for accommodations, meals, shows, and so on. When you lose that gambling “bankroll”, QUIT! I can guarantee that if you take out five or fifty or five hundred in order to “get even.” you might as well walk up to the pit boss and hand it over.
2. LEARN HOW TO PLAY WHAT YOU ARE GOING TO PLAY. I am amazed that otherwise intelligent people put their money at risk without having a basic idea of what they're doing. Yet, I see it day in and night out. There are hundreds of books, probably several hundred websites, and many casinos to learn how to play each and every game. The casinos offer classes because they know it will not reduce their win but will allow you to play longer so you will think kindly of them.
3. NEVER “SHORT COIN” A SLOT MACHINE. Every single slot machine has a payout structure that drastically reduces the jackpot for less than the maximum amount of coins. In fact, “short coining” is what causes so many jackpots to get to outrageous levels
I did not personally see this but was told about it by someone who did. A man was playing Megabucks at a Strip casino and came to a time when he desperately needed to use “the facilities.”
He had his wife sit down at the machine so he wouldnÂ’t lose it. The jackpot was well over twenty-five million dollars and several people waited for a free machine. The woman sat there as her husband had asked her to do. After about ten minutes, people began to grumble and tell her to play or give it up to someone who would. She ignored them. After a few more minutes, someone went to the pit boss and complained. The slot boss soon showed. The slot boss sympathized but told her she would either have to play the machine or clear out her credits and turn it over to someone else. More than a little shaken and upset, she pulled a token out of the tray, dropped it into the machine and pulled the handle. THE FOUR JACKPOT SYMBOLS LINED UP and she won something in the tens of thousands of dollars instead of the twenty-five million. We can all imagine the husbandÂ’s reaction when he got back.
Before that, a young man hit a Megabucks jackpot but was under twenty-one and they had to reset the meter. That particular jackpot got to well over thirty-five million before it was hit - by a cocktail girl who worked at another casino. The sad part is that two weeks later, she was hit by a drunk driver, her sister-in-law was killed, and she was left paralyzed for life. (The drunk driver walked away with minor bruises.)
4. IF YOU ARE UNSURE OF SOMETHING, ASK. In live games, all you have to do's ask the dealer who will call over the pit boss who will then go out of his/her way to explain what you want to know. Every poker toom has clearly posted rules. Don't feel embarrassed. It's your money and you have the right to know what's going on.
5. DONÂ’T OVERDO THE BOOZE. Casinos offer free drinks for the simple reason that alcohol dulls your senses and puts you in a state to make mistakes. The house will generally get your money as it is, so why increase their advantage?
6. DON’T BECOME ENAMORED WITH ONE MACHINE. In the long run, the machine will outlast you. Just because you see a lot of chances coming up for the jackpot doesn't mean it's there. It just makes sense that if the machine's taking your money and not giving you any credits, get off it and find another. This looks easier than it is. Believe me, after all these years, I still fall into the trap of thinking the machine “just HAS to come up a winner“. If the machine's giving you credits/ money, play it until it “turns cold” and get off. Oh yeah! We have all had the experience of leaving a machine and watching someone else come along, sit down, and hit the jackpot. So? That jackpot wasn't meant for you and you could have played it another ten hours and it would have only taken your money. Of all the so-called secrets of gambling, the most important is simply being in the right place at the right time. In other words, LUCK!
If you just have to play that machine but need to take a walk to the powder room, leaving a plastic coin bucket on the seat or asking another player to watch it for you is an open invitation to disaster! Anyone can come up and take the machine, play your credits, or even cash them out and walk away. I have seen it happen, even in small local casinos where everyone knows everyone else. The only “safe” way to reserve a machine's to call over a slot person and ask them to shut it down for you. They will write your name down, the time you left and when you are due to return, and shut it off - after you have removed any credits you might have.
7. GET SOMETHING FOR YOUR PLAY. If the house you are in has a Slot Club - join it! It costs you nothing and you can get free meals, free rooms, and free gifts. It's their way of tracking players. As I related, over the years, I have picked up a lot of great stuff from slot clubs.
And, don't worry about only coming to town once or twice a year. Your points will be there for several years and, even if you stay away longer, they can be retrieved from the system.
8. ENJOY YOURSELF. If you cannot, then you have a problem and should not be gambling.
THE BASIC RULES OF GAMBLING
This is not meant to be a complicated set of rules to memorize. It's just a list of things IÂ’ve learned over the years that seem to make sense.
1. HARD MONEY NEVER WINS. If you can’t afford to lose it, don't play it! The realistic way to look at gambling is that it's a form of entertainment during your visit. You budget money for gambling as you would for accommodations, meals, shows, and so on. When you lose that gambling “bankroll”, QUIT! I can guarantee that if you take out five or fifty or five hundred in order to “get even.” you might as well walk up to the pit boss and hand it over.
2. LEARN HOW TO PLAY WHAT YOU ARE GOING TO PLAY. I am amazed that otherwise intelligent people put their money at risk without having a basic idea of what they're doing. Yet, I see it day in and night out. There are hundreds of books, probably several hundred websites, and many casinos to learn how to play each and every game. The casinos offer classes because they know it will not reduce their win but will allow you to play longer so you will think kindly of them.
3. NEVER “SHORT COIN” A SLOT MACHINE. Every single slot machine has a payout structure that drastically reduces the jackpot for less than the maximum amount of coins. In fact, “short coining” is what causes so many jackpots to get to outrageous levels
I did not personally see this but was told about it by someone who did. A man was playing Megabucks at a Strip casino and came to a time when he desperately needed to use “the facilities.”
He had his wife sit down at the machine so he wouldnÂ’t lose it. The jackpot was well over twenty-five million dollars and several people waited for a free machine. The woman sat there as her husband had asked her to do. After about ten minutes, people began to grumble and tell her to play or give it up to someone who would. She ignored them. After a few more minutes, someone went to the pit boss and complained. The slot boss soon showed. The slot boss sympathized but told her she would either have to play the machine or clear out her credits and turn it over to someone else. More than a little shaken and upset, she pulled a token out of the tray, dropped it into the machine and pulled the handle. THE FOUR JACKPOT SYMBOLS LINED UP and she won something in the tens of thousands of dollars instead of the twenty-five million. We can all imagine the husbandÂ’s reaction when he got back.
Before that, a young man hit a Megabucks jackpot but was under twenty-one and they had to reset the meter. That particular jackpot got to well over thirty-five million before it was hit - by a cocktail girl who worked at another casino. The sad part is that two weeks later, she was hit by a drunk driver, her sister-in-law was killed, and she was left paralyzed for life. (The drunk driver walked away with minor bruises.)
4. IF YOU ARE UNSURE OF SOMETHING, ASK. In live games, all you have to do's ask the dealer who will call over the pit boss who will then go out of his/her way to explain what you want to know. Every poker toom has clearly posted rules. Don't feel embarrassed. It's your money and you have the right to know what's going on.
5. DONÂ’T OVERDO THE BOOZE. Casinos offer free drinks for the simple reason that alcohol dulls your senses and puts you in a state to make mistakes. The house will generally get your money as it is, so why increase their advantage?
6. DON’T BECOME ENAMORED WITH ONE MACHINE. In the long run, the machine will outlast you. Just because you see a lot of chances coming up for the jackpot doesn't mean it's there. It just makes sense that if the machine's taking your money and not giving you any credits, get off it and find another. This looks easier than it is. Believe me, after all these years, I still fall into the trap of thinking the machine “just HAS to come up a winner“. If the machine's giving you credits/ money, play it until it “turns cold” and get off. Oh yeah! We have all had the experience of leaving a machine and watching someone else come along, sit down, and hit the jackpot. So? That jackpot wasn't meant for you and you could have played it another ten hours and it would have only taken your money. Of all the so-called secrets of gambling, the most important is simply being in the right place at the right time. In other words, LUCK!
If you just have to play that machine but need to take a walk to the powder room, leaving a plastic coin bucket on the seat or asking another player to watch it for you is an open invitation to disaster! Anyone can come up and take the machine, play your credits, or even cash them out and walk away. I have seen it happen, even in small local casinos where everyone knows everyone else. The only “safe” way to reserve a machine's to call over a slot person and ask them to shut it down for you. They will write your name down, the time you left and when you are due to return, and shut it off - after you have removed any credits you might have.
7. GET SOMETHING FOR YOUR PLAY. If the house you are in has a Slot Club - join it! It costs you nothing and you can get free meals, free rooms, and free gifts. It's their way of tracking players. As I related, over the years, I have picked up a lot of great stuff from slot clubs.
And, don't worry about only coming to town once or twice a year. Your points will be there for several years and, even if you stay away longer, they can be retrieved from the system.
8. ENJOY YOURSELF. If you cannot, then you have a problem and should not be gambling.
