Periodically I receive a version of the following email:
Mr. Dancer:
I have read your books and practiced on Video Poker for Winners. I’m a really good player. I live in Las Vegas and can see there are good games to play — except I simply do not have the bankroll to play at the stakes necessary to succeed.
But you do! So why don’t you bankroll me? I’ll share the results with you 50-50 of course and we can both do well!
If you weren’t such a hypocrite, you’d see the wisdom of this! This is a chance for you to put your money where your mouth is. If what you’re writing is just a bunch of lies in order to sell books, I could see why you’d pass this up. But you’re not doing that at all, are you?
So, when can we start?
Eve
Dear Eve:
I’m not interested. For a lot of reasons.
First, even if you are a player with the same (or better) abilities that I have, playing 100% honestly, you’re asking me to receive half of the wins and bear 100% of the losses — on a game where only a tiny advantage is possible. That would not be an intelligent gamble on my part.
Second, Eve, I don’t know you from Adam. Even if you tested out really well when I was watching, who’s to say what you will do when I’m not around watching you? I’m not saying you’re a cheater. What I AM saying, though, is that some people do cheat and I’m not proficient at detecting beforehand who’s going to cheat me and who’s not. Since I’m not very good at this, I believe it is better for me is to stay away from it.
Third, this is not my business model. I have no desire to form some type of insurance company. Maybe somebody else can see the opportunity here and prosper at this sort of thing, but I’m 70 years old now and that’s not how I want to spend the rest of my life.
Fourth, there’s a big difference between investing in myself and investing in somebody else. Those are very different mindsets. Those involve very different risks.
Lastly, I don’t respond well to “If you’re not a hypocrite then you’ll do what I want you to do” types of arguments. It’s reminiscent of grade school challenges like, “I double dare you to jump off of that building!” No thanks. Go try and manipulate somebody else!
I have bankrolled two players in the past. One went pretty much as expected and I won a bit. The other player lost at a very high rate — possible, but unlikely. It’s been more than 20 years and I still think I was cheated — but I couldn’t prove it at the time and certainly can’t prove it now. I promised myself “never again” at the time and see no reason to break that promise to myself now.
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Building a bankroll is key, it takes money to gamble. Other than acquiring a sugar daddy to fund your gambling habit, the Kelly system is the only system that is math based and actually works. If you don’t know what it is, do a search for “Wizard of Odds Kelly System”.
Part of playing live poker is having the bankroll. Nothing gets you more focussed that making a $500 bet with your own money.
Eve… trot on over to your local bank and take out a considerable loan. What do you have to lose?
What a jerk (or jerk-ette) “Eve” must be.
I suppose Eve could have written the same email to Bank of America.
“Give me some of the yellow and don’t be cheap on me!”
The Kelly criterion (it’s not a “system”) is only useful when you can actually bet the optimal amount. That amount is usually something like $1.73 or $5.99 or $128.42. Try betting those amounts on a video poker machine.
And while we’d all like to pile on Eve or toss her off a bridge, she wouldn’t be the first person who has an investment idea but lacks enough capital and wants a partner. There might be some risk in forming a VP team, but there is also risk in, say, giving your money to an insane crook with orange hair so he can buy a hotel in Florida. Her prospect is not actually totally unreasonable, however she chooses to word it.
Also, many of us don’t have Danceresque capital. Forming a VP team may be the only way to achieve a decent earn while keeping RoR low. Yes, there are trust issues, but there are also trust issues in forming a REIT with an insane orange-haired—oh wait, I said that already.
While many of your articles are informative, I find ones this this one, using your column to reply to a personal attack, not very interesting or informative at all.
I believe some people are too stupid and ignorant to realize what they are saying – this “letter from Eve” for example.
I’m willing to believe Bob is not a hypocrite, he says he and his wife won millions from MGM at video poker, I’m willing to believe him. That’s the thing about video poker, it’s high variance so you win at some casinos and lose at others, the casinos you beat back you off or 86 you so you play at the casinos you’re losing at hoping to turn your luck around. But in my mind, Bob is just like those real estate investment seminar gurus or those “lifestyle coach” gurus, or real Indian gurus. There are two options, one is the guy is making money on the seminars, two is the guy has secrets that are worth money, but he’s keeping those secrets as long as they are still worth money. I think Bob is the later, why would he give away secrets that are still worth money?
Are you still posting articles to bobdancer.com?
Seriously Eve? You don’t know me. I am a practicing student of Bob’s teachings. I consider myself a “” really good player” with successes and failures. I have a proposition for you. Bankroll me with just 500.00. I will share the winnings with you 50/50. When do we start? Are you ready to put your $$$ where your mouth is?
I own most of Bob’s publications. I am not interested in knowing how much money he is earning. I am thankful he shares his knowledge so that I have a better advantage.
Bob – Why is their so little written about Ultimate X Video Poker?
I don’t think it was an attack at all. He politely gave 4 legitimate reasons why he doesn’t want to finance him/her.