For the first time since I've played blackjack, I colored up more than $500 and the dealer gave me a "purple." When I went to the cage, the cashier asked me where I was playing and called the pit. Why?
[Editor's Note: This answer is provided by our guy behind the curtain, Andrew Uyal, a floor supervisor at the Cromwell (who just returned from an epic trip to Peru).]
In almost every casino, there's a threshold where if someone cashes out x amount of chips, the cage is supposed to call the pit and verify the play. If the pit boss says, "No, that wasn't from here" and the cashier can't verify it, they might refuse to cash it out.
Almost all the time, this verification procedure starts with some amount of purple chips. At some smaller and locals places, one purple $500 chip could certainly warrant a verification call.
This can be pretty annoying if you play there often.
Myself, for example, I used to cash out only black $100 chips and smaller when I played a lot at the Orleans, which was (or is, I'm not sure now) one of those places that called for every single purple chip. I always thought that was crazy, especially based on the high level of play there.
Sometimes the threshold might be higher, but you might be playing during a time where the cage is trying to track all the chips of a certain denomination that were taken by a certain player whom they're either trying to identify or otherwise trying to record or obstruct. Casinos do this sometimes if an advantage player removes a large amount of chips from a table without cashing them out.
Casinos also track chips in the event of a chip theft, especially if they're stolen from the rack. When they're stolen from another player, they might not go to this extent, but when they're stolen from the casino, you can bet they'll be trying to verify every chip.
This might also happen if there's been word of any counterfeit chips around. If one casino tells the others someone tried to pass some counterfeit black chips, all the other casinos will start verifying and scrutinizing the black chips from that casino. Yes, information like that is shared among competitors in these cases.
When the call is made from the cage to the pit, sometimes the verification is as simple as, "Yeah, he was playing on BJ-02," but sometimes it also includes a name and a rewards number. If this bothers you, you can try to feel out the thresholds and avoid them by taking lower-denomination chips. But if the threshold has to do with the amount of money and not the color of the chip, it will be tough to avoid. It's one of those things players just have to deal with and navigate in whatever way feels best.
APs, if playing anonymously or under a different name, are often asked for ID when cashing out for a lot of money. Most APs know better than to turn over an ID, which is often relayed to the pit and surveillance, among other places. Of course, if an AP is young enough that he or she might be ID'd for age-verification purposes, it has to be shown to get the money.
I've been asked where I got black, purple, or orange ($1,000) chips, and rather than make some smart remark ("Commission from your sister"), I give the cashier the truth. The cashier is just doing her/his job, and I figure that if they don't ask, they're risking their employment. While I've encountered a few dealers over the years who deserved to be unemployed, I've yet to encounter a cashier whose conduct has been egregious enough to warrant it. As for verifying the count, it's usually based on how much you're cashing out. I don't mind it unless no one comes over to verify and leaves me and the cashier hanging. There's one LV casino I no longer patronize because of intentionally leaving me and others hanging, and it's one of the more high-rolling places. There are other reasons, involving dealer and pit boss conduct and attitude, but this was the final insult.