Author: Bobby Vegas

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Bobby Vegas: What to do while waiting for your MRB

Bobby Vegas: What to do while waiting for your MRB

If you’re an LVA MRB coupon-crazed scuffler like me, you’re probably chomping at the bit waiting for this year’s coupon book, which will be available in a couple of weeks.

Most of us don’t have a problem with the delay early in the year. Myself, I was in Vegas in December (and gave away my unused coupons to a bartender at Downtown Grand). I won’t return until the Super Bowl in February.

But what about those of you coming between now and when the books arrive? Hang on, Uncle Bobby’s gonna give you some ideas to keep you scuffling, munching high or low, whatever your taste.

First up are the good folks at American Casino Guide, who’ve gotten their 2024 online coupons out, so you can snag them right now. They’re a great complement (did someone say “stacking”?) to the MRB and my fave is the Downtown Grand matchplay!

Here’s the ACG link.

ACG has 14 Vegas coupons, including a 2-for-1 burger at Binion’s, 2-for-1 entree at Four Queens’ Magnolia (I get two entrees and take the second for a snack), and a discount at the Mob Museum. (See if you can find the Speakeasy bar. Easey peasy.)

Also big money! Use Jean Scott’s Southwest boarding-pass matchplay strategy at
Golden Gate and the D. “Mention Mike” at Circa for another. They’ll give you either a $50 coupon or two $25 matchplay chips.

At El Cortez, you can also get a matchplay; it’s less money, but you get some slot free play and a free drink.

That’s five totaling over $200 with an EV of over $100. Nice!

Heck, there are so many sign-up opportunities on Fremont. Vegas virgins can do those now and when the MRB comes out and you’re coming back in town (you are coming back to Vegas more than once this year, right?) you can do them too.

Then there’s the Plaza’s slot tournaments every Wed., Thur., and Fri. and the Downtown Grand’s Thur. VP and BJ tournaments. So many casinos, so little time.

Still looking for something to do? Wander over to the Arts District downtown and all the cool antique, clothes, and knickknack shops, brewpubs, and even the Gamblers Book Store. Or head past El Cortez to some cool bars like Container Park, Atomic Liquor, and the Pirate bar.

There’s even a great vinyl shop down Fremont. Yes, vinyl is cool again. Are you?

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At the Rainbow, a Pot of VP Gold

Giving Good Gamble

I was in town for my annual December Golden Week trip — though it was more dirty brown and dusty, as Golden Week follows the NFR when the 100,000 cowboys leave town. I was there for the last few days of cowboy hats and everything country.

In conversation with Jean Scott, I realized I’d completely forgotten to do all the Fremont matchplays using my Southwest ticket, but I’ll be back for Super Bowl in six weeks, so I’ll have another shot then. Can’t get enough matchplays!

It was a really great trip. Final tally: up more than $1,200 in cash, $200 in comps, some gifts, and free meals for five days. Winner winner steaks for dinner.

It was all about video poker. I won at the Four Queens and Rainbow, lost money at the Downtown Grand, and crashed and burned at the Thursday VP tournament there. I saw a royal flush and high 4-of-a-kind with a kicker — just not on my machine. This seems to be a theme, but I still love the DTG, now comping me a minimum of two free nights a month; my six-night stay there, including the last weekend of NFR, ran $240. Total. Parking is free and the Grand is super convenient.

Then I rented a car, as I practically lived out at Rainbow, eating for free there and winning, winning, and winning. I started asking myself, how long can this go on? More on that.

The car cost $250, including with gas. Since I left with more than five times that, most won at the Rainbow, it was well worth it.

I was on a free Southwest flight on points. I used my Southwest card for an A1-15 upgrade and was reimbursed. I love getting that seat in the emergency row with no seat in front of me, what I call Southwest first class.

Then I found a progressive that I analyzed it using my handy-dandy Frugal VP Scouting Guide. When I reviewed the return, plus the value of the progressive, it was at 100%! I played it exclusively during the 25x-point periods, adding 2.5%, earning me oodles of comps and some gifts; I was eating so much at the Triple B diner, I got chummy with the waitresses. Hi, Janelle.

All that said … sigh … It seems my lot in life is to rarely hit a royal. I really tried, at one point investing $800 of my winnings (applying the Kelly Criterion and using 50% of my bank). Still, though I’m bereft of the royals, man! I seem to be king of 4-of-a-kind, hitting two for $600, two at $250, two more at the Four Queens, and a straight flush for way over $2,200 in winnings. Between my “investing” $800 and some of the inevitable bleed, I still left up $1,200-plus in cash.

And that’s what I call a good trip.

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Let’s Go on a Fremont Street Coupon Run! Part 2

Book the Super Bowl NOW

My last post was Part 1 to the coupon run. All the information in this post is as of late November.

There are more opportunities than I can cover in this post. Please read the expanded version on my website.

Again, I highly recommend www.VPFree2.com for finding the location of the best video poker at each casino.

I also strongly encourage you to run through your free play first. Play 9/6 Jacks or Better, cash out (EV $9.95/typical $9.75), then use that money to partially fund your matchplay.

Okay, here we go!

Plaza
Signup bonuses: $5-$50 free play, $10 matchplay
MRB coupons: $10 free play, $25 matchplay
The Plaza has good VP, single-zero roulette. and 3-2 BJ, a $10 slot tournament with a $750 first prize (Wed., Thurs., Fri. at 10 a.m., noon, and 2 and 4 p.m., up to 4 entries).

Golden Gate
MRB: $25 matchplay (and 2-1 on blackjacks)
Signup bonus

Circa
Circa is cool, but very loud, and the games aren’t great. If you haven’t, check out the amazing sports book and come back late to use the MRB coupon up at the Legacy Club.

Binion’s
The million-dollar display is back; get your free photo in front of the display, and a free spin for coupons at the door.
MRB: 2-for-1 at Binion’s Café or 25% off at Top of Binion’s Steakhouse

Golden Nugget

Though the GN is cool and has a great pool, the gambling is crummy (triple-zero roulette, for one). The signup bonus awards between $5 and $1,000 in free play.

Four Queens
Four stars: Gives Good Gamble
My second favorite downtown casino — cool, old school, great comps and cashback.
MRB: $10 free play and 2-for-1 at Magnolia’s coffee shop
Excellent video poker (100.17% DB, 9/6 JOB)
Earn 500 points and get $30 free play and $30 comps.
VIP Note: This is a positive EV play using 9/6 JOB or DDB (details at www.BobbyVegas.com).

Downtown Grand
Five stars: Gives Good Gamble
Signup: $10 free play, $50 matchplay
MRB $5-$50 and $50 matchplays; $25 off $100 bill at Triple George
American Casino Guide $50 matchplay (you can use only one or two matchplays per day)
Hotel check-in: $50 matchplay
VP Progressive at Furnace Bar: positive EV at $1,944 (4-of-a-kind lowers it more)
Tournaments: Tues. and Wed. slots; Thursday blackjack and video poker

Bar: Joe’s special $3.50 Evan Williams Bourbon and Pabst Blue Ribbon; $2 dogs
Food specials: prime rib at Freedom Beat ($15 with 25 points earned, $50 coin-in on VP); lunch special at Triple George or MRB dinner coupon; Pizza Rock is excellent.

Fremont
Craps specials
Lanai Express: $2 shrimp cocktail

The D
MRB: $25 matchplay; 2-for-1 Coney dog

El Cortez
Signup: $10-$100 free play, matchplays, etc.
MRB: 2-for-1 at Siegel’s (or Super Siegels Wed. senior 50% off)
The good video poker is gone, but if you like coins, play the real coin-in machines in the front and the back room behind Siegels

So? How did you do on your coupon run? Best monthly win gets a free Bobby Vegas T-shirt! Email me [email protected].

Now head back to Circa for free Champagne for two at the Legacy Club and to see 1,000 ounces of gold and a killer 60th-floor rooftop view.

Thanks for playing.

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Prepping for the Fabulous Fremont Coupon Run

Book the Super Bowl NOW

Scufflers, advantage couponers! Sharpen your … oh heck, no one uses pencils anymore. But now that it’s the end of the year, those coupons are expiring. So let use ’em! Never forget, a coupon is money in another form — until you cash it. Then it’s real money, your money, money in your pocket.

Why are coupons important? Time is money. And time is most often your enemy when gambling. Using coupons allows you to play on their dime as much as possible. That’s the why of a coupon run. It’s gaming the game, tilting the odds, squeezing as much good gamble out of your time as possible. And winning is much more fun than losing.

This will be a multi-part presentation consisting of the 6 P’s: Proper Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance (actually, that’s a guiding principle for every great gaming trip) and eight tools:

  1. LVA’s Member Rewards Book (MRB)
  2. other coupons (ACG, etc.)
  3. www.VPfree2.com (very strong VIP tool)
  4. swag bag (like Zack G in Hangover, “It’s a satchel”)
  5. bankroll (cash no cards)
  6. Frugal Video Poker Scouting Guide by Jean Scott
  7. pocket notebook and pen
  8. good shoes

Then I’ll review exactly where to go and what to do and give you my personal Gives Good Gamble awards for best Fremont casino.

We can start from either end (the Plaza or El Cortez) of Fremont, though I prefer starting at the Plaza and you’ll see why.

First, a word about the MRB. For years, I tore out the Vegas coupon section of the American Casino Guide and grumble, as the MRB’s slim profile was so easy to slip in a pocket. Since the printed ACG book is no more, LVA’s MRB is our big play.

I’d also like to give a shoutout to www.WizardofOdds.com. Whenever I have a question about a game I can’t answer, particularly strategy, Michael Shackleford is king.

To prepare, always visit the casino websites at least two and preferably four weeks before you go on your trip. Sign up for a players card if allowed and to receive their newsletter. Also look for special events, slot and VP tournaments, and point promos for the dates of your stay. These are huge additions to your coupon run.

Stay tuned for the coupon run and Gives Good Gamble awards.

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I Don’t Like To Gamble

Bobby Vegas: Friends Don’t Let Friends Play Triple-Zero Roulette

A gambler is in it for being in action. The risk, the thrill, the roll of the dice, the turn of a card where fate is suspended and luck hopefully prevails.

Me, I don’t like to gamble. I like to win money. Those are completely different desires and goals.

I like researching new opportunities, practicing games, learning to play correctly or even bringing my strategy cards. I like building my gambling bank from different strategies at home and from earned funds in Vegas. When I don’t know the answer, I like to contemplate and figure it out. That’s why I like VP. I can stop and start when I want. It’s not a fastest-wins game.

When I come to town on a free flight earned with points and stay in a nice resort-casino at a very low rate or on a comp, I’m already ahead $750 to $1,000.

My average out of pocket for a five-day stay is $500 to $750. And that includes airfare, rental car, hotel room, restaurant meals, a show or two, and 20 to 30 hours of advantage play.

I like to learn, plan, and take advantage of all edges — coupons, come-back offers, sign-up bonuses, bonus-points play, etc. I execute, analyze and adjust. I set win goals and loss limits. When I win it’s satisfying, a confirmation. When I lose, I either examine my play or stop.

Attitude and intention are everything. If you come to Las Vegas expecting to lose, you will. If you play to win you have a better than average chance of doing just that.

And the proof is in the wallets of you, me, and legends like Bob Dancer, Jean Scott, Anthony Curtis, and many more.

I was once told, “If you want what I have, do as I do.”

And if in the end you don’t win, you’ve had a great time and spent a quarter of what others did.

As we head into the end of the year when all those juicy LVA MRB coupons expire, I’m going to focus on ways to maximize their value in play and outline one of my favorite plays, the Fremont Street coupon run, the chance to hit as many casinos as possible in a few hours and walk away with a pile of cash. It will take more than one blog post to cover the whole run, as well as the techniques used, so hang in here. I also have a lovely Christmas coupon-karma story to end the year.

Finally, here’s to Jean Scott, who’s decided after a legendary run to step back. I in no way feel I’m filling her shoes, but I sure am grateful to be following in her footsteps. Happy trails, Jean!

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Is That F1 or FU?

Giving Good Gamble

“If you build it, they will come.”

So whispered the voices of Shoeless Joe Jackson and the other baseball players in the baseball diamond in the sky (in Field of Dreams), and come they did. But that was the movies.

This is Vegas. Build it they did. And boy, did we come.

And for decades, Vegas has created one more outrageous chart-topping spectacle after another: stars, tigers, stars with tigers, volcanos, pyramids, dancing fountains, the Eiffel Tower, jumping off 1,000-foot-tall buildings, shooting machine guns, men and women in all states of undress, $10,000 drinks, magicians, Allegiant, and now … Formula 1.

My only question is, have they gone too far this time? Did they maybe bite off more than we could chew, let alone swallow?

Well, they sure fouled up the traffic and for an auto-race event, that seems … kind of auspicious, just not in a good way.

Okay, forget for a moment the incredible disruption to anything near the Strip for the past months and look, I was excited too! I mean, did you see the movie Grand Turismo? On IMAX? I did. Amazing. Incredible race action, the camera work is Oscar worthy. Incredible true story, too, about a young gamer, the best in the world, who becomes an F1 driver and places third at LeMans in his first year.

And maybe $30 with the popcorn.

But today from Vegas, I got an offer for a free room at the Mirage during F1. Wow!

Wait. What? I need to buy two $4,000 (plus “fees”) tickets to the Mirage F1 VIP experience to get my “free” room? Um … I’ll pass. In the slow lane.

Sometimes even Vegas overestimates the disposable income of a large group of people. There is a word for this: “greed.”

Yes, I want to see F1, but you won’t find me ponying up $10K for a weekend. And I don’t know about you, but to me, it seems like the rush to be a part of this history isn’t exactly roaring down Las Vegas Boulevard. In fact, we’re stuck in traffic for an hour on the Strip while they try to construct the track and grandstands so they can drive hundreds of miles an hour. A double order of irony, anyone?

Really, F1, I wish you well. I hope I’m wrong and once again you’ve found another spectacle to draw in the folks. Well, maybe not “ folks,” but like the type of people for whom spending $10,000 on a weekend is no big deal. But excuse me if I add that the Sphere, the one that’s not rolling or going anywhere, has got you beat. By a mile. By a mile.

Sphere: Five Stars.

F1: TBD.

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Bobby Vegas: Friends Don’t Let Friends Play Triple-Zero Roulette

Bobby Vegas: Friends Don’t Let Friends Play Triple-Zero Roulette

Though roulette is considered a fools game in the world of advantage play, its centuries- long allure is undeniable.

Whether it’s a cavalier James Bond tossing planks like candy, a European trust-fund baby dispassionately tossing daddy’s money away at the Wynn, just your average Vegas-$1,000-till-it’s-gone Joe, or Bobby Vegas T-shirts that say “Friends Don’t Let Friends Play Triple Zero Roulette” (available at BobbyVegas.com), many have succumbed to the wheel’s siren call.

Basically, it’s fun — if you like throwing your money away, that is.

And the casinos love the 20%-plus average hold even more than the 5.2% edge. Of course, as we know, the casinos weren’t satisfied with that enormous edge.

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Book the Super Bowl NOW

Book the Super Bowl NOW

First is the Super Bowl, one of the greatest sports, cultural, and marketing spectacles ever.

Then there’s experiencing the Super Bowl in Vegas: sports betting to the moon, celebrities, whales, celebrity whales, best of the best getting down, awesome parties everywhere, prices through the roof.

Then there’s experiencing the Super Bowl, actually happening in Vegas, at Allegiant Stadium.

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A Whale of a Story

A Whale of a Story

We gamblers and advantage players. We’re complicated.

We’re smart, obsessive, and we make great stories. The greatest of all was Kerry Packer.

I know it’s ironic: A coupon scuffler let’s-get-it-for-free guy like me is fascinated by the biggest whale of all time. Sure, it’s goofy, but the question remains, what can we learn from them?

When Packer’s father died in 1974, Kerry inherited a $100 million Australian media and casino empire. He was apparently dyslexic, a poor student in some ways and clearly brilliant in others.

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