A handful of times in my career, a boss has sat down at our table while my BP and I were playing a target game. Many players have never experienced that scenario, and completely panic when it happens for the first time. They’re not even sure what to make of it, but I’ll tell you. Continue reading The Boss Just Sat at Our Table with Game On: What Now?
Too Good to be True?
Casinos are in the business to make money. They don’t intentionally make mistakes. Still, sometimes mistakes happen that smart players can exploit. You don’t need to be a pro. You just have to be alert and savvy — and find one of these mistakes. It also helps if you have the requisite knowledge and bankroll — but that’s not necessary. If someone brought the following to me and nobody else knew about it, I might well have paid a $1,000 finder’s fee. Continue reading Too Good to be True?
More Dogs Than Bones
The following story is fictional, but based on real events.
The Gold Mine in Las Vegas was one of many casinos where Jack played. There were two, and only two, “good” machines. These were $5 single line Bonus Deuces machines that returned 99.45%. With the slot club, mailers, and promotions, these machines were playable, in Jack’s opinion. Continue reading More Dogs Than Bones
Recent Questions I Have Received
In the video poker world, I am somewhat of a public figure. Between the classes, articles, and radio show, lots of people ask me questions all the time. Some of them are in the “none of your damned business” category. And some aren’t. I thought I’d answer a few of them publicly that I haven’t addressed recently. Continue reading Recent Questions I Have Received
Picking Up Free Play
Richard Munchkin received a note from a Gambling with an Edge listener about a subject to talk about. The note referred to a casino where the formerly 8/5 Bonus machines were recently downgraded to 7/5. Part of the note said: Continue reading Picking Up Free Play
Being Good at Everything
I have two good friends, “Thelma” and “Louise,” who are married to each other. I’ve been friends with Thelma for more than a decade, Louise about half that long, and Bonnie and I happily attended their wedding last year.
Thelma is very bright and has been successful at a number of things. She’s also very well-off financially. She’s a pretty strong video poker player, but doesn’t concentrate on learning all of the smallest details. “Why spend hours memorizing rare hands that will save me a tenth of a penny once every two years?” she asks. “I don’t need the money and life’s too short to spend my time on shit like that.” (If you don’t like that language, take it up with Thelma — not me.) Continue reading Being Good at Everything
My Wife Thinks This is Cheating
Dear Mr. Dancer:
My wife Doris and I regularly play at a Mid-West casino. I’d rather not tell you which one. Near the end of last year, they had a “Twelve Days of Christmas” promotion which was pretty good.
On each of twelve days, if you had an Elite card and played $500 through on decent video poker machines, you could come in and pick up a scratcher. Scratchers awarded at least $10 in free play once you scratched the silvery cover off, often much more, and were supposed to range up to $1,000 — but I never saw one that high. Continue reading My Wife Thinks This is Cheating
How Good Do You Want to Be?
Bonnie and I traveled to Los Angeles several months ago and, among other things, spent an afternoon visiting Margo, a platonic friend of mine going on 35 years. The ladies got along great and the visit reminded me of a story I wrote about Margo several years ago. Continue reading How Good Do You Want to Be?
Tells: Dealer Toke Hustling
After a session playing with rookies, I like to ask, “What did you think of those dealers?” or “Who was your favorite employee?” Heat management is one of the most important aspects of the game, and sizing up the personnel is the key to heat management. “Bullet” and I tend to have identical assessments of the personnel, but the rookies often reach different conclusions. Rookies don’t realize that some of the apparently friendly interaction is nothing more than incessant toke hustling, and that grates on veterans, even those who are generous tokers (which Bullet certainly is, and I’m far from the cheapest myself). Continue reading Tells: Dealer Toke Hustling
Churchill was Right
Winston Churchill was the British Prime Minister during much of World War II. Unlike modern politicians and their political correctness, he smoked a big cigar and enjoyed drinking alcohol in public — sometimes too much so. Continue reading Churchill was Right