Unfortunately, that hasn’t been the case, and things are getting uncomfortable in VGK land. Episode 98 begins with Eddie’s hot take on the game against the Islanders on the 4th, and it’s a must-see!
We’ve all heard of counting cards at blackjack. This is nothing like that.
While I enjoy it, I find playing video poker for hours on end to be tedious. To combat this, I count hands to keep my mind in the game.
If I’m playing Jacks or Better, I count “quad scares,” which is the number of cards I draw that didn’t fill in a four-of-a-kind. Say I’m dealt 4 4 5 4 2. (No need to fill in the suits as flushes aren’t relevant here.) On the deal, when I drew the 2, it could have been the case 4, so that increases my count by one. After holding the three fours, if I draw two more blanks that increases my score by two more.
Straight flush scares count as two. If I were dealt 4♠ 5♠ 6♠ 7♠ K♦, I’d add four to my count because when the K was dealt, it could have been either the 3♠ or the 8♠, either of which would have completed the straight flush. Yes, I know a straight flush scare is not a quad scare, but this is the way I do it.
I count royal scares as being worth 10. This is way less than it should be, based on the value of the hand, but it’s what I use.
On a game such as Bonus Poker, Double Bonus Poker, Double Double Bonus Poker, or a variety of other games where quad 2s, 3s, and 4s pay a premium and quad aces pay a bigger premium, I weight the scares for 2s, 3s, and 4s as being worth two each and ace scares being worth three each. In games with kickers, sometimes I’ll count kicker scares as well.
In Deuces Wild, I count straight flush scares as being worth one, five-of-a-kind scares as being worth two, wild royal scares as being worth three, four deuce scares as being worth five, and royal scares as being worth 10.
At the South Point, sometimes I play Five Play Jacks or Better Multi Strike. I don’t count scares on this game, but completed quad, straight flushes, and royal flushes. When these happen on the 1x line, they are worth one, two, and ten, respectively. On the 2x line, these values are doubled. On the 4x line I multiply by four, and on the top line I multiply by eight.
If I’m playing Triple Play or Five Play, I usually keep the same system. If I’m playing Ten Play, Fifty Play, or Hundred Play, I’ll just keep track of completed hands rather than scares.
It’s been awhile since I’ve played Joker Wild, Super Double Bonus, Deuces Wild Double Bonus, or other games not mentioned above. But when I do, I’ll change my counting system to account for the relevant hands.
Does it matter at the end of the day whether my count ended up 107 or 216? Absolutely not. How serious is it if I lose track of my count? It’s not serious at all. I just make a guess and keep going.
While the count number itself is worthless, I find this process of counting keeps my head in the game and keeps my mind from wandering. And that, as they say, is priceless.
If you think this will work for you, you’re welcome to adopt my system. If you don’t think it would be helpful, it doesn’t bother me if you don’t use it.
America’s most famous son-in-law, Jared Kushner, evidently has faith in Atlantic City as a place to live. His Kushner Properties has acquired a $2 million, seven-acre plot of land near Absecon Inlet, with a view to erecting 180 townhomes. This is the latest of several plans for the acreage, none of which have come to pass. We hope Kushner has better luck than his predecessors.
Continue reading Atlantic City bulletins & other news
Bally’s Chicago lurches from crisis to calamity. Its latest misfortune would be aggravating were it not so perversely funny. Although Bally’s Corp. is shaking practically every tree in Christendom in its desperation for money, a group of cranks feels left out of this sucker bet. A couple of Texas crackers, Richard Fisher and Phillip Aronoff, are suing Bally’s, claiming their rights as white men are being violated by not being able to put money into this boondoggle. Fools and their money …
Continue reading Grumpy old men
They keep trying to sound the death knell for buffets, but new ones just keep showing up. The latest comes from Genting Palace at Resorts World. This isn’t a dedicated buffet—there’s full menu service in the restaurant—but the buffet is available daily except Monday and Tuesday. On Wednesday and Thursday it’s $50.88 and Friday through Sunday it’s $60.88, with several seafood selections added. Unlimited wine is optional for $35/$40.
Located inside the massive Resorts World resort, Genting Palace is one of the many fine-dining restaurants that sit directly off the casino floor. It’s a high-end place with high-end service and all ages are welcome. We went with a 13-year-old birthday boy, who received a small cake with a candle, gratis.
We went on a Sunday for the more expensive seafood selection. Upon entering the restaurant, the buffet doesn’t look very impressive and most of the customers are ordering off the menu, so there aren’t any lines. Don’t be dissuaded. There aren’t dozens of selections, but there doesn’t need to be. And the absence of lines is a definite plus. The cold seafood line-up is a good one—medium shrimp, snow crab, raw oysters, scallops, and whelks. What are whelks? They’re sea snails (you can pick them out from the photo below). There’s also a big selection of fresh fruit. The steam trays are all labeled: braised pork brisket, shrimp fried rice, seafood noodle, mussels in black bean sauce, siu mai, minced beef soup. At the end of the serving line is the Peking duck. A server carves it for you and the crepes and accompaniments are there for you to prepare as you like. Among those accompaniments is the hoisin sauce that goes with the duck, but strangely, it’s the only sauce available. No chili sauce, not even soy, you have to request those from your server (there’s cocktail sauce for the seafood). It’s a buffet, go back as often as you want.
This is a good one. The skinny snow crab was somewhat disappointing, but the rest of the seafood made up for it. The Peking duck ain’t no Wing Lei at Wynn, but you also won’t find that at any other buffet that we know of. Our favorites from the trays were the mussels and the soup. Drinks aren’t included and a Monkey Picked Oolong Tea was $8 additional. It was a perfect outing for our birthday scenario and we’d have to call it a bargain, given the near-$90 price tags at the gourmet buffets. We didn’t do the wine add-on, but will when we go back to try the non-seafood version.
Due to medical issues beyond my control, I missed the $160,000 two-day New Year’s Eve Bingo Spectacular at the Plaza. However! The Plaza does it every month and the room deal for $40 per night is available each time. No resort fee. That’s an incredible deal and the Plaza folks are fabulous.
My stay in the South Tower before the medical situation was very quiet, old school with a tub, and near self-parking, Bobby V style. You want a newer upgraded room with a view (and the noise) of Fremont Street? Stay in the North Tower.
The self-parking for hotel guests is free. Some of the video poker is full pay. Some roulette is single zero. The $500 royal flush Member Rewards Book coupon is back in 2025. Anthony values it at $142, making 9/6 JoB positive expectation. Go for it! Play 9/6 JoB in the very cool Sand Dollar Lounge. Tell ’em Bobby V sent you. Please. (I want to meet Jonathan Jossel, Plaza’s CEO, and tell him, “Thanks for making old school new school and cool again, JJ.”)
Pink Box, the lobby and always mobbed, has a special free birthday donut for you. Sign up on the Pinkbox app.
Speaking of birthday bonuses, we’re finishing up a super free birthday run to be posted on my next blog. But here are some highlights: $100 to $1,500 in free Play, three meals a day (yes, breakfast, lunch, and dinner), coffee, donuts, drinks, desserts and more during your birthday month. That’s right, month. Many of the deals extend out two weeks from your birthday or even the whole month, not just your actual birthday. Plan a birthday-month trip!
I can’t wait for you to see it. The blog will be set up as birthday runs for the Strip, Fremont, locals casinos, etc. And now that the 2025 MRB is available, you can stack your LVA coupons for even more fun, free play, and free food.
Watch this space!
This week Anthony and Andrew talk about new ideas for the show and the Member Rewards Book.
Circus Circus – Circus Buffet: This week’s breakfast buffet is Fri-Sun, 1 a.m.-12 p.m. is $19.95. Then their dinner buffet is Fri & Sat, 4 p.m.-10 p.m. is $24.95.
Excalibur – The Buffet at Excalibur: Brunch buffet prices went up $1. Weekday Brunch is Mon – Thur, 7 a.m.-2 p.m. is now $32.99. Friday Brunch is 7 a.m.-2 p.m. is now $38.99. Mimosa Brunch is Sat & Sun, 7 a.m.-2 p.m. is still $43.99.
MGM Grand – MGM Grand Buffet: All brunch buffet prices went up $1. Weekday Brunch is Mon – Thur, 7 a.m.-2 p.m. is now $32.99. Friday Brunch is 7 a.m.-2 p.m. is now $38.99. Mimosa Brunch is Sat & Sun, 7 a.m.-2 p.m. is now $43.99.
Wynn – The Buffet: Seafood Gourmet Dinner buffet price went up $5. Gourmet Brunch is daily, 8 a.m.-1 p.m. is still $59.99. Seafood Gourmet Dinner is daily, 1 p.m.-9 p.m. is now $79.99.
For the first in the podcast’s history, Eddie and Chris recorded an episode live!
VGK Broadcaster Ashali Vise joined them for this fast-moving episode that covers social media-reactions, the (non) controversial collision between Mark Stone and Miro Heiskanen, the upcoming 4 Nations Tournament, and much more!
Click here for the link. (YouTube is having issues with embedding videos on blog pages.)
First, the good news. Statewide, gambling revenues in Nevada were up 2% last month, halting a five-month skid. However, there was no relief from decline on the Las Vegas Strip, where the take was down 2.5%. If you’re searching for a silver lining in that, Deutsche Bank had expected an 8% drop. Whew. The main culprit for the Strip’s continued declivity was baccarat. That notoriously volatile game saw house winnings plummet 10% on 4.5% less money wagered and looser hold.
Continue reading Vegas, we have a problem