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End-of-the-Year Wrap up

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

Gather round, my advantage player scuffling children (“Please, sir! More coupons!”) and let me tell you the tales of Santa Vegas and Coupon Karma.

I’ve already encouraged you to use all your Member Rewards coupons before they expire, but what if you still have some left?

Here are two stories to warm your hard-boiled EV-calculating hearts. The purpose — nay! hey gift —is to keep an open mind. Don’t assume you know everything. More will be revealed!

I mean, does prayer work? Is God a good bet? Duke University did a double-blind study praying for two cancer groups. The group that was prayed for (unbeknownst to them) did statistically significantly better than those that weren’t. Hunh.

Now, I’m not making any assumptions about exactly what’s going on, but it’s very interesting, isn’t it?

So there I was, flying into Vegas with an extra unused MRB. The lady sitting next to me on the plane turned out not only to be a video poker player with her own MRB, but she was meeting family and was thrilled when I gave her my extra MRB for her clan.

Coincidentally, and many of you math freaks may call this unrelated correlation, it just so happens that was the trip I hit 14 four-of-a-kinds. Kinda cool, eh?

Then there was the time pre-COVID when there still were hard-copy American Casino Guide coupon books and I’d double stack coupon runs with both the MRB and ACG.

I’m up at Rampart and realize I have an unused matchplay. I HAVE To go back in for another roll of the dice. It’s a tough job, but someone’s gotta do it.

I’d also been distributing unused coupons everywhere I went. Texas Station, Four Queens (where the slot booth lady, seeing me give away a Magnolia coupon while waiting in line, reminded me to check my ACG and let me use both the MRB and ACG free-play coupons. “Well, thank you ma’am!” As Jean says, you catch more bees with honey than vinegar.)

So back to Rampart. I go back to the crap table and the guy I’d left there has turned his original $100 buy-in into a row of blacks and greens. He makes another point and I place my $10 with the $10 matchplay on the pass line.

“That’s it?” he asks me.

“That’s all I got.”

Shaking his head, he mumbles something to the dealer, lays down some chips, rolls an 8 for the point, then a hard 8.

The dealer pushes $200 over to me.

“Whoa! What just happened?”

“Oh, he just threw some green on hard 8 for you.”

Now that’s why my favorite movie is not The Cooler though I do love that one), but It’s A Wonderful Life.

I’ve run out of word count here, but for good cheap pasta, I just have six words:
Sign up for Buca di Beppo! More on that in my next post.

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Good news, by and large

Today a newspaper headline declared “record” casino revenue in Detroit last month. We have to wonder in what sort of context this record was achieved. According to J.P. Morgan analyst Joseph Greff, Motown casinos are 14% down from 2019. Maybe the headline writer in question saw the 40% leap from November 2023, when strikes affected business, and flipped out. Anyway, the gross in question was $106.5 million, led by MGM Grand Detroit (of course) with a 61% vault to $49 million. Greff had MGM targeted for a 30% improvement this year … it’s on track for 45%. Wow.

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A New Scam?

Bob Dancer

I recently received an authentic-looking text from the United States Postal Service. I was told that a letter addressed to me had the incorrect zip code. Please type “Y,” close the message, and then re-open it. I did.

I came across a link asking for me to fill out my name, address, zip code, and phone number. I was dubious. An unrequested message asking me for all of this information was a prescription for identity theft. I gave my correct address (post office box), and intentionally made some typos to my email address and phone number.

After I entered this information, the next screen told me there was a small charge for the redelivery. A charge of $0.3. It didn’t say $0.30, or 30 cents, but $0.3. And in order to pay this fund it asked for my credit card information.

Now I was more than 99% certain that this was not what it appeared to be. I closed the link and was glad I hadn’t given correct information previously.

When I closed the link, the original text message deleted itself. Very strange.

While I’m used to several scams, this was a new one, at least to me. If I’m getting these texts, probably some of you are too. It doesn’t have anything to do with gambling per se, but not losing money to identity theft counts as bankroll just as much as hitting a royal flush. 

Since my first “blog” this time was too short, I’m adding another short one.

A Certain Aptitude is Required

Bonnie and her daughter Susan went on a seven-day Mexican Riviera cruise aboard the Norwegian Bliss over Thanksgiving. Bonnie and I had gone on a five-day version of the same cruise aboard the same vessel about one month earlier.

Because she’s cruised a lot since we married 10 years ago, Bonnie has a Sapphire card. This is a tier level possessed by fewer than 10% of the passengers. And, just like in casinos, higher tier levels get more benefits than lower tier levels. Since Susan has not cruised a lot on Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) vessels, she gets fewer benefits. After Bonnie’s and my cruise, I emailed both ladies instructions as to how to work the NCL system. 

Even though she has been on a lot of cruises. Bonnie lets me do all the arranging on the cruises. She trusts that I will take care of her, which I do. Susan was an appropriate caregiver on the cruise but doesn’t have the experience to get the most benefits. She could wing it, and they’d have a good time, but my goal was to educate them on the ins and outs so they could have an even better time.

One of the benefits Bonnie is entitled to and Susan isn’t is a 90-minute “Behind the Scenes” tour that usually begins at 9 a.m. on the first sea day. It varies, but often includes the laundry, the galley, and dressing rooms backstage of the main theater. Bonnie and I both went a month previously and thought Susan would enjoy it. I think they offer a similar tour for everybody at $150 per person later in the cruise.

So, in my email I explained that when they boarded the ship they should go to the CruiseNext desk and sign Bonnie up for the tour. Once Bonnie presented herself at the CruiseNext desk on the day of the tour, they would give Bonnie a sticker to put on her shirt or jacket. Bonnie should take that sticker, go somewhere out of view of the people at the desk, and have Susan affix it to her own shirt or jacket. Then Bonnie can occupy herself for an hour and a half while Susan takes the tour. I told both ladies to make sure they had closed-toe shoes, which are required for the tour. I also told them how to sign up for specialty dinners, shows, and the officers’ dinner.

On the Sunday they got to the ship, they called me to let me know that they arrived, were aboard, and happily looking forward to their adventure. They told me they did everything I listed in my instructional email except they couldn’t get Susan on the tour.

“Why not?” I asked.

“When I asked them if I could get a sticker and then give it to Susan, they said ”No,” Bonnie replied.

“You weren’t supposed to ask them. You were just supposed to do it. That’s why I told you to give the sticker to Susan out of the sight of the employees at the desk.”

“I guess we didn’t completely understand that part.”

In casinos, I have “worked the system” for decades. It’s a necessary part of succeeding at gambling. While I’m sure my instructions would have been very clear to most readers of this blog, neither Bonnie nor Susan think like a winning player does. When in doubt, they simply tell the truth and ask permission for everything.  Oh well. Susan likes to sleep in on vacations, so she considered the loss of the tour to be no big deal.

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Shadow puppetry

Deck chairs are being expediently rearranged on the S.S. Resorts World Las Vegas as she careens toward a date with reality. Actually, Genting Group was due for a reckoning today (Dec. 9) with the Nevada Gaming Control Board over a 31-page complaint that essentially accused Resorts World of being an outlaw property. Specifically, the indictment charges Resorts World with “a lack of control,” of knowingly allowing felons to gamble there and of flouting anti-money-laundering rules. It calls Resorts World “a culture where information of suspicious activity is, at a minimum, negligently disregarded or, at worst, willfully ignored for financial gain …” Strong stuff. Sounds like a place that should be run out of business. What are we thinking? This is Vegas, the original no-accountability zone.

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Dereliction of duty

Oh, the humanity! How terrible is must be to serve on the Nevada Gaming Control Board, pull down a nice salary and be expected to do actual work. (This is not meant to the slight the many, lower-ranking NGCB employees who are both underpaid and overworked.) Yesterday, the “gold standard” of regulation held another of its dog and pony shows, this time to rubber-stamp the new gaming licenses of Virgin Las Vegas prexy Cliff Atkinson and CFO Chad Konrad. In doing so, it put untried JC Hospitality at the helm of a major Las Vegas gambling floor. JC replaces Mohegan Sun, which found the location and market to be rough sledding, and opted out. JC now rushes in where Mohegan feared to tread.

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Las Vegas chills out

A cool breeze is being felt throughout Big Gaming. It’s the sensation of consumers finally spending less at the casino, the stately winding down of a hot streak that continued longer than anyone would have expected—and which many didn’t. Don’t panic: With casinos at the hottest since forever, it was only natural that Americans’ fever for gambling would ease, at least a bit. Having burned through a remarkable amount of discretionary capital, Yanks are pulling back on our spending a wee bit … albeit not on the Las Vegas Strip. Of course, when the United States gets even a mild cold, Nevada contracts pneumonia … but we’re not there (yet).

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Use Your MRBs, Great Point Multipliers, and a Trick EV Question

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

Happy ChanuKwanSolstMas. There. I think I got everybody covered.

Now onto my other religion, advantage video poker.

I’m coming in for the Plaza Bingo NYE Bash. Due to my medical misadventures, I haven’t been back since (OMG) August and I notice some of my unused MRBs expire BEFORE 12/31. Like the 27th and I arrive the 29th. Wannnh !

Have you used all your MRB coupons? Check the dates. It’s really tough seeing a valuable unused coupon expire. I mean it hurts! I might have to talk with my therapist about it. I’m kidding. Kind of.

Also want to alert you to specials at Four Queens and Rainbow.

The 4Q December offer of an extra $40 in free-play and $20 in comps for 600 points got me thinking.
4Q offers both cash and comps. Very nice. So (VP math nerd alert!), I found the following information on VPFree2.

The 9/6 JOB (99.54%) points adder for cash and comps is .9375% combined or $7.50 per $1,000 coin in. Total EV 100.48%. Niiiice!

The 10/7 DB (100.17%) adder is .4683% combined or $5.71 per $1,000 coin in for a total EV of 100.68% (.2% better than 9/6 JOB).

Here’s the trick question. Which game would you play?

I’d play 9/6 JOB and here’s why.

If I’m strictly playing long term for a total cash return, then 10/7 DB with a higher EV and a .2% higher total EV makes sense. But I don’t play that long. And I like the extra comps, $7.50 over $5.71 per $1,000 in. I’ll use them in combination with 2-for-1 Magnolia coupon, doubling their value to $15.

I also like the steady play of lower volatility: two coins for two pair at Jacks or Better over one at Double Bonus.

Again, this is a STYLE of playing choice. I’m just not a high-volatility guy.

And why am I playing? I’m coming to the realization that I win a lot in the short term and often don’t have the fortitude to play through the peaks and valleys of higher volatility to reach royal flush heaven. And I’m the king of 4-of-a-kinds, so there ya go. Your choice, just saying.

Now at Rainbow, they’ve announced their January 28 and 29 barrel drawing. Start earning tickets now. It’s for a Rolex ($6,500) Diamond Date Just watch, one each over four Drawings. Five second prizes at each drawing for steak knives. Just kidding. They’re actually for $100.

Add their amazing point multipliers and play between 4 and 6 p.m. EVERY DAY one hour each at Rainbow, then Emerald Island, to earn 75x points for extra comps, gifts, and cash. That’s adding an amazing 5% on your return making ANY VP over 100%

The drawing trick is you earn only one ticket PER DAY PER location. But it’s just $200 coin-in to earn a ticket. Obviously, they want you to come in every day. Go for it. And dine at Triple B on your comps.

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 Whose Chair Is It? Take Two

Bob Dancer

A few weeks ago, I described a situation on a cruise ship where I sat down at a machine just as a woman was sitting down at an adjacent machine. Her husband was about three feet behind the chair I now occupied, possibly headed toward the same machine I now controlled as I slid in from the side.

The woman told me her husband was aiming for the chair I now possessed because they wanted to play side by side. Would I please let him have it?

On this occasion I gave up the machine. I also wrote that I handled such situations on a case-by-case basis and sometimes I came to the opposite conclusion. Let me tell you about one of the times when I chose differently.

This happened at one of the casinos in downtown Las Vegas. I’ve experienced similar situations at the Fremont, Four Queens, and Golden Nugget in that part of town. I haven’t experienced it elsewhere, but I’ve spoken to other players who have.

As I was walking through the casino looking for machines to play, I see a “Green Bob” machine at the $6 level where the minor jackpot is at 35. This is a game where it’s a positive play if the minor jackpot is at 25. Suffice it to say, a higher meter is a better play. 

This is not a guaranteed win situation. Without going through the entire range of possible outcomes, in order to simplify this discussion, assume that starting from where the machine is now, the player has two equally likely results — plus $1,600 and minus $800. This means the game is worth, on average, $400 plus slot club benefits if you play with your card.

While this is exactly the sort of situation I look for, many players do not have the bankroll to handle swings like this. Their total assets might be less than $800. Or maybe they are living “off the grid” and a W2-G of $1,600 would create an awkward situation for them.

The machine wasn’t being played, but there was a woman sitting in front of it. It was at least possible that she just needed to rest for a minute and randomly sat down at that particular machine. So, I politely asked her if I could play that machine? Often in response to an inquiry like that the person will stand up right away and let me play.

Not this time. She didn’t say anything, but a man came up and said I could play the machine if I wanted, but they would be my partners.

“What does it mean to be partners?” I asked.

“If you win, we split. If you lose, you’re on your own.”

“What about the W2-G, if one comes?” I continued.

“That’s yours. But if you win at least $1,200, you can easily afford the taxes.”

There was no way in the world that I was going to accept such a situation. The 50% of the time I won, I’d collect $800 and have a tax form to deal with. The 50% of the time I lost, I’d lose $800. 

“I’ll give you $20,” I offered. I recognized this as a negotiation. And I calculated the game as being worth $400, so if I could get it for less than $100, I was interested. In our example, we’re assuming we know exactly how much a game is worth. In the real world, it’s a guestimate. And even if my calculation is correct, I could still lose a significant amount. I’m not interested in taking on risk without believing I have the best of it.

He countered with $500. I don’t know if he knew what the game was worth. I don’t know if he thought I did. It seemed clear that I wasn’t going to be able to strike a deal that I liked.

As it happened, a slot floor person was walking by. I spoke up. 

“Excuse me. I want to play this machine and these people insist that I pay them money if I want to play it.”

“They WHAT?”

She looked at the man and woman and it was clear she recognized at least the man. “John, you’ve been warned about this. Either play this machine or give it up. Or maybe you want to be kicked out for a week again?”

The two players left wordlessly and I sat down and I began to play. 

I’ve seen this man subsequently, trying to pull the same stunt with other players. I’ve left him alone. I realize that I interfered with his “business plan,” and if I continue to do this, he could take countermeasures I didn’t like. I’m not really afraid of him, but why tempt fate?

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Anthony’s Prime Steak & Seafood Sunday Brunch (M Resort)

Remember the Bally’s Sterling Brunch? M Resort’s Sunday-only brunch in Anthony’s Prime Steak & Seafood (APS&S) is reminiscent in price ($99) and high-end buffet-style offerings. So reminiscent, in fact, that there was a two-month waiting list when it debuted. The mania has worn off, however, as we were able to book a reservation on two days’ notice. Was there a reason for that?

Getting In

We’d been wanting to try this brunch since we first heard about it in May 2023, but hadn’t because of the wait. It’s served Sundays only in a short window from 11 am to 1:30 pm, so there’s not a lot of availability. On a whim, hoping that things might have calmed down after a year and a half, we called on a Friday night and got a seating for two at 1 pm. (we had a woman who’s bubbly on the phone make the call, so that might have helped). Actually, we’ve heard that walk-ups are now being accepted if there’s an opening, but it’s certainly better to reserve, and the farther ahead the better your chances.

The Selection

Similar to the Sterling Brunch, the APS&S line-up is impressive. A big raw-seafood section includes crab legs and claws, peeled shrimp, lox, and sushi. There’s also a good charcuterie selection, deviled eggs, and different kinds of salads for starters. An egg station cooks omelets to order, and carving stations serve up prime rib, rack of lamb, and beef Wellington. The star of the show? Lobster tails (“roasted”)—all you can eat. Surprisingly few sides (couple kinds of potatoes and asparagus), some pasta, clam chowder and lobster bisque, fresh fruit, and a big dessert selection.

The Sampling

The legs are snow crab, but they’re big snow (blizzard crab?) that aren’t that far off king. The sushi isn’t primo, but it’s not grocery-store level, either. The lobster was a bit overcooked, which is gonna happen the way it’s put out in warm pans after being roasted. We took a tail to the eggs guy who made an excellent omelet out of it (he called it a “Dragon omelet”).

Charcuterie good. Desserts good. Meats mostly too done. Unimpressive eggs Benedict. Best was the raw seafood and the lobster omelet

Versus Sterling

It’s not as good as Bally’s Sterling, which had everything mentioned here and more: caviar, poached lobster, king crab legs, smoked fish, goblets of blueberries and raspberries, and flowing champagne (see “Flaw”). By the way, the Sterling Brunch debuted for $29.99 in the early ‘90s and gradually climbed in price until it topped out at $125 before closing in 2020.

Ambiance/Service

M Resort is beautiful and so is the APS&S room, with big picture windows overlooking the pool and providing a view of Las Vegas (M is elevated). Seating is out in the open, but it’s still a good date atmosphere. Service was excellent. We asked for rare lamb and the server requested it from the kitchen and brought a rack out to the table.

The Fatal Flaw

The big miss? No drinks component. How you put together this kind of offering for $99 and don’t even provide some cheap sparkling wine is beyond us (Sterling served unlimited Laurent-Perrier Brut). They at least have a drinks add-on—unlimited Mimosa’s, maybe—for an additional charge, right? Nope. All drinks come off the regular menu. We had a Heineken ($9) and a Mimosa ($15.85). No drinks at an elaborate Sunday brunch is a major buzz kill.

The Verdict

In Batman Forever, the Riddler (Jim Carrey) says to Two-Face (Tommy Lee Jones), “Your entrance was good, his was better.” That pretty much sums it up for APS&S vs. Sterling. Any way you cut it, this isn’t the Sterling reincarnated. But since there is no more Sterling, APS&S is it for the big brunch splurge, and all in all, we’re OK with the $99 per for what you get. The extra for just two drinks took the bill for two to $222.85, so after tax and tip, it’s $300 for a couple. A bit steep. Still worth it. Note to M: Add a drink component.