Continuing to Discuss the Puzzle

Let’s continue our discussion about when/whether to turn down a good offer when a casino has downgraded their best VP machines. This is really a common decision we have to make, whether it is about an out-of-town casino where we play only occasionally or one right here in our hometown of Las Vegas where we may have played regularly for years.

This really isn’t a new dilemma. We have been adding and subtracting casinos from our playlist for 26 years. Casino offers are almost always based on past play, and usually the more and/or the longer you played the better the offers. So when you have been playing regularly, your offers will extend past – and sometimes way past – the time when you decide you will stop playing there.

Some people pointed out in their comments that since an offer was based on past play, you have a “right” to use it and not give any play. Sure you can do this – and it is not illegal or even immoral.

However, you have to decide if it is “wise,” that is, in your future best interests. I’ve always been a don’t-burn-your-bridges player and sometimes we have passed on a good offer because we feel that sometime in the future this casino may become a good play again.
However, in the last few years, because we have been playing at much higher denominations, we have received such super great offers that we have taken more chances and accepted an offer when we weren’t sure how much we would play. We still almost never give zero play in this circumstance, but we may play at a much lower level than we usually would.

We have found that this action usually has not hurt us. It often happens when casinos change owners or management (which often occurs), they often “start from scratch,” sending good offers to players who used to play there, especially at the higher denominations, no matter if they had a few “blemishes” in their history.

There is no blanket rule we follow in all cases. We may know that a particular casino will not hold a couple no-play visits against you – and we are not ruining our future possibilities with them. On the other hand, we may know that this is a big casino company and stiffing one of their casinos may hurt our offers in others where we still do want to play. We take into consideration whether little or no play will ruin our daily average in these companies that send out offers based on that all-important number.

We have stopped playing at many casinos over the years and then started back again. Perhaps they have introduced a new slot club with better benefits. Or, maybe they run a good promotion. Or, occasionally, they may have put in some new, better video poker games. And we have often found, just as we do in a new casino where we have never played, that giving one big play day will usually start the offer engine back up, no matter what we did in the past.

Stay tuned because in my next babbling I will discuss another subject that has strong bearing on what you will do when a casino downgrades its video poker inventory.

This entry was posted in Comments, Video Poker. Bookmark the permalink.

5 Responses to Continuing to Discuss the Puzzle

  1. Barbara Starnes says:

    Hello There,

    I am coming to Vegas on May 6th. and is there any possibility that I could meet you? Will you be appearing anywhere? I will be in town until the 18th. Going to see Jubilee on the 17th. and leaving on the 18th. I’m from a suburb of Chicago (Bartlett) and will be coming to town with my (other). My daughter and her best friend since childhood (just like my daughter too) will be coming on the 12th. till the 18th. They will be staying at Harrah’s the whole time. I have a room at Harrah’s on the 17th and 18th. and another room on the 17th. and 18th. at Harrah’s that are both comped with the tickets for Jubilee on the 17th. I know you probably have already seen Jubilee on your own comps but you are welcome to the room and tickets if you would like. I have some friends that live in Vegas but since its on a work night they can’t (at this time ) take advantage. I’m 65 years old and retired. My other is 70. Hoping to hear from you.

    Barbara

  2. Mikey says:

    The key word you used in the second paragraph is “subtracting”. Many players don’t want to eliminate casinos where, for whatever reason, they feel they have become “comfortable”.

    Clearly, those who view video poker as entertainment can choose to return to a casino even though the overall return is not optimal. Spend your money as you please.

    But, if you want to get the most “bang for your buck”, then follow Jean’s advice and constantly evaluate which are your best opportunities. The timeless advice to NEVER get too comfortable applies now more than ever.

  3. Kevin Lewis says:

    As far as how good or bad it is to “ruin” a play history, in my experience, it really makes no difference. Some of the best offers I get are from casinos I haven’t set foot in for years. Conversely, some casinos where I have heavy historical play have stopped sending me much of anything.

    I also don’t think there’s much danger of a casino that you or I snub because of a degradation in their inventory, suddenly improving their inventory and remembering that snub. Overall, VP inventory is getting MUCH worse, and comps are getting insanely stingy. Cashback is almost completely a thing of the past. If a casino’s VP goes down the toilet, it’s usually gone for good.

    In any case, all this discussion will be moot very soon. VP will soon be no longer playable ANYWHERE. Even as recently as 2005, who would have thought that comp rates would be less than 0.1%, that cashback would be 0.05% if you could get it at all, and that at many casinos, you couldn’t even find a game as good as 9/6 JOB?

    I therefore recommend an approach of sucking up all the goodies you can get, but NEVER playing even one dime if the EV of the play is too low to justify it. I don’t even think this approach would hurt you, as mailing lists get traded like baseball cards, and there’s always somebody out there trolling for new business–especially as the dearth of playable VP, and the overall tightening up oif gambling in general, has gradually but drastically shrunk the customer base. There are far less people out there who can afford to give action, now that casino greed has all but killed VP.

  4. Georgi Sears says:

    Thanks so much for these posts ~ we always struggle with these decisions (even tho living in FL now, we don’t have much of a choice ~ the pay schedules are so bad here). But we try to make it to Vegas at least once a year and have to decide where to stay/play, so we try and keep an eye out for who still has good VP. Your input is priceless!

  5. Sylvia Gosline says:

    One exception to the popular belief that offers are based on past play is Venetian/Palazzo. I have been very hesitant to accept their offers lately because of the “fine print” that the offer is based on historical play and that similiar play is expected or you could be charged for your room, etc. That is not the exact wording but you get the idea. You never know if they will have anything playable. I don’t know if just playing your freeplay through a slot machine would be considered enough play.

Comments are closed.