How to Stretch Your Money in the Casino

Jean Scott is known as the "Queen of Comps" and encourages smarter casino gambling. She appears on network and cable TV, especially on the Travel Channel. Her down-to-earth practical suggestions will save you both time and money in your quest to make your trip to the casino more fun and more profitable.  Jean's website is www.queenofcomps.com

This is not a treatise on the technical aspects of gambling, requiring a lot of math knowledge and special skills. It is true that by studying the games and learning about mathematical odds you can play smarter in a casino; but you don’t want to go to “gambler’s school.” You just want some simple advice on how to make your gambling bankroll last longer in a casino. Okay, let’s see what we can do, by just using common-sense ideas.

1. Accept the fact that the main thing casinos are offering is entertainment.   Of course everyone wants to win, but be honest with yourself: you know that it is more likely that you will lose.   So what is your real reason for being in a casino? You want to have fun, right? Don’t feel guilty and try to make up a more noble reason. It is a very sensible attitude.   Too many people will not admit this to themselves; and then, when they lose, they feel very unhappy because they have “wasted” their money. The healthy attitude is to consider this whole bankroll your “cost” for this entertainment choice. If the casino doesn’t take your whole “entrance fee,” you feel really lucky. And what other entertainment options give you a shot at bringing home more money than you took with you!

2. Now that you have admitted that your goal is to have fun, you choose your gambling bankroll from the part of your household budget marked Entertainment. This is money you sometimes use to eat out at a nice restaurant or go to a movie or spend on a skiing trip. This is not money you set aside for groceries or the mortgage or insurance or the kids’ school clothes. Unless you are an extremely disciplined person, you should have this whole bankroll with you, in cash if it’s a small amount, in traveler’s checks if it’s a large sum. You should NOT have your checkbook or your ATM card or your credit card with you.Therefore, you can limit this entertainment “cost” to what you can afford.   Nothing will take the fun out of gambling faster than losing money that has already been earmarked for necessities.

3. Now when you get to the casino, take this gambling bankroll and divide it up in some logical way and decide on some plan. Some gambling writers suggest elaborate techniques here; others pooh-hoo the whole idea of money management. I emphasize using good sense. If it is a day trip by bus to Atlantic City and you have a small bankroll, but you want to immediately “bet big so I can win big,” you must face the fact that you may be out of money in a very short time. Will you be happy to sit out on the boardwalk and people-watch for 6 hours until the bus is ready to take you home? What about on a 4-day vacation trip to Las Vegas? Do you want to go for the lifestyle- changing jackpots the first day and when you (most likely) “tap out,” spend the next 3 days sightseeing?

4. Now you’re ready to play!  Wait. Stop and think. What denomination should you play? If you have been playing dollars in the past and your bankroll usually didn’t last long enough, then the sensible thing to do is play quarters. Going down in denomination is probably the easiest technique to use to stretch your money. If you are a new player, I always suggest you start with quarters. On the average, depending on how the house has the machines set, you will lose between $50-60 an hour playing dollar slots. The same time on quarters would have an average loss of about $20-$30. You don’t have to be an Einstein to figure out that your money would usually last longer if you stick to quarters. Nowadays, the numerous nickel, and even penny, machines might be your best choice for a small bankroll. A warning here: some of the time it is better to go to a lower denomination and play max coins than play one coin in a higher denomination because most machines are set up to reward full-coin players by paying proportionately higher jackpots. If you think you won’t enjoy going down in denomination, remember what your goal is – having fun. Isn’t the person playing nickels or quarters enjoying the same exciting charged glamorous atmosphere of the casino as the dollar player? Doesn’t the same cocktail waitress come by both and accept the same order for an exotic drink that she will deliver to you both free of charge. Don’t both have the exciting hope of winning the top jackpot on their machine?

5. Now that you have chosen your most sensible denomination to play, you have to make a decision as to what kind of machine. Walk around and look at what the options are. Do you like to go for big jackpots? Then you will have to settle for fewer small wins. A rule of thumb is that the smaller the top jackpot on a machine the more little wins you will have along the way that will allow you to play longer. The new multi-line video slots will give you more time on the machine because they pay off frequently. However, be aware of their multi-coin fooler aspect. You put the maximum coins in these nickel machines and you are playing more money than the quarter player on the traditional slots. A quarter multi-line plays more like traditional dollars.

6. Give yourself frequent breaks. Nothing will make you more sluggish than sitting at a machine for hours at a time. Go outside for a fresh-air break. Hit the snack bar for a quick bite. Go to your room for a short nap. Browse in the gift shop. Go to the sports book and check the odds on your favorite team. Or stop in the race book and put a couple of dollars down and watch one horse race. You can also change machines frequently to provide variety and give you a chance to rest your eyes and stretch tired muscles.

7. Another technique that works well in stretching your playing time is simply playing slower. There is no reward here for speed. So stop sometimes to chat with your neighbors – congratulate them when they make a big hit; sympathize with them when they have a long losing spell.    Stop playing and sit back and enjoy that cool drink or hot coffee that the waitress just brought you. You can also slow down your play by choosing a machine that requires some thought. You can zoom along very quickly with no thought on a slot machine. Go to video poker and you have to stop and think in order to make a decision on every hand. I observed a couple recently that had a unique and enviable way to slow down their machine play. They took turns playing one video poker machine while the other watched, and every time they hit four-of-a-kind they stopped and hugged and kissed.

Do you think you are a pretty sensible person? You work hard at your job; you pay your bills on time; you shop sales; you budget your money carefully. Then don’t drop your common sense at the entrance to a casino. Take it in with you and use the very same careful thought – and you will find that you can play longer and have more fun.

Want to read more that Jean Scott writes about gambling, especially comps and video poker?  Go to www.frugalgambler.biz to order her books.