Don't throw it away

21 June 2016

By Frank Scoblete

People cut out coupons on the Internet to save themselves a few dollars. They go to yard sales to see if they can get a bargain for this or that. They will haggle about prices in those places that allow such haggling. They restrict their dining out to one or two times a week. I would say these traits display a keen sense of frugality.

But then these same people will go to the casinos and throw their money away on bad bets, using bad strategies, playing bad games, drinking like bad boys and girls and then staggering back to their rooms not knowing whether they won, lost or fell asleep at the tables or machines.

The dichotomy between the two Janus faces of such people underlies the actual success of the casinos. If all players played safely, took their time, and played great strategies, I think we wouldn’t see the spectacular success of the casino industry. The amount of money that players shovel into slot machines is staggering, as staggering as most of those machines’ edges.

So why the devil-may-care attitude of many (if not most) casino players? I think in some ways players want to “let it all hang out”; they want to cut loose. I am sure many players want to push the real world out of their heads — in short, they want to forget their problems — and enter a make-believe realm of adventure and excitement, of risk and reward. To such players the idea of winning big is close to the idea of killing a dreaded dragon or finding the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

The casinos play upon the desire for excitement by highlighting how many of their players have won big jackpots or played exciting table games such as craps.

I’m sure you’ve seen the commercials; all those happy, good-looking people (I’ve never seen an ugly or even plain-looking person in one of those advertisements) having fun in their own little casino worlds will assuredly tempt others to try it too. Casino players might be the last of the true explorers, hoping they will conquer the Everest of Dame Fortune.

I’ve always thought of craps as a controlled riot that grabs people into its clutches and doesn’t let go until those people either lose their money or make so much that they have to finally stagger to their rooms in order to sleep. I also think most players leave their casino experiences letting out a huge “Whew!” Casinos can be that overwhelming.

Those of us who write about casino gambling tend to be a somewhat staid lot, usually scolding players to not “let it all hang out,” to not cut loose. We caution players to have discipline and to play carefully.

How many players actually listen to us? I doubt very many do. In fact, how many players actually read about methods and means for making casino games closer contests between player and house? I also doubt that many do.

Of course, those of you reading this are the exceptions. I think most of you probably keep your heads in the casino, have fun, but don’t go wild. Over time I think you will have just as much fun as the “wild ones” with far less misery in the bargain.

Frank Scoblete’s new books are “I Am a Dice Controller: Inside the World of Advantage-Play Craps”; “Confessions of a Wayward Catholic” and “I Am a Card Counter: Inside the World of Advantage-Play Blackjack.” All available from Amazon.com, Kindle, Barnes and Noble, and at bookstores.