Dumb Moves by Smart Players

2 November 2021

By Frank Scoblete

Are there any casino players who have not made some dumb moves in their playing careers? I know I have been guilty of some. For example, when I first played at the Sands Casino in Atlantic City over 30 years ago, I actually used the dreaded Martingale system of doubling up after a loss while playing the red/black wager at roulette.

I thought it was a brilliant idea, logical, unassailable, and I mistakenly thought I had invented it. Brilliant me! Sooner or later the other color will come up and so doubling would guarantee a win for me.

I think many new casino players, and I was brand-spanking new, also think they invented it as well. Everything went okay for two days and then – boom! – I hit the inevitable string of losses that wiped me out. That became the beginning of my playing career more than three decades ago, a smart guy making a dumb mistake. Sometimes what you think is logical in casino playing is the exact opposite of the truth. I now keep that in mind when I think about the games.

I am much smarter now and I have been much smarter for almost 30 years. It didn’t take me long to realize that I would be wiped out if I gave into my emotions when I played casino games. Once burned twice shy. Learning your lesson early is a good rule for smart casino play.

I am not alone in the dumb mistake department. I spoke with two smart people, successful people in their careers and lives, who are knowledgeable about casino playing. I wanted to get their take on whether or not they too have made some dumb mistakes. Also, do they keep making them? And, if so, why?

Jeffrey, a lawyer and real estate investor, is an avid craps player. “I love craps. I have been playing it for twenty years. I have read many books, including yours, and I play only the best bets and I keep my money in check. You could say I am the perfect player. I do everything right.

“I play the 5-Count, I only make Pass Line and Come bets with full odds. And that’s it. I don’t place bet even the six or eight. I am in total control over myself and my money.”

“That is good,” I replied. “So you never make a dumb mistake?”

“Almost every night after dinner!,” he laughed. “My wife and I go to the best restaurants, have a great meal and share a bottle of wine. She has one glass and I drink the rest of the bottle. I am not loaded or anything but the emotional edge is taken off my gambling care, if I can call it that, my gambling care. Emotions play a big role in how you handle yourself in a casino game.”

“What does that mean, gambling care?” I asked.

“I hate to admit this but I become kind of stupid in how I handle my bets and what bets I will actually make. Everything I practice before dinner I tend to violate after dinner. I’ll bet the hardways, the C&E on the come-out rolls, and even those single-bet propositions. If I start losing I will tend to increase my bets to win everything I have lost back quickly. That is dumb. I don’t even play the 5-Count. I am always thinking this next shooter is going to do it. I’ve got to bet on him right off the bat to get my big win.

“Now this isn’t every single time after dinner but enough that my wife always tells me to ‘play your game’ because she knows that I can get pretty dumb after a good meal and some wine. I have to take the same care after dinner as I do before dinner. So that is where I can honestly say I make dumb mistakes. I’m not proud of it; I can tell you that.”

Is Jeffrey’s wife Linda, a school administrator, immune to dumb mistakes? She doesn’t think so. “I know I shouldn’t play the big progressive slots because the house edges are very high on them. I also know that the chances of really hitting it big are millions to one. But I fantasize about the giant win. I love to fantasize and that probably clouds my mind at times.

“So I apportion about twenty percent of my money to playing those machines. Except the longer I play during the day and evening, the more I tend to forget my money management formula. Twenty percent? Out the window!

“I think one of my biggest, as in dumbest, mistakes is that I play too long. I should just give myself a few hours but I tend to start getting into a rhythm, an unconscious rhythm, and I play way too long. That’s my dumb mistake if you ask me. The longer you play the more careless you can get.

“Oh, and this I find too; I play faster the longer I play. I’m relaxed at the beginning and just take my time. By the end I am playing like lightning. So, bottom line? I do make dumb mistakes.”

I guess most of us are indeed in the same boat from time to time.

All the best in and out of the casinos!

Frank Scoblete’s web site is www.frankscoblete.com. His books are available from Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, Kindle, e-books and at bookstores.