Good News for Casino Players

Are you tired of having your non-gaming friends eye you warily when you tell them you enjoy frequent trips to the casinos? Do questions like, "Don't be offended, but are you a compulsive gambler?" offend you? Are you sick of seeing casino players constantly portrayed as people living on the edge of income extinction?

Well, if you answered yes to any or all of the above questions, take heart. The results of a new survey commissioned by Harrah's and undertaken by Roper ASW and NFO Worldgroup, both leading public pollsters, will have you proudly proclaiming to any and all, "I am a casino player; what of it?" That's because this new survey shows casino players to be -- how can I put this delicately? -- better than the average person. Yes, we're more generous, thriftier, more astute and more successful than those who eschew the casino life.

The Harrah's findings should put to rest the negative stereotypes of the casino player because here's what was discovered:

1. Casino players save more money than non-players. Maybe that's why Jean Scott's excellent book, The Frugal Gambler, struck such a responsive chord in casino players - it reflects our underlying belief in thrift.
2. Casino players are better at investing than non-players. Certainly, we know a good bet when we see one and we aren't afraid to put our money on the line.
3. Casino players are more astute than non-players when it comes to getting credit cards with low interest rates, investing in retirement accounts, and buying life insurance policies. Yes, we casino players know bargains when we see them and we take advantage of them. We also know when to stop and how to budget.
4. Casino players tend to make their own decisions about investments whereas non-players tend to need outside assistance. Casino games require making decisions and strategy choices. Even slots require knowing which machines to play, how much to play in them, and how long to stay at the party. The casino player uses the same order of skill in his or her personal life as is used during contests in the casino.
5. Casino players are less likely than non-players to incur interest charges on credit cards as the majority of them almost always pay the bill before the interest is due. Being acutely aware of the "vig" on the games we play, we try to keep that "vig" in life as low as possible, too. Credit cards, properly used, are interest-free loans given one month at a time.
6. Casino players are more likely to travel than non-players, especially to resorts, and to partake in outdoor activities. This is a no-brainer. Most of the resorts we go to have casinos!
7. Casino players take longer vacations than non-players. The more successful people are in life, the more free time they have to travel and the more they desire to explore new areas and activities.
8. Casino players are more likely than non-players to dine at fine restaurants or to dine out in the past month. While not necessarily full-fledged hedonists, casino players have a healthy respect for the appetites of the body. The most asked-for comp in a casino is a food comp!
9. Casino players are more likely than non-gamblers to go out of the house for entertainment than are non-players, who tend to stay at home more. Yet, while we do go out more, we also entertain guests in our houses more than non-players do, according to the survey.
10. Casino players are more interested in almost every sport than are non-players, except for ice-skating and professional wrestling, non-player favorites.
11. Casino players are more likely than non-players to have a computer and to use the Internet. Does that mean we spend endless hours of our time in online games? No, it does not. Only 8 percent of casino players participated in online games as opposed to 7 percent of the non-player population.
12. Casino players have higher incomes than non-players. I think there is a correlation between the kind of personality who becomes successful in life and the kind of personality who enjoys gambling. After all, life is, when looked at closely, one big gamble, from whom you'll marry to which schools you'll go to, what you'll study, what businesses you'll start or professions you'll work in, to what chances you'll take with your money in housing, investments, and so on.
13. Casino players shop for bargains more than non-players and are much more likely to buy in bulk and use coupons. This would explain why we have money left over to enjoy our casino visits; we're wise shoppers, wise investors, and higher incomes.
14. Casino players are more likely to contribute to charities than are non-players, although non-gamblers attend places of worship more often.

None of the above findings surprised me because my personal experience with casino players always indicated they make more money, save more money, enjoy their money more and are more generous with their money than are non-players.

One area where I was surprised, however, concerned the difference between casino players and non-players when it came to prayer. Only 35 percent of casino players engaged in some form of prayer as opposed to 51 percent of the non-gamblers. I would have thought about 99 percent of casino players would have answered "yes" to prayer as I've seen more praying in casinos than in church or temple - but maybe those kinds of prayers ("Please, God, let me hit that jackpot!") don't really count.

The Harrah's survey also gives the lie to the widespread notion that millions of poor people are being suckered into the casinos where they can ill-afford the cost of the games. Casino players evidently know how to budget their money wisely and to use only a small amount of their discretionary income for gambling purposes.

Interestingly enough, there are 197.1 million adult Americans and fully 26 percent of them gamble in casinos. That's a massive 51.2 million adults who enjoy trips to Lady Luckland yet the bulk of the casino player population comes from the upper income brackets, those who make $55,000 or more per year. Approximately, one third of all adults in that economic range go to casinos. However, those in the lower economic group, who make under $35,000 a year, show casino participation of about 20 percent.

The Harrah's survey challenges most of the negative stereotypes associated with our entertainment of choice, casino gaming, and it also goes a long way towards debunking the cliché spread by the anti-casino-gaming forces that millions upon millions of American lives have been ruined by casino gaming. It just isn't so.