Our readers sound off

11 April 2017

By Frank Scoblete

FROM CLIFF: I loved the idea you have when playing slots. If I decide to play slots I look for the jackpot payouts being the same per coin, like: 1,500, 3,000 and 6,000. I have hit many a time 1,500 and very happy with the hit!

I have two stories where I hit right away and went home.

First was sitting down to play Three Card Poker. I put $10 on the pair plus and 20 on ante. I was dealt a straight flush. Gave a tip and went home. I did not feel bad taking my money and heading out.

Second story was not as quick a win. I took with me $20 and ran over to the casino. I thought, "I will play $20 at a dollar machine. Then I am going to eat lunch." First three spins nothing. I am playing max, which is a $2 bet. The fourth spin I get double, double, double. I had hit the jackpot. It was $5,000. I requested they take out the taxes. I told the slot attendant I am going home and paying off a car with this.

The car was going to our son who was in the Air Force. Problem was he had to have ownership. So we needed to pay off the car and then we could transfer ownership to him.

My wife was trying to get a loan at the bank so we could do this. I called the wife told her to tell the bank we don't need the loan. Wife gets angry at me for going to the casino! She tells me that we needed to keep our money not give it away at the casino.

I told her, "You are right. (We have been married 43 years.) BUT since I went and since I won $3,750 after taxes, is it OK if we just pay cash for the car loan?"

She is still angry and is saying something else about going to the casino. I asked her to stop and take a breath and listen again. Well that made her madder so I waited for a time then said: "Honey, please call the bank and tell them we will just pay cash for the car loan."

She responds, "So you are just going to pay cash? Where did you get the money?"

I replied, "At the casino!"

She gets angry again. "I cannot understand why you went to the casino when we need the money to pay off the car loan."

I realized I was not going to win. "You are right again honey. I know we needed money to pay the car loan off. I only spent eight dollars and won $5,000. After taxes I have $3,750. So is it OK to go to the bank and pay off the car loan?"

Her reply, "YOU WON!"

"Yes, honey, I won enough to pay the car loan off. I will go by the bank and do this now."

She said, "OK."

What I learned from this was don't go to a casino if you need to pay a bill. Pay the bill first!

FRANK RESPONDS: I learned long ago that my wife is right even when she might be wrong. “Yes, dear, you are right,” has served me well. I am sure you know the feeling.



FROM JAGGY: There is a magic principle called Law of Large Numbers. That is exactly what the casino is using like any major business. I think one of the best decisions was the penny machines because most player will bet a dollar or more.

I don't play slots. My reason is you have no choice to make a select bet but whatever comes up on each spin. Your money is gone in a few second plus a psychological point enters into the play. Should I continue betting encase the Jackpot is on the next few spins? I feel that is the big reason player lose big on slots.

This is what happen to me many moons ago. I played the slots at Delaware Park. I lost $20. I went to place a new $50 bill and the machine wouldn't take it as it wasn't programmed yet for the new 50s. So I went to get change and as I was away a woman took the machine and won $1,500. That did it for me on slots.

Last week at Monticello casino my wife plays her favorite machines. She was losing and she was deciding to leave the machine but decided to continue. She hit the jackpot for $2,412. On the same machine she hit for another $363. We went home after that.

I will stay with my roulette. But I love the roulette slot machines.

FRANK RESPONDS: The slot machines that now use table games seem to be growing in popularity. As long as they offer the exact same game in terms of the house edge and the speed of the game, they are just fine.


[Read Frank Scoblete’s books Slots Conquest, I Am a Dice Controller and I Am a Card Counter. All are available on Amazon.com, Kindle, Barnes and Noble, and at bookstores. Visit Frank’s website at www.frankscoblete.com.]