Ask the Slot Expert: Marker Trax and STN cash

More adventures in cashless gaming.

Just to be clear, the "adventure" flag is triggered only when something unusual and unexpected happens. Last week my adventure was at Suncoast. This week we return to the first location in which I started using cashless gaming, Red Rock.

A few weeks ago, Stations had a survey about patrons' experiences with STN Cash, Stations' cashless gaming system. One of the questions in the survey asked if we wanted to be able to access our casino line of credit from the STN Cash app.

"Heck, yeah!" That wasn't an option, so I checked the Yes box.

A new tab labeled "Marker Trax" appeared in the STN Cash app after a recent update. This must be the new feature that allows us to access our casino lines.

I touched the "Learn More" link on the tab. After a few seconds of watching a dashed circle rotate, a message appeared on my phone. "You are currently an established Credit Player. Please see your Casino Host."

Okay. I probably have to see a host to sign off on allowing the app to access my line of credit. I touched the Okay button to dismiss the message. I don't have a host, so I'll drop by the cage when it isn't busy to complete the process.

In the meantime, I visited the STN Cash site to see if I could learn more about Marker Trax besides the unhelpful Learn More link in the app. There is a Marker Trax page on the STN Cash site.

It turns out there are some significant differences between accessing your line via a marker and using Marker Trax. First, your Marker Trax advance is paid back after 21 days, instead of the 14 or 30 days using a marker. Second, and more importantly, there is a fee for using Marker Trax. You will be charged 1% of your maximum daily advance.

I'm not keen on paying a fee to gamble, but in the interests of learning about the system so I could write about it, I decided to set it up anyway.

There was no one at the cage on a recent visit, so I went to the cashier and told her that I wanted to set up Marker Trax. She said, "Meet me at window 9."

I'd like to point out to Red Rock cage management that there are no window numbers on the outside of the cage. Telling a patron to go to a certain window number isn't really helpful. I knew where to go because I have spent a bit of time at the window that has STN Cash access. Besides, there is a large STN Cash sign on the window. It would be better to say, "Meet me at the last window. The one with the STN Cash sign."

The cashier couldn't find a Marker Trax account for me. Her supervisor came to assist. I showed her the message on my phone. She told me that they're still having some problems with Samsung phones.

After a lot of looking at various screens and discussions with Tech Support, we finally found out what was happening. The supervisor said that we all learned something that day.

It turns out the Marker Trax is not Stations' feature to access your casino line of credit from the STN Cash app. Rather, it is a completely separate line of credit offered from a third party. You can access it from the STN Cash app, but Stations Casinos is not underwriting the line.

The most important thing we learned is that, for some reason, you can't have both a casino line of credit and a Marker Trax line -- at least at Stations Casinos. If I wanted to apply for Marker Trax, I would have to close my casino line.

An advantage of the Marker Trax line, the supervisor told me, is that it is portable. I could also use it at Green Valley Ranch today.

And I could also use it at other Stations properties when they come online with Marker Trax. And, presumably, I could also use it at any casino that has the Marker Trax system.

While we were waiting for the supervisor to talk to IT, I asked the cashier about various fee scenarios. Let's say I draw $500 and lose it all. Then I go to another machine and draw another $500. Would I be charged $5 because my maximum draw amount was $500.

No, I would be charged $10 because the total amount I drew was $1000. You have to look at the whole picture, not just individual transactions.

Now, what happens if I have $250 left when I choose to leave the first machine and then transfer $500 to the second machine?

The Marker Trax FAQs say that the remaining credits get transferred back to my Marker Trax account. The first $250 in the second machine came from my remaining credits. The second $250 came from the Marker Trax line. My maximum draw is $750 and the fee is $7.50.

The supervisor explained my options. Close my Red Rock line of credit and apply for a Marker Trax line. The Marker Trax line can be accessed from any machine and in multiple casinos and I would pay a 1% fee for amounts I draw.

Or keep my casino credit, which I can draw from at the cage or the desks in the high limit rooms (or even at a machine by having a slot floorperson bring the marker to me) and pay no fee.

Tough choice.

The Marker Trax folks have their own site, www.markertrax.com. I probably should have searched outside of the STN Cash site. In any case, it's not really clear on the Marker Trax site that the system isn't just a front-end to the casino's own lines of credit unless you watch the demo video.

If you choose to use Marker Trax, please let us know your experiences.

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