Aspects of Playing for Complimentary Gifts (Comps) from Casinos – Improving Expected Player Value

Casinos compete for players’ time and money by rewarding them with complimentary gifts (giveaways). These offsets include free drinks, meals, free or reduced rate rooms, show tickets and extend to RFB (all room, food and beverage costs), airfare reimbursement or return certificates, and Super Bowl tickets. Compensation programs are inherently designed to foster customer loyalty and encourage return visits with the customer’s wallets and / or purses in hand. Customers don’t have to be high rollers to receive these incentives; many low-mid-level players can and do receive a surprising amount of free gifts and discounts. This is particularly relevant today, in part due to the current state of our overall economy; In Las Vegas, the number of visitors and gambling funds have been significantly reduced and this has increased compensation offers from gambling properties in their attempt to encourage players to walk through their doors. We have a recent (late October 2008) nine day stay in Las Vegas, my wife and I did not have to pay for a single night’s stay (all rooms compensated) and we are not high-end gamblers. Our gaming endeavors include blackjack at $ 10-25 minimum stake tables and penny or nickel denomination slot machines and video poker with stakes ranging from 40 cents to $ 2.00 per spin.

Compensation prizes are generally determined by the average bet x hours played x bets per hour x expected house edge x% of casino compensation profit for players (usually ranging from 25-40% of expected profit per the casino). For example, let’s say you play a decent game of blackjack (player-friendly rules and precise basic strategy) and your average bet is $ 10 per hand. If you play an “average” 6-deck shoe game, you can expect to see 60 to 80 hands per hour if the table involves 3 or 4 other players. Many casinos use 60 hands per hour and a 2% house edge when calculating players’ expected dollar returns and the resulting compensation calculations. Most casinos will return approximately 40% of their expected winnings to a player in the form of comps. For the game above, let’s say you play 5 hours (hopefully more than one table); a reasonable compensation calculation would be $ 10 (average bet) X 5 (hours played) X 60 (hands / hour) X .02 (house edge) X .40 (proportional casino return to players). This means that cumulatively, you bet approximately $ 3,000.00 (surprised?) X 0.02 = $ 60.00 X 0.40 = $ 24.00 in winnings.

A key tip to remember about comps while in Vegas or elsewhere … ASK about them … in a courteous manner. At some Las Vegas properties, you may need to bet $ 15 or $ 25 per hand to even qualify for table game competitions. Some off-the-Strip casinos in Las Vegas are more liberal with their food compositions than many of the Strip venues; On several different trips I have played for 2-3 hours at the Orleans with an average bet of $ 10-20 and have never had a problem getting buffet rewards for two when asked appropriately. There is great variation in compensation programs between casinos and corporate gaming entities. Players must determine where they like to play and take advantage of the details of the compilation program in a certain place. Don’t be surprised if a player’s club representative / host is vague about how they calculate compensation earned; Compensation awarded may vary by season and any factor that increases sponsorship (weekends vs. weekdays, holidays, major events / conventions). Low to medium level players will find it more difficult to compete during these high traffic situations at times. It is suggested that players familiarize themselves with a slot / table game host that they are comfortable with; Generally speaking, it is a good idea to request a host of the opposite sex. Communicating with a host can generate real dollar value for future visits (minimize losses / improve profits); part of a host’s job is to improve the player’s experience while gaming. At many properties, room managers can award meal prizes. The key elements of playing an Enhanced Value Compensation game are gambling within your prescribed budget, playing games with the lowest house edge, knowing the property’s compensation program, and ASKING. On the other hand, “chasing” comps (that is, playing too long just to get a meal) can lead to an overall increase in game losses, especially if you lose hand after hand, roll of dice after roll of dice, or draw slot machines after slot extraction. . Common sense applies.

Blackjack is an excellent game for acquiring comps due to the generally lower house odds compared to all other casino games, as long as players select games with player-friendly rules and learn a precise basic strategy for the game. specific they play. If a player benefits from these conditions and employs tactics that slow down the game (fewer hands played per hour), they have employed some basic tactics to improve their reward accumulation. Factors that can slow down a game include playing at crowded tables, talking to other players regularly while the game is in progress, extending decision times on manual plays, and taking frequent bathroom or phone breaks mobile. Another tactic to improve rewards accumulation in blackjack involves increasing bet levels when pit bosses and / or table hosts are watching a specific game; These should improve your game ratings at the table and increase compensation levels. Stake levels can be lowered if desired when one is not being scrutinized by members of the casino staff.

Slot / Video Poker (VP) Game Tracking for Compositions requires players to have their players’ club cards inserted and inserted correctly to accumulate points; Always determine that this is the case and check periodically during sessions on a given machine. Video poker generally offers higher payback percentages compared to slot machines, but the payoffs for VP game are generally lower for the same bets / time played compared to slots. It is a standard compensation mechanism in casinos. If you find a casino that you like to play at, enjoy slots, and have plenty of time, I think it is possible to identify some particular machines that exhibit a higher ROI percentage than others (we know this is a fact; the key is to identify them). Generally speaking, higher denomination machines have higher payback percentages (ie, $ 1 slot machines vs. penny machines); Your ability to play them will depend on your bankroll and a common sense money management plan. There are wide variations in payback percentages even among penny slot machines; Observation, common sense, and a willingness to play these games can lead to identifying some of the best paying machines. The key is not to soak up a big loss hoping that the next pull … and the next … will result in a big payout. With regard to slot machines, we suggest a stop-loss approach. We always stop playing on a given machine if we have reached 40 – 50% of the original buy-in amount (ie the remaining credit of $ 20 – $ 25 after an original $ 50.00 buy-in). It is true that the average slot machine will deplete its bankroll, but if players can identify the highest payback machines (through observation and actual play), these are reasonable alternatives to racking up rewards. Video poker with solid pay tables (minimum 9/6 jacks or better or double bonus; this pay table means that the machine offers a payout of 9 for 1 on a full house and 6 for 1 on a flush) is a medium great for increasing offsets (although slower relative to most slot machines at the same stake levels). It is important to realize that the key factor is to identify the machines with the highest recovery percentages (ie “full pay” machines or those with close to 100% recovery over time, although breakouts can result in losses, of course).

While looking for individual casinos to play any game, always look for player club promotions (for example, multiplier days, blackjack upgrades) and use gambling coupons (blackjack games and first card ace coupons) ; The use of these will improve the expectations of the player through higher gains / minimized losses while playing the competitive game. The current economic climate in Las Vegas specifically, although generally downward, is conducive to acquiring compensation offers.

Good letters …

Chuck60 @ Frugally Vegas