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Ask the Mad Professor
Part 11
(read part I
here or Part 2
here or Part 3
here or
here for part 4
or here for part5 or
here for part 6 or
here for part 7 or
here for part 8 or
here for part 9
here for part 10)
Q: |
Why are you so against having a beer while
playing craps? I usually have six or seven
free drinks over about two hours in the casino, and it doesnt affect my play at all. You should loosen up. |
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A: |
I am loose and relaxed when I play, but I refuse to lower my
defenses to the casinos liquor-fueled money-grinder.
The reason the drinks are free is because it makes it easier for the casino
to separate a man from his money. I like
someone elses phrase of chip-remover to describe those free drinks. I leave the imbibing for post-session
celebrations, or when I have no intention on playing.
The casinos LOVE the taking candy from a baby power that booze
provides. Is it any wonder that Steve Wynn
(creator of Mirage, Treasure Island, Bellagio, et al) is well-known for saying, When the drinks are flowing like Tammy Faye's tears,
then all is good in Vegas, baby! |
Q: |
You
mentioned that a couple of downtown Las Vegas casinos cater to Hawaiian tourists. Do any of those places carry Hawaiian shirts? |
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A: |
The three
downtown Boyd properties (Freemont Hotel, Main Street Station, & California Hotel)
focus on those island visitors. While I
havent specifically seen any great shirts for sale at those properties, there are
three notable Las Vegas outlets that carry a stunning array of Hawaiian shirts: |
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ABC
Store
- A Hawaiian version of Walgreens. Its
located under the Freemont Street Experience near First Street, and has about twelve full
racks of shirts.
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Hilo
Hatties
Also transplanted from Hawaii, has a great assortment of shirts in the Aladdin
Hotels-Desert Passage Mall.
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Tommy
Bahama
They are located out at the Primm Outlet Mall connected to The Primm Resort Casino,
and is beside and across from Buffalo Bills Casino and Whiskey Petes. Prices are a little higher than ABC or
Hilos, but the quality is significantly better.
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Q: |
I really enjoyed your
Casino Credit Update articles. I
would like to know how to skim any profits when I use credit at the tables? Lets say that I draw a marker for $1000, and
wind up with a total of $1200. I manage to
skim-off $400 during the course of my play and slip it into my pocket. Do I pay $800 off against the marker right at the
table, and then cash the $400 at the cashiers cage?" |
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A: |
Excellent
question. I assume when you are talking about
markers, you are referring to "credit" that you have set up with the casino, as
opposed to "front-money" that you have deposited in the cage. |
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The second
assumption that I have to make is that you honestly intend to clear or pay off any credit
that you "borrow" against your line-of-credit.
Okay, that
being the case, then I would "bleed-off" or skim about 20% to 30% of your buy-in
throughout your normal session play. You would do this regardless of whether you are
winning or losing. Gamblers lose, and the casinos expect you to lose. Why would you want to disappoint them? The idea is to make your losses look bigger,
and your wins look smaller.
In
addition, I would skim some of the profits that your winning-play generates. For example, if you are in the middle of a $300
winning hand, I would suggest that about one-third of that amount makes it to your pocket.
The only
exception is if you are having a monster roll. Then
I would ensure that my buy-in amount is at least covered, and a little profit is left in
the rails. In that case, I pay off my marker
right there at the table, and keep the "little" profit that remains. They really like it if you do that. It shows your sincerity and payment integrity.
As to your situation, yes, I would "color-out" with $800
and later on at a different cage or shift, I would cash out the $400 in-pocket
balance. In most cases, the Pit-Clerk will
move your marker from the dice area and transfer it to the cage within a reasonable period
of time. The dice-personal cannot do a
partial-payment against a marker. That
is, if your marker is for $1000, then they cant take your partial $800 payback at
the tables. That is a cage
transaction that you will have to do at the cashiers cage.
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Q: |
After reading numerous Mad Professor articles, I was
wondering what your daily/session bankroll is to win $1,000 per day? |
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A: |
Another good question.
Ill summarize it as follows: |
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Session buy-in is usually $1000.
If I am at a low-limit/low-max table, my buy-in will be either $300 or $500. If it is a hitnrun session
at a major joint; then my session buy-in will still be at least $500, and more likely
$1000. This is done to show my willingness to
expose my money to the casino-risk. It also
really helps with the comp picture.
Session
loss-limit is usually $150. If I am the
solo-shooter at a table that I have historically done well on; then I MIGHT extend my
loss-limit to $250, but that would be a VERY RARE occurrence. If my shooting is not going well on one table, why
would I stay and PROVE that my shooting is off? As
you may know, I have steadily reduced my session loss-limit over the past 18 months. This has been a significant contributor to higher
overall profit, because I dont have to make up and recoup such large deficits during
my good sessions. This one change in my game
plan has increased over-all profitability by at least 20%.
Lowering your loss-limits is one of the major keys to consistent
profitability.
Session
win-goal is usually $300. I dont try to
make a major score at every table. Rather, I
sometimes only get $40 or $50 from one table; then I move on. On the other hand, sometimes a table is reacting
perfectly to my Precision-Shooting, and I will milk it until it runs dry. My actual current session win-amount is
significantly higher than my $300 session win-goal.
However, once I reach the $300 plateau, I refuse to lose back even $1 below
that threshold.
Daily
loss-limit is $500. If my shooting is
off; then I dont chase it. A
rest is usually in order. Once I am away from
the tables, it is then that I usually realize that indeed I really was tired and needed a
break. Again, over the past 18 months, I have
steadily reduced my daily loss-limit, and it too has contributed significantly to my
overall profitability. That is because I
dont have to make up and recoup such large deficits during my good sessions the
following day.
Daily
win-goal is $1000. I treat this item the same
way that I treat the $300 session win-goal. Once
I reach this plateau, I refuse to lose back one measly dollar below the $1000 mark. My actual current daily win-amount is
significantly higher than my $1000 daily win-goal, but that is the realistic target that I
am always shooting for. I have thought many
times about raising that win-goal, but I like the feeling of reliable accomplishment that
I get when I consistently achieve it.
My daily
bankroll is a function of my session buy-ins and my daily loss-limit. Since I usually want to be able to buy-in for
$1000; and my daily loss-limit is $500; then I usually ensure that my daily bankroll is at
least $1500. |
Thanks again for all the great
mail and the superb questions.
Good Luck & Good Skill at the Tables
and in
Life.
The Mad
Professor
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