Frommer's Las Vegas 2004

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CHAPTER 8 . ABOUT CASINO GAMBLING
Players Clubs
If you play slots or video poker, or, indeed, just gamble quite a bit, or
even just gamble, it definitely pays to join a players club. These so-called
clubs are designed to attract and keep customers in a given casino by
providing incentives: meals, shows, discounts on rooms, gifts, tournament
invitations, discounts at hotel shops, VIP treatment, and (more
and more) cash rebates. Join a players club, and soon you too will be
getting those great hotel-rate offers—$20-a-night rooms, affordable
rooms at the luxury resorts, even free rooms. (This is one way to beat
the high hotel rates.) Of course, your rewards are often greater if you
play just in one casino, but your mobility is limited.
When you join a players club (inquire at the casino desk), you’re
given something that looks like a credit card, which you must insert into
an ATM-like device whenever you play. Yes, many casinos even have
them for the tables as well as the machines. (Don’t forget to retrieve
your card when you leave the machine, as we sometimes do—though
that may work in your favor if someone comes along and plays the
machine without removing it.) The device tracks your play and computes
bonus points.
Which players club should you join? Actually, you should join one at
any casino where you play, because even the act of joining usually entitles
you to some benefits. It’s convenient to concentrate play where
you’re staying; if you play a great deal, a casino hotel’s players-club benefits
may be a factor in your accommodations choice. Consider, though,
particularly if you aren’t a high roller, the players clubs Downtown. You
get more bang for your buck, because you don’t have to spend as much
to start raking in the goodies.
surrounding the number table (see picture above). If you bet on a specific number
and it comes up, you’ll be paid 35 to 1 on your bet. Bear in mind, however,
that the odds of a particular number coming up are actually 38 to 1 (don’t forget
that 0 and 00!) so the house has an advantage the moment you place an
Inside bet. For payoffs on Outside bets, such as Red/Black, Odd/Even, and so
forth, see the table below. The methods of placing single-number bets, column
bets, and others are fairly obvious. The dealer will be happy to show you how
make many interesting betting combinations, such as betting on six numbers at
once. Each player is given different-colored chips so that it’s easy to follow the
numbers you’ve bet on.
Some typical bets are indicated by means of letters on the roulette layout
depicted here. The winning odds for each of these sample bets are listed. These
bets can be made on any corresponding combinations of numbers.
SLOTS
You put the coin in the slot and pull the handle. What, you thought there was
a trick to this?
Actually, there is a bit more to it. But first, some background. Old-timers will
tell you slots were invented to give wives something to do while their husbands
gambled. Slots used to be stuck at the edges of the casino and could be counted