Martingale Strategy?

[DaBurglar]

I second that.  VP has turned into one long continuous lose-fest for me too.   Slots are paying much better.   Well I'm glad you've actually had some success via Slots, but you know it is DEFINITELY not going to last right?The only justification for indulging and playing SLOTS, in my opinion, for knowledgeable video poker players like the people who frequent this website, is the following fact(s):At almost every casino I am aware, or any casino I have actually played at, the rate of accumulating/earning player points or tier credits (or whatever terminology is used at any given casino) is much higher (typically twice as fast) for playing slots than it is video poker.This establishes with absolute certainty that casinos regard video poker as a MUCH more player friendly game in THEORY, and therefore they reward far less and far slower for VP action than slot action in PRACTICE.    However, at least as far as Atlantic City is concerned since they allowed themselves to be overwhelmed and essentially wiped out by competition from neighboring states starting back in 2007, the expected  "player-friendliness" of Video Poker has all but completely disappeared over the last 5-7+ years, and not only do many of the video poker games in AC not pan out statistically as expected (even the so-called "GOOD" ones like 99% 8/5 Bonus poker and other 99% - "Full pay" games), they actually can take your money FASTER than slots do!   All the while giving you HALF the player points/credits etc.    It is a veritable shiite show/shiite sandwich!Without ANY DOUBT, this was NOT the case prior to 2006/2007 playing in Vegas, Reno and other locations out there; it was very possible to consistently have reasonable success playing video poker  .....  "success" defined as breaking even while earning some decent player rewards or comps, or perhaps even earning a real profit over the course of a given year!  And when you did have a so-called "BAD" run, it was no where near as severe in terms of time/sustained length, amount of actual loses or frequency among the total number of trips/sessions.... this has VERY little to do with the so called degradation of paytables, because even though there has been obvious and significant paytable reductions, there still are good games out there.....but the fact is, at least in AC, EVEN when you do actually play 99%+ games, you get far too frequent episodes of horrible, sustained losses and lousy, statistically unreasonable and improbable results.   It doesn't make sense, UNLESS you accept the obvious reality, that AC casinos practice some sort of form of business practice/strategy vis-a-vis how they administer and implement Video Poker to the playing masses....practices which are not made publicly known, nor are they practices that players such as US would reasonably EXPECT a casino to utilize or do.....A while back (about a year ago), a host at Resorts AC made a statement to me that "you can pretty much break even playing video poker!"  He stated this to me when I requested a decent comp/meal credit after sustaining a really horrible VP loss of around 1500 bucks for just over 4 hours of actual VP play split almost 50/50 between 25 cent 8/5 Bonus poker (a 99.18% game that used to be quite common throughout Resorts-AC)  and 25 cent 9/6/4 DDB ..... despite having about as good paytables as you can in this day and age, Resorts AC video poker has consistently been brutal (right down there with the atrocious CET properties and their server based system.)     SOMETHING.......S O M E T H I N G, is off with the way and manner and practice of AC video poker.   It is also possible that whatever this something actually is, it is manifest too in other cities and gaming/casino locales, but perhaps just not as severely, or perhaps with more balance.I still think too that typical VP games/machines can be further statistically degraded regarding the actual results by simply telling the game to deal more "duds" (i.e. ZERO, non-paying hands which under normal terms should run about 55% of total deals, but a simple adjustment, or tweak, can tell the game to manifest 60%, or 63%, or 65% etc duds)  in its mix of actual random hands....somehow they get away with this, or are allowed to do this or whatever.....DON'T TELL ME that it is IMPOSSIBLE because it is NOT IMPOSSIBLE.   

[FAA]

This thread is tempting me to have a 90% slots day trip before the year ends. I always enjoyed Monopoly as a child. What can go wrong? I already sustain bust or quasi bust results on most trips. Might as well pile on the TCs for my troubles. Phil fills his wallet at the troughs on the regular.

[FloridaPhil]

From my experience, equating odds and mathematical calculations to slot returns is useless.  I'm sure lots of people on this forum would disagree with me.  I think it's a "feel good" way to think, but to each his own.  I play slots differently than most people I see.  I never sit at one slot long.  If you do, the slot will drain your wallet dry.I only play $20-$50 at a time and I play $4-6 a hand minimum.  If it eats my $20, I move on.  If I win anything bigger than $100, I pocket the ticket and start over.  I only take what I am comfortable with losing and leave when that's gone.  At the present time that number is $350 a day.  I have had a few bad days.  I have also had multiple days when I won over $1,000. So far I have not hit a slot W2G, but I expect I will.  I check my white tickets often and monitor where I am.  If I'm ahead, I may bet bigger.  If I am behind, I play max coin quarter Bonus Poker to kill time.  I play VP differently also.  I currently play $20 at a time with max coin quarters.  The best Bonus Poker game we have is 7/5.  Whenever my $20 gets to $50, I switch to max coin dollar play (5) and switch back to quarters at $20.  I hit an occasional dollar quad and straight flush adding an extra $125-$400 to my white tickets.  Before this year, I was averaging 2-3 royals a year.  I've only hit one for $1,000 so far this year.I used to sit at a VP machine and grind it out all day and I got tired of the slow negative drip on my bankroll.   These changes have dramatically changed by results.  My free play and comps have doubled.  I'm ahead for the first time since I gave up CS and it feels good.  If I fall behind, my results won't be any different than when I was playing VP exclusively.I think the key to gambling is to play at a level where you don't give a damn what happens.  If I had inherited millions of dollars that number might be $50K a week.  I didn't, so I play at my own comfort level.   If I lost $350 a week for a year I wouldn't be happy, but it wouldn't change my lifestyle.  I don't believe there is any methodology, math or magic formula that will guarantee you will beat a casino.  All it takes is the right luck and the discipline to walk out of the place a winner.   If you disagree, fine with me as long as we don't go to war over it.I go to the casino to gamble and that's what I do.  Like I have stated
on this forum many times, I do not endorse or recommend any VP or gambling strategy.  I only
report what happens when I play.

[mdmick67]

Special plays are something referenced by a certain someone who is banned from this site. Maybe the same person that had Florida Phil banned from the Stratege Forum had something to do with it... Just saying.I personally know the someone that you are referring to real well. I have been using some of his strategies for years now. To bad that others didn't even take the time to try some of his strategies out. But that's ok  by me, if you only believe in playing to the math you lose. Personally I prefer leaving the casino's with some of their money.

[billryan]

I see this forum has turned into the Group W bench.
I wonder if that was the intention all along.
If so, well played, Mr. Webman.

[FloridaPhil]

[quote=mdmick67]Maybe the same person that had Florida Phil banned from the Strategy Forum had something to do with it... Just saying.[/quote]That is not accurate.  Mr. Dancer wants this website to be an info commercial for his strategy products and services.  He will not tolerate anyone who disagrees with him.  I do not wish to be part of any forum discussion where the questions and answers are controlled.   When he didn't get his way last summer, he left the Forum which angered some members.   To get him to return, I agreed to stay away from the Strategy Forum if he would stop making negative comments.  He chose to do it anyway, then pretended not to understand why I posted my rebuttal.   To keep the peace, I agree to be permanently blocked from the Strategy Forum.  This is blatantly unfair, but this arrangement is working at the moment.  I honestly don't care what gambling strategy anyone uses.  It's silly to think anyone can beat a casino without their help.   If others want to believe it's possible, I say go for it.  My objective in going to the casino is not profit.  I go to have a good time and I like doing it my way.   This whole thing reminds me of a joke I heard a few years back.  How do you win a million dollars playing VP?  Start with a billion and lose 999 million...  

[billryan]

Damn. So many, many words and not even a kernel of truth.
Dancer returned after your diva act departure post where you said you were leaving. You managed to go maybe a week before you returned.

[FloridaPhil]

You don't know what you are talking about.  I will be happy to go back and post the comments in question, but why bother?  That's past history.  Anyone who says anything that goes against Mr. Dancer is either run off the forum or banned.  Those are the facts.  

[Webman]

You don't know what you are talking about.  I will be happy to go back and post the comments in question

Here you go:

I have been a member of this forum since July 2008. I have played video poker long enough to remember the good times.   In recent years, video poker has changed. It started soon after the monetary crisis and continues to this day.   Casinos have continued to downgrade their games and the odds, but the change has been deeper than that.    Something has changed in the programming and operation of these games that has lead me to believe they are no longer fair and random.   For this reason, I can no longer continue to support video poker as anything other than a lottery.

The gaming industry is very adept and has practically unlimited resources. They understand human nature and are profiting from addicting players to their games.   Through paid consultants and high profile individuals, they perpetuate the false truth that players can beat these games. At one time this was true. Those times are gone forever.   If you look at the profits of the casinos you will find a steady increase since 2008. Today, even bankrupt casinos have returned to profit. Is there any correlation between the return of profits and the negative returns we have seen in our games? I believe there is.

I will make a prediction to everyone on this forum before going my own way. I guarantee if you play these games big, you will lose big. You will be allowed to win once in a while as the machines are programmed to keep you hooked.   Unless you never return to the casino, you will give it back at least three times over.   The only way to play these games is to play them ultra cheap. Some members of this forum will call me a "crazy old man" for saying these things. Just so you know, this crazy old man is a pretty wealthy and successful guy and I didn't get that way from being scammed. Just remember when it happens to you that I told you so.

I have made some good friends on this forum. Most were smarter than me and left video poker years ago. Fortunately I have the resources to shrug off my loses, but I will not allow myself to be taken advantage of any longer. I will continue to play VP as small as possible. That is the only way you will ever keep the casinos out of your pockets.   For those who will say I didn't play skillfully, I want you to know that at one time I played near positive games perfectly at large denominations. I did exactly what the expert told me to do and I lost multiple tens of thousands of dollars a year in the process. It wasn't until I switched to playing ultra cheap that I was able to play anywhere near a profit.

Comps have also been downgraded.   Sure, you can get free rooms so you can play rigged games and pay through the nose.   If you want to throw away hundreds of thousands of dollars you may gain Diamond Status allowing you to possibly lose millions. What a deal!

I realized all of this shortly after joining this forum. I tried to warn other members, but the casinos and people who were benefiting from hooked players tried to silence me.   They failed once. It now looks like they have succeeded. I have no regrets from any of my posts on this forum. I can't say I will miss the forum as it has turned into a marketing tool for gaming interests and a permanent home for a few pitiful dreamers.

I will continue to play video poker for free on line. When I visit a casino, I will play as cheap as humanly possible.   At the end of the year, I'll bet I will have lost less money than all the experts put together.   It is possible the owners of this website may delete this post.   I love videopoker.com and think they are providing a great service. Where else can you enjoy playing video poker without losing money? No where!!

You may now continue to discuss how math is going to make you rich. The witch is dead. I wish you all well with whatever path you may take in life.

Good Luck!


Like everyone else, I took that to be a "goodbye" message.


Anyone who says anything that goes against Mr. Dancer is either run off the forum or banned.  Those are the facts.  


Hardly. I think only 4 or 5 people have ever been banned from this forum and it had to do with their behavior, not anything they had to say about Mr. Dancer.

[FloridaPhil]

Webman, you know exactly what we agreed to. You also know Mr. Dancer chose to make a negative comment about me when I had no way to respond. I have no problem with the owners of this website doing what they can to please their sponsors. I was VP of a newspaper years ago. Back then we were required to print the words ADVERTIZMENT over this type of copy. If you are going to have an open forum, perhaps you should consider doing the same.