Going to Vegas

[Tarzan]

I'll be stumbling into Vegas in another month or so and I still have many questions. I am quite comfortable in Atlantic City since I play there all the time but in Vegas are they going to get pissed if I win? Should I retain a lawyer before I go or anything crazy? Are...THEY crazy that I need to think along these lines of crazy? Should I limit the amount of cash I carry or have on my person? Do I need to wear some Groucho Marx style glasses so they don't say,"Hey! There's that f**ker from Atlantic City that we hate so much!"

OR! Should I go and not worry about anything, bounce about playing it for all it's worth, carrying loads of cash and when I walk up to the table say stuff like,"Listen...I going to be a sport and give you the option. You can hand me $500.00 in chips right now and I won't play here today and not only will you save us both time and aggravation but it will be more cost effective for you in the long run..."

Seriously though...I just want to stroll through grinding a profit and not piss anyone off. Is this possible? Some of you play there everyday and /or all the time and know what will raise their eyebrows and what wont. Do they scrutinize everyone that wins a bit or adjusts their bets beyond flat betting? Is the evil eye in the sky hot on the project in Vegas? In AC they CAN'T kick you out if you win or even if they KNOW you are a counter(they do have other alternative diversionary tactics is all). Can one be sort of "lost in the shuffle" in Vegas and not be noticed and still be able to "do your thing"? is the real question.

 

[Hitmeonemoretime]

If you are happy with a 500 win at each place you will be fine...where are you staying

 

[toastblows]

That is if its a corporate giant on the strip. I have heard at El Cortez if you win $5 they boot you for life :laugh:

$500 will not blink an eye at any major casino. :cool2:

 

[Tarzan]

Where to Stay

Where to stay you ask? You tell ME!! I have been looking over where I can get a room for a week or so at a reasonable or cheap price and so far about the best I can see is The Stratosphere at $65 a night. Caesars and some of those places want like...$400 a night! I am considering dressing like a homeless man and staying at the Salvation Army, keeping only $1.74 in my pocket and carefully concealing the other $150,000.00 somehow to keep costs down though. I am less concerned about where I stay and the priority is where I play and my strategy in that respect.

Should you all hear some story along the lines of ,"Hey, did you hear about that homeless guy that whacked the casinos in Vegas for $xxxxxx.xx???" a few months from now...well...that was ME!!!hahahaha

In all seriousness, the big picture for me is simply to grind them out for what I can and not be noticeable. My last trip out there two years ago went quite well and I want a repeat performance. I was more paranoid there than I would be in AC due to lack of familiarity is all and this made me play more cautiously, meaning perhaps I made less than my full potential. I read too many scary stories of casinos in Vegas being downright hostile toward players that win before I left, so I bounced around a lot and never stayed long in the same place...bringing me back to my original question and reason for making the original post! Can one get away with sticking for all day into the evening in any given place and pump the bets way up in a good count and be whacking them for some thousands without them getting pissed off about it all or does one get that one great count and blast a few bets out there and if you make out like a fat cat leave before the next shoe begins and hit the next place for fear of any problems?

This is the real question or concern.

 

[Doofus]

I read too many scary stories of casinos in Vegas being downright hostile toward players that win before I left, so I bounced around a lot and never stayed long in the same place...

I've read some of these stories too. I don't know if they are true or exaggerated. Last month I won $2500 in a couple of hours playing $100 hands at the Bellagio, and they were all quite friendly to me. I was playing basic strategy only, however.

 

[EasyRhino]

Tarzan, if you're worried, and you're playing at stakes that will keep you out of high-limit rooms, and you're not going back to Vegas particularly soon, then just go into places, stay unrated, and don't give them your name. Then just play your game, and see what happens. You're not going to get your jaw broken, but you might get asked to leave the table and/or casino. And if you are... big deal!

Now, in an ideal world, you'll find out the places where you can also get comped while card counting, and still not get backed off. That's the part I'm bad at.

 

[toastblows]

If you want to find cheap hotel prices at good hotels, use Airline package deal "vacations" websites (American Airlines vacations, Northwest vacations, US Airways vacations, etc)....whatever they are called. The rooms are usually dirt cheap when you factor in the airline ticket price with it...and the hotels are pretty much anything , Mirage, TI, Ballagio, MGM, whatever. You dont have to stay out in the sticks (stratosphere)...unless you want to! :laugh:

And if you are going to be "Bringing down the house" with card teams and 10 thousand dollar hands....then dont play at your place of sleep :devil:

good luck.

 

[21forme]

I've never played in LV, but I've been told that if you play anonymously/unrated, they look at you with much more suspicion than they do in AC. Is that true?

 

[shadroch]

Both the Las Vegas Advisor and American Casino Guide have numerous 2-4-1 coupons for hotel stays and meals,as well as matchplay coupons.
You can see a list of what they have to offer at their websites.

 

[EasyRhino]

I've never played in LV, but I've been told that if you play anonymously/unrated, they look at you with much more suspicion than they do in AC. Is that true?

Staying unrate could be slightly more suspicious, sure.

But... if you're going into a joint that you're not truly going to be a regular at, and even if they get suspicious of you... so what? Even if they back you off, they're just going to be backing off "that average-looking guy". Play on a different shift, enjoy the rest of your vacation, go home, and come back in six months.

The only time I see where this falls down is if a) You're going to be playing enough to where they'll remember your face even if they don't get your name, or b) You're playing at high enough stakes to where it would be worth them photo'ing/flyering/getting your license plate to track you down.

And if you're, say, red-chipping at a Strip joint, then they probably don't care either way.

 

[ihate17]

What is your spread amounts

Staying unrate could be slightly more suspicious, sure.

And if you're, say, red-chipping at a Strip joint, then they probably don't care either way.

Just about every place on the strip will not bother you for a players card if you are playing red chips on the strip. In some strip casinos they will refuse your players card if you are playing for less than a $25 minimum, the pit telling you that they would not be rating you at your bet level.

Now if you play large, black and higher, you will often be quickly evaluated if you go unrated. The same casinos that will not rate a $10 player want to know why a $100 player is not interested in comps.
Play unrated at high stakes and make sure you make your session short.

ihate17

 

[mdlbj]

If your playing anything from 2-500 a hand then yes they will watch your play if not, you don't have anything to worry about on the strip. If you are playing 2-5 off strip, you will get looked at. Play the MGM properties, they have the best rules. Also, pick up a players card, 100 min for 6-8 hours should get you a room.

The rates at the Paris are decent for the next two months if you want to stay central strip. And remember, do not play at the casino you are staying at.

When the pit boss takes interest in you in LV, get up and play somewhere else.

Enjoy your trip.

I'll be stumbling into Vegas in another month or so and I still have many questions. I am quite comfortable in Atlantic City since I play there all the time but in Vegas are they going to get pissed if I win? Should I retain a lawyer before I go or anything crazy? Are...THEY crazy that I need to think along these lines of crazy? Should I limit the amount of cash I carry or have on my person? Do I need to wear some Groucho Marx style glasses so they don't say,"Hey! There's that f**ker from Atlantic City that we hate so much!"

OR! Should I go and not worry about anything, bounce about playing it for all it's worth, carrying loads of cash and when I walk up to the table say stuff like,"Listen...I going to be a sport and give you the option. You can hand me $500.00 in chips right now and I won't play here today and not only will you save us both time and aggravation but it will be more cost effective for you in the long run..."

Seriously though...I just want to stroll through grinding a profit and not piss anyone off. Is this possible? Some of you play there everyday and /or all the time and know what will raise their eyebrows and what wont. Do they scrutinize everyone that wins a bit or adjusts their bets beyond flat betting? Is the evil eye in the sky hot on the project in Vegas? In AC they CAN'T kick you out if you win or even if they KNOW you are a counter(they do have other alternative diversionary tactics is all). Can one be sort of "lost in the shuffle" in Vegas and not be noticed and still be able to "do your thing"? is the real question.

 

[Kasi]

...and carefully concealing the other $150,000.00 ... I am less concerned about where I stay and the priority is where I play and my strategy in that respect.

Are you really taking large amounts of cash or equivalent?

Like you say the important thing is your strategy. Guess I'd worry alot less about camo strategy than playing strategy.

 

[bluewhale]

i've never been to vegas. anyone got some good starting points for planning a trip here.....
its about 4 ppl, staying for 2 weeks. looking to count about 8 hrs a day and a fairly central location. obviously low cost. so any good hotel reccomendations would be useful. also if anyone happens to know cheap plane tickets from toronto or buffalo.

our plan is to backcount and just play heavy with low cover. stay at each casino for 2-3 hrs and move on, hitting about 3 casinos a day. is this logistically practical? is this even a good strategy? our skill set is just hi/lo ill 18.
right now our max bet is 250x2.... but its very likely that by vegas that would go up to 500x2 (looking at some outside investment).

 

[Kasi]

our plan is to backcount and just play heavy with low cover. ...is this even a good strategy?

Logistically possible, yes.

"Back count and just play heavy"? I can't think of a single thing more you'd want to tell the other 3 guys. I bet your potential investor is running down to the bank for a 2nd mortgage as we speak.

Guess I always get a little nervous when someone who is about to have 4 guys spreading 250*2, maybe more, (that investor must be putting quite alot of money up to bump it up to 500*2 lol), 8 hours a day for 2 weeks playing, I'm guessing, to a common bankroll but still wanting cheap accomodations has to even ask if that's a good plan and at the same time actually apparently thinking anyone on God's green earth could draw a meaningful conclusion from a max bet and the mere fact you are back-counting.

If you know what you're doing, great. If you don't care if you lose all the money, go for it.