Question for the gamblers

[Harry Peterson]

9 minutes ago, daiB said:

They target winners and losers as big winners attract more people to give it a go. They want people playing at the tables and on the bandits. Big winners are treated very well. 

That’s a major departure from the rest of the industry. What sort of gaming is available, given that statistically you can’t beat a casino on games of chance such as roulette, particularly with a double zero, overall.

 

Gambling winners are very rare creatures, and usually end up barred.

[KnowTheScore]

3 hours ago, Harry Peterson said:

That’s a major departure from the rest of the industry. What sort of gaming is available, given that statistically you can’t beat a casino on games of chance such as roulette, particularly with a double zero, overall.

 

Gambling winners are very rare creatures, and usually end up barred.

 

I would agree with you Harry.   I think it's not so much big winners but rather those who crave attention and Bet Big.

 

It's the big betters that attract people not winners.  Every spin of the roulette wheel there are winners and losers.

It's boring to watch, pretty mundane and not really that much entertainment value.  I can certainly think of many other things to spend my cash on for entertainment value.

 

No it's the fools who still think casinos are like James Bond films and want to present a persona of the big flamboyant man for whom money is no issue.  The ones who place huge piles of chips on the roulette table.   Such people are habitual and large losers and casinos love them but because they play a lot then occasionally the right number comes up and suddenly the croupier's dolly is sat on top of that large pile of chips.   THAT is what attracts the crowds.

 

The player is a massive loser because the game is a losing proposition but that occasional "hit" gives the hapless addicted gambler the mental stimulant to keep playing.  A bit like playing golf.  It's a hugely frustrating game when you start out but every now and then you hit that ball right in the sweet spot off the tee and the ball shoots off with a satisfying zing and that keeps you hooked. 

 

I have dabbled with casinos in the past and learned some very interesting things and even on a roulette table 1-1 with a croupier have had their skills demonstrated.  The top croupiers can spin a ball on that wheel into a chosen arc of about 5 numbers no problem at all.   You can only win therefore if THEY want and let you win.  There will be the usual detractors and sceptics in relation to this, and I'm not interested.  I've seen it done and now I know.

 

If you want to win money at the roulette table on a ship then there is one way to improve your chances significantly.

Every time your number comes up and the croupier pays you a pile of chips, throw some back to them as a tip.  They are permitted to accept tips and once they know that when you win, they also win, you will magically get more wins.  Been there, done that, got the T-shirt.

 

All this said I don't ever participate in ship's gambling facilities these days and in particular the ship's Bingo which I find absolutely disgusting..  The amount of the takings that the house keep in the bingo is imho immoral and sickening.  I highlighted it once to the person hosting the bingo on the last day.  I calculated they had taken many many thousands of pounds in ticket sales and yet were only paying out just over £1000 for the final jackpot prize.  The host could only look lamely at me and suggest I go talk to the casino management.

 

All of it is a total mugs game.   But mugs there are a plenty on cruises

 

[davemorton]

13 minutes ago, KnowTheScore said:

 

I would agree with you Harry.   I think it's not so much big winners but rather those who crave attention and Bet Big.

 

It's the big betters that attract people not winners.  Every spin of the roulette wheel there are winners and losers.

It's boring to watch, pretty mundane and not really that much entertainment value.  I can certainly think of many other things to spend my cash on for entertainment value.

 

No it's the fools who still think casinos are like James Bond films and want to present a persona of the big flamboyant man for whom money is no issue.  The ones who place huge piles of chips on the roulette table.   Such people are habitual and large losers and casinos love them but because they play a lot then occasionally the right number comes up and suddenly the croupier's dolly is sat on top of that large pile of chips.   THAT is what attracts the crowds.

 

The player is a massive loser because the game is a losing proposition but that occasional "hit" gives the hapless addicted gambler the mental stimulant to keep playing.  A bit like playing golf.  It's a hugely frustrating game when you start out but every now and then you hit that ball right in the sweet spot off the tee and the ball shoots off with a satisfying zing and that keeps you hooked. 

 

I have dabbled with casinos in the past and learned some very interesting things and even on a roulette table 1-1 with a croupier have had their skills demonstrated.  The top croupiers can spin a ball on that wheel into a chosen arc of about 5 numbers no problem at all.   You can only win therefore if THEY want and let you win.  There will be the usual detractors and sceptics in relation to this, and I'm not interested.  I've seen it done and now I know.

 

If you want to win money at the roulette table on a ship then there is one way to improve your chances significantly.

Every time your number comes up and the croupier pays you a pile of chips, throw some back to them as a tip.  They are permitted to accept tips and once they know that when you win, they also win, you will magically get more wins.  Been there, done that, got the T-shirt.

 

All this said I don't ever participate in ship's gambling facilities these days and in particular the ship's Bingo which I find absolutely disgusting..  The amount of the takings that the house keep in the bingo is imho immoral and sickening.  I highlighted it once to the person hosting the bingo on the last day.  I calculated they had taken many many thousands of pounds in ticket sales and yet were only paying out just over £1000 for the final jackpot prize.  The host could only look lamely at me and suggest I go talk to the casino management.

 

All of it is a total mugs game.   But mugs there are a plenty on cruises

 

I actually agree with everything you say above, and hence I always bet minimum, and never ever touch roulette (been there when I was young and stupid), but I do believe the part I put in bold is in your dreams to be honest. 

[davecttr]

Well that told me then! Here was me thinking that because the ship is moving there is no way the most 'expert' dealer could spin the roulette wheel as there is no way to predict the semi random accelerations and decelerations the ball is subject to. The only skill in roulette is knowing when to walk away from the table.

 

As for big betters, I have seen plenty in my time. I always wonder why they don't learn to play the game properly. On my last cruise there were a number of blackjack players making maximum bets and it was obvious after a few minutes play they did not know what they were doing. The casino were happy, it was like taking candy from a baby.

 

I had a result one cruise, had a problem with the blackjack rules and it ended up at the casino head office. a few days later the casino manager apologised, I was right so they changed the rules to what they should have been. It pays to know the rules, literally in this case as they passed over some large chips!. Perhaps they thought I was a 'ghost' gambler.

 

As I don't bet large I am hardly likely to get a free voucher

[Elaine0138]

Used to save up our quarters for playing the slots on the ship on sea days, and we used to break even, but once the casinos went over to just swiping your Cruisecard we stopped. Never played the tables on the ship but I had a big win a few years ago on roulette, started off with £100 and by the end of the evening it had turned into £9500. It was a fantastic night in the mess and I got a decent bottle of bubbly to celebrate my achievment  😂

[Deeliteful]

Imo the only game to play on a cruise is poker. Dealer dealt Texas Hold ‘Em. This is because you are not playing against the casino but against other players. Yes the ship takes a rake (too much) but the game is in the players’ hands.

Unfortunately it is not played on P&O ships!

Have twice won a cruise playing poker on a cruise and won $7k on my last poker cruise in December.

[funinhounslow]

On 2/22/2020 at 6:58 PM, Harry Peterson said:

Gambling winners are very rare creatures, and usually end up barred.

Nope.  
 

Casinos want to keep winners playing, in the knowledge that the house edge means they will eventually get their money back. 

 

Why would any business turn away a paying customer?

Edited February 25, 2020 by funinhounslow

[funinhounslow]

On 2/22/2020 at 11:05 PM, KnowTheScore said:

If you want to win money at the roulette table on a ship then there is one way to improve your chances significantly.

Every time your number comes up and the croupier pays you a pile of chips, throw some back to them as a tip.  They are permitted to accept tips and once they know that when you win, they also win, you will magically get more wins.  Been there, done that, got the T-shirt.

I must give this sensible advice a try sometime... 🤪

[Harry Peterson]

1 hour ago, funinhounslow said:

Nope.  
 

Casinos want to keep winners playing, in the knowledge that the house edge means they will eventually get their money back. 

 

Why would any business turn away a paying customer?

It's not paying customers they turn away.  It's the very rare winning customers.  Not possible on games of pure chance such as roulette where the house will always win, but it is possible, by skilled card counting, to win consistently at games like Blackjack.

 

It's legal,  mostly,  but if you're suspected of card counting and winning you'll most likely be barred.

[funinhounslow]

???

 

Blackjack is a game of “pure chance” - you never know what the next card is going to be do you?

 

 Agreed, the odds can swing in your favour (by fractions of a percent) if a lot of the smaller cards (5 and under) come out early but that is a long way from “winning consistently “. Especially as the use of multiple decks dilutes the effect somewhat. Honestly is it really worth it?
 

Card counting, and croupiers influencing results of roulette spins. All we need now is for someone to chime in with a foolproof way to win at slots...😀

[Harry Peterson]

42 minutes ago, funinhounslow said:

???

 

Blackjack is a game of “pure chance” - you never know what the next card is going to be do you?

 

 Agreed, the odds can swing in your favour (by fractions of a percent) if a lot of the smaller cards (5 and under) come out early but that is a long way from “winning consistently “. Especially as the use of multiple decks dilutes the effect somewhat. Honestly is it really worth it?
 

Card counting, and croupiers influencing results of roulette spins. All we need now is for someone to chime in with a foolproof way to win at slots...😀

You need to read up on card counting, the efforts casinos put in to spot it, and what happens when they do.
 

This is fact, not fiction, and nothing to do with bent croupiers.

[ozzysdad]

Roulette is a game of chance but a good roulette dealer can hit certain areas of a wheel pretty accurately, maybe within 2 or three numbers which would give you a quadrant of 6 or 7 numbers, it is difficult to believe but I've seen it done, if you bet the same numbers 4 or 5 numbers apart your chances would then more likely be down to lady luck, I dont frequent casinos at home but normally have a dabble on the tables when cruising, it's all part of the experience for me, my partner normally plays the slots and the bingo on the last day, normally lose but on a couple of occasions I've left cruises with profit.

[davecttr]

Don't bother with card counting in blackjack. to make any money out of it you have to have a LARGE bankroll and make BIG bets if the count justifies it. Even then you can go several months consistently losing, blackjack is a streaky game. When the casino spots what you are doing they will show you the door, and only one casino on the ship!. To card count you have to start with mastering basic strategy, Basic strategy does not mean you will win, it means you will be playing the optimum game and so on average will lose more slowly which means you may have some money left to wager when you hit a lucky streak. You also need to take enough money to the table to see you over any immediate unlucky streak. I have lost the first 7 to 8 hands on a few occasions and that would wipe out most casual players on a cruise ship. I mean P&O where not many people know how to play the game. Treat the game as entertainment and don't gamble what you can't afford to lose.

 

ps - you can learn basic strategy in a month or two using a single deck of cards to practice.

- take 20 to 30 times your minimum bet to the table . for a £5 bet on P&O that is £100 to £150.

the average house edge playing basic strategy is about 0.5%, best odds in the casino.

[Roger88]

If you really want to play a real game of Poker, or get a feeling a gambler person just stick to 21 or Texas HoldEm or just play with the machines. Roulette is a total GAMBLE - almost like buying a lottery ticket. And always be confident in yourself, it helps