So many close calls & .5 runs this trip.
So many missed double downs & rivers this trip.
As I think back I cant help but to think
About how slight the house edge needs to be In order to change a winning trip into a losing trip.
I suppose this is why flat betting or applying the Kelly Criterion is important when you intend to come out ahead, while staying for extended periods. Of course a winning record helps but, without proper money management your record can be inconsequential.
You need to really believe that you have +ev when you stray from that 1%-2% range. Even then, it is never a good idea.
Someone said this much better than I, & I will quote him now. He said, being right frequently is much more valuable than making great plays. Winning and losing do not depend upon making great plays, except at the highest levels. For us, the great plays we read about are the equivalent of slot machine jackpots. They get all the live ones' attention but, the casinos always end up ahead by having a little edge over thousands of bets.
I know I made close to 2000 bets this trip.
Keeping a better more accurate record of my bets will a priority next trip.
When you show up in Vegas with $414 you have to resign yourself to the fact that you can't stray too far from making $5-$10 bets, or you're going to be on a plane & back home alot sooner than you thought.
People who show up in Vegas with $10,000.00 have to cope with the same temptations as someone who shows up with $414. They both need to resist the temptation to increase bet sizes whether winning alot or losing alot. And the player with $ 10,000.00 also cannot stray too far from the $150-$200 bet range.
For me this is the biggest issue I deal with.
For others its tough to resist the clubs, shopping, hookers or whatever we find ourselves spending money on, unnesciarily .
I'm not a very smart guy but I understand how proper management works. The problem for me isn't understanding how it works. The problem is applying it.
It's not like a regular job where you might have 8 different bosses telling you that things have to be done a certain way, with strict policies & procedures. It's not cut & dried or black & white. You have free & full reign over your BR. No one can make you bet responsibly or force you to slow down when needed. This type of financial freedom causes problems for those of us who aren't used to that. For those if us who do not always exercise discipline.
No matter how full your bucket is when you land in Vegas, if you Cant apply proper money management over the long haul you will reach the bottom of that bucket.
This thread is primarily designed to teach people how to do Vegas "on the cheap".
Do this...to get free drinks
Do this... To get free rooms
Do that ...to save on transportation
Do that...to Increase your chances of Winning.
Don't do this ...if you wanna stay focused
Don't do this if you wanna stay a long time
Don't do that..when you feel panicked
Don't do that..just 'cause you feel like it.
But if readers take anything from this thread it is that, you need to always be considering what your BR can sustain.
I hit at an uncanny rate last trip & still only came home with 10x my original stake. If I look back at this trip, I'll bet I hit at a rate only 4%-6% less but still find myself back at home with little to no profits.
Let's be honest, none of us are going to go through our entire gambling careers without making money management mistakes. The question is, what are you going to learn from those mistakes?
When professional golfers watch their previous tournaments to see where they screwed up, they do so, because they want to improve. They do this to analyze their opponents. They do this for many reasons but, They do this mostly, so they can solve the problem & thus play better from that point forward.
They don't do it so that they can whine to their friends, "I was golfing really well until I simply suffered bad luck."
True professionals don't become professionals by blaming everything on bad luck.
They persevere & overcome obstacles because, although they make mistakes, they are always able to learn from them.
If they dismissed everything as bad luck, its unlikely that will ever improve.
Now keep in mind that these are professionals we are talking about.
Who generally have advisors, & coaches.
We don't.
If you aren't your own worst critic, as a gambler, you will probably end up being unsuccessful in the long run.
My money management over this past trip did not resemble that of a professional or successful gambler. My liferoll was not separate nor was it congruent with my bankroll. My wagers were not consistent with the inflation & deflation of my bankroll. I needed to hit at nearly a 75% rate to have any chance of success on this trip & that's solely because of how I structured my bets.
I don't want want to ramble on about my poor money management anymore.
The point is, I really think I am learning more & more about my gambling habits & am slowly eliminating the bad ones and improving upon the good ones.
Enough about money management & onto the rest of the trip.
I generally do a summary a few days after I get back. I do this so I give myself time to really remember what I learned & gather my thoughts & prioritize different events from the trip.
Everytime I stay in a new place, I get really excited, this time it was The Mirage & Budget Suites of America.
I don't really know what to say about the Mirage. Compared to most other stip base rooms it was no better no worse. Compared to The Budget Suites of America it was an 11/10.
Drinks at the pool were fukkin retarded, thank god Coop paid for the drinks, because the four we had cost $30.
Four beer $35. After tip.
Anyway.
If you don't like money, stay at the Mirage.
If you like so much that you will stay anywhere that has an abundance of hookers, pimps, pit bulls & rottweilers.
The Budget Suites of America is the place for you.
A short 10 minute walk to the Strip, though vagrant filled underpasses, you'll smell some of the the most rancid odours Vegas has to offer.
In addition to your standard luggage, be sure not to forget you pillows, sheets & pillow cases or your cups or your toilet paper & shampoo. Actually you might as well pack up all your toiletries & hope customs doesn't take them away
Because you're gonna need all that shit when you stay at Budget Suites of America.
Now don't get me wrong, they make you aware of all this. I of course knew already but a few things I didn't like about it were:
More expensive than Harbour Island by about 27%. (The did 12% tax & $50 dep) which Harbour Island doesn't charge. Which makes them 46% more expensive overall.
They mail you back your deposit 2-4 weeks after you check out.
No armed guards.
And that's really about it. The entire staff was friendly & seemingly competent.
You won't believe this but I never saw a single bug in my room the entire 7 days I stayed there. The walk to the Strip was a third of the walk that I usually made from Harbour Island.
The place is surrounded by burger joints!
It's obviously a Seigel Suites property because the layout was identical to Harbour Island right down to the baseboards & countertops.
It's was nice to stay at the Monte Carlo & wake up & shower, then head downstairs & play with my good friend Al.
Still though, way too expensive. smokes were $15 & Coop paid for drinks again at the sports bar, this time the tab was $120. I asked security for a charger, cause I know they have 3000 of them in the lost & found. They made me wait 45 till I called again & they came over & told me they didn't have any chargers anymore.
If this Ceasars bankruptcy is a real possibility, MGM is just going to get worse & worse cause there won't be anywhere else to go.
It almost seems just like in politics, if you don't have a lobbiest, your vote doesn't count. Well at MGM if you don't have a host, you don't count.
I've said it before & I'll say it again.
A room is a room, is a room.
If you're In it for more than 6 hours a day, youre not doing Vegas properly.
I was fairly discouraged at first when I considered my financial situation after the trip.
Two days before departure & I am literally dead even.
But I have been in Vegas for 9 days, tipped out over $100 on 100 drinks up to this point & have eaten some of the greatest burgers in North America, 12 or 15 of them , in fact. I paid for a weeks accommodations & I spent money on cabs I didn't want to take & had a fridge full of beer in the apartment at all times.
So, on that final day when I bought my daughter a $200 purse & bet $100 on Black, https://youtu.be/wA9cQtDhcdg
I wasn't really thinking of the bottom line because I guess I just didn't care.
My Dad said to me yesterday that 90% of people that go to Vegas couldn't have lasted that long with $400.
I started to think about how I had to bet over $1000 in show bets to get all my drinks & I probably lost $25-$30 at the race books.
I thought about how much I had to win in daily tournaments to cover the cost of all the food I ate & cigarettes I smoked. To be sitting there with exactly what i came with, after ALL that wasn't exceptional but its pretty good. All of a sudden, I didn't feel so bad about blowing $350 on the final day.
I'm not happy about it but don't feel so remorseful about it anymore.
Because I likely won over $5000 while spending & losing $4,800.
Finally I'd like to talk a bit about what I felt was the best part of this particular trip. I met a ton of people this trip. Some whom I've grown to know as regulars & others whom I had never met before but, every single one of them were good peoples.
There is this huge black dealer from the Luxor, who has larger than life presence at the table & is constantly trying to get into your kitchen.
He pulled the typical maneuver where you call out three or four possible hands, and he says "Canada, I'll bet you have wha...J-10? 9-10?"
I answered,"Yes."
He asked, "which one is it?"
I answered, "Whichever one makes you wanna call."
Anyway, he mucked his hand cause I came over top of him in a $2 spread game when the river brought a flush & a straight. I play with this guy nearly every trip & he doesn't have a fukkin clue who I am. Thats my slight advantage against some of these locals like the old silver haired guy who plays every night at the Excalibur, who used to have a sports gambling show on something like USA Network.
Guy was at the table with me watching Arirerrittta pitch the no hitter & he wouldn't even look at me. Treated me like a dumb tourist kid, in town to try out the Texas Hold'em poker scene in Vegas for the 1st time. I couldnt believe what I was watching & I knew he must have been dying to have a beer & talk to someone about it but, he just sat there ignoring me, drinking bottled water.
Next time don't be such a dikk & talk about the game with me!! Actually he did very well that night probably tripled his buy in but, I swear, he didn't get a single fukkin chip from me the entire night & I was there for over 13 hours.
He probably posts here..,just ask him!
These locals are a diamond dozen down there in Vegas, you just have to constantly question yourself & answer honestly to try and figure out what type of player you are & what type of players you play well against.
At one point during that session, it was me, a girl who had to be a tourist because she had two bar stamps on her hand. And 6 locals.
I did not stop drinking from 9:00 that morning & it was approaching 11:30 & the locals had me down & out & rebought for $100 .....& they just couldn't finish me off. I cashed out way after midnight & was up $1.
If I can hang with some of these guys who literally play every single day of their lives, there's no reason a moderately sound online player can't come down here & do the same.
Daniel, the oldest dealer on the planet dealt to me that night. I spun the wheel & hit $50 for aces cracked into a $130 pot.
One Under told me to take a picture of the pit for you guys as the dealer was taking in the chips & shipping elsewhere. Never got the pick.
I know the general rule here is, "No pictures, Never happened." But sometimes, when meeting SBR posters the rule is "No Pictures".
But you can trust me on this: All these people are real. The stories may not be but, they are told verbatim... as I heard them.
Craig - Monte Carlo Sportsbook
SBR Top-Rated Sportsbooks
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