VIDEO POKER

Good News From The Graveyard

There are large numbers of people who are not willing to seriously consider playing during these hours --- no matter how attractive I try to make it. The more somebody keeps approximately the same hours as "normal" people do, the less able they will be to effectively operate on the "opposite" side of the clock. And that, of course, is the essence of what makes it so good for me. Having fewer players around means better playing conditions.

This sounds like I'm anti-social. Perhaps so. If I list my Top Ten reasons for going to a casino, "being with other people" isn't anywhere on that list. Highest on my list are things relating to the game itself --- pay schedule, denomination, which casino we are talking about, normal slot club benefits, and current promotions --- but other things include "being able to get to one of the machines I deem best," and "playing when the casino is uncrowded enough so I can get timely service --- such as for hopper fills or jackpots," and even "playing when the casino is relatively smoke-free."

I usually want to play the most lucrative machine in the house. And for obvious reasons, there are not going to be very many of these. If I think I can make money on a particular machine, often the casino will find this machine "risky" or "unprofitable." There is considerable agreement among good players about what makes a machine potentially lucrative. So if I think that one particular machine is best, so will other strong players. And if I want to maximize my chances to get on the best machine when others aren't competing for it, graveyard seems the most likely time.

If you're a quarter player and like to play Deuces Wild at the Gold Coast or Suncoast (excellent games, by the way), it doesn't matter much when you play. There are a HUNDREDS of these machines and some will ALWAYS be available. But if you are a $5 or higher player, casinos only have decent pay schedules on few, if any, of these machines.

Trying to avoid heavy cigarette smoke is a personal thing, of course. Many people are unconcerned by this. While it puzzles me that people remain so adamant about the right to poison themselves and others surrounding them, this is not primarily an anti-smoking tirade. It is merely an explanation of how I am trying to find a way to live a long and healthy life while still frequenting casinos. Since casinos tend to be smokier-than-average places, and the amount of smoke is highly correlated with the number of people in the vicinity, fewer people means less smoke.

Another reason is that many casinos offer special deals during the wee hours. In the current edition of Jeffrey Compton's and my "Player's Edge" column that appears in the Friday Neon section or a few mouse clicks away from here (sometimes --- it's finicky), Barbary Coast, Castaways, Ellis Island, Rampart, and Terrible's are currently offering multiple points during some or all of these hours. This list changes periodically, but I think it's a good deal that casinos want to reward me for doing something that I determined was in my best interest without the reward. I try to keep track of how multiple points affects the return at various places and sometimes this affects where I'll play.

But if the best promotion all week happens only between 10 am and 6 pm on Wednesdays, I'll arrange my sleep schedule to be there. To me when I sleep, like when I eat, is flexible. Being able to be alert at any time of the day, as long as I know about it in advance and can plan my sleep hours accordingly, is one of the tools in my winning-player arsenal. Players who "have to" wake up at the same time every day compete with one less tool in their arsenal. (There are often very good reasons why some people have to wake up at the same time every day, and I'm not putting these people down in any way. Each of us has to figure out where their competitive edge is. Being able to play at a wide variety times happens to be one of mine. You'll need to discover your edge for yourself, but this example just might stir your thought process.)