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Bob Dancer writes a video poker column for beginners to experts. He also writes a column with Jeffrey Compton, "Player's Edge", featuring information on promotions at various Las Vegas casinos. Player's Edge is published each Friday in the Neon section of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Click here to send Bob Dancer an e-mail.

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Dec 19, 2006

Ninety Days is not the same as Three Months

Station Casinos, a group of Las Vegas area local casinos, do not have same-day cash back, but they do send monthly mailers to local players based on tracked play during a previous 90-day period. This period always includes the last day of the month one month before the mailer month and also includes the 89 previous days.

During those years containing "only" 365 days (i.e. not leap years), the schedule is as follows:

Mailer	Start Date	End Date

January	September 2	November 30
February	October 3	December 31
March	November 3	January 31
April	December 1	February 28
May	January 1	March 31
June	January 31	April 30
July	March 3	May 31
August	April 2	June 30
September	May 3	July 31
October	June 3	August 31
November	July 3	September 30
December	August 3	October 31

Notice that most of your play counts for three different mailers. If you play on January 12, for example, it will count towards your rewards in March, April, and May. There are several days at the beginning of some months, however, that only count towards your rewards in two months. If you played on November 1, for example, your play that day counts towards January and February only. You are similarly penalized on March 1, March 2, April 1, May 1, May 2, June 1, June 2, July 1, July 2, August 1, August 2, September 1, October 1, October 2, and November 2.

Strangely there is one day that counts towards FOUR monthly mailers. That is, your play on January 31 counts towards your March, April, May, and June mailers.

Every four years we have leap year, and 2008 will be the next one. Because February has 29 days during these years, it affects the dates of the mailers for three separate months:

For Leap Years:

Mailer	Start Date	End Date

April	December 2	February 29
May	January 2	March 31
June	February 1	April 30

In leap year, December 1 and January 1 are added to the days that only count for two mailers, and January 31 only counts for three mailers.

If you play at the Chairman Level (750,000 points per three months), they figure it both on the basis of 90 days and three months. But if you don't play at this level, it's 90 days only.

These charts aren't complicated, but keeping the months straight is a bit tricky. One easy-to-remember way to avoid having to worry about whether you're going to be penalized or not is to never play at these casinos on the first or second of the month. That way you avoid the days where your play only counts for two different mailers.

It's efficient to play exactly the correct amount. For example, Chairman level players receive $700 per month in mailers. Since it takes $250,000 a month to earn these mailers, the mailer rate is $700/$250,000 = 0.28%. If you played, say, $350,000 a month instead, the mailer rate is reduced to $700/$350,000 = 0.20%. Other tier levels have different rates. (Playing their best games that require $2 of coin-in to earn one point cuts these rates in half, but it doesn't change the principle that playing the correct amount is efficient.)

This rate doesn't include the value of the base points, which are good for a variety of things (rooms, meals, gift shop, bingo, show tickets, Kid's Quest, etc.) Playing on multiple-point days (2x, 3x, 4x, or 5x) doesn't affect the mailer rate, but it does allow you to accumulate more points that are useful otherwise.

While playing too much is inefficient mailer-wise, playing too little costs a bunch. Average 249,999 points instead of 250,000 or more and your monthly $700 gets reduced to about $350.

Part of me is annoyed at Station Casinos for making this more complicated than necessary (while at the same time appreciative that they're inadvertently providing me with subject matter for another column.) Using three calendar months rather than 90 days is MUCH easier for the players to understand. It's just as easy for the computer program to calculate it one way as the other, but it's a LOT easier on humans to use calendar months. And it will be profitable for Station to make the switch if enough people start using the "avoid playing there the first and second of the month so you don't get burned on the mailers" philosophy. So if you wish them to switch to the calendar month basis, you should use that philosophy as well, as pretty soon the pattern will be very obvious to Station management.

At the same time, though, I'm grateful to Station Casinos for publishing their requirements. The requirements for Gold, Platinum, President, or Chairman levels are published and you can see your current totals on www.stationcasinos.com. Several casinos do NOT publish the requirements nor do they show you your status online. It's good for the players that Station does.