Earning Points

Slots Slot Clubs Ask Questions Learn the System Earning Points The Benefits Player Rewards Back to the beginning

Armed with your new slot club card, you venture out into the casino to find your favorite slot or video poker machine. You locate the machine of your dreams, feed a bunch of greenbacks into the bill acceptor to load it up with credits, and try to stick the card into the insertion slot of the machine. Somewhere there's a slot for the slot club card. You know it's around here somewhere.

The slots for slot club cards on the newer machines are built right into the face of them, clear as day. Some even have a red light that defines the circumference of the slot. The light is actually interactive: When your card is accepted, it changes to green; if it's rejected, it flashes red.

On older machines, the card-reader slot can be anywhere on the machine -- in front, on the side, or on top of the machine. Often it's tiny and dark and nearly impossible to see. But if you look hard enough, you'll find it.

Once the card is inserted in the card reader, make sure it's accepted. Occasionally, the reader will malfunction and the readout will say "Please Reinsert Card." Newer machines even make noises. Do what it says! It could hurt you if you don't.

If the reader is functioning properly, it will record the play under your name. You should be greeted by the readout with something like "Hello [Your Name]," or possibly something indigenous, such as at Treasure Island where the card reader says, "Ahoy Player." A secretive system usually says nothing but "Card Accepted" or "Welcome."

After the greeting, the reader may or may not provide you with information. Depending on the club, you might be told how many total unredeemed points you have in your account, how many you've earned so far in the current session, and the number of plays, or coins, needed to earn the next point. This last piece of information is known as the "countdown." The countdown could be anywhere from 1 to 360 coins (the largest I've seen), depending on the club's system and what denomination of machine you're playing.

When you actually earn a point, the reader flashes "Congratulations [Your Name]," and then something like, "Your current session points are 1." Again, the secretive systems don't tell you anything -- not your total unredeemed points, not your points earned in the session, and not the countdown for the next point.

Lost your card? Don't worry. All that can happen is someone runs up points on your account. A third party cannot redeem your points, even if he or she is in possession of your card, because photo identification is required at redemption.