Gambling Log

[aka23]

A sticky bonus stays in your account, whereas a phantom bonus is removed when you make a withdrawal.

That's a matter of arbitrary terminology. When most people on forums say "sticky", they are talking about the more common type that is removed when making a withdrawl. Some casino review sites refer to these as "sticky type I" and "sticky type II" while others refer to them as "sticky" and "phantom." Casinos rarely use either term and instead may call them "play bonus" or "non-cashable."

 

[aka23]

I'm finally above $20,000 and above $5k for the month thanks to King Neptune's again. I wasn't sure if I'd be able to make my $5k goal this month, as I've already used the decent sign up bonuses.

As I've posted elsewhere I have played at King Neptune's about 8 times, and each time I have come out far ahead. My winning streak nearly ended last night. They offered me a 50GBP 100% match. My bets were as follows

Start -- Total = 100
Bet 50 on ACBJG -- Lost, Total = 50
Bet 50 on ACBJG -- Surrendered, Total = 25
Bet 25 on ACBJ -- Won, Total = 50
Bet 50 on ACBJG -- Won, Total = 100
Bet 50 on ACBJG -- BJ, Total = 175
Played 500 hands of FR -- Gained ~5, total = 180 with 10 bonus $ coverted to cash
Played 500 hands of FR -- Gained ~25, total = 205 with 10 bonus $ coverted to cash
End Result -- 125GBP ($235) gain on 50GBP bonus after 30 bonus credits removed.

I also can't seem to lose at Jupiter's Club. I gained a $10 bonus from reward points after my Grand Prive accounts were combined. I built that up to a sizable cashout by winning three sequential ACBJ hands without a loss. I also gained $330 on a $300 match less than a week ago, as posted earlier.

I played at Cool Cat Casino recently. I busted and lost $50 the first time. Then they offered a double deposit double bonus % promotion. For me this was a 300% no playthrough bonus!. I played conservatively, betting only $100 of my 400 on BJ. I drew a BJ, then cashed out shortly for a $150 gain or a cummulative gain of $100.

My summary data is below:
Gains of $500 or greater:
1. King Neptune's: +~$2550 (Increase)
2. Winward: +~$2000 (Increase, Estimate)
3. Casino.net: +~$1500 (Banned from receiving bonuses)
4. 888.com: +$1100 (Increase)
5. Jupiter Club: +$1085 (Increase)
6. Shark Casino: +$820 (Increase)
7. Palace of Chance: +$800 (New, Estimate)
8. Venetian (B&M Casino): +$750
8. USA Casino: +$750
8. Casino Euro: +$750 (Increase)
11. Casino Vega: +$660 (Increase)
12. Golden Rivera: +$600
13. Nine.com: +$530
14. Sun Vegas: +$510
14. Littlewoods: +$510 (Increase, US Players Banned)
16. Golden Reef: +$500


Losses of $100 or greater:
1. Virtual Casino -$400 (New)
2. Slots Royale: -$350
3. Villento: -$300 (Decreased, Smaller Loss)
3. Connecto: -$300
5. Luck N Roll: -$250
6. Trident Lounge: -$200
7. Online Casino: -$190
8. Cinema Casino: -$150 (Decreased, Smaller Loss)
9. Crazy Vegas: -$125 (Increased, Larger Loss)
10. Omni Casino: -$100
10. Kiwi Casino: -$100
10. Casino US: -$100
10. Player's Club (Boss): -$100 (New)


September Gains/Losses:
Winward: +$1000 (Estimate)
Palace of Chance: +$900 (Estimate)
Jupiter Club: +$515
King Neptune's: +$380
Lake Palace: +$350
Casino Share: +$275
Intercasino: +$200
Casino Lux: +$200
Littlewoods: +$195
888.com: +$165
Sun Palace: +$160
Casino Vega: +$160
Shark Casino: +$150 (+$550 gain -$400 bonus loss)
Casino Grand Bay: +$150
Cherry Casino: +$120
32 Red: +$100
Villento: +$100
Cool Cat: +$100
Bella Vegas: +$90
William Hill: +$75
Casino Euro: +$50
Cinema Casino: +$50
Fortune Room: +$50
Authorian Casino: +$35
Golden Tiger: +$35
VIP Casino: +$20
Grand Monaco: +$10
Club Dice: +$0
Crazy Vegas: -$25
Player's Club (Boss): -$100
Virtual Casino: -$400

September Net Gains/Losses: +$5070 (Estimate)
Overall Net Gain/Loss: +~$20,050 (Estimate)

 

[EasyRhino]

aka, I've been wondering, because I'm a little confused on the gaming of sticky bonuses in general... have you been playing any bonuses that are -EV?

If so, which ones, and why?

 

[aka23]

aka, I've been wondering, because I'm a little confused on the gaming of sticky bonuses in general... have you been playing any bonuses that are -EV?

If so, which ones, and why?

Nearly all the bonuses that I have played have a positive expected return. Once in a while I'll play a bonus with a small negative expected return like the Spin Palace slots 300% match slots bonus. I chose to play because I wanted to play slots and I was only risking $50. Periodically play without bonuses. During such sessions I have a negative expected return.

When I play sticky bonuses, I usually select ones with no playthrough or minimal playthrough. I get offers by email about sticky bounses with no playthrough several times per week. Such bonuses have a positive expected return.

 

[BobbySoxs]

BJ percentage

I see "dealt a BJ" a LOT in your posts

BJ expected by player about 1/20 ??

what is your BIG BET BJ percentage ??

 

[aka23]

I see "dealt a BJ" a LOT in your posts

BJ expected by player about 1/20 ??

what is your BIG BET BJ percentage ??

Yes, I am dealt a BJ more than my share of time when making large bets. I don't know the percentage, but it is quite a bit more often than 1 in 20.

 

[BobbySoxs]

inspirational story

after your website who is publishing your story
Chris Ferguson turned $1 into $20,000 in online poker
now YOU !!:notworthy

 

[Lord_Have_Mercy]

Question what, when and how?

oops

 

[aka23]

I had a >$500 gain today... the first one I have had in >2 weeks. I gained ~$600 on the $300 sign up bonus at Powerbet. Powerbet has some unique bonus rules. The bonus is cashable, but you can only withdraw if your balance is <=D or if your balance >B+D. For me this was <=$300 or more than $600. The bonus has a 28xB wagering requirement for BJ, but you would not know it by the rapid variations in my balance over time due to streakyness. I didn't use as much progressive betting as I usually do with RTG since the table min is $5 (can not reduce to $1). I tried something new involving quitting and restarting at certain points. I plan to continue with the quitting/restarting and see if it continues to coincide with gains. My updated +$500 gain list is below.

Gains of $500 or greater:
1. King Neptune's: +~$2550 (Increase)
2. Winward: +~$2000 (Increase, Estimate)
3. Casino.net: +~$1500 (Banned from receiving bonuses)
4. 888.com: +$1100 (Increase)
5. Jupiter Club: +$1085 (Increase)
6. Shark Casino: +$820 (Increase)
7. Palace of Chance: +$800 (New, Estimate)
8. Venetian (B&M Casino): +$750
8. USA Casino: +$750
8. Casino Euro: +$750 (Increase)
11. Casino Vega: +$660 (Increase)
12. Golden Rivera: +$600
12. Powerbet: +$600 (New)
14. Nine.com: +$530
15. Sun Vegas: +$510
15. Littlewoods: +$510 (Increase, US Players Banned)
17. Golden Reef: +$500

 

[EasyRhino]

That's a very curious promotion at powerbet. I guess the way I'd play it would be to play normally. Then, when you reach the WR (or when you almost reach the WR), look at where you are compared to the $600 you started it. If you're over 600, great. If you're under 300, well, too bad.

But if you're between, then you'd probably look at either
a) The amount to bet to get over 600
b) the amount to bet to bust down below 300

If you're conservative, you'd probably take the smaller number, and bet it. If you end up in the middle, just evaluate the same decision again. Eventuall you'll cross one of the borders.

Heck, I think I'll try it.

 

[EasyRhino]

followup: Okay, I tried it. I modified my strategy somewhat (disclaimer, dont' know if this was smart or not). I start out betting $25 hands, because I felt ballsy. I hit a bad streak early on, and dropped down below $300 (my "real" money). I reduced by bets to $10 per hand. However, when I got up to say $350 or so, I'd increase my bet back to $25. I went back and forth around the $300 mark several times. Then I hit a really nice win streak, and kept the bets at $25. When I found myself over $700 balance, and near the end of the WR, I reduced my bets back to $10 in an effort to "lock in" the profits and stay above the $600 mark.

Assuming I measured my gaming right, I'm cashing out with $300 in my own money, $300 in bonus money, $142 in lucky money, and $8 in comps.

Do they require a fax back form to approve a neteller withdrawal?

 

[Macgyver]

Assuming I measured my gaming right, I'm cashing out with $300 in my own money, $300 in bonus money, $142 in lucky money, and $8 in comps.

Do they require a fax back form to approve a neteller withdrawal?

Congrats on the win ... most RTG casinos do require a fax back form. Best thing to do is simply contact them and ask.

 

[aka23]

That's a very curious promotion at powerbet. I guess the way I'd play it would be to play normally. Then, when you reach the WR (or when you almost reach the WR), look at where you are compared to the $600 you started it. If you're over 600, great. If you're under 300, well, too bad.

But if you're between, then you'd probably look at either
a) The amount to bet to get over 600
b) the amount to bet to bust down below 300

If you're conservative, you'd probably take the smaller number, and bet it. If you end up in the middle, just evaluate the same decision again. Eventuall you'll cross one of the borders.

Heck, I think I'll try it.

My stategy was similar. If I finish under $300 or over $600, then stop. Otherwise try to reach $601 making large BJ bets and only risking the amount above the deposit. If I was only slightly above the deposit, I might use a single risky roulette bet.

 

[aka23]

followup: Okay, I tried it. I modified my strategy somewhat (disclaimer, dont' know if this was smart or not). I start out betting $25 hands, because I felt ballsy. I hit a bad streak early on, and dropped down below $300 (my "real" money). I reduced by bets to $10 per hand. However, when I got up to say $350 or so, I'd increase my bet back to $25. I went back and forth around the $300 mark several times. Then I hit a really nice win streak, and kept the bets at $25. When I found myself over $700 balance, and near the end of the WR, I reduced my bets back to $10 in an effort to "lock in" the profits and stay above the $600 mark.

That was quick. To minimize variance, the vast majority of my bets were $5 hands, so I spent quite a long time reaching a wagering requirement of $8400. My lowest balance was $500 and highest was my finishing balance of $901 .

Assuming I measured my gaming right, I'm cashing out with $300 in my own money, $300 in bonus money, $142 in lucky money, and $8 in comps.

Congratulations on the win. And thanks for reminding me of the $8.40 in comps. I forgot about those.

Do they require a fax back form to approve a neteller withdrawal?

The banking page states:
" Management may require certain ID verification for withdrawals, including a completed copy of our faxback form which can be found by clicking here."

I understand this to mean its management's discretion. They likely request identification after a big win or suspicious win, but not a smaller one.

 

[aka23]

Some updates are below:

Villento sent me a box of gourmet chocolates and $50 in no deposit bonus chips to try out the new Chocolate Factory slot. This was much appreciated and characteristic of other things have heard about this casino. The gift likely related to losing so much (#3 on my losses list).

I made a sarcastic comment to email support about Grand Monaco's big 7% deposit match offer last week. They have offered me 7-10% each week. After my comment, they offered 25% this week and sent me two emails to confirm that I saw the change. I made a small deposit.

Casino Euro banned me from receiving bonuses. I netted a $750 gain at this casino. I don't think Cherry Casino has followed suit. My list of monthly bonuses is dropping fast as follows:

Casino Euro -- Banned from receiving bonuses
Casino.net -- Banned from receiving bonuses
Littlewoods -- US players banned
William Hill -- US players banned
All Jackpots Group -- Locked out of casino

I gained ~$300 at Bella Vegas today with their $250 100% match offer, increasing my total gain at BV to $625 (#12 overall). This makes my total gains for the month over $6000 and my total gains for the past 4 months over $21k. The full results summary is below.

Gains of $500 or greater
1. King Neptune's: +~$2550 (Increase)
2. Winward: +~$2000 (Increase, Estimate)
3. Casino.net: +~$1500 (Banned from receiving bonuses)
4. 888.com: +$1100 (Increase)
5. Juptiter Club: +$1085 (Increase)
6. Shark Casino: +$820 (Increase)
7. Palace of Chance: +$800 (New, Estimate)
8. Venetian (B&M Casino): +$750
8. USA Casino: +$750
8. Casino Euro: +$750 (Increase, Banned from receiving bonuses)
11. Casino Vega: +$660 (Increase)
12. Bella Vegas: +$625 (Increase)
13. Golden Rivera: +$600
13. Powerbet: +$600 (New)
15. Nine.com: +$530
16. Sun Vegas: +$510
16. Littlewoods: +$510 (Increase, US Players Banned)
18. Golden Reef: +$500


Losses of $100 or greater
1. Virtual Casino -$400 (New)
2. Slots Royale: -$350
3. Villento: -$300 (Decreased, Smaller Loss)
3. Connecto: -$300
5. Luck N Roll: -$250
6. Trident Lounge: -$200
7. Online Casino: -$190
8. Cinema Casino: -$150 (Decreased, Smaller Loss)
9. Crazy Vegas: -$125 (Increased, Larger Loss)
10. Omni Casino: -$100
10. Kiwi Casino: -$100
10. Casino US: -$100
10. Player's Club (Boss): -$100 (New)


September Gains/Losses:
Winward: +$1000 (Estimate)
Palace of Chance: +$900 (Estimate)
Powerbet: +$600
Jupiter Club: +$515
Bella Vegas: +$425
King Neptune's: +$380
Lake Palace: +$350
Casino Share: +$275
Intercasino: +$200
Casino Lux: +$200
Littlewoods: +$195
888.com: +$165
Sun Palace: +$160
Casino Vega: +$160
Shark Casino: +$150 (+$550 gain -$400 bonus loss)
Casino Grand Bay: +$150
Cherry Casino: +$120
Casino Classic: +$110
32 Red: +$100
Villento: +$100
Cool Cat: +$100
William Hill: +$75
Casino Euro: +$50
Cinema Casino: +$50
Fortune Room: +$50
Authorian Casino: +$35
Golden Tiger: +$35
VIP Casino: +$20
Grand Monaco: +$10
Club Dice: +$0
Crazy Vegas: -$25
Player's Club (Boss): -$100
Virtual Casino: -$400

September Net Gains/Losses: +$6125 (Estimate)
Overall Net Gain/Loss: +~$21,100 (Estimate)

 

[EasyRhino]

That box of chocolates is an awesome marketing idea from Villento. Few questions for you about them:

1) Their new player bonus doesn't seem to be +EV, or at least significantly +EV, the way the Wagering Requirements are structured and withdrawals are limited (did they use the clearpay when you signed up?)

2) What exactly did you do there to lose so much money?

Also, I'll have to remember the sarcasm tactic myself

 

[aka23]

That box of chocolates is an awesome marketing idea from Villento. Few questions for you about them:

1) Their new player bonus doesn't seem to be +EV, or at least significantly +EV, the way the Wagering Requirements are structured and withdrawals are limited (did they use the clearpay when you signed up?)

2) What exactly did you do there to lose so much money?

Also, I'll have to remember the sarcasm tactic myself

I did well with the Villento sign up bonus and gained over $500 on it. I did my usual Microgaming Clearplay large ACBJ bet strategy. You can find more detail if you search for the first time I mentioned "Villento" in the log.

I didn't do as well on the weekly 20% match. I consistently busted on this weekly match. This is the only Microgaming casino where I consistently busted. However, just the monthly match was enough to drop from +$500 something to -$300... at the time my largest cummulative loss ever. As I briefly mentioned in the "Loss You Regret The Most" thread, during one weekly bonus I made a larger bet. I lost, and I played more to chase my loss using increasingly large bets. I continued to consistently lose. I thought to myself I would stop after I had a win, but by the time the win finally came I had lost several hundred. Overall I am well ahead for chasing losses, but after my Villento Experience, I will never attempt such a foolish startegy again.

 

[aka23]

There are two new additions to my +$500 gain list -- Bella Vegas and CasinoShare. Bella Vegas offered a 100% match up to $250 bonus yesteday and a 50% match up to $500 today. I did well on the first and have not played the second yet. I joined CasinoShare less than two weeks ago. It is a new casino that I believe was first mentioned on the forum 2 weeks ago. I gained +$275 on the $250 sign up bonus and +$250 on the $100 monthly bonus for a total of +$525.

Some things that separate CS from other MG casinos are:

1. Support seems fast. My bonus was credited in only a few minutes after I sent the email requesting it. My first bonus was also credited minutes after sending the email, not hours.

2. Withdrawls seem fast. My first withdrawl took about 12 hours. A CS rep posted that they only have a 6 hour waiting period on this forum.

3. They have higher ACBJ limits than usual. One of the tables had 5000 chips. ACBJG had a $500 limit.

4. They offer a decent monthly bonus.

5. French Roulette is more streaky at this casino than any other I have played at in a long time. If I bet a color for 500 spins $1 on autoplay, I usually complete the $500 without hitting my +/- $25 limits slightly more than half of the time. I almost never complete the 500 spins at CasinoShare. It is common to reach the limits after under 200 spins. This streakyness occurred during both sessions.

6. Downloads are slow... both the casinos and the games. This may relate to the French Roulette streakyness.

7. I won the first 4 hands in today's session, including two large bet hands. That's unique, but I'm not complaining. If I had bet my full bankroll each time (possible with $5000 table limit), I'd have gained $3000 on the $100 sign up bonus!

The updated list is below:
Gains of $500 or greater
1. King Neptune's: +~$2550
2. Winward: +~$2000 (Estimate)
3. Casino.net: +~$1500 (Banned from receiving bonuses)
4. 888.com: +$1160 (Increase)
5. Jupiter Club: +$1085
6. Shark Casino: +$820
7. Palace of Chance: +$800 (Estimate)
8. Venetian (B&M Casino): +$750
8. USA Casino: +$750
8. Casino Euro: +$750 (Banned from receiving bonuses)
11. Casino Vega: +$660
12. Bella Vegas: +$625 (Increase)
13. Golden Rivera: +$600
13. Powerbet: +$600
15. Nine.com: +$530
16. CasinoShare: +$525 (Increase)
17. Sun Vegas: +$510
17. Littlewoods: +$510 (US Players Banned)
19. Golden Reef: +$500

 

[aka23]

The 4 Grand Prive casinos offered quite a lot of bonuses this weekend:
Day 1: Bella Vegas 100% match up to $250
Day 2: Bella Vegas 50% match up to $500
Day 2: Casino Grand Bay 50% match up to $500
Day 3: Jupiter Club 100% match up to $300

I did well gaining $400 at Bella Vegas, gaining $200 at Jupiter, and losing $30 (+$20, then -$50) at Grand Bay for a net gain of $570 with the Grand Prive group this weekend. I've been quite cautious about these large bets recently, stopping at one win with a deposit of $200+ and only depositing $50 with a 50% match. The average gain with optimal strategy between these bonuses is quite a bit more than my $570.

I prefer these MG large bet bonuses to the Cryptologic and Instaplay monthly bonuses. I am not even going to play the Cherry Casino bonus. I would spend a couple hours for an average gain of $25 of the $30 bonus with software I don't like or trust. I cannot play at Littlewoods, William Hill, Casino.net, or CasinoEuro anymore. This leaves the monthly bonuses at Intercasino and 888.com. After an evening of playing at these two casinos I barely did better than breaking even. In contrast, I gained ~$850 this weekend on MG large bet bonuses in a matter of minutes and will have another bonus waiting for me later today. The expected return on these MG bonuses is higher than the monthly playthrough ones, the time invested is shorter, I have more trust in the software, and I get far more MG Clearplay bonus offers than monthly playthroughs.

The $500+ list is now:
Gains of $500 or greater
1. King Neptune's: +~$2550
2. Winward: +~$2000 (Estimate, See Bonus Issues thread)
3. Casino.net: +~$1500 (Banned from receiving bonuses)
4. Jupiter Club: +$1275 (Increase)
5. 888.com: +$1160 (Increase)
6. Shark Casino: +$820
7. Palace of Chance: +$800 (Estimate, 2nd withdrawl not approved?)
8. Venetian (B&M Casino): +$750
8. USA Casino: +$750
8. Casino Euro: +$750 (Banned from receiving bonuses)
11. Bella Vegas: +$725 (Increase)
12. Intercasino: +$700 (Decrease?!)
13. Casino Vega: +$660
14. Golden Rivera: +$600
14. Powerbet: +$600
16. Nine.com: +$530
17. CasinoShare: +$525 (Increase)
18. Sun Vegas: +$510
18. Littlewoods: +$510 (US Players Banned)
20. Golden Reef: +$500

My net gain is now ~$21,700

 

[awstick]

I was wondering if you've had any problems with getting Grand Prive bonuses lately? For some reason I can only claim bonuses at Lake Palace, even though I get sent the offers from the other casinos too. When I enter the code it says that no valid deposits have been made. I've been hesistant to email them about this, because I have done quite well with their bonuses lately and would prefer to stay under the radar, in case they decide to cut off my bonuses completely. I thought the problem might be EZPlay making it look like the deposit went to a different casino, but I tried logging in with my old account number and it just takes me to the EZPlay screen so I can't do anything.

 

[EasyRhino]

I have a noob question about Grand Prive. When I installed my second Grand Prive casino, it prompted to let me just reuse my account from the first I had installed.

... is this going to tend to limit my ability to get a bonus for each casino?

... are players supposed to be able to get bonuses at each casino owned by them?

 

[aka23]

I was wondering if you've had any problems with getting Grand Prive bonuses lately? For some reason I can only claim bonuses at Lake Palace, even though I get sent the offers from the other casinos too. When I enter the code it says that no valid deposits have been made. I've been hesistant to email them about this, because I have done quite well with their bonuses lately and would prefer to stay under the radar, in case they decide to cut off my bonuses completely. I thought the problem might be EZPlay making it look like the deposit went to a different casino, but I tried logging in with my old account number and it just takes me to the EZPlay screen so I can't do anything.

Only my Jupiter claim went through without issue. The other 3 bonuses failed. I guessed that this was tied to my pending cashouts. Support credited the bonus soon after my complaint each time. Phone support was much faster than email support. I have called about bonus issues several times, and they have always added it manually. One time, they gave me twice the bonus I was expecting.

The Grand Prive group has a history of taking action against bonus abusers. You can get more information with a search. One way to avoid this issue is to play without bonuses on a regular basis.

 

[aka23]

I have a noob question about Grand Prive. When I installed my second Grand Prive casino, it prompted to let me just reuse my account from the first I had installed.

... is this going to tend to limit my ability to get a bonus for each casino?

... are players supposed to be able to get bonuses at each casino owned by them?

Your cash account and bonus balance is shared between the four casinos. If you have a balance at Jupiter, when you log into Bella Vegas, you will have the same balance. This makes it to your advantage to cash out the full balance between the four casinos each time you accept a bonus. You can still pay each bonus that you are offered. I regret merging my 4 accounts and would go back to the previous settings, if I could.

 

[aka23]

I cannot play at Littlewoods, William Hill, Casino.net, or CasinoEuro anymore. This leaves the monthly bonuses at Intercasino and 888.com.

It is my understanding that Intercasino and 888 took a stance against US players just hours after my post. Those were the last two of the monthly bonuses I playthrough.

 

[aka23]

There was yet another Grand Prive bonus today. That's 5 bonuses in 4 days. I gained $240 on a $100 bonus this time. I gain as much on the smaller bonuses as I do on the big ones because I am willing to take more risks. My half bankroll BJ hands were as follows: surrender, double and win (9 doubled against 3), play one more hand and win. It was good that I stopped half bankroll bets at that point. I played 6 more ACBJG hands at $1 bets after winning so much. All 6 hands were losses (no pushes).

That increases my overall net gain to ~$22,000.