While I was in Las Vegas I received an email from Vegas Partners Lounge saying I was abusing their bonus. It was based on my style of play. They say my style is characterized by cashing in close to the minimum wagering requirements and taking minimum risk.
Here is my style and the rules I promote to recreational gamblers.
1. Dont play with scared money. If you are afraid of losing, dont play.
2. Budget each session in terms of dollars and time.
3. Play only as much bonus as fits with your plan. Dont stretch for a bonus.
4. Play games where the house edge is known. Slots should be kept at a minimum.
5. After cashin, dont deposit again till you are paid.
6. If you bust out, wait till the following day before returning. Cards and dice dont have memories and one should not chase lost money.
7. Celebrate any win.
In this case, many of the Vegas Partner Casinos offer up to $3,000 per month. While a true bonus professional will stretch for that bonus, I was well short of maxing the bonus. I would only deposit $180 for a $27 bonus in accordance with Rules 2 and 3.
I cant max the bonus because if I lost my deposit I was done (Rule 6). And if I won, I was done till I collected (Rule 5).
Now, I have played at these casinos without bonus on occasion, but under the new policy every deposit has a bonus. So this is how I usually play. I wager 25 to about 80 bucks at a time. Usually, I was wagering a $35 pass line bet and a $35 odd bet - eating up the bonus pretty fast. If I did well, I would play Jacks or Better Video Poker, but not single line. I was playing 4 lines at a time, which is riskier. I was trying to invest my profits to eventually hit a royal at the more speculative machine.
But playing this way means I was risking a lot. I did manage to stop with wins about 23 times out of about 44 sessions as per rule number 2 and number 7. My wagering requirements would be 2070, and I suspect I was always over 2100 and sometimes over 2500.
But I lost 21 times so about half. But only once did I just barely lose. Every other time I busted out completely rule number 1.
This was a high risk-betting scheme that I was happy to win or lose with because I was under control. I was not persuaded by more bonuses to increase my wager over my budgeted amount. I was not concerned when I was betting large amounts and lost or when I busted out multiple times in a row. It was all thought out before hand. Turns out, I am a little bit behind.
So my style? Not to take the maximum bonus. Bet aggressively losing the bonus and deposit half the time. Invest the winnings chasing the royal. And exceed the wagering requirement by some amount.
The question then - Is this style of play abusive? If it is, I believe any player who plays under control will be considered an abusive player. There is another word for the non-abusive player compulsive.
I think thats what all this bonus abuse discussion is really about. Casinos want players who play on tilt and if you are not one, they dont want you. And that is why eventually Congress has to ban online casino gambling. What a shame. I am just getting into Texas Holdem and I am sure the poker rooms will get banned also.
Stanford.
PS I used this same betting scheme in Las Vegas, but with Blackjack and VP last week. It wasnt considered abusive.
Here is my style and the rules I promote to recreational gamblers.
1. Dont play with scared money. If you are afraid of losing, dont play.
2. Budget each session in terms of dollars and time.
3. Play only as much bonus as fits with your plan. Dont stretch for a bonus.
4. Play games where the house edge is known. Slots should be kept at a minimum.
5. After cashin, dont deposit again till you are paid.
6. If you bust out, wait till the following day before returning. Cards and dice dont have memories and one should not chase lost money.
7. Celebrate any win.
In this case, many of the Vegas Partner Casinos offer up to $3,000 per month. While a true bonus professional will stretch for that bonus, I was well short of maxing the bonus. I would only deposit $180 for a $27 bonus in accordance with Rules 2 and 3.
I cant max the bonus because if I lost my deposit I was done (Rule 6). And if I won, I was done till I collected (Rule 5).
Now, I have played at these casinos without bonus on occasion, but under the new policy every deposit has a bonus. So this is how I usually play. I wager 25 to about 80 bucks at a time. Usually, I was wagering a $35 pass line bet and a $35 odd bet - eating up the bonus pretty fast. If I did well, I would play Jacks or Better Video Poker, but not single line. I was playing 4 lines at a time, which is riskier. I was trying to invest my profits to eventually hit a royal at the more speculative machine.
But playing this way means I was risking a lot. I did manage to stop with wins about 23 times out of about 44 sessions as per rule number 2 and number 7. My wagering requirements would be 2070, and I suspect I was always over 2100 and sometimes over 2500.
But I lost 21 times so about half. But only once did I just barely lose. Every other time I busted out completely rule number 1.
This was a high risk-betting scheme that I was happy to win or lose with because I was under control. I was not persuaded by more bonuses to increase my wager over my budgeted amount. I was not concerned when I was betting large amounts and lost or when I busted out multiple times in a row. It was all thought out before hand. Turns out, I am a little bit behind.
So my style? Not to take the maximum bonus. Bet aggressively losing the bonus and deposit half the time. Invest the winnings chasing the royal. And exceed the wagering requirement by some amount.
The question then - Is this style of play abusive? If it is, I believe any player who plays under control will be considered an abusive player. There is another word for the non-abusive player compulsive.
I think thats what all this bonus abuse discussion is really about. Casinos want players who play on tilt and if you are not one, they dont want you. And that is why eventually Congress has to ban online casino gambling. What a shame. I am just getting into Texas Holdem and I am sure the poker rooms will get banned also.
Stanford.
PS I used this same betting scheme in Las Vegas, but with Blackjack and VP last week. It wasnt considered abusive.
This is a statement I got from one of our players in a casual discussion on another forum. Although there is truth in this statement, it cannot be regarded as the main reason. Let's look at the internet and understand why free money was introduced. A few years back gambling on the internet was regarded as a dream and not reality. As we all know it is one of the fastest growing industries on the internet. But to convince people to play online, casinos offered incentives. This worked and has become an industry norm. Now let's look at a frequent player. A casino at some stage has to get the return on investment therefore the bonus system moves from a introduction reward to a loyalty reward. Therefore a player must be rewarded according to loyalty, if you are not loyal do you deserve anything? 
