Awesome trip!

Regarding casino credit, I have no experience in this matter, but I'd advise against it, leon. Not because you might get scammed, or it will be less convenient than carrying cash. Not because we'll miss the pictures of bricks, although that probably does have some influence on my opinion. I say stick to carrying because it makes something real out of your trips. It's similar to workers and employers who don't like direct deposit because it separates the work from the money. If you just show up and push buttons and numbers change in the background it's just another video game trying to run up the score, but if you see something and touch something it becomes more meaningful.

Every time I get a handpay on VP (not that often) I encounter a slot attendant with their hand out for a tip. OP mentioned getting set up for an auto-reset and 1099 of some kind. How does this work and how do others handle this?

Guess I am lucky that the attendants at the casinos I go to don't do this and for the most part seem genuinely appreciative of tips. For larger jackpots of approx 5k or more, a suited employee shows up instead. I'll usually tip them as well but I wonder if that is expected?

I've never done the auto reset thing as the most W2Gs I've gotten in a day is 5, so it doesn't seem worth the effort. While playing next to a person playing $80-$100 a push, he was getting frequent barely W2G jackpots and was getting handpays. He got at least 5 in the hr I was there but it seems the auto reset thing would have been good for him.

Finally, there is a Shifting Limits of Thresholds Act that was proposed a year or so ago. Never voted on and I think still in limbo but it proposed raising the W2G limit to $5000 with and indexed increase each year. Hopefully it gets additional life and eventually passes. As I recall at the time I read about it being introduced, casinos were for it to reduce paper work and casino workers were against it - tips you know.

I think this is part of what I like best about these TRs, is that you clearly appreciate getting to do this and enjoying it to the last drop, literally.

Yes that's part of my objection as well. There's something visceral about coming home with money you can touch. More, and it's ecstasy. Less, and it stings like a bitch.

It depends on the casino. If your casino offers it generally all you need is a player's card and set up your account- all that's really happening is you're signing off on the documentation of the jackpot (which gets reported to IRS), usually by entering your pin. The credits get left in the machine.

I once hit a high hand bonus at Golden Nugget for $1,198. I tipped the dealer a green chip, and didn’t think to tip anything at all to the suited floor guy who gave me the W2-G, and actually paid me.

Did I commit a major faux pas? He wasn’t subtle or pushy about angling for a tip.

No, you essentially just write a check to the casino for the amount (there is a few day process where they vet your bank acct), and they dont cash the check. Rather they just hold it and give you time to pay them back the cash (unless you dont, in which case they do cash it, in which case it's writing a bad check if it doesn't cash).

It doesn't bother me in the least.

OTOH I haven't gotten a hand pay in 4 years.

I would imagine it doesn't take that long. Back in my bad ole days of sportsbetting, I ran out of money once. I went to the cage and asked about getting money from my bank account. I didn't have my checkbook, but I think they were able to check it with my atm card. It only took about 3 minutes for them to approve me for $2300. The funny thing is I only had $1400 in my account. This was at the Venetian.

You could tip the cashier instead?

Took me like a week to get a 5k line at Red Rock lol

While there is a lull between TR's, I wonder if Leon could explain why he no longer shows dream card play. Is it because Vegas Red Rock is too far and Barona doesn't have it? Or some other reason. Is it too volatile? Or is it that it doesn't offer the big hit possibilities that Ulitimate X or Spin Poker can?

During my last visit to the Atlantis in Reno, I noticed they now have a number of machines with 3/5 play, 9/6 triple double bonus. So vaguely remembering Leon's descriptions from the TR part 1 thread I had to try it. Having reread most of what I could find from his TR, I'd have to agree that the trip draws happen very frequently at the cost of the double coin in cost. What I did find was that I was getting dealt quads almost like Leon playing regular triple double . In around 2000 pushes, I was dealt quads at least 8 times with 3 of them being small premiums - one with kicker and the other two below expectaions of 1 and 2 drawn kickers. The game is set to activate the dream card about 1 in 9 times. Not sure how often you would get dealt natural trips from the first 4 cards - but when that coincides with the dream card its dealt quad time.

Now I understand I was probably lucky to get as many quad draws as I did and that 3 of them were premium.

The downside is I think I only got 1 premium trip draw to fill. Out of all the trip draws I got I think I should have done better. The other downside is when the dream card doesn't activate or it only pairs a face card, completes a straight or a flush. But the boosted chances of getting a premium draw makes a volatile game even more volatile. Game play was more swingy and I was able to finish with a profit. But definitely needed the dealt quads to climb out of any hole I'd get into.

This was basically my experience, too volatile. I prefer the volatility of UX or spin poker where if you make a hand it's likely to be much bigger than the base game. Dream card gives you more chances at the "regular" jackpot draws, but you still miss a ton of those. I suppose one makes dealt hands far more often as well, in my limited experience they just don't come in often enough.

The fact that the Wynn and Barona don't have it is a huge problem too

Sept slot tourney TR

Got this one in the books last weekend. Was there 9/7-9/10.

Backstory- I signed up for this almost as soon as I heard about it. 10k buy in, 50 runners, two seperate tournies and prize pools. The first is for free credit, top prize 150k in free credit. Second is for cash, 200k top prize. Either way, we'd be happy with a podium finish anywhere, and the base payback is about 5k... the EV here is off the hook. There's a bonus 4th rd for both tournies, the first I'll get simply by being there on a Thurs, and the second you can either pay 2k cash... or earn 25k points which I definitely will by the time the tourney comes around. So this one was a no-brainer.

I sold 50% of myself to my mom and almost immediately regretted it- the chance of a score here is too big to pass up. However, I know I'm doing the right thing and reducing variance. It's been a while since I've played in one of these things but I have to remember that despite the low number of entrants, the likelihood is I'm going to get screwed.

Got my buddy D to join- he ends up wanting 5% of my action which simply to spread the love around I let him buy. If I make a huge score I won't care and will be happier he's able to get something out of it. As a reminder, D is a big craps player and we've done many a trip before.

Also going to hook up with an old SD buddy on Fri to hang out and play craps with, and my brother may be joining on Sat. He's not a big gambler but it'll still be good to see him. I caught him for one evening in SD then headed to Vegas, so him meeting me here will be good.

Agenda-
Thurs- get in, reg for 4th bonus rd for 1st tournament
Fri- 1st tournament, meet friend J, dinner at Bouchon
Sat- 2nd tourney, cabana, hopefully bink 6 figures
Sun- home

Bankroll- 50k

Day 1


We arrive in Vegas uneventfully; I've got a 2 bd room Parlor suite and D got a regular room comp which we're using simply for additional food comp. He'll be sharing the suite with me. We grab a quick snack and then head down. The plan is I'll partner with him 1k me/2k him for craps, and he's in 500$ for my first 10k (so 5%).




I open the account very early with a "kissing your sister" type hand. I mean, I'll take it, but how about a dealt straight flush, only starting with an ace?!

I remember the next patch being very cold and switching to spin.

Back to UX. Overall, not doing well.




Still not doing well. I zap 10k really fast, and head back to the room for more money.


Free goodies. Forgot to take room pics, but they're pretty standard at this point.

I've only got 1k free credit only bc as the host said, "there's a lot of value built into the tourney". Yeah, I know, that's why I'm here. Oh well. Beggars can't be choosers. I'm not happy to do so, but I'd rather use up the FC rather than more real money.


Start.


End. Good payback, 150%.

That goes pretty quickly, and I text D to ask if he wants another 500$ of my action. I sort of don't want to do it- I'm already 10k in the hole. All the other times we've partnered it hasn't worked out well for him also, and I don't want him to lose more bc of me either. It's that quandary- his 500$ won't help me at all if this continues to suck, but it WILL cut into a large comeback should I make one. Oh well, we came here to have fun, and it's definitely more fun to have skin in the game. He texts me back yes, and he's zapped the first craps bullet as well. So I'm in for another bullet with him and vice versa. LITERALLY the very next hand-



BOOM OK back in business!

I text D the good news, and told him it's a good thing he got back to me when he did- he was a hand away from missing 5% of a 12k jackpot! Now we're back in business.



Thought this was interesting in an annoying way- of course I make quads 4/10 spots on a regular draw...

I play on, give more back and I believe end that session stuck 5k for the day? Not a good start, but not the worst either... We head to the tournament ballroom so I can register for my bonus 4th rd, then dinner at Casa Playa.


Not pictured- the pork belly, the pic was just too blurry. Overall, food 8/10. The cocktail was 10/10 presentation, 8/10 overall. I'm liking this place more since they've reduced their ridiculous portion size. The salad dish actually was eggplant on the bottom- pretty damn good.

After dinner, we get in a craps session and it's terrible. D has also busto'd the 2nd bullet and he's in for half his trip bankroll on opening night. At this point, craps definitely is not getting it done. He thinks he's about done for the night, so we head back to the Wynn.


D was watching when this came in. Really goes to show the power and possibility of UX. SO CLOSE to 48k! As it is, this is a near 5 digit hit.


I switch to spin poker, and finally get my first dealt quads of the trip...



Premium!

Man, I need a good kicker draw here. I briefly consider texting D to come watch, then decide he's probably either in a craps game or went upstairs.

Result-

SHT!@!!!! I was pretty angry after this one. I got dealt 4 aces on spin at Barona recently, 12 lines, didn't hit one kicker either. I know I'm only drawing at 3 spots, but these misses really, really hurt. Have to capitalize on these rare opportunities and the bad kicker draws are like a gut punch. With my dealt aces/miss all 10 ways my last TR, I'm really not doing well on quad kicker draws. This is not the way to survive long term.

Well, at least I've got bullets. Keep going.


OK that helps- 2 to a royal comes in!


That was such a nice flurry to end the night. I end up giving too much back, but with the dealt quads and then those big hits it really felt like the machine was going to pop. I have, however, reversed the opening loss- I believe I went upstairs up 8k for the day.

Day 1 result- +8k

Day 2 coming soon...

What a treat. Get home from a poker session and see a Leon update.

Keep this session going! Day 1 profits are always nice

Gogogo part 2

wow...huge run of big hits at the end of the night

that dinner looked really good

The king is back!

Day 2

After going to bed around 1am, I wake up just after 5am. Today is going to terrible if I can't find a nap in here somewhere.

I head downstairs and start giving money back immediately.



This spin poker one is kind of annoying. I manage to turn a pair of aces into quads, 2 lines, but no kicker on either line.

I head to breakfast at Tableau down 10k for the AM- I'm stuck 2k for the trip now!



Side of pork belly at Tableau = nice find. Gonna use this to supplement the protein on many a future trip I think.

After breakfast, D and I hit the craps tables for a bit, and it's awful again. I head upstairs and grab a quick nap, then back for more VP. My friend J and his wife should be arriving soon! I managed to score a limo pick up for them at the airport. J is a former colleague of mine and we've played small ball craps at Barona many times. The last time we were in Vegas together was my last official poker session- 2014, 40/80 limit at the Bellagio (my old game), and I booked a 5k win... good memories. After that session I remember jumping into a 4/8 limit game with J, I bought in for 5 racks intending to just spew. First hand I pick up 78 sooted after posting on the cutoff, raise and the whole table calls to me, I call, SB 3 bet, original raiser 4 bets, everyone calls, I cap it bc WTF why not LOL limit and 8 people saw the flop for a capped pot lol.

I flopped the nuts straight out of Rounders, there was at least a bet and raise on every street. By the river a backdoor flush had come in but everyone checked to me, I bet and got 3 or 4 calls. Took me a full 10 min to stack all those chips, J is just shaking his head saying how well I run... I think I picked up AA on my third hand and won that pot too, all while still stacking chips. Ahh the memories. Anyways, so J and I have a gambling hx but we haven't managed to hang out in Vegas for almost a decade.



I'm playing and still losing. J is delayed a bit. I get super frustrated and switch to old school. I can't believe despite my run last night that I'm losing. And then, old school hits me with my second dealt quads of the trip!



PREMIUM! NO DRAW NECESSARY!

Let's see that again, shall we?



I'm now up over 10k for the trip again. Text D to give him the good news. Also, J and wife have arrived- we head to Red 8 to grab some lunch.

After lunch, J's wife heads to the Bellagio where she's staying with friends. J, D and I find a craps table. It's not bad, but it's not good either. I think I lost 1k total. J and I head to VP- he's basically watching me. I offer to partner but he's fine just chilling. We also have the first slot tournament rounds coming up later in the PM. I hit 4AWAK on the old school machine with J watching- for some reason that pic's not coming out so you'll just have to imagine it


We head to the slot tournament. D is going to be our lead off hitter, then J, then me.





D's score is a monster 86k! Just awesome.

I know for a fact that I've never started a slot tournament well before. We've got the second highest score in the round, but more importantly we're basically "half way there". I know from long experience that an avg of 85-90k is generally good enough to win! We've a got a real shot- all we need is one more great round!

J goes- not as good, but still a solid score of 76k. We've got a weighted avg of 82k- I have to figure we're top 10 at least.

I go... and my score sucks. Just, really deflating. So- we need to come back in a bit and play our 4th round. We're in a good spot, but not great one right now. OMFG if we can do well in the bonus rd... we're looking at a 6 figure free play score. On the other hand, if other people in the other rounds did great... we might not even make top 10. I'm also remembering a convo I had with an old regular who came in second in one of these- she literally had a decent but not great score, didn't even think she'd make top 10 (based on her score I would have agreed), but somehow, things lined up, no one else did well, and she took second! So maybe that can happen to us!

We're giddy- we head straight for craps at Encore since we've only got an hr or so before the bonus rd. It's generally warm, I'm in for 3k and D has a decent roll. At my height I was up 3k, but end up cashing out for a 2k profit and my first flag (5k chip) of the trip.

We head back to the slot tourney. By agreement, D is playing the 4th rd since he had the best score. And... it's crap. DAMNDAMNDAMN! We were in such a good position- I've never been in this position before. And now, it's all done. We have to hope to get lucky to make the podium. Realistically, I'm hoping for top 10. Have to keep expectations low.

Now it's back to VP for a bit before dinner at Bouchon. I only hit one 2k jackpot and lost about 2k this session.






[/B]

I get my absolute favorite salad in the world, Salad Lyonnaise. 9/10, everything else 7-8/10.

We have a good dinner conversation, and after dinner J grabs his bags from my room and heads off to downtown where he's actually staying. Glad we were able to meet up- we won't be seeing each other again this trip bc he'll be watching football the rest of the weekend with some of his buddies.



This is the only hit of the evening.

I manage to go to bed pretty early (for me) bc I'm super exhausted. I think I'm in bed by 11pm, managed not to give too much back and I'm up for the day as well! Tomorrow- the cash, second arm of the slot tournament!

Day 2 result- +10k
Overall- +18k
Dealt quads- 2, both premium

Day 3 coming soon...

That $20k screen is one sexy bitch

nice day2! Hoping you finally get something good out of the slot tournament.

Day 3

Wake up just after 5am again. Got a rather big day today- the second arm of the slot tourney, cabana all day, the awards ceremony where we've got a good sweat for yesterday's tourney, and potentially a huge sweat for today's... dinner is at Delilah. Hopefully we end the day up 6 figures!



Man bring me some run good today will ya?!








Man SO close to 24k!



Thought this one was interesting, if not particularly valuable.



I can't remember exactly how I ended up for the AM, I think stuck 1-2k? Despite some of those hits we know how fast the money can go... I touch base with D. He's been getting killed at dice all trip and has 1-2 more bullets in him max. For my part, I'm stuck 2k in my ventures with him and basically break even across my other craps sessions. We head to the cabana to grab breakfast and plan on spending a bunch of time not gambling.





We're playing at 11am, so we basically chill at the cabana for a couple of hrs then head to the tourney. OK people, this is the big one- this really matters!

Unfortunately, today is totally anticlimactic. 3 mediocre rounds- none ever had a chance of being good. Sure, we've got the bonus rd at 1pm, but we're probably getting min payback here. Plus, we learn someone got a 115k rd yesterday- that is the highest I've ever heard of. If that person even gets a 65k rd (totally standard) they've got an avg of 90k and almost certainly have the win locked up. Very demoralizing to learn of.

We head back to the cabana and chill more. Sooner or later, it's time for the bonus rd. We decide to grab a late bite to eat which should tide us over until dinner.



Lobster risotto- the lighting was like being in a disco.



Chicken way too dry, but meh buffet style white meat. The gnocchi were decent.

I play the bonus rd, mostly bc I have visions of posting a 110-115k rd like this other guy apparently did. Even if I get that we're probably only top 1/2, but hey we move up in the prize pool. I shouldn't have bothered- once again, the bonus rd is the worst of the 4, and D only semi-jokingly says "you probably don't even need to push anymore. Why bother?". And like that... this tournament is done. All hope dashed.

So we're min cashing for sure in this one. Still have a shot at top 10 for yesterday. D and I debate playing craps, but then we decide we really haven't used the cabana much today. We're definitely going to the awards ceremony to sweat the results of yesterday so we've got to close the cabana out before that... meh better not gamble anyways.



D and I pass the time with some pleasant convo. Pretty happy with myself for avoiding gambling post-breakfast today. This in and of itself is highly unusual- I literally haven't put a penny in a machine from 8:30am-4:30pm! We close out the cabana and head to the Encore ballroom one last time, for the awards ceremony.



Whole tourney had a Willy Wonka theme. MC didn't come through with a massive score for me...



The MC starts announcing the results... and he's starting with 5th! My assumption was they'd at least call out top 10 but I guess they just want to get this over with. So by the time I can figure out what's happening, I only half hear the score, but I think it's 171k... Well, that's not us. We've got 162k. We kind of sit there and listen, but it's obv- we're not making top 5, let alone the podium. So much for the sweat. Now I'm worried we didn't even make top 10- a 9k point spread between 5th and us? We might get screwed here.

I also need to figure out how we redeem the second arm- luckily, they announce that right away. Pick up the voucher in the line that corresponds to your place and head to the cashier. So I immediately bee-line it to last place, knowing that's where I am. See a slot supervisor who tells me TECHNICALLY I have to wait until he's done announcing... I look at her with puppy dog eyes and say, "but I know I got ****ed as usual, can I just grab my voucher now so I can get out of here?". She smiles at me and finds my voucher.

On our way out, we grab a host who has a list of all the winners, he looks for my name on Friday's tourney, I see it same time he does... we're near the top... I can instantly tell we're top 10. He confirms- 8th place! So that's 10k free credit and 2500$ cash. Definitely not the worst result, but quite a comedown from our dreams of a podium finish...

D and I head back to the Wynn. Honestly I don't know how I feel. 8th is objectively good, there's no denying it. And yet, we had so much hope with those first two rds, only to be deflated as usual with some standard rds on the next 6. It was pretty demoralizing, honestly. I swear to god, one of these days I'm going to bink one of these things, but I kind of feel like I wasted an opportunity here. Ugh.

So D's got 5% of the 2500, and 500 free credit. I pay him the cash and we head to 5 lines for him to play off his free credit. 25$ a push, triple double, D gets introduced to the variance of triple double bonus really fast. He washes his first 250 thru in no time and has very little payback, then gets 3 to a straight flush which actually comes in. As standard as 250 hits are for me, when you're washing 500 free credit total that's a good hit for anyone. D ends up with over 100% payback and he's pretty happy- his investment in the tourney definitely paid off.

I'm debating whether to play or not, then I get a text from Delilah saying our table is ready??! I must have gotten the reservation time wrong. Well, that decides that- we head to dinner.


Hamachi sashimi- 8/10.



crab endive "Caesar", 9/10.






Singer 8/10 voice, 4/10 looks, fries 8/10, meat 9/10







Asparagus 8/10, fish (sole?) also 8/10.

Overall, a good dinner with good atmosphere. I really wish the singer hadn't had to put on a sexy act as part of the show and just let her voice speak for itself- she was a great singer and that's all that should matter. I don't need to see any half-hearted dancing or duck face.

After dinner- D gives craps another try. I quickly lose 4k and decide it's time to use the free credit. I was going to save it for the last day, maybe use it to coast home, but oh well.



I briefly was going to play all my free credit, but this machine was so bad that I forced myself to stop at 8k. As can be seen, I had pretty abysmal payback for the first 1.5k.

Get up, move to UX.



Give that back, move to hi limit. OK, here we go. Multiline, no gimmicks- this is the machine to use free credit on!




start.



End. 90ish % payback.

OK, at this point it's all real. No more free credit. No more potential saves from the tourney. Just me and the machines. I torch 5k on the multiline machine really fast and move to spin.



OK, that helps.

That machine cools off- back to old school. Old school still sucks like it did with the free credit, and I'm starting to get pissed- this machine is supposed to be my go-to "slow it down" machine and I'm losing really fast on it. Then, finally, third dealt quads of the trip!



Premium again! Actually, quad 4s for the third time this trip!

I was so happy seeing this deal I literally slammed the machine with my fist in satisfaction when it popped up. I "knew" this save was coming! I will not be denied! Draw result-



I took me a second to register- how can this be so "small"? It's the same as when I hit zero kickers on spin... oh wait, that was 2$ credits. Yeah, that makes sense. So then the memory of getting skunked on spin coupled with the realization that I likely wasn't going to get a 5 digit hit out of this kinda took the wind out of my sails. I'm not out of danger by any means.

True to form, things go cold again.



I only give back 4k before I decide to head upstairs. Live to fight another day.



All the big tickets/chips I've got on me.

Well. Today was eventful- slot tourney payouts, multiple ups and downs... when the dust settled, I'm up a whole 1k for the day. It's not a loss. It's still a good trip.

Day 3 result- +1k
Overall- 19k
Dealt quads- 3, all quad 4s!!!

Day 4

Nothing to do today but survive- I sleep in until 7am and wake up feeling like a million bucks! I can finish on a high note, I'm sure of it!



Open the account early.

At this point, the doom switch got turned on. Didn't matter what I played- ice. I'm down 5k and go on mini-tilt in the sense that I want to bring home at least 10k- that gives me only 5k for the remainder of the day. That's not enough, so of course I keep playing and finish down 10K!!! for the AM. Jesus, so tilting. D and I head to the buffet and change it up.



We really only ate here to light food comp on fire- we've got plenty. The food itself is just ok, and I have no need to purposefully overeat at my age.

After brunch, we mule the majority of a bottle of Stagg Jr up to the room- I got 20 oz, but shockingly for the Wynn the price point is decent (I think they mispriced it, honestly). We STILL have food comp left over, but I've got nothing else I want to grab. Chill in the room for a bit- D is basically felted. I'm up 10k, but we've still got a few hrs and I'm here to play... I head downstairs for one final battle.



I literally have missed all 4 "4 to a royal draws" this trip. This was a welcome sight.

I soon start to lose too much, and head to spin.



All hits I won't turn down, all hits that are too small to really help.

At some point I was down an additional 5k and go on mini-tilt again. Now I'm thinking, "I came to play, and breaking even is a good result". So I keep playing, and pretty soon I'm even for the trip and even more tilted. Now I'm thinking "if I only book a 10k loser that's not that bad" and kind of mentally write off another 10k. Even as I was sitting there a part of me knows how stupid that is... so I kept playing and basically nothing of note happened for the last 1/2 hr. Didn't win, didn't lose. I get up, cash all my tickets in... I ended up losing 21k today. Turned a winner into a loser.

SO ANNOYING!

BUT- that's not all folks! I forgot I owe my mom her 50% of the tourney! So I'm actually stuck about 5k more than I thought! AARRGGGHHH!!!!!

Pack up, head to airport. Delay in Vegas bc OBVIOUSLY a trip that ends like this is going to come with a delay.

Day 4 result- -21k
Overall- -2k (-7.5k once I pay mom)

Thoughts- should be obv based on above. Really ended on a sour note. How can I have a trip where I get dealt premiums 3 times, and get a decent score in the tourney, never had a losing day until the last, STILL be a loser?

Oh yeah. The good 'ol last day implosion. That's how.

So sick. I've really been beating myself up about this one, but I'm also taking it as a good opportunity to relearn old lessons. Avoiding that last day implosion is so critical and one can never be too focused on that. I was pretty good during most of the trip. Did a great job doing non-gambling things. And, the dealt 4s on spin was a waste, no doubt about that. If I hit even one kicker it would have been over 20k instead of the 7.2k min pay I got. I actually did get screwed many, many times- 0/4 on about 50 shots at a royal overall, I went 0/11 on my final trip aces draws, sometimes as much as 20 lines. That's really bad. Plus, I didn't actually hit 3 5 digit hits at the machine which we know is pretty much necessary to book an overall win. Craps was garbage. Actually now that I type this out, I was pretty lucky to even be winning going in to the final day. So, objectively not a bad trip, and I just need to keep working on avoiding that last day implosion.

Oh, and some dealt premiums on UX or 20-25 lines wouldn't hurt either

Thanks for reading!

oof, last day bummer. Thanks as ever Leon - seemed like a good social trip at least.