Distracting Players

[Lucky Larry]

Add all the above to the player who sits down next to you and says "I've never played this before - could you show me?" sitting at a super time pay multi-level poker machine.  I just want to cry.
When I hear this, I usually state playing VP requires knowing which hands to hold for each game. Then I usually pull out a blank sheet of paper and write down the major vp sites and tell them if they are really interested these sites will help them learn. I'm more patient with the older folks who are often interested or confused than the drunks who come down from the poker tables. Although, I must admit I sometimes enjoy watching the poker players come down and brag to their buddies they know how to play and watch their money go out the door since they are determined to play VP like the poker tables.

Larry, I recognize the man you describe - I can tell you the exact machine he was on when I sat next to him.  And the bad thing is - he was winning so he wasn't going anywhere. 

You are probably right since he's a regular and often is winning. Nice guy just a real distractor.

[Lucky Larry]

I recently sat next to a guy who was "abusing" my favorite 3/5 play machine. He was banging away at the buttons so hard you could hear him 10 feet away. After a few minutes, and greedily afraid he would disable the buttons so I would have to forgo play on my favorite machine, I told him that the deal button had just been repaired and might break again rendering the machine "out of service". Didn't deter him one bit, instead he stated the "d....n casino" could afford to fix it. I thought about calling CPS but ....

[Lucky Larry]

As far as smokers, since being moved last month the multi-hand and speciality VP machines (18) are now located in a low ceiling, bedroom size room with little ventilation which makes the smokers even more of a problem.   We've dealt with both the courteous and those who appear oblivious. Some smokers have asked if we mind when they come to sit down and if they smoke they hold it down or blow smoke away from other players. Then there are two major regulars who are non-stop smokers and the smoke just settles all around the machines.

[Frank Kneeland]

Please share your stories so we know we’re not alone.
I'm sure in 23 years of playing machines nearly everyday I have sat next to annoying players at least a couple of times. But I have no specific recollections of any of them.A: It does not bother me that much, if anything it provides amusement value to what I consider a dull activity.B: Because it is outside my control, I guess my mind just ignores it.C: It is almost impossible to distract me in such a way that it influences my play. My co-host Bob has seen me play on occasion and has commented on air that he considers me a freak of nature, because I can play while holding a full conversation and it doesn't seem to effect anything. This is nothing I have trained nor is it anything I would recommend one tries to emulate. I have known two other players that could talk and play at the same time without loss in accuracy or speed, one is dead now. It is my theory that the ability is related to what portion of the brain is handling processing for VP play and the amount of overlap this part has with other cognitive function. I have also only noticed the ability in team players that do not enjoy playing VP. It may be that in people who do not find VP entertaining, there is more compartmentalization going on in the playing process and less stimulation of other cognitive areas, freeing up brain time to preform other tasks. It would be fascinating to study it scientifically. My guess is that if you like VP, you are more easily distracted, and more likely to be annoyed by said distractions during play, because they are taking you away from something you like. Also whatever is causing you to "like playing" is engaging more of your brain and leaving less available for other tasks.If you find VP annoying, then most distractions are welcome.Bottom line: No, I have no stories about annoying players, but I probably should.~FKP.S. I'm am distracted by cocktail waitresses, but I do not find this to be annoying.P.P.S. To others I am probably an annoying player myself, as I talk continuously and sometimes sing. In the old days when Mom was alive we would sing duets to pass the time and sometimes the whole team would join in on long plays. Typically during any play that lasted past 24 hours things got very silly. This never caused complaints since all the people present were my employees.

[cook1947]

People, I HAVE the ticket for everyone who is EXTREMELY ANNOYED by the slappers of buttons (I must admit I have wanted to break some fingers on occasion!). It cost me $150 but I love it..I have Bose ear phones that prevents any outside noice and I hook it up to my IPOD. I can't hear a thing. I have personally seen someone that got so angry that he punched out the glass on the machines. The offender was detained until officials were called, and made to pay ON THE SPOT damages to the machine and then taken to jail in Laughlin for vandalism. I could not believe how thick the glass is on the machine and the force it took to break it. My brother wins the award for the most torn up and twisted player's club cards.

[brewerrkj]

The smokers who sit down next to you when you are clearly NOT smoking and don't even bother to keep their cigarette smoke stream going in a direction that is not directly into my face are a distraction for me.  I've never seen anyone beat the buttons, but how about the people who rub the screen?  Thinking they're going to get a big JP for doing that? 

[royal flush]

good post frank also any nice looking girl

[baldie]

I've had my share of the chatterbox players.  My brother used to play all the time and he was also multi-lingual.  On more than one occasion we would be playing and someone would start in "hey buddy, your holding them all wrong" and he would reply to them in German or French.  Almost 100% of the time they would leave him alone.
 
Baldie

[marie meijer]

I hate when players talk on their cell phone very loudly, stare at your machine constantly, stand closely behind you, or talk to you continuously. Always seems like I run out of luck when this happens. I think some people do it just to get your machine though!I am with you msw813, regarding people standing closely behind me. Casinos bring out my most suspicious nature as well as the worst in some people.  I have had $ and items in a bucket stolen from me in a casino before tito. When one is standing too near, which is very unusual and infrequent, I am focusing on clutching my purse, thinking about my keys and trying to remember what is of value in my jacket pocket.  I also glance at how much is in my machine and think about that cash out button and how to hang on to my tito ticket. So far I have not screamed "SECURITY!" I seriously considered it when two different beggars approached me in Atlantic City while I was playing VP. One had been staring at  me when I had hit a royal earlier on the other side of the casino.

[Lucky Larry]

Marie,
Not long ago a young guy comes waltzing up, sits by me and says, "hey buddy I'm you good luck charm". After I redirected him.... and kept watching him he moved on to another bank of machines next to another player I know with the same approach. Forced to move on again he settles in next to two women. At this point, I called over a security guard and pointed the guy out. Seeing the guard he immediately took off running for the entrance. The next night I see the guy again in the slots area milling around avoiding security. Since I was talking to a Slot Director at the time I pointed him out and security boxed him in and escorted him out.

I don't have a problem with people who come in to get out of the cold or heat, who grab a free coke or coffee from the beverage areas and just sit at a machine. But, when they begin to bother players I guess my background forces me to become security proactive.