CS Wrap-Up

[FloridaPhil]

In our previous thread, we revisited CS video poker strategy and lightly touched on a few of the reasons why someone would use it.  You will notice that no one called anyone names and the thread did not turn into a shouting match or personal attack fest.  Not everyone agreed, good points were brought up on both sides and I tried to answer all the questions put to me in the clearest way possible.  As you can see, CS is not dangerous.  If someone wants to use CS to play more video poker for less money or thinks it's more exciting than flat betting max coins, no one is harmed.  My real point in posting this thread was to see if anyone was interested in having civil discussions on this forum about alternative and/or controversial video poker strategies without trying to beat others into submission. So far, so good.I don't always use CS.  I believe players that consistently play negative games would lose less money long term if they used it, but I also realize that most players are playing to experience jackpots not save money.  I'm no different. I think the best balanced strategy is to pick a low variance game that you enjoy, seek out the best odds available to you, learn to play that game as perfect as you are able, play at a denomination you can afford comfortably and play max coins.  You will have bad days and you will have good days.  Accept that and be at peace with it.  In all likelihood you will lose money long term, but you will never have to worry that you will hit a less than max coin royal.I never get caught up in tales of big jackpots or living a gambler's lifestyle.  I believe this is where the true danger in video poker lies.  Huge jackpots make great stories, but you never hear about the personal and financial losses that go along with them.I think we are very fortunate to have this website.   I support it and wish it great financial success.  Thanks for listening.

[jetermacaw]

"I never get caught up in "tales" of big jackpots"

What does that mean, please explain?

" Huge jackpots make great stories, but you never hear about the personal and financial losses that go along with them."

So if you win huge jackpots you can expect personal and financial losses, Phil you just brought the level of idiot to a new level. SMH.

[FloridaPhil]

[quote=jetermacaw]"I never get caught up in "tales" of big jackpots"
What does that mean, please explain?[/quote]This means I don't start believing I can consistently overcome negative math with strategy.  When gambling, you will most likely lose money long term and the bigger you bet the more you lose.  Early on I played negative games poorly and thought if I bet bigger to get closer to positive odds it would be good enough.  I was wrong and it cost me a bunch of money before I wised up.  Fortunately I had enough money to absorb the loss, but others may not. I eventually learned my lesson and think it's worth talking about it so they don't have to learn the hard way. There is absolutely no guarantee anyone can win long term playing video poker no matter how skilled or well funded they are.  If they do and publicly glorify the idea of making huge gambling wagers, they bear the personal responsibility of the harm this may potentially cause others.

[jetermacaw]

OK once and for all, what is this "long term" that you keep preaching about. When or how long does it mean in "your" mind "long term", and if and when you come up with a number what specific criteria did you use to obtain that specific period of time? "

[FloridaPhil]

[quote=jetermacaw]OK once and for all, what is this "long term" that you keep preaching about[/quote]That is a great question.  Thanks for asking it. For me, long term means over your lifetime. There have been documented cases of players making over a million dollars in "winnings" over a six month period. These same people have been photographed or have been written about in the media for winning numerous $100,000 jackpots.  Some of these players have won multiple six figure jackpots in a single day. No one knows how much money they lost before or after because they do not release their records. If there is any substantial documented proof that anyone has made a lifelong profit from cashing out video poker alone, a lot of players would like to see it.  I'm not saying it hasn't happened, I'm saying there is no proof to substantiate these claims.Video poker professionals do exist.  However, I don't believe many make a lot of money from the game itself.  Some factor in raffle winnings or comps to manufacture a profit, but I believe significant long term cash out profits are extremely rare.  I do believe there are a small handful of video poker professionals who are able to live well on their winnings plus revenue from other activities related to video poker and outside investments made from their video poker winnings.  I also believe there are tens of thousands of people with the skills and opportunities to do the same thing but they don't have the same luck and they fail.  No matter how skilled, intelligent or well funded they are, I believe very few hit the long term "jackpot" (so to speak).Of course this is all conjecture on my part as there are no records on any of this, although there is a lot of talk.