Trouble in Paradise?

[FloridaPhil]

We have all seen video poker odds degrade over the last 10 years.  9/6 Jacks became 8/5, then 7/5, now it's being replaced with quirky multiplier games with indeterminable odds.  More troubling to me is the replacement of VP with slots.   On our last visit to Biloxi we visited the new Scarlet Pearl casino.  The casino had more Buffalo and Firecracker slots than we have ever seen before but only a few scattered VP machines.   We grumbled a lot and moved on.This begs the question, Will you continue to play VP when the odds are the same as slots?  The answer for us is YES.   The biggest difference between a slot and VP is we get to be part of the game.  Is a royal or a string of quad aces any less exciting on a 97% game as a 100% game?   Will they still give us free rooms, food and drinks?  Severely negative VP games are coming to your casino.  On the East Coast we are ahead of you on this and I can tell you VP is still played and enjoyed.  We play small to limit our losses, take all the freebies we can get and enjoy their hospitality.Some smart guy recently calculated the slot payback at the Florida casinos to be around 90%.   Playing VP increases your return by 7% making it the best entertainment bargain in the casino.Will all the APs move to betting on sports?  Can you get an edge betting on the Patriots or the Eagles?   Will they move back to Blackjack?   Will casinos be happy to see them go?Will South Point VP classes be full of eager winners when the instructor says he won't play what's available?    What happens to all the VP Advantage play books and software?  Times are changing.  Will you?

[Carcounter]

Once the 99 percent plus VP games are gone, I will find something else to do. Maybe sports betting.

[DaBurglar]

Interesting post Phil, and valid questions.   Sports betting is the way to go if you wish to truly make the smartest bet possible on a consistent basis instead of waiting around for those ever fewer "smart advantage plays" that exist in Video Poker on an ever decreasing frequency.Betting moneyline baseball is a solid option if you have the bankroll to survive the inevitable upset here and there, but consistently betting on the red Sox or Yankees this year, when the major leagues are awash with lots of horrible teams that will almost always lose far more than they win when playing the genuinely solid, good-to-great teams (like the Sox and the Yanks), means with straightup moneyline betting, you should show a profit at the end of the season.   I've always regarded Sports betting as the single best casino option, and when I used to live out on the west coast and was frequently in vegas, more often than not I was betting some baseball or football event.   it really is the best value hands down in all the casino when you take everything into consideration.    You essentially get two events in one, your bet action and the actual game/contest itself.

[Carcounter]

Take Mike Francesa's Friday NFL picks to the sports book. He has had an uncanny run as far as I can remember.

[Casino Knight]

No VP worries for me, so long as The Fort keeps allowing me to make withdrawals every couple of weeks and comping me all the lobster and crab I can eat. So far, so doggone good.

[FloridaPhil]

I guess the difference for us is playing small satisfies our need for excitement.  We think it's amazing that casinos offer us free  rooms, food and drinks for playing a quarter game with a 3% house edge.    Over a year's time they make money and we get cheap vacations.   We could go out and buy a $250,000 camper and drive it around.   Nothing wrong with it if that's your thing, but playing VP is a lot cheaper and more fun for us.   Our friends wonder how we can spend so much time in a casino without going broke.   It's not that hard if you use your head. On the other hand, if all we had to play were 90% slots, we would be forced to reevaluate,

[Tedlark]

A couple thoughts. First, those were not all valid questions that Phil asked. I'm not arguing with Phil but just looking at the other side of the coin.

Why would a "recreational player" be so concerned about payback percentages if they were playing for entertainment purposes?

Second, what was the purpose behind the last 7 sentences that Phil wrote? Please Phil, why are you continually jumping on Bob D? I'm really thinking that he knocked over your garbage can late one night. Did he egg your car? TP your palm tree? Let the air out of your car's tire?

Lastly, Casino Knight, How do they get lobster to Arizona?

[stevel96a1]

Phil, we are still waiting for Bobs answer, in the mean time i still enjoy 99.25 and 99.54 games in atlantic city being i live 2.5hr from AC my last hope is hard rock offering 100.76% on deuces wild, if they offer will you play here Phil? i too play in ac and do recall alot of drunkin frats that like to party it up til 6 and passed am. i am still searching for that magic bullet that will turn 99.54% game into a 100+ game in Jacks or better but coming up Bupkis i really do need to hit a couple royals let bee on a 5$ hand game or 10$. until then i am stuck at the progressive games, also is there dream card in atlantic city? does anyone know? sorry about going a tad off track

[Vman96]

Second, what was the purpose behind the last 7 sentences that Phil wrote? Please Phil, why are you continually jumping on Bob D? I'm really thinking that he knocked over your garbage can late one night. Did he egg your car? TP your palm tree? Let the air out of your car's tire?

Mainly to jump on him. Why? I'm not sure.

As I've said before, profiting from VP is a real job. And that's the job that Bob, while living in Las Vegas, thinks is worthwhile. If he lived in Florida, maybe he wouldn't think that.

[DaBurglar]

No VP worries for me, so long as The Fort keeps allowing me to make withdrawals every couple of weeks and comping me all the lobster and crap I can eat. So far, so doggone good. I always knew people in that part of the country were full of shiiite......AHAHAHAHA   gigglesnort *wheeze*