Do you walk into a Casino with a winning strategy? Besides hitting the BIG one? The first few casino's I visited had coin machines. My strategy then was I took money out of my right pocket and put all of my winnings into my left pocket. When the right one was empty I walked out. The ticket machines make it harder to do that. I tried to keep up with my winnings but that doesn't work as well. I'm thinking of taking a calculator with me the next time so I can keep up with them. I would walk away once my credits equals my winnings. Sometimes I play down to an amount and walk away if I don't win. Say I put in a $20 and go up and down...once I hit $10 or $5 I will cash out and move on. Sometimes I will play it all the way out and have hit on the last spin. Most of the time my wife and I walk out with a few $$$$ to the good or we break even...and there have been a few times we went home $20 or $30 less. We are not big gamblers as you can tell. We usually go down for the buffet and play with $60. Sometimes the after dinner play time has been short lived. The one thing I read and hear about all the time is where people hit and then turn around and lose it all back to the casino...which of course is what they want you to do. They want your money and for you not to take home any of theirs. So what winning strategy do you have and how does it work for you?

WARedBear

I think the best strategy when playing slots is to manage your bankroll so you can enjoy your gambling experience. There are many strategies in terms of avoiding progressives, never play machines near the table areas, and single coin betting which can stretch your budget a bit. My theory is if you have a favorite game with a fun bonus round or favorite theme you should go for it and have a good time. Keep track of your winnings/losses so you can maximize your slot play. Sometimes alotting a certain amount of cash for each slot session is a good way to monitor your bankroll, especially if you are spending several days in a casino. Also, it's very tough to chase a loss when playing slots, so if you are blowing through your cash on a dollar slot maybe you can slow it down on a penny slot for a while. Easier said than done, though!!!!

Hi Folks:

One things which people do not seem to understand is the "payback percentage". This is the percentage of money, on average, that a machine is programmed to pay back over the long term. In general, the jurisdiction you play slots in has a minimum, by law, that the machine must pay back over the long term. In Ontario, Canada, the OLGC has made it mandatory that no slot machine can pay back less than 85% of the money that comes in.

Since casinos have to be competitive, they do not set all of their games at 85%, otherwise they would lose business to the US, or a destination like Las Vegas.

How does a casino decide on the "payback percentage"? One important way is by the "denomination" being played. If you like "penny slots", the the payback percentage will most likely be the worst (because this is the lowest denomination). If you play one cent and two cent machines long enough, you will notice that you do not win (also called, "hit") as often -- and the large wins are harder to get.

While pennies might pay back 85%, a nickel machine is often set to pay back around 90%.

Many of the multi-line penny machines offer 100 lines ... or a $1 a spin. I see people play 5 pennies on each line, or a $5 total bet per spin. All of this is with the worst possible payback. If you are going to play $5, you are better to play 100 lines with a nickel on each line --- you will have a much better payback percentage, and therefore, over the long term, not deplete your bankroll as quickly.

/\/\/\/\ the Shamus /\/\/\/\

If you read my first tip -- you understand why you need to always play the largest denomination appropriate to your bankroll (eg. if you like playing 9-line machines with 5 nickels on each line ... play 9-lines on a quarter machine instead).

Multi-Demonination Games are interesting because they let you play the game with the denomination you want. Let's say you choose 2 cents per line on a Cleopatra multi-denom machine. If you pick a higher denomination on the same machine, the machine will actually pay back according to a different pre-programmed algorithm.

I see people on multi-denom machines foolishly maximizing their bets on low denominations, instead of making a minimum bet at a higher denomination -- and taking advantage of the programming in the machine which pay back more (over the long run).

I am not suggesting you bet more overall -- I am merely suggesting you choose the highest denomination for the total wager you want to make. one last example ... if you always play TEXAS TEA for 5-cents on a multi-denom machine -- and you like to best 2 credits per line for a total of 90 cents (that's 9-lines x 5 cents x 2 line bet) ... you are better to play dimes ... where you bet the same 90 cents -- but have a better chance of winning (that's 9-lines x 10 cents x 1 line bet).

Although the payback percentage may not sound much different, it can make a profound difference.

/\/\/\/\ the Shamus /\/\/\/\

I see lots of people who still do not use a players card. Whether it is the WAMPUN REWARDS at Foxwoods Casino (Conneticut) to the Winner's Circle program run by the racetrack slots in Ontario, Canada ... the Players Card allows you to earn some comps. In many jurisdictions, you can get meal comps, prizes, free or valet parking or Cash Back. While it does take a fair amount of play to get anything substantial, the casino is offering it ... and you should take it. The performance of the machine is in **NO WAY** linked to your card. So ... all of you superstitious people are losing out on the only thing you might get from the casino when your winning is done.

There are also special promotions you might get -- such as free rooms, free dinner offers. The Fallsview casino has been offering free tickets to big name shows in order to attact patrons to the casino. It's a great deal (particularly if you have a winning session at the casino).

Fallsview also sends promotions for extra cash back, and special incentives on your birthday.

/\/\/\/\ the Shamus /\/\/\/\

Traditional slot advice suggested you should maximize your bet. In the days of single-line slots, this was sound advice. With multi-line machines featuring 9,15, 20, 25, 30, 40 and 100 line configurations -- betting the maximum is not an advantage.

First ... make sure you understand what it take to trigger the bonus round. There are two very popular ways bonus rounds are ofter triggered:

- Payline -- These are the bonus rounds where you need 3 or more symbols on one of the paylines you are playing. If you are playing a 15-line machine, but you are only covering 10 lines ... you might miss out on some of the bonuses you could have had. I see some people play 9-lines with 2 coins per line on a 15-line machine ... mathematically ... it is not going to make a difference in the payout --- however, you chances of hitting the bonus round are 2/5ths less (or almost half) because you are not betting on 6 of the lines you might receive a bonus on. On the other hand, if you do get the bonus symbols -- it will be twice as much (because the line bet is twice as much).

- Scatter -- This method is triggered when one or more symbols come up and result in a bonus round (scatter is also used on many mchines to provide a fixed payout). When a bonus round is triggered with this method, it doesn't necessarily matter if you covered all of the lines, because you get get the bonus round regardless of which lines you play. For games that result in free spins, only the lines which were played on the initiating spin will have the potential to win (eg. IGT's Cleopatra, WMS's Pegasus, Aristocrat's Sun and Moon, Konomi's Money in the Bank) in the bonus round. For games with regular bonus rounds, the lines played will not matter at all (eg. Konami's Billionaires).

Many games actually have more than one bonus round ... for example, IGT's Texas Tea has both types of bonus within the same game.

There really is no advantage on most multi-line machines for maximizing your bet. For older single line (or sometimes up to 5 lines) games, there is a premium (or a "kicker") for maximizing the bet --- otherwise ... think twice before you do it. If you can afford to maximize, maybe you should think about stepping up to a new denomination (see my TIP # 1 and 2).

/\/\/\/\ the Shamus /\/\/\/\

I don't play slot machines myself, but my wife does. She has no strategy as such but does have a plan - that is to sit in front of it for as long as possible rather than win money.

She will play the smallest amount possible (on multiple lines) to extend the time she plays. She loves the free games because it gives her a few few seconds of play and builds her credit so that she can play longer.

The money isn't as important to her as the time spent enjoying the pixels floating by.

My mother-inlaw has a strange strategy for playing, she will bet 10 credits per line, then 15 then 20 and then back to 10. All night long. She has convinced herself that it helps her win. Personally I think she has been drinking to much of her own bath water.

Craig

Hi Captain Proton:

I agree ... there is no skill ... just best to play the amount you are okay to lose -- and some days you will end up ahead.

/\/\/\/\ the Shamus /\/\/\/\