My first visit to a Casino.......

I have just been to a Casino for the first time in my life.
There was an opening of a new casino in Malta today and my girlfriend was performing for the occasion and asked me to go along.

So i thought that while i was there i might aswell play a bit. I knew how to play blackjack from playing between friends every Thursday night but we usually bet about $0.50 - $1 and i was good at it.
So i decided to sit on a Blackjack table and test my skill. but in this casino the minimum bet was of $6 for every hand and needless to say after two hours i had lost $60 at which point i stopped.

I now realize that i could have bought a nice light with those $60. what a waste.
But i got a bit of consolation when the other ppl on the table told me they had lost $1500 in a shorter time
They could have just given me the money so that i could buy a nice big laser that i need for my holography

Anyway, i guess gambling is not worth it.

I recall reading a Richard Feynman book (physics Nobel prize) about his life, he wrote that he also wanted to be legal age to visit the casino for the first time. The day finally arrived and as you, he loss all the money AND the pocket change

His conclusion was: Imagine if instead of losing that day I had win, now instead of a nobel laureate I would be a gambler...

Great mind!


Pablo

We have a family tradition of my parents, my inlaws and my wife and I going up to a casino for a long weekend to celebrate my mothers birthday Mar26, My wife and my anniversary Mar.27, and my MOther in laws birthday Mar 28.

One thing you have to do is take no money you cannot afford to lose. And stop if you lose it. Second is to know when to walk away, and LEARN how to play the right way. Yes, the house still has the odds, but you can by playing smart minimize those odds. But never stay with a hot dealer, you will go broke fast, it was funny but oh so true with Chevy Chase in Vegas Vacation.

All I usually play is blackjack and in 10 years <knock on wood> I have yet to come away with less than I started, in the long run of a weekend. The last three years winnings have bought me a new printer/scanner, a new watch and a watch for my wife, and a new Laptop this year.

But knowing when to walk away when ahead is just as important as walking away when losing.

Like Lee1959 said, "don't ever play with money that you can't afford to lose."
Another saying is "Don't play with scared money" which pretty much means the same thing, if the money is critical for some other purpose, you shouldn't be gambling with it.

And in Las Vegas, almost all of the 21/Blackjack tables on the Strip now carry a $10 minimum.

Also, one last thing, you may want to learn what is commonly called "basic strategy" for playing blackjack in a casino (there are lots of books on the subject,) it may vary quite a bit from how you play it with your friends. There's also the matter of determining house percentages based upon the "rules of the house". There are minor variations that can increase the house advantages more than they appear.

It's pretty hard to win at a casino over the long haul. The odds are always in their favor and eventually they catch up to you. The only time I have ended up winning was once in Atlantic City. We had to catch a bus back to where were staying, which forced me to leave at a predetermined time. Fortunately, I was ahead at that point. If I had had my own car I probably would have stayed long enough to lose the money back.:thumbsdow Don't ever play a game you're unfamiliar with, thinking you will "learn as you play." I lost $1,000 in an hour at a craps table the first time I tried it. Really stupid.

One thing that I think is wrong about casinos, at least in LV, is if you are winning they can just tell you that you can't play there anymore. That is pretty BS. I asked someone about it and they that that is to protect the casinos against cheaters that they can't catch. Excuse me, I guess winning might just as well be illegal.

I visit Las Vegas at least once every two years, more if I can help it. My wife and I both enjoy blackjack.

Some tips:

1) As stated above, start with a budget, for example $100. Once you win a little, put that 100 bones in your pocket. From this point on you are playing with the casino's money.

2) I don't play anything but blackjack, but I usually play single-deck blackjack. This has the advantage that a) the cards are much easier to count and b) the odds are more in your favor if you play alone. Also, single decks are uniformly manual shuffled, don't sit down if there is a machine shuffling (yes I know you cut the deck but I am still skeptical, same reason I refuse to play slots). For some reason I never see anyone at the single-deck table, so it is usually just myself and the dealer.

3) Once you double your money, leave. I don't care if you have hit 10 hands in a row, get up, walk away, and immediately cash in your chips. You may gamble more later, but you are much less likely to lose the whole wad if it is in bill form rather than chips.

4) Good casinos that have single-deck tables: MGM Grand, New York New York, Alladin, New Orleans.

Las Vegas is an extremely fun place to visit, and there is much more to do there than gamble. Off the top of my head, walking the Strip at night you have the Bellagio fountains, the Mirage volcano, the Pirate Ship, the Stratosphere (roller coaster and Big Shot on top of 1000 ft tower), Paris (top of Eiffel tower is awesome view), Margaritaville, Harley Davidson restaurant, etc....

Plus dozens more casinos, shops, and activities. Water world is excellent during a hot day (make sure you use valet parking at the nearby Sahara casino, is free vs charge at WW), and a visit to Fremont Street to see the lighted overhead and listen to very good musicians playing live.

And that doesn't even take into account the dozens of shows, concerts, comedy tours, and even wild animals.

Guess I like Vegas, huh....

Check it out, you will find something you like....

dragoman

I thought all of the casinos were only using multiple decks for blackjack. Why would anyone play at a table using multi-decks if single deck games are available?

The casino is always a backup plan if long weekend weather isn't great, Niagara Falls is only 1 hour away. My first ever visit was to Casino de Montreal (former Expo '67 French pavillion) and I learned my lesson well by loosing all my long weekend money on Friday night playing blackjack. Ever since then, I've been strictly a spectator and you'll find me in the bar or restaurant instead.

Never been to LV, but I'd love to check out the restaurants I keep hearing about!

I always play with a budget, even when we play with friends we always have a budget of $10, it might sound like a silly amount but that way we save ourselves the gambling addiction, besides gambling is not the reason we meet. The aim is to meet with friends on a regular basis and find something fun to do while we are together.
My budget for the night was $60 and that is all i spent. i would have stopped if i managed to double it, i would even have pocketed the original $60 if i had won enough to keep on playing with the casino's money. but unfortunately the game was not good to me and i just won one hand and lost the next and kept on going like that for about two hours. i then decided to start betting larger amounts and lost every hand till i ended up with nothing.
I guess i was just unlucky, unlike the guy sitting next to me who was getting loads of blackjacks and winning in succession ( at least on this table. he ad lost a lot on other tables ).

Anyway, it will be a while before i go to another Casino.

The first time I've ever been to a casino I played with all the money I had. Which was about $2, though I did win $8 or so bucks and spent that too