Now that golf season is over, (I played in two leagues this year) I
can get back to doing some serious gambling work again. Yes, I said
work, for I view gambling as work. It ceased being recreation and fun
after about 1,000 casino visits ago. Oh yes, I do sorta still enjoy
the thrill of winning and the agony of de feet, but it sure ain't
like it was when I first started going to casinos "regularly" back in
the early 90's at Soaring eagle, St. Ignace and Windsor.
The fun started turning to work when I began losing money and started
buying gambling books, studying them, taking notes, buying software,
practicing, and narrowing down the games to the best of the best to
play. Eventually, after getting my butt kicked counting cards and
playing blackjack, (I lost four or five grand) I settled on video
poker as the best game to play and have any chance at staying close
to even-even's great, ain't it-and collecting the casino rewards.
Windsor Casino had the most to offer then and that's where Dolores
and I played almost every week for years. Great free food, free,
great rooms, free gifts, birthday parties, cash backs and bonuses, a
beautiful casino to play and stay in, (loved that waterfall) and a
99.9% percent vp game in Pick'Em Poker in quarter, fifty cent and
dollar. We also found Pick'Em at two casinos up in Sarnia and at
Windsor Race Track up the road from Windsor Casino. It was fun and
exciting times.
Then one by one they started removing the full-pay Pick'Em. Point
Edwards, Hiawatha, Windsor Race Track, Windsor Casino, (except for
the dollar games) and lately, Soaring Eagle, Turtle Creek, Leelanau
Sands and almost anywhere else where it had been.
I was amazed when the new Detroit casinos had Pick'Em in their
inventories, except for Motor City which had some other games that
were almost as good. Then Motor City pulled out most of the games
that paid 99% or better, then MGM pulled the full-pay Pic'Em out
(since replaced on the new funky-looking machines) leaving only
Greektown as the last of the quarter 99.9% machines in the state.
That's why we play there now. A sort of loyalty based on how long
they have offered good vp games to the Michigan vp players.
We were there yesterday and my day went like this:
Put $100 in a quarter Pick'Em machine and lost it! Another $100 in,
gone! Another $100
lost! Another $100 in, and after $50 of that was
lost, I hit five quads over the next two hours for a $400 profit.
Now it doesn't always go that way--I've lost many, many times playing
that game--but this time I got'em.
Terrence "VP Pappy" Murphy
"In the war (and it is a war, although financial) with the casinos,
don't allow them to take you prisoner. You must learn to retreat now
and then when the situation is against you to achieve victory."
--VP Pappy