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Bob Dancer's LV Advisor Column - 8 JAN 2013

#1

The Riv isn't the best run, best maintained, or the best place to gamble around town, but it's hardly the worst. I've always rated it as a larger, slightly more "classier" property than Ellis Island--and even after the EI restaurant was closed down by health inspectors for raunch, it's still doing fine.

Frankly, I'm surprised Shack got caught up in a promotion such as this. Very surprised. Very, very surprised.

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----- Reply message -----From: "Tabbycat"

And that's why the Riv is the runaway success that it is today.

#2

They're amateurs at the Riv for how to scam gamblers. What you do is appoint your know nothing twentysomething son, Benny Binion Behnen, as manager of the Horseshoe. Then put on a big promotion with drawing tickets based on action. Invite all the gamblers up to Benny's Bullpen (the old bingo hall) for the big drawing....and have Behnen's girlfriend win the grand prize.

#3

Rob Singer wrote: Frankly, I'm surprised Shack got caught up in a promotion such as this. Very surprised. Very, very surprised.

A lot of smart players who can evaluate positive EV played this promotion. Nobody questions that Mike Shackleford is both smart and can evaluate positive EV. So what's to be very surprised about? Or rather, very, very surprised about?

Not that it matters, of course, and I don't think I mentioned it in the article, but both Shack and I ended up ahead on this play. And we both have earned Premium cards that are good for the next "semi-juicy" promotion there if and when it comes. So we evaluated it as positive before we played, won playing it, and are set up well for the next promotion. Seems pretty undeniable that that's successful gambling by almost anybody's standards.

Bob

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#4

Mickey wrote: They're amateurs at the Riv for how to scam gamblers.

I don't think the Riviera is scamming players. What they're doing at the Riv is closer to bungling than it is to burgling. Perhaps better described as a lack of competence rather than a lack of integrity. The story Mickey related about the Horseshoe clearly seems the other way round.

Bob

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#5

They're amateurs at the Riv for how to scam gamblers. What you do is appoint
your know nothing twentysomething son, Benny Binion Behnen, as manager of
the Horseshoe. Then put on a big promotion with drawing tickets based on
action. Invite all the gamblers up to Benny's Bullpen (the old bingo hall)
for the big drawing....and have Behnen's girlfriend win the grand prize.

----Many years ago I was on a committee with my local Chamber of Commerce at
the time. The Chamber held an annual festival. The drawing this particular
year for the top prize was a cruise. All members of the Chamber bought
tickets. I think we bought 5 or 10 tickets total. I was the announcer.
The person who pulled the names handed me the winning ticket----a ticket
with my wife's name on it! (She's been my ex-wife now for many years.) But
I decided on stage in front of the entire crowd to forfeit the prize not
wanting anyone to believe anything was "unfair" about the contest. I
believed it was the moral, right thing to do, even though we did not have to
do that. The Chamber was grateful to us and gave us some small token of
their appreciation afterwards---nothing like a cruise---it was basket of
fruit or something like that----and we drew another winner that night. I've
never won another substantial prize in any other contest before or since
then! Such is life.but not everything is "fixed."

Scot

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