--- Someone on llvrenoforum wrote:
This hotel casino is located in an old, rustic historic building
across the highway from the lake. The upstairs lobby area is quite
nice; the downstairs casino area looks like what it probably is, a
converted basement (low ceilings, somewhat tight confines).
Frankly,
it looks a tad run-down to me, but my wife loved it.
Ah, the Tahoe Biltmore brings back some memories. I think it's the
first casino I EVER gambled in. I was in college, so I don't think I
was even 21.
I played some nickel video poker, one nickel at a time. I got dealt
A2345 and didn't hold it, because I was too dumb to know that was a
straight! I did realize it after the fact, but was confused by the
pat hand concept.
I ordered a drink from the cocktail waitress and got a dirty look
when I didn't tip her (or maybe she copped to the fact that I wasn't
21). I didn't know about tipping either. Man, was I dumb.
That same trip, while feasting on a 99-cent breakfast, my then-
boyfriend filled out a Keno ticket and actually won something like
$18. Even the Keno runner was surprised.
Some years later on a ski trip, my husband (Mr. Keno from earlier!)
and I were making our quickie-run to the casinos with some friends,
and we got to discussing how all the games are fixed so that the
casino always wins. Then someone remembered that some casinos have
poker, where you play against other players, rather than the house,
and that led to my husband experimenting with poker at Circus Circus
Reno.
There were no 7-card stud tables available, so he decided to invest
$40 in Texas Hold'em, a game he had read about in an in-flight
magazine interview with Doyle Brunson. He ended up with the nuts on
the river, but checked it down because he was too dumb to know he had
the best possible hand. Of course he ended up eventually losing
$40. A heavy blow when you're a grad student.
We came home from that ski trip and said, "I think we have a lot to
learn."
Fortunately, that poker adventure coincided with the beginnings of
the Internet and we had grad student computer privileges, so we
started playing poker for playmoney on IRC.
We shortly learned that there were OTHER beatable casino games, like
blackjack and video poker. What a revelation! And that you could
STUDY these games, just like you studied any subject in school. We
were both good students in school, so this seemed quite natural. It
was delightful to immediately apply this newfound knowledge, for fun
AND profit!
When you're married to a poor grad student, a free room at the
Flamingo Hilton in Reno is a VERY sweet thing. They had the best
single deck blackjack game then. We also managed to hook up with
some serious advantage blackjack players who were jaded with the
lifestyle, but took vicarious pleasure out of lavishing the comp
bounty on us and watching us slurp it up. We ate like kings.
One magical weekend many years ago at the Reno Hilton:
I get a full house in Double Down Stud (I know, negative EV) and win
tickets to see Splash, which we go see (not that great a show, but
this was back when free stuff meant something!). I cash out +$100 to
the good.
Afterwards, Itzhak Perlman is playing craps, so we make some pass
line bets so we can say we played craps with Itzhak Perlman.
I win $60 playing blackjack.
Husband wins 3rd place in a minor poker tournament and fills out
first W2-G.
The guy who knocked him out of the tournament and wins 1st goes from
being an acquaintance to a friend, as he takes us for a ride in his
airplane over Lake Tahoe. (The guy is still a good friend and most
recently bought us a meal at Wild Alaskan in Reno. Yeah, I'm still a
mooch. But he insisted on paying!)
Now that my husband and I both earn decent livings, we don't enjoy
the free stuff quite as much (well, except maybe when that poker
player is paying :^). But looking back on the old Tahoe Biltmore,
and thinking about those old Reno casinos helps me appreciate it all
again. Remember when it was just SO exciting to win $60? Okay, I
still get excited about that, but back then, $60 was twelve meals at
the student union!
I'd be interested in hearing how other people on this list got into
video poker. Did you stumble into it? Did you know what the heck
you were doing the first time you played? Before the Internet came
along, information on advantage play wasn't readily available. Back
in the day, I remember making a point of stopping by the Gambler's
Bookstore in Reno to get the latest literature. (By the way, I
looked for the Gambler's Bookstore the last time I was in Reno and
couldn't find it. Is it no more?)
Thanks for reminiscing with me!
Connie