Marsha wrote:
However, I will say that my results have
greatly improved since I started taking the short-term wins, and
utilizing some of his money management ideas. (Not a way to gain
popularity in this group. 
Marsha
This is my first "Singer" post, and I'm posting it to this group with
a bit of trepidation. But, hey, here goes. Though I am not in
agreement
with his Martingale style of VP gambling, certainly against playing
short-pay machines when better plays are available, and certainly not
a fan of his disdain of the "math gurus", I'm not fond of the venom
coming the other way, either.
In addition, his idea of win goals and loss limits appeal to me.
Before you flame, I understand well the idea of the long-term (I have
read most of the 10K posts in this group) and I agree that getting
up, walking away from X machine, and starting again after an hour
does not change this idea. The long-term is the long-term. I also
understand that, with appropriate *disposable* (key word here)
bankroll, long-term VP is a nice way to get comps and perhaps break
even or come out ahead. That said, I am most certainly under-
bankrolled for long-term play, even at the nickel level - hence all
the posts looking for the best nickel plays. This does not allow me
to play the long daily sessions, even though I'd like to. Thus, I
won't approach long-term, or even a RF cycle, for quite some time. To
date, I've played about 8000 hands in a little under 6 months of
playing VP. Because of this, and because I'll not garner many comps
or cash back by playing this way, it seems appropriate to skew my
play to a more short-term strategy.
After a typical Vegas trip for me - 3 gambling days, maybe 3-4000
hands of VP - I may be up, down, or approximately even. But within
this timeframe, I'll certainly have swings. I like to take advantage
of the upswings when they happen. Thus, if I get to 50% above my
original buy-in, I'll quit with a win and feel good, too. If I lose
half my buy-in, I'll quit too, and I'll be glad not to have lost the
whole thing. In that time, I'll have consumed a few drinks, enjoyed
the casino atmosphere, and not felt like I need to bang away at the
machine quickly to achieve 800 hph, because, dangit, I need to get X
points for the day so I can save X dollars on a room. By using
coupons and internet resources, I save money anyway.
Is this the *correct* way to play? No, of course not. I could easily
lose half my buy-in for every session I play in a trip. Anything can
happen, I realize. The only "right" way to play is to be properly
bankrolled and to disengage oneself thoroughly from the swings. Only
then can you get to the point where approaching the machine ER is
realistic. In my case, though, this works for me. I haven't ever won
a great deal, but, more importantly, I've never had a disastrous
trip. That's what I'm trying to avoid. By using promotions, I've even
gotten some cash-back. That said, I play the best paytables available
and I feel I'm proficient in the games (JoB, DW) that I play. It only
makes sense to be that way.
Thanks, Marsha, for indirectly helping me get this off my chest.
Best of Luck to All,
David
