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| The Basics | 10 ways to stretch your gambling dollar
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Dont blow your bankroll all at once. Here are the best ways to maximize your fun and spend less.
By Bankrate.com
The first thing to know about Jean Scott is that she and her husband stayed 191 nights in casino hotels in Las Vegas one year and never paid for rooms or meals. Everything was complimentary, or "comped," in the lingo of Las Vegas.
The second thing to know about Scott is that she has an obsession with penny-pinching, and she has written the definitive pair of books on how low rollers can stretch their money in Las Vegas and other gambling destinations.
The first book, "The Frugal Gambler," was published in 1998, right around the time Scott and her husband, Brad, were enjoying their half year of free room and board in Vegas. (They still owned a home in Indianapolis at the time.) Among other things, "The Frugal Gambler" lists seven myths about casinos (No. 1: "The casino will always make a big effort to get your business"); tells how to request comps (complimentary items such as rooms, meals and tickets); and explains how to get bumped from your airline flight profitably.
That last item is a big one; Scott will go out of her way to get bumped from a flight, and as she tours the country to promote her recently published sequel, "More Frugal Gambling," it pains her to travel on a tight schedule.
"Once in a while I have a timetable where I'm going to speak and I can't take a bump," she says. "Nothing breaks my heart more than that."
Here are Scott's best tips on saving money while in Las Vegas.
Study before you go.
Libraries and bookstores have oodles of casino and gambling books that will guide you on a money-saving path. The Internet is full of information on the various casino games. Learn which games have the smallest casino edge, or have a skill factor you could learn, or that enable you to risk your money more slowly. All of these will allow you to lose less and/or stretch your bankroll further.
Budget, budget, budget
Treat gambling as a form of entertainment and budget it just as you would whatever else you do for fun, such as movies, eating out, vacations. Nothing takes away the fun factor more quickly than losing money that you need for life's essentials. Do not take your checkbook or ATM or credit card to the casino with you. Decide how much you can afford to spend (lose), and take that amount in cash or safe traveler's checks as your gambling bankroll.
Make your bankroll last the whole time you plan to be in a casino by dividing it into segments, i.e., in thirds if you are staying three days, in three-to-four session bankrolls for each day. Then never "borrow ahead" from the next sessions bankroll.
Join the club
Join every casino player's club you can, even if you don't plan to gamble there. You can join many online before you get to Vegas. Membership is free and many casinos give discounts to cardholders in their restaurants, gift shops and for rooms.
Use your card
Use your player's card EVERY TIME you play, no matter how small the dollar amount or short the time. This allows the casino to track your play and thus know how much to reward you with comps -- those freebie meals, rooms, shows and other benefits that the casinos want to give their players. If you play machines, there is a place for you to insert your card. If you play the tables, you merely hand the card to the dealer of any game and ask that your play be tracked. Casinos cannot give you comps if they don't know you are playing there.
An added benefit of joining and using a player's card is that casinos often send mail offers to everyone in their database, sometimes even to those who have played little or not at all. You will be surprised at the money-saving offers that will appear in your mailbox when you get home.
Watch the booze
Don't drink too much alcohol, even if the drinks are free. It will cloud your judgment.
Losing quickly? Decrease your bets
If you are losing too fast, go down in denomination. Change from the dollar slots to quarters or from quarters to nickels. At the tables, bet the lowest-value chip allowed.
Pace yourself
Slow down your play -- savor the noisy, fun-filled atmosphere. The bells and whistles, the clanking coins, the high fives at the tables, the excited screams of winners -- this is what makes the casino such an entertaining experience.
Hunt down discounts
Look for coupons and specials for discounted meals, shows and sightseeing tours. You can find many of these in the freebie magazines around town: at the bell desk, at rental car agencies and motels, at the airport and right in your room. Read the marquees for menu specials.
Watch for gaming freebies
Look for promotions that will add value to a game:- bonus players club points, like double points on holidays or on a certain day every week
- bonuses for certain events, like the top jackpot on slots, a certain quad in video poker or a special hand in blackjack
- drawings for which you can earn tickets by playing your favorite game.
Take a breather
Make your bankroll last longer by taking frequent non-gambling breaks. Take in a show, go sightseeing, have a long, leisurely meal, take a tour or go shopping. Get your proper rest. A tired gambler is a gambler who will make decisions he will regret. Get a full night's sleep and take a nap, if possible. Gambling is hard work!
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