The legacy of The Gambler
Dear Mark,
In past columns, you've stated the benefits of playing slots
that advertise returns of 98.5% versus machines that pay back
93%. Come on, Mark, we're talking just a few dollars difference.
What's the big deal? Noreen D.
The "big deal" is that the casino knows the average
Joe and Josephine don't play through their money just once
but keeps playing their tray (credit) return over and over
again during the course of their stay. That's why finding
higher payback machines is so important. Example: On a 93%
return machine if you were to play your entire $100, you can
expect back, "in theory," $93. Of course, the casino
anticipates your playing the $93, so expect a return of $86.
Put in the $86, and your return will be $80. Play through
the $80, get back, $74. Can you see, Noreen, how the casino
is grinding away at your crispy Ben Franklin?
Now, using the same example on a machine returning 98.5%,
put in $100 and get back $98.50. Play that, and you'll get
$97 back. Put in the $97, expect a return of $95.
Of course this is all based on a pre-programmed computer chip
in the slot, but see how much better it is to play the higher
payback machines? It keeps you in action much longer, long
enough possibly to hit a decent jackpot.
Dear Mark,
Were you surprised when the Navajo Indians recently voted
against casino gambling on their reservation? I thought that
every tribe wants casino gaming. Why didn't the Navajos jump
on the wagon train (pardon the pun). Brady M.
If you believe in the Navajo legend, of The Gambler, you
would know that gambling has a deep cultural resonance for
the Navajo. Their oral tradition has many stories warning
against the dangers of overindulging in gambling. Also, tribal
president Albert Hales opposed the measure because federal
law requires the Navajos to negotiate a casino agreement with
the states. Hale believes that such an agreement erodes the
tribe's status as a sovereign nation.
Plus, the tribe voted against casino gambling on their reservation
just three years ago. So, Brady, for the above reasons, particularly
the traditional myth of an out-of-control gambler who goes
out and wins-and then loses-everything, I was not surprised
by the Navajo's rejection of casino gambling.
As legend has it, the tale begins when the Spirit of the Sun,
a gambler himself, wants a large piece of turquoise held by
a Pueblo tribe. The sun sends his son, The Gambler, to Earth
to wager for the invaluable sea-green stone. The Gambler is
unbeatable.
He wins the rain, snow, plants and flowers, and everything
else in sight, leaving the tribe impoverished. Eventually
The Gambler wins the turquoise but wants to gamble against
his father for it. So the Spirit of the Sun teaches his other
offspring how to gamble and win the turquoise back from his
brother. The second son is victorious and ultimately he shoots
The Gambler into the sky with his large bow.
So, Brady, you decide. Was it being at the states' mercy,
a rebuff three years earlier, or folklore that tells its people
to be very cautious when it comes to gambling? Myself, I believe
in ni'hwiilbiihi, "the one that wins the people."
Dear Mark,
I got into a beef with a pit boss over picking up my pass
line bet after the point was made. Can a pass line bet be
taken off the table once a point has been established? Don
D.
A pass line bet is a contract wager committing your participation
until an eventual outcome. Sorry, Don; it lays, it plays.
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