No stranger to the workings of Vegas, Alex Conran shows you the best ways to blag some Vegas comps this summer.
I had never been to Las Vegas until we went to shoot The Real Hustle there in 2007. We were there for almost three months and had the most amazing, if not the most conventional, stay. When does a trip to Vegas entail switching a blackjack shoe in a casino, stealing a Porsche GT3 and making off with thousands of dollars worth of jewelry whilst pretending to be a high rolling Sheikh at the Mandalay Bay?
For all you poker players who have not been to Vegas, all I can say is that you have not experienced the game in its full glory. I am not talking about playing in the World Series (although that’s obviously reason to go), but just playing in any one of the hundreds of poker rooms in town. It’s there that the game really comes into its own. The poker talk from the locals, the way the dealers interact with the players, the sound of the slot machines combined with the clacking of chips, all of these assaults on the senses produce that ‘authentic’ poker experience. After all poker is an all American game, so what is more appropriate than playing in Vegas on a table with a man called Hank wearing a cowboy hat and a dealer named Chip?
On a day off between filming, I decided to visit the cardroom at the Sahara, a quieter, less-intimidating room than the Bellagio or the big hotels. The people there were the real deal, mostly locals, and the only game that was going at the time was $2-$4 Pot Limit Hold’em. Buying in for $100 I flopped an ace-high straight on my first hand, getting handsomely paid in the process. My second hand and I hit a Royal Flush on the turn! Utter insanity. And I was so preoccupied about learning all the right etiquette and not pissing anyone off that I almost didn't notice. Now, this may have seemed like the most ridiculous luck for a newbie until I discovered that I had chosen to play in the only casino on the Strip that did not have a jackpot for hitting high hands. Being my first time playing in Vegas I didn’t even know there were any jackpots for such things. It wasn’t until the locals all started asking the dealer how much I was due that I realized what was going on. The management came over and apologized for the lack of any prize money saying that they had been hit by four royal flushes in the last two weeks and therefore had suspended all jackpots until further notice. Four royal flushes in two weeks? If I hadn’t known any better I would have thought a dealer had been getting ‘creative’ but four in two weeks was just too risky to be a scam. A week later I found out that had I hit the same hand at Planet Hollywood I would have made just under $1,300.
So here’s my tip to all you newbies out there planning on visiting Vegas for some authentic poker playing - do your research and play in a casino that has decent jackpots. You never know when Lady Luck will decide to sit on your lap.
THE BLAGGERS’ GUIDE TO COMPS
There are a lot of myths surrounding the art of blagging comps (freebies, room upgrades, show tickets, meal vouchers, and more) from casinos. Let me start by explaining that blagging is by no means an exact science nor does it have anything to do with hustling. When you’re hustling you’re trying to get one over on your victim by illicit means. When you’re blagging it’s all about pushing your luck by being charming or sometimes downright pushy. Blagging is all about making people like you, playing the odds and using tiny pieces of information to your advantage. Here are my top tips for getting comped in Vegas.
1 – JOIN THE CLUB
Getting comped in Vegas is largely dependent on how much time and, most importantly, how much money you spend on gambling. It is said that a casino is generally willing to give back 20 to 40 percent of your theoretical loss. The way casinos track this loss is by using Players’ Club Cards. So if you’re looking to get comped, joining the casino’s Players’ Club should be your first priority. Every time you gamble you should use this card; it will track the amounts you wagered and the time you spent gambling.
2 – LOOK SHARP
Wear a suit, nice shoes and an expensive-looking watch - it’s all about the image. This doesn’t mean that you have to spend serious money, just make whatever you can afford look sharp. Remember you will only be comped if you look the part. No one will comp you show tickets if you’re in your flip-flops and shorts unless you’ve dropped a serious amount of money at the casino.
3 – A VITAL TIP
Tipping the dealers and the pit bosses can go a long way. Even though some casinos no longer allow pit bosses to give out comps, they are still your first port of call at getting noticed by the casino and they do have the power to recommend a comp on your behalf. I have been told that asking to see the casino host where you are staying can also be helpful. It is their job to retain players for the casino and get players to come back for future visits. They have the authority to dish out comps such as room upgrades and restaurant vouchers, but again this will rely on how much you are willing to gamble.
4 – MAKING THE GRADE
When it comes to room upgrades it is a bit of a lottery but there are one or two things that can improve your chances. Booking your room directly with the hotel is a good start, even though you can get incredible deals through sites like Hotwire.Com, hotels lose a lot of money when taking bookings via third parties and therefore would be less willing to give you an even better deal. Also try checking in between the hours 4pm-7pm. This is when all the housekeeping has been done and all the suites are ready. Arrive too early and even if they want to bump you the rooms won’t be ready; arrive too late and there will be no fancy rooms left.
5 – GET INVOLVED
Try and do everything in the casino you are staying in. Gamble, shop, eat there and charge everything to your room. At the end of your stay you will have one big bill and if you’ve joined the Players’ Club you will stand a chance of getting some money off the total.
6 – JUST ASK
Finally the most important thing to remember when it comes to comps is to simply to ask for one; only high rollers get comps offered to them. A good tip is to ask when you’re winning. Casinos like to keep winners in the casino for as long as it takes for them to get their money back.
Remember none of these tips are guaranteed winners but they might give you that slight edge in getting a freebie. So, get yourselves out there, have fun, be lucky and if you get something on the house my cut is 10%! |
