OT -- 2 million dollar loss and some advice.

Bill Martino

Bill Martino

Joined
Mar 5, 1999
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I was out at the Nugget last week playing 5 cent video poker and drinking Heineken. Nearby a Mexican fellow was playing a Quartermania slot machine. For those not familiar with Nevada slot terminology this is what we call a "progressive" machine. Quartermania slots are wired together on a statewide basis and the jackpot builds until somebody lines up all four of the required symbols -- very difficult to to -- it will build for months and is now at 2.6 million dollars.

To win the big jackpot you must play two coins but you have a choice. You can play one coin or two. If you play only one coin you CAN'T get the superjackpot. If you line up all the symbols you get 5000 coins. If you play two coins and line up all the symbols you get the super jackpot.

This Mexican fellow made the mistake of a lifetime. He played one quarter and lined up all the symbols. His take was $1250. If he'd played two quarters his take would have been two million bucks. He went insane and wanted to fight with casino personnel. Security had to carry him away. Bad scene.

Two possibilities: One, the Mexican didn't understand the game. Rule one: If you don't understand the game don't play.

Second possibility: He understood and ELECTED to play only one coin. Rule two: When playing any coin operated gambling device in Nevada ALWAYS bet max coins lest you suffer the same fate as this poor Mexican fellow.

I knew another guy, change person, who made the same mistake -- saved a quarter and lost 1.5 million -- and it put him in the hospital with a nervous breakdown.

Our own Pala made a similar mistake but not as bad. He played one coin and won $800. If he'd played two coins he'd have won $50,000.

Makes you sick doesn't it?

Free advice from old Uncle Bill.
 
:eek: Thats what I should do.

Go to Navada and play the slots for college money!!! :rolleyes: :p

Of course I would probably stop by your place, Uncle, and lose it all again. :( ;)
 
Uncle,

I hate to say it, but I've been there, lived that one :( Back in '91 I bet one dollar instead of five on the giant slot machine at a now closed casino in Deadwood... outcome, $250 (I was rich!)... then I remembered I ALMOST hit the bet $5 button. I would have had about $25000... oh well.

I was still happy. The $250 fed me and got me some new tshirts at the Sturgis Rally (it was my first day of leave before the Rally started that year)

I don't play the slots anymore. ;)

I remember another time when the slots first opened in DW, every casino was giving away a car of some sort on their $1 slot jackpots... A tourist didn't read the instructions right (see your rule #1) and didn't play all three $1s allowed. He lined them up for a jackpot and went crazy, until the casino manager had to tell him he didn't win the Caddy in the window... about the same outcome if I remember... security, hurt feelings, fight...
 
I'm afraid to do anything but make the max bet because I know I'd go completely insane if something like that happened to me.

I still remember just like it was yesterday when one of the founders of Pizza Hut (he was just 19 at the time -- later became sec.-treas. of Pizza Hut Corp.) tried to get me to buy the number two Pizza Hut in the world (a failed laundromat made of cement bricks at the corner of Harry and Oliver in Wichita converted to a Pizza Hut) for $1600 and I turned it down.
 
Originally posted by Bill Martino
... . tried to get me to buy the number two Pizza Hut in the world (a failed laundromat made of cement bricks at the corner of Harry and Oliver in Wichita converted to a Pizza Hut) for $1600 and I turned it down.
Click to expand...


That would tend to haunt me too :eek: Hindsight is always 20/20, unless you drink a lot to try and forget :D


Dave,

Skip the slots... take your student loan (or whatever) and buy SCRATCH TICKETS! It'll save you the drive... :D:D:D
 
Probably the biggest financial mistake of my life, Alan. I think about it but don't necessarily regret it. I'd probably have been dead long ago if I'd gone that route and had become wealthy.

Here's a little story to ponder.

The kid who made me the offer was wealthy by the time he was 30 and devoted his life to playing golf. He was struck and killed by lightning on a golf course in Wichita when one of those Kansas thunderstorms came rolling thru. He was about 35. See what I mean? If the kid had not become rich and was still having to work for his keep he'd probably be alive today. He was 5 or 6 years younger than me.

Karma works in strange ways.
 
Originally posted by Bill Martino
. See what I mean? If the kid had not become rich and was still having to work for his keep he'd probably be alive today. He was 5 or 6 years younger than me.

Karma works in strange ways.
Click to expand...

I agree, there is no reason to worry about what might have been. Especially when there are so many new things down the road that you'll have a chance to do/mess up. You can only learn from your past mistakes (be quite Wal :p).

I've witnessed one those Wichita t-storms. Scary :eek:, I woke up on the floor of my motel room once after a lightning strike out in the parkinglot... called my buddy in the room next door... he was UNDER his bed!
 
They are scary and out of them sometimes comes an F-5 tornado like the one that took out Udall, Ks in 1955. For pix do a search on Udall, KS.
 
On the other hand going through a heartbreaking experience you wouldn't choose to do for a million dollars can sometimes bring wisdom and compassion that let you help others and a peace and joy you wouldn't trade for 10 million. ( But you still wouldn't go through that meat grinder again for 20 million. )
 
I would like to add to Bill's advice:
If you want to gamble, learn to laugh over your losses.
That way, you will live to a ripe old age. And money won't bother you much for the rest of your happy life.
 
Good advice from Uncle Bill as usual.

A little story.

The Australian Billionaire Kerry Packer was playing cards in a casino in Las Vegas and had gathered his usual crowd of admirers, ( Packer is a one of the elite big time gamblers ), when a Texas oil millionaire took some offence.
The Texan, who didn't know who Packer was, and wanted to know why he should be gathering such attention, sauntered on over to Packer's table and asked Packer why he was such a big deal.
Packer looked over at the Texan and asked him how much he was worth. The Texan replied $800 million. Packer offered him a bet. One coin, heads or tails, for $800 million. Not surprisingly, the Texan declined.
A true story as told by the guy who they based the film 'Casino' on.

While you have to admire Packer's fearless attitude, ( he has been know to win or loose £15 million in a night ), you've got to credit the Texan for knowing when he had reached his limit. Packer could afford the bet and still would have been a rich man. The Texan would have been busted if he'd lost.

Which takes us nicely back to Uncle Bill's point about not playing the game unless you understand it.
 
In Nevada high rollers such as Packer receive better treatment than the Queen of England. Reno does not have nearly the number of high rollers that Vegas gets but the Peppermill, for example, keeps a couple of $8000 per night suites for them equipped with butler, cooks, and anything else they might want along with a limo, driver and personal attendant. All this for "free", of course.

Just one time it might be fun.
 
If you're going to play, playing for maximum coin is always good advice. My best wins to date were when I did exactly that.

The only thing I can add--again, IF you're going to play--is to try & get a machine on a major aisle. I mean one that has a lot of foot traffic. This (so I've read, anyway) is supposed to be where the loosest machines are so that others see you winning and will be convinced to try themselves. From my experience, this has borne out.
 
Good advice Uncle Bill:)

I went to the grocery store earlier after reading this and bought my first ever "scratch ticket" with a max prize of $5000. I lost, but before I played I read the directions-----TWICE:D


The ONLY thing worse than making a blunder like pala and the mexican guy, is having been warned first and THEN doing it anyway!:D ;)
 
I remember the advice that an old time "ramblin' gamblin' man" gave me at the very first trip I ever made to the horse races as a young feller...

The old-timer told me to keep my betting money (read: what I could afford to lose) in one pocket of my Levi jacket and my winnings in another...and no matter what happened to NEVER bet out of the winnings pocket. Keep at it till the my betting money was all gone or the races were over, and I would probably end up with enough in my pockets to call it a good day. It worked for me that night and more than once since... :)
 
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